A Biomimetically Derived Method for Control of Span-Wise Morphing Wings

© 2022 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved. This is the accepted manuscript version of a conference paper which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2022-1986The development of novel morphing wings follows common milestones. This work presents the modelling and control of the recently proposed avian wing span-wise morphing concept. The concept primarily consists of three structural members heavily mimicking the skeletal structure birds employ for flight. This structure is actuated, through the range of motion achievable by avian, with the integration of pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs). Arranged in antagonistic pairs, the PAMs actuate an effective shoulder joint between the aircraft and wing through 90⁰. As well as two joints along the wing through 110⁰, allowing a span-wise reduction of 75% the fully extended span. This adaptive structure is capable of supporting several different aerofoil geometries for application specific aircraft. Initially proposed with a biomimetic derived wing profile more traditional and predictable NACA aerofoils have been applied. In this paper the avian wing span-wise morphing concept is modelled and with the application of inverse kinematics a control system is derived to allow simplified span-length positioning. Similarly, desired wing area is also presented as an input for the system. The model is based on PAM force models to individually model the pneumatic system driving each joint. The mechanical system of each joint is subsequently used to produce a direct kinematic model for wing tip position, and the inverse determined for control. The validity of both the model and system are experimentally tested on a fixed semi-span prototype rig of the morphing concept. Feedback is then introduced. Potentiometers are embedded into each joint to provide joint angle feedback. The tuning of the system is then presented for different dynamic responses. Alongside this development experiments have been conducted into the kinematics avian employ in flight and the flight dynamics they enable. These results are presented and directly applied as parameters for the proposed system. Span morphing retraction and extension rates determined from in vivo flight data of avian, including the Common buzzard (Buteo buteo) and Harris Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus), are achieved using the avian wing span-wise morphing concept and the proposed control system. These dynamics are used to infer the parameters of an aircraft with the concept wing used as control surfaces

The New Minnesotans: Profile of West Central Minnesota

In 2005, The Center for Small towns, together with the University of Minnesota West Central Regional Sustainable Development Partnership, began the New Minnesotans project that aimed to help identify underrepresented racial and ethnic groups who are new residents of West Central Minnesota. The project\u27s goal was to find ways to support the needs of these groups and to encourage their abilities. Twelve counties were involved in the study done for the project: Big Stone,Chippewa, Douglas, Grant, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle, Pope, Renville, Stevens, Swift, Traverse, and Yellow Medicine.https://digitalcommons.morris.umn.edu/cst/1001/thumbnail.jp

The autonomy of public health facilities in decentralised contexts: insights from applying a complexity lens in Kenya

The financing of public health facilities influences their performance. A key feature that defines health facility financing is the degree of financial autonomy. Understanding the factors that influence public health facility financial autonomy is pertinent to developing strategies to addressing challenges that arise from constrained autonomy. In this paper, we apply a complexity lens to draw on a body of research that we have conducted in Kenya over the past decade, from the onset of devolution reforms, to unpack the determinants of public health facility financial autonomy in a context of decentralisation and provide suggestions for pertinent considerations when designing interventions to address financial autonomy challenges. We find that the factors that affect public health facility autonomy are not only structural, but also procedural, and political and interact in complex ways. These factors include; the public finance management (PFM) laws, sense-making by actors in the health system, political interests in control over resources, subnational level PFM capacity, PFM implementation bottlenecks and broader operational autonomy. Drawing from this analysis, we recommend that efforts at resolving public health facility financial autonomy include: PFM capacity development for subnational levels of government in decentralised settings, the use of a political lens that recognises interests and seeks to align incentives in engagement and solution finding for health facility financial autonomy, the audit of PFM processes to establish and resolve implementation bottlenecks that impinge on public health facility autonomy, and the resolution of operational autonomy to as a facilitator of financial autonomy

SMART Vaccines 2.0 decision-support platform : A tool to facilitate and promote priority setting for sustainable vaccination in resource-limited settings

Funding Information: Supported by Gavi and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a number of international organisations have offered capacity-building support to establish NITAGs. While greater emphasis was initially placed on fulfilling process indicators for establishing NITAGs, more recent efforts have sought to advance functional capabilities associated with EIDM, most notably by Agence de Médecine Préventive (AMP), the International Vaccine Institute and The Sabin Vaccine Institute.13 14 These programmes have additionally leveraged technical assistance from WHO and its regional offices, PATH and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.15 16 Funding Information: The UNITAG sought technical assistance from AMP’s Supporting Independent Vaccine Advisory Committees (SIVAC) Initiative,14and engaged in piloting the SMART Vaccines 2.0 platform supported by the Fogarty International Center at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). A description of the NITAG process is given elsewhere.24 33 Funding Information: Funding This work was supported by the Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, USA. Publisher Copyright: © 2020 Author(s). Published by BMJ.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Nodular AL Amyloidosis — An Unusual Etiology of a Solitary Pulmonary Nodule

Solitary pulmonary nodules (SPN) are defined as single intraparenchymal opacities less than 3 centimeters. The differential diagnosis of the SPN is broad. AL amyloidosis is a protein conformational disease which occurs when certain monoclonal light chains develop an unstable tertiary structure with resultant polymerization of insoluble amyloid fibrils that deposit in the extracellular space of sundry tissues. In the lung, diffuse interstitial amyloid deposition is the most common form of the disease