Mass Inertia Effect Based Vibration Control Systems for Civil Engineering Structure and Infrastructure

This chapter introduces some recent research works carried out in the Blast Resistance and Protective Engineering laboratory of Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT-BRPE) during the past few years. The EMD control system is shown to be effective and feasible for vibration control of civil engineering structures subjected to, such as earthquake, excitations. The DDVC based AMD control system is suitable for low frequency vibration and motion control. The innovative passive TRID system is applicable for rotation and swing motion control, whereas linear TMD system is shown to be invalid for structural swinging motion. All of the control systems mentioned in this chapter, whatever active or passive or hybrid, have a common characteristic, which is to utilize the mass inertia effect either to provide counter force support for functioning of actuator, e.g. AMD subsystem, or to provide gyrus or rotary inertia for anti-swinging motion of suspended structure. Traditionally, these systems have been called Active Mass Damper/Driver (AMD) or Tuned Mass Damper (TMD), herein we want to emphasize the mass inertia effect and its functions. The basic is to be a necessary component of a control system, and more important is its way of working in the subsystem

Computer-Aided Analysis of Flow in Water Pipe Networks after a Seismic Event

This paper proposes a framework for a reliability-based flow analysis for a water pipe network after an earthquake. For the first part of the framework, we propose to use a modeling procedure for multiple leaks and breaks in the water pipe segments of a network that has been damaged by an earthquake. For the second part, we propose an efficient system-level probabilistic flow analysis process that integrates the matrix-based system reliability (MSR) formulation and the branch-and-bound method. This process probabilistically predicts flow quantities by considering system-level damage scenarios consisting of combinations of leaks and breaks in network pipes and significantly reduces the computational cost by sequentially prioritizing the system states according to their likelihoods and by using the branch-and-bound method to select their partial sets. The proposed framework is illustrated and demonstrated by examining two example water pipe networks that have been subjected to a seismic event. These two examples consist of 11 and 20 pipe segments, respectively, and are computationally modeled considering their available topological, material, and mechanical properties. Considering different earthquake scenarios and the resulting multiple leaks and breaks in the water pipe segments, the water flows in the segments are estimated in a computationally efficient manner.ope

Expressions of Cyr61 and WISP-3 in Non-small Cell Lung Cancer and Its Clinical Significance

Background and objective Cysteine-rich protein 61 (Cyr61) plays a role as a tumor suppressor in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Cyr61 and WISP-3 have a very significant sequence homology, belonging to the same CCN gene family. The aim of this study is to investigate the expressions of Cyr61 and WISP-3 in NSCLC, and explore the relationship between their expressions and tumor's clinicopathological characteristics. Methods The expressions of Cyr61 and WISP-3 were detected in 54 cases with primary NSCLC and their corresponding normal lung tissues in control group by immunohistochemical staining (SP), and the clinical data were analyzed. Results Down-regulation of Cyr61 and up-regulation of WISP-3 were both found in lung cancer tissue compared with the corresponding normal lung tissue (both P < 0.001); The expression of Cyr61 was negatively correlated with the expression of WISP-3 (r=-0.395, P=0.003); Cyr61 expression levels was closely correlated with tumor grade, tumor type, clinical stage, family history, smoking and metastasis (P < 0.05). Also, WISP-3 was closely correlated with tumor grade, clinical stage and age (P < 0.05). Conclusion The expressions of Cyr61 and/or WISP-3 may be important biological markers in reflecting the progression, biological behaviors, metastatic potential and prognosis of NSCLC

Research on reconfigurable control for a hovering PVTOL aircraft

This paper presents a novel reconfigurable control method for the planar vertical take-off and landing (PVTOL) aircraft when actuator faults occur. According to the position subsystem within the multivariable coupling, and the series between subsystems of position and attitude, an active disturbance rejection controller (ADRC) is used to counteract the adverse effects when actuator faults occur. The controller is cascade and ensures the input value of the controlled system can be tracked accurately. The coordinate transformation method is used for model decoupling due to the severe coupling. In addition, the Taylor differentiator is designed to improve the control precision based on the detailed research for tracking differentiator. The stability and safety of the aircraft is much improved in the event of actuator faults. Finally, the simulation results are given to show the effectiveness and performance of the developed method

Seismic Performance and Ice-Induced Vibration Control of Offshore Platform Structures Based on the ISO-PFD-SMA Brace System

Pall-typed frictional damper (PFD) has higher capacity of energy dissipation, whereas shape memory alloy (SMA) has excellent superelastic performance. Therefore, combining PFD and SMA together as a brace system has a great prospect in vibration control of structures. This paper investigates the performance of offshore platform with three structural configurations including the SMA brace system, the ISO-SMA (where ISO stands for isolation) brace system, and the ISO-PFD-SMA brace system, which are subjected to seismic and ice-induced excitations. In this study, PFD-SMA brace system is installed on the isolation layer of jacket platform, which is under earthquake excitations and ice loading. Then, the reduction of vibration is evaluated by using ANSYS program. The results show that the PFD-SMA brace system is useful in reducing the seismic response and ice-induced response of offshore platform structures; meanwhile, it also demonstrates excellent energy dissipation and hysteretic behavior

Macular Ganglion Cell Inner Plexiform Layer Thickness In Glaucomatous Eyes With Localized Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Defects

Purpose To investigate macular ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (mGCIPL) thickness in glaucomatous eyes with visible localized retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) defects on stereophotographs. Methods 112 healthy and 149 glaucomatous eyes from the Diagnostic Innovations in Glaucoma Study (DIGS) and the African Descent and Glaucoma Evaluation Study (ADAGES) subjects had standard automated perimetry (SAP), optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging of the macula and optic nerve head, and stereoscopic optic disc photography. Masked observers identified localized RNFL defects by grading of stereophotographs. Result 47 eyes had visible localized RNFL defects on stereophotographs. Eyes with visible localized RNFL defects had significantly thinner mGCIPL thickness compared to healthy eyes (68.3 +/- 11.4 mu m versus 79.2 +/- 6.6 mu m respectively, P<0.001) and similar mGCIPL thickness to glaucomatous eyes without localized RNFL defects (68.6 +/- 11.2 mu m, P = 1.000). The average mGCIPL thickness in eyes with RNFL defects was 14% less than similarly aged healthy controls. For 29 eyes with a visible RNFL defect in just one hemiretina (superior or inferior) mGCIPL was thinnest in the same hemiretina in 26 eyes (90%). Eyes with inferior-temporal RNFL defects also had significantly thinner inferior-temporal mGCIPL (P<0.001) and inferior mGCIPL (P = 0.030) compared to glaucomatous eyes without a visible RNFL defect. Conclusion The current study indicates that presence of a localized RNFL defect is likely to indicate significant macular damage, particularly in the region of the macular that topographically corresponds to the location of the RNFL defect.118National Institutes of Health/National Eye Institute [EY021818, EY11008, EY14267, EY019869, P30EY022589]NHS Scotland Career Researcher GrantResearch to Prevent Blindness (New York, NY)AlconAllerganPfizerMerckSantenNatural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province for Returned Scholars, China [LC2012C21]Innovation research special fund of the Science and Technology of Harbin of Heilong Jiang Province, China [2011RFLYS029]Research fund of the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, China [2007021]Scientific and technical research fund of Education Bureau of Heilongjiang Province, China [12511311

Immunogenicity and Protective Efficacy against Murine Tuberculosis of a Prime-Boost Regimen with BCG and a DNA Vaccine Expressing ESAT-6 and Ag85A Fusion Protein

Heterologous prime-boost regimens utilizing BCG as a prime vaccine probably represent the best hope for the development of novel tuberculosis (TB) vaccines. In this study, we examined the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of DNA vaccine (pcD685A) expressing the fusion protein of Ag85A and ESAT-6 (r685A) and its booster effects in BCG-immunized mice. The recombinant r685A fusion protein stimulated higher level of antigen-specific IFN-γ release in tuberculin skin test- (TST-) positive healthy household contacts of active pulmonary TB patients than that in TST-negative population. Vaccination of C57BL/6 mice with pcD685A resulted in significant protection against challenge with virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv when compared with the control group. Most importantly, pcD685A could act as a BCG booster and amplify Th1-type cell-mediated immunity in the lung of BCG-vaccinated mice as shown the increased expression of IFN-γ. The most significant reduction in bacterial load of both spleen and lung was obtained in mice vaccinated with BCG prime and pcD685A DNA booster when compared with BCG or pcD685A alone. Thus, our study indicates that pcD685A may be an efficient booster vaccine against TB with a strong ability to enhance prior BCG immunity