A Study on Pile Forces of a Pile Group in Layered Soil Under Seismic Loadings

Characteristics of pile forces under seismic loadings are discussed from view points of the inertial interaction due to the mass effect of a superstructure and the kinematic interaction due to the resistance effect of piles against soil motions. A typical building supported on a pile group embedded in a layered soil, which has two- and four layer profiles, is chosen for studying the pile forces which imply the shearing force and bending moment. The earthquake response analysis is performed in accordance with the substructure method, in which the group effect of piles in the layered soil is appropriately included by using the Green\u27s function derived from the thin layer formulation. The resulting pile forces are compared with those by the static analysis of a single pile applying the base shear force at the pile head. These numerical examples indicate that the kinematic interaction effect on pile forces should be properly considered in the seismic design of pile foundations

Navigation Method Enhancing Music Listening Experience by Stimulating Both Neck Sides with Modulated Music Vibration

We propose a method that stimulates music vibration (generated from and synchronized with musical signals), modulated by the direction and distance to the target, on both sides of a user's neck with Hapbeat, a necklace-type haptic device. We conducted three experiments to confirm that the proposed method can achieve both haptic navigation and enhance the music listening experience. Experiment 1 consisted of conducting a questionnaire survey to examine the effect of stimulating music vibrations. Experiment 2 evaluated the accuracy (deg) of users' ability to adjust their direction toward a target using the proposed method. Experiment 3 examined the ability of four different navigation methods by performing navigation tasks in a virtual environment. The results of the experiments showed that stimulating music vibration enhanced the music listening experience, and that the proposed method is able to provide sufficient information to guide the users: accuracy in identifying directions was about 20\textdegree, participants reached the target in all navigation tasks, and in about 80\% of all trials participants reached the target using the shortest route. Furthermore, the proposed method succeeded in conveying distance information, and Hapbeat can be combined with conventional navigation methods without interfering with music listening.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figure

On weak solutions to a fractional Hardy-H\'enon equation: Part II: Existence

This paper and [29] treat the existence and nonexistence of stable weak solutions to a fractional Hardy--H\'enon equation $(-\Delta)^s u = |x|^\ell |u|^{p-1} u$ in $\mathbb{R}^N$, where $0 -2s$, $p>1$, $N \geq 1$ and $N > 2s$. In this paper, when $p$ is critical or supercritical in the sense of the Joseph--Lundgren, we prove the existence of a family of positive radial stable solutions, which satisfies the separation property. We also show the multiple existence of the Joseph--Lundgren critical exponent for some $\ell \in (0,\infty)$ and $s \in (0,1)$, and this property does not hold in the case $s=1$.Comment: 52 page

Integration of Independent Heat Transfer Mechanisms for Non-Contact Cold Sensation Presentation With Low Residual Heat

Thermal sensation is crucial to enhancing our comprehension of the world and enhancing our ability to interact with it. Therefore, the development of thermal sensation presentation technologies holds significant potential, providing a novel method of interaction. Traditional technologies often leave residual heat in the system or the skin, affecting subsequent presentations. Our study focuses on presenting thermal sensations with low residual heat, especially cold sensations. To mitigate the impact of residual heat in the presentation system, we opted for a non-contact method, and to address the influence of residual heat on the skin, we present thermal sensations without significantly altering skin temperature. Specifically, we integrated two highly responsive and independent heat transfer mechanisms: convection via cold air and radiation via visible light, providing non-contact thermal stimuli. By rapidly alternating between perceptible decreases and imperceptible increases in temperature on the same skin area, we maintained near-constant skin temperature while presenting continuous cold sensations. In our experiments involving 15 participants, we observed that when the cooling rate was -0.2 to -0.24 degree celsius per second and the cooling time ratio was 30 to 50 %, more than 86.67 % of the participants perceived only persistent cold without any warmth