Superelastic SMA Belleville washers for seismic resisting applications: experimental study and modelling strategy

This study sheds considerable light on the potential of superelastic shape memory alloy Belleville washers for innovative seismic resisting applications. A series of experimental studies were conducted on washers with different stack combinations under varying temperatures and loading scenarios. The washers showed satisfactory self-centring and energy dissipation capacities at room temperature, although slight degradations of the hysteretic responses accompanied by residual deformations were induced. The hysteretic loops became stable after a few number of cycles, indicating good repeatability. The washers also showed good flexibility in terms of load resistance and deformation, which could be easily varied via changes in the stack combination. Compromised self-centring responses were observed at temperatures below 0 °C or above 40 °C, and a numerical study, validated by the experimental results, was adopted to further investigate the deformation mechanism of the washers. A further phenomenological model, taking account of the degradation effects under varied temperatures, was developed to enable effective and accurate simulation of devices incorporating the washers. Good agreements were observed between the test and simulation results, and the model was shown to have good numerical robustness for wide engineering applications

Building Ubiquitous Computing Environment by Using RFID in Aircraft MRO Process

The implementation of RFID had aroused discussion in every area. Experts believe that the emergence of RFID will cause another business revolution. Many industries had deployed RFID, like aviation industry, in which RFID is used in maintenance materials and baggage management. This paper discusses the implementation of RFID in MRO process and the building of a ubiquitous computing environment. We believe that our proposal has three merits to MRO (1) anti-counterfeit parts (2) MRO liability (3) efficient and effective inspection. The architecture can address the competition pressure that aviation industry faces and consequently enhance competition advantages

Bevacizumab Dose Affects the Severity of Adverse Events in Gynecologic Malignancies

In this retrospective study, we investigated adverse events and outcomes in patients treated with bevacizumab for ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancers at a single hospital. We determined the cumulative incidences of various bevacizumab-related adverse events and the correlation between dose and adverse event incidences. We analyzed data from 154 patients that received 251 rounds of bevacizumab as first-line, first salvage, >2 salvage treatments. Adverse events of any grade were observed in 121 (78.6%) patients; at least one grade 3 or 4 adverse event occurred in 32 (20.8%) patients. The two most common events were proteinuria (38.3%) and hypertension (33.8%). The first-line treatment group displayed significantly higher frequencies of hypertension (52.7% vs. 18.9% vs. 15.5%, p < 0.001), wound complications (9.1% vs. 0% vs. 1.2%, p = 0.010), arthralgia (29.1% vs. 11.3% vs. 8.3%, p = 0.003), and reduced range of joint motion (14.5% vs. 5.7% vs. 3.6%, p = 0.046), compared to those in the first and >2 lines salvage groups, respectively (Kruskal–Wallis test). The cumulative incidences of all grades and grades 3/4 of hypertension cumulative incidence plateaued at around 30% for all grades and 10% for grades 3 and 4, at bevacizumab doses above 8080 and 3510 mg, respectively. The proteinuria cumulative incidence plateaued at around 35% for all grades and 3% for grades 3 and 4, at bevacizumab doses above 11,190 and 4530 mg, respectively. We concluded that, in this realistic clinical population, different kinds and higher cumulative incidences of adverse events were observed compared to those reported in previous clinical trials. Moreover, bevacizumab doses showed cumulative toxicity and plateau effects on hypertension and proteinuria

Precipitating Ordered Skyrmion Lattices from Helical Spaghetti

Magnetic skyrmions have been the focus of intense research due to their potential applications in ultra-high density data and logic technologies, as well as for the unique physics arising from their antisymmetric exchange term and topological protections. In this work we prepare a chiral jammed state in chemically disordered (Fe, Co)Si consisting of a combination of randomly-oriented magnetic helices, labyrinth domains, rotationally disordered skyrmion lattices and/or isolated skyrmions. Using small angle neutron scattering, (SANS) we demonstrate a symmetry-breaking magnetic field sequence which disentangles the jammed state, resulting in an ordered, oriented skyrmion lattice. The same field sequence was performed on a sample of powdered Cu2OSeO3 and again yields an ordered, oriented skyrmion lattice, despite relatively non-interacting nature of the grains. Micromagnetic simulations confirm the promotion of a preferred skyrmion lattice orientation after field treatment, independent of the initial configuration, suggesting this effect may be universally applicable. Energetics extracted from the simulations suggest that approaching a magnetic hard axis causes the moments to diverge away from the magnetic field, increasing the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya energy, followed subsequently by a lattice re-orientation. The ability to facilitate an emergent ordered magnetic lattice with long-range orientation in a variety of materials despite overwhelming internal disorder enables the study of skyrmions even in imperfect powdered or polycrystalline systems and greatly improves the ability to rapidly screen candidate skyrmion materials

Effects of interventions on trajectories of health-related quality of life among older patients with hip fracture: a prospective randomized controlled trial

Abstract Background Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) has been used to assess subjects’ prognosis and recovery following hip fracture. However, evidence is mixed regarding the effectiveness of interventions to improve HRQoL of elders with hip fracture. The purposes of this study were to identify distinct HRQoL trajectories and to evaluate the effects of two care models on these trajectories over 12 months following hip-fracture surgery. Methods For this secondary analysis, data came from a randomized controlled trial of subjects with hip fracture receiving three treatment care models: interdisciplinary care (n = 97), comprehensive care (n = 91), and usual care (n = 93). Interdisciplinary care consisted of geriatric consultation, discharge planning, and 4 months of in-home rehabilitation. Comprehensive care consisted of interdisciplinary care plus management of malnutrition and depressive symptoms, fall prevention, and 12 months of in-home rehabilitation. Usual care included only in-hospital rehabilitation and occasional discharge planning, without geriatric consultation and in-home rehabilitation. Mental and physical HRQoL were measured at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after discharge by the physical component summary scale (PCS) and mental component summary scale (MCS), respectively, of the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36, Taiwan version. Latent class growth modeling was used to identify PCS and MCS trajectories and to evaluate how they were affected by the interdisciplinary and comprehensive care models. Results We identified three quadratic PCS trajectories: poor PCS (n = 103, 36.6 %), moderate PCS (n = 96, 34.2 %), and good PCS (n = 82, 29.2 %). In contrast, we found three linear MCS trajectories: poor MCS (n = 39, 13.9 %), moderate MCS (n = 84, 29.9 %), and good MCS (n = 158, 56.2 %). Subjects in the comprehensive care and interdisciplinary care groups were more likely to experience a good PCS trajectory (b = 0.99, odds ratio [OR] = 2.69, confidence interval [CI] = 7.24–1.00, p = 0.049, and b = 1.32, OR = 3.75, CI = 10.53–1.33, p = 0.012, respectively) than those who received usual care. However, neither care model improved MCS. Conclusions The interdisciplinary and comprehensive care models improved recovery from hip fracture by increasing subjects’ odds for following a trajectory of good physical functioning after hospitalization. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov ( NCT01350557 )http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/134528/1/12891_2016_Article_958.pd