Spinal myoclonus following a peripheral nerve injury: a case report

Spinal myoclonus is a rare disorder characterized by myoclonic movements in muscles that originate from several segments of the spinal cord and usually associated with laminectomy, spinal cord injury, post-operative, lumbosacral radiculopathy, spinal extradural block, myelopathy due to demyelination, cervical spondylosis and many other diseases. On rare occasions, it can originate from the peripheral nerve lesions and be mistaken for peripheral myoclonus. Careful history taking and electrophysiological evaluation is important in differential diagnosis

Integrated motor drives: state of the art and future trends

With increased need for high power density, high efficiency and high temperature capabilities in Aerospace and Automotive applications, Integrated Motor Drives (IMD) offers a potential solution. However, close physical integration of the converter and the machine may also lead to an increase in components temperature. This requires careful mechanical, structural and thermal analysis; and design of the IMD system. This paper reviews existing IMD technologies and their thermal effects on the IMD system. The effects of the power electronics (PE) position on the IMD system and its respective thermal management concepts are also investigated. The challenges faced in designing and manufacturing of an IMD along with the mechanical and structural impacts of close physical integration is also discussed and potential solutions are provided. Potential converter topologies for an IMD like the Matrix converter, 2-level Bridge, 3-level NPC and Multiphase full bridge converters are also reviewed. Wide band gap devices like SiC and GaN and their packaging in power modules for IMDs are also discussed. Power modules components and packaging technologies are also presented

Absorber Materials at Room and Cryogenic Temperatures

We recently reported on investigations of RF absorber materials at cryogenic temperatures conducted at Jefferson Laboratory (JLab). The work was initiated to find a replacement material for the 2 Kelvin low power waveguide Higher Order Mode (HOM) absorbers employed within the original cavity cryomodules of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF). This effort eventually led to suitable candidates as reported in this paper. Furthermore, though constrained by small funds for labor and resources, we have analyzed a variety of lossy ceramic materials, several of which could be usable as HOM absorbers for both normal conducting and superconducting RF structures, e.g. as loads in cavity waveguides and beam tubes either at room or cryogenic temperatures and, depending on cooling measures, low to high operational power levels

Improved Reliability of SiC Pressure Sensors for Long Term High Temperature Applications

We report advancement in the reliability of silicon carbide pressure sensors operating at 600 C for extended periods. The large temporal drifts in zero pressure offset voltage at 600 C observed previously were significantly suppressed to allow improved reliable operation. This improvement was the result of further enhancement of the electrical and mechanical integrity of the bondpad/contact metallization, and the introduction of studded bump bonding on the pad. The stud bump contact promoted strong adhesion between the Au bond pad and the Au die-attach. The changes in the zero offset voltage and bridge resistance over time at temperature were explained by the microstructure and phase changes within the contact metallization, that were analyzed with Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM)

Reorganization of sensorimotor gating after peripheral facial palsy starts at brainstem

Background and objective: We aimed to analyze the alterations in sensorimotor gating at brainstem after peripheral facial palsy (PFP). To examine sensorimotor gating, we used prepulse modulation (PPM) of blink reflex (BR). We also recorded BR recovery to identify excitability changes in the facial nucleus

The influence of age in peripheral facial palsy on brainstem reflex excitability

Background: Neuronal plasticity is expected to be different at different ages and adaptive changes developing after peripheral facial palsy (PFP) may provide a clue in this respect. Aims: To investigate the difference in the reorganization developing after facial nerve damage between patients who developed PFP at childhood-youth and middle-old age. Patients and methods: Twenty-two patients were divided into two groups according to the age-at-onset of PFP; young (PFP 1), and elderly (PFP 2). Two age-matched control groups (C 1 and C 2) comprised of 32 healthy subjects were included in the study. The latency, R2 area, and recovery of the R2 area of the blink reflex were investigated. Statistical analysis : anova and Bonferroni tests were used. Results: The R2 areas were significantly greater on the intact side of the PFP 1 group as compared to that in the control group ( P =0.012). The recovery of R2 component was significantly enhanced on the symptomatic ( P =0.027), and intact ( P =0.041) sides in PFP 1 as compared to that in the C 2 group at the stimulus interval of 600 ms. Significant enhanced recovery was noted at 200 ms stimulus interval on the symptomatic side of the two PFP groups (PFP 1, P =0.05 and PFP 2, P =0.025) and on the intact side of the PFP 1 group ( P =0.035) as compared to that in the control groups. Conclusion : Young age-at-onset of PFP is associated with more prominent excitability changes developing at the neuronal and interneuronal level

Minimization of Battery Pack Imbalance of Electric Vehicles Using Optimized Balancing Parameters

2019 Electric Vehicles International Conference, EV 2019 --3 October 2019 through 4 October 2019 -- --Battery, one of the key components of developing electric vehicle (EV) technology, has a great significance in the adoption of EVs. The battery packs consist of several cells connected in series and parallel according to the operating voltage and required capacity. Imbalances between serially connected cells are frequently encountered, although cell balancing between parallel connected cells is not a common concern. Batteries are often equipped with balancing systems to prevent the imbalances, which reduces the available capacity and lifetime of the battery. This paper presents a comparative analysis for passive balancing method by considering Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA) to acquire the optimal timing of enabling/disabling the balancing current to minimize imbalance of cells of the EV battery. In order to perform the balancing operation, the cell voltages are continuously monitored by the controller unit. Cells with lower voltages are detected evaluating the average voltage of the cells, balancing resistor switches of the rest are operated. In the optimal timing of enabling/disabling the balancing current, the minimum imbalance is determined as the cost function for PSO and GA. In the proposed study, a battery pack consisting of 16 series cells is modeled by using MATLAB/Simulink. The nominal capacity and voltage of each cell are 108 Ah and 3.7 V, respectively. The performance of the proposed system is validated. © 2019 IEEE

An unusual case of vascular loop syndrome

Coexistence of hemifacial spasm (HFS) and trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is a rare entity known as painful tic convulsif (PTC). Here, we present a case of right-sided HFS after which left TN developed, which is an unusual form of PTC. Both disorders were caused by bilateral vascular compression of the cranial nerves and successfully treated with botulinum toxin and carbamazepine. As PTC is benign in nature and can be treated with botulinum toxin, neuroradiological investigations should be performed for an accurate aetiological diagnosis, particularly in young patients with atypical disease manifestations