Development of Five-Finger Multi-DoF Myoelectric Hands with a Power Allocation Mechanism

To be used as five-fingered myoelectric hands in daily living, robotic hands must be lightweight with the size of human hands. In addition, they must possess the DoFs （degrees of freedom） and high grip force similar to those of human hands. Balancing these requirements involves a trade-off; ideal robotic hands have yet to sufficiently satisfy both requirements. Herein, a power allocation mechanism is proposed to improve the grip force without increasing the size or weight of robotic hands by using redundant DoFs during pinching motions. Additionally, this mechanism is applied to an actual five-fingered myoelectric hand, which produces seven types of motions necessary for activities of daily living and realizes a -60% improvement in fingertip force, allowing three fingers to pinch objects exceeding 1 kg.

A Study on Renewable Power Pricing Mechanism and Price Incentive Policies in China

The basic framework of price policies for promoting renewable power de- velopment in China is introduced. The background, concept and implementation of price policies, focused on wind power, biomass power and solar power, are summarized in the article. The experiences and lessons of implementation of these price policies are analyzed. It is concluded that reasonable price policy is quite effective for promoting re- newable power development. According to the requirement of China's renewable power development, the suggestions for improving renewable power pricing mechanism and price incentive policies are proposed.

Application of the Latching Control System on the Power Performance of a Wave Energy Converter Characterized by Gearbox,Flywheel,and Electrical GeneratorGustavor

The latching control represents an attractive alternative to increase the power absorption of wave energy converters(WECs)by tuning the phase of oscillator velocity to the wave excitation phase.However,increasing the amplitude of motion of the floating body is not the only challenge to obtain a good performance of the WEC.It also depends on the efficiency of the power take-off system(PTO).This study aims to address the actual power performance and operation of a heaving point absorber with a direct mechanical drive PTO system controlled by latching.The PTO characteristics,such as the gear ratio,the flywheel inertia,and the electric generator,are analyzed in the WEC performance.Three cylindrical point absorbers are also considered in the present study.A wave-to-wire model is developed to simulate the coupled hydro-electro-mechanical system in regular waves.The wave energy converter(WEC)performance is analyzed using the potential linear theory but considering the viscous damping effect according to the Morison equation to avoid the overestimated responses of the linear theory near resonance when the latching control system is applied.The latching control system increases the mean power.However,the increase is not significant if the parameters that characterize the WEC provide a considerable mean power.The performance of the proposed mechanical power take-off depends on the gear ratio and flywheel.However,the gear ratio shows a more significant influence than the flywheel inertia.The operating range of the generator and the diameter/draft ratio of the buoy also influence the PTO performance.

MECHANICAL VIBRATIONAL POWER FLOW IN BEAM-PLATE ASSEMBLIES

The vibrational power flow in the beam-plate assemblies and then with the isolators is investigated using analytical ' power flow' approach based on the some concepts of mechanical mo- bility and structural dynamics. Theoretical expressions of the power flow in the structures are given and examined. The numerical results of the expressions are good agreements with the measuring re- sults obtained by the technique of vibration intensity. On the basis of these results, possible ways of reducing the vibrational power flow in the structures are suggested .

Characteristics of Mechanical and Electrical Power Transmission for Small-Scaled Wind Turbine

Small-scaled wind turbine is converted to mechanical power of windmill to electric power by generator. However almost all studies seems to have overlooked converting relation of mechanical & electric power. It the reason for was very difficult establishing wind turbine system. In this paper, it is define equation of converting relation of mechanical & electric power. And it is verified by experimental methods. Defined equation will be used in developing electric devices such as inverter and controller in wind turbines. In addition this method can be used in the fields that utilize the rotational power into electrical power through generator.

Effect of Rectus Plication during Abdominoplasty on the Mechanical Power and Airway Pressures: Comparison of Two Ventilatory Strategies

Background: Abdominoplasty is a commonly requested procedure for aesthetic improvement of the affected soft tissue layers of skin, fat, and muscle through the slightest incision feasible. The degree of plicature generates an increase in intraabdominal pressure that causes an increase in intrathoracic pressure. Pressure, volume, flow, and respiratory rate are components of a unique physical variable, the mechanical power (MP), and is an integrated variable linked to most factors related to postoperative pulmonary complications. Purpose: To assess the effect of rectus plication (RP) during abdominoplasty on lung pressures and the contribution to increasing the MP. Method: A open-label study was conducted at TJ Plast Advanced Center for Plastic Surgery in Tijuana, México, from September 2021 to May 2022. The study included forty-six female patients subjected to abdominoplasty or liposuction with abdominoplasty. After the induction of general anesthesia and neuromuscular blockade, they were allocated into two groups: Group 1 pressure control ventilation-volume guaranteed (PCV-VG) and Group 2 volume control ventilation (VCV). Respiratory pressures and MP were assessed before and after RP. Results: During VCV, patients had a greater increase in peak pressure (PIP) (P 0.000). Plateau pressure (Pplat) increased 1.78 ± 0.35 cmH2O in group 2 after RP (P = 0.001). MP had a greater increase in group 2 after RP (P 0.01). Conclusion: This prospective study showed that RP is related to an increase in PIP and Pplat and an increase in the MP better controlled with PCV-VG ventilation.

Methods and Techniques of Electricity Thieving in Pakistan

The situation of electricity in Pakistan has been alarming from the last ten years. The deficiency in electricity has not only obstructed the business activities but also affected the domestic consumers, educational institutes and hospitals. Usually electrical power companies are liable for electricity shortfall and power interruption. However, electricity end consumers are also equally responsible behind strange shortfall and unusual power interruption. Frequently, the consumers use the heavy electrical equipment in their homes including heaters, geysers, irons and water motors which causes the more electricity consumption, load shedding and huge amount of bills. For escaping the huge amount of electricity bill, the consumers commit the illegal and unethical connections. The illegal usage of electrical power failed the power companies to plan schedule load shedding accordingly and the other side the damaged electricity wires or Pole Mount Transformer increased faults due to overburdening, which directly affected on extend power interruption. In addition that, responsible teams of electrical power companies cannot reach instantly to repair faults and prevent the theft. Electricity thieving is social crime committed by the consumers or meter readers which causes the electricity strange shortfall within country. This paper presents the practical demonstration about the common energy theft methods and techniques done by electricity consumers within their home and residential building. In Pakistan EPC (electrical power companies) deploy the traditional electromechanical meters for electricity consumption measurements, however, these meters do not have any real time communication. Therefore there are many easy ways to manipulate the meter reading as well as internal structural of metering system.

An Efficient Gait-generating Method for Electrical Quadruped Robot Based on Humanoid Power Planning Approach

The research field of legged robots has always relied on the bionic robotic research,especially in locomotion regulating approaches,such as foot trajectory planning,body stability regulating and energy efficiency prompting.Minimizing energy consumption and keeping the stability of body are considered as two main characteristics of human walking.This work devotes to develop an energy-efficient gait control method for electrical quadruped robots with the inspiration of human walking pattern.Based on the mechanical power distribution trend,an efficient humanoid power redistribution approach is established for the electrical quadruped robot.Through studying the walking behavior acted by mankind,such as the foot trajectory and change of mechanical power,we believe that the proposed controller which includes the bionic foot movement trajectory and humanoid power redistribution method can be implemented on the electrical quadruped robot prototype.The stability and energy efficiency of the proposed controller are tested by the simulation and the single-leg prototype experiment.The results verify that the humanoid power planning approach can improve the energy efficiency of the electrical quadruped robots.

Progress of mechanical power in the intensive care unit

Mechanical power of ventilation,currently defined as the energy delivered from the ventilator to the respiratory system over a period of time,has been recognized as a promising indicator to evaluate ventilator-induced lung injury and predict the prognosis of ventilated critically ill patients.Mechanical power can be accurately measured by the geometric method,while simplified equations allow an easy estimation of mechanical power at the bedside.There may exist a safety threshold of mechanical power above which lung injury is inevitable,and the assessment of mechanical power might be helpful to determine whether the extracorporeal respiratory support is needed in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome.It should be noted that relatively low mechanical power does not exclude the possibility of lung injury.Lung size and inhomogeneity should also be taken into consideration.Problems regarding the safety limits of mechanical power and contribution of each component to lung injury have not been determined yet.Whether mechanical power-directed lung-protective ventilation strategy could improve clinical outcomes also needs further investigation.Therefore,this review discusses the algorithms,clinical relevance,optimization,and future directions of mechanical power in critically ill patients.

Real drive cycles analysis by ordered power methodology applied to fuel consumption,C0_(2),NO_(x) and PM emissions estimation

In this work three fuel consumption and exhaust emission models,ADVISOR,VT-MICRO and the European Environmental Agency Emission factors,have been used to obtain fuel consumption(FC)and exhaust emissions.These models have been used at micro-scale,using the two signal treatment methods presented.The manuscript presents:1)a methodology to collect data in real urban driving cycles,2)an estimation of FC and tailpipe emissions using some available models in literature,and 3)a novel analysis of the results based on delivered wheel power.The results include Fuel Consumption(FC),CO_(2),NO_(x) and PM_(10) emissions,which are derived from the three simulators.In the first part of the paper we present a new procedure for incomplete drive cycle data treatment,which is necessary for real drive cycle acquisition in high density cities.Then the models are used to obtain second by second FC and exhaust emissions.Finally,a new methodology named Cycle Analysis by Ordered Power(CAbOP)is presented and used to compare the results.This method consists in the re-ordering of time dependant data,considering the wheel mechanical power domain instead of the standard time domain.This new strategy allows the 5 situations in drive cycles to be clearly visualized:hard breaking zone,slowdowns,idle or stop zone,sustained speed zone and acceleration zone.The complete methodology is applied in two real drive cycles surveyed in Barcelona(Spain)and the results are compared with a standardized WLTC urban cycle.

Metabolic cost of flight and aerobic efficiency in the rose chafer,Protaetia cuprea(Cetoniinae)

Rose chafer beetles(Protetia cuprea)are pollinators as well as agricultural pests,flying between flowers and trees while foraging for pollen and fruits.Calculating the energy they expend on flying during foraging activity faces the challenge of measuring the metabolic rate(MR)of free-flying insects in an open space.We overcame this challenge by using the bolus injection of ^(13)C Na-bicarbonate technique to measure their metabolic energy expenditure while flying in a large flight arena.Concurrently,we tracked the insects with high-speed cameras to extract their flight trajectory,from which we calculated the mechanical power invested in flying for each flight bout.We found that the chemical(metabolic)energy input converted to mechanical flight energy output at a mean efficiency of 10.4%±5.2%,with a trend of increased efficiency in larger conspecifics(efficiency scaled with body mass to the power of 1.4).The transition in the summer from a diet of pollen to that of fruits may affect the energy budget available for foraging.Starved P.cuprea,feeding on apples ad libitum,increased their body mass by an average of 6%in 2 h.According to our calculations,such a meal can power a 630-m flight(assuming a carbohydrate assimilation efficiency of 90%).Pollen,with a low water and carbohydrate content but rich in proteins and lipids,has a higher caloric content and should assimilate differently when converting food to flight fuel.The high cost of aerial locomotion is inherent to the foraging behavior of rose chafers,explaining their short flight bouts followed by prolonged feeding activity.

Relationships Between Vertical Jump Metrics and Sprint Performance,and Qualities that Distinguish Between Faster and Slower Sprinters

Purpose This study aimed to investigate the relationships between vertical jump metrics and phases during a 60 m sprint.The variances in strength qualities between sprinters of different ability levels were also compared.Methods Eighteen young male elite sprinters(age:18.1±1.3 years;stature:1.72±0.07 m;body mass:66.3±6.2 kg)were assessed for squat(SJ),countermovement(CMJ),drop(DJ),and standing long jumps,a maximal load back-squat,and a 60-m sprint from a block-start.The relationships between sprint performances with all variables were analysed using correlation and multiple regression while discriminative parameters between fast(100 m time:~10.50 s)and slow(~11.00 s)sprint groups were assessed using independent t-tests.Results Higher associations existed between vertical jumps and longer sprint distances,especially between SJ height and relative peak power with 10 m(r=−0.47 and−0.47,respectively),30 m(−0.71 and−0.74),60 m(−0.76 and−0.81),10-30 m(−0.80 and−0.86),and 30-60 m(−0.78 and−0.84)sprint distances.Concurrently,variables such as relative maximal-strength,relative SJ parameters(height,peak force,and peak power),relative CMJ peak power,and reactive strength index(DJ from 35 cm height)had significant discriminative ability and correlations(P<0.05)with sprint distances involving maximal velocity and flying-start.Additionally,a combination of SJ height and relative maximal-strength during back-squat accounted for 75%of the variance in 60 m sprint times.Conclusions Relative measures of multiple strength metrics may provide better insight regarding factors that enhance sprint performance.Adequate maximal-strength,high explosive power,and reactive strength seem necessary to improve sprint performance in young male elite sprinters.