Helvacioglu reproducibility index: a new algorithm to evaluate the effects of misalignments on the measurements of retinal nerve fiber layer by spectraldomain OCT

AIMTo evaluate the effect of misalignment on the measurements of retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT).METHODSA total of 42 eyes from 21 healthy young subjects underwent RNFL measurements with RTVue spectral-domain OCT (Optovue Inc., Fremont, California, USA). Two baseline measurements with perfectly aligned central circle to the borders of the optic nerve and four misaligned measurements which were misaligned towards to four quadrants were taken. The differences in RNFL between the baseline and misaligned measurements were analyzed with a new algorithm called Helvacioglu reproducibility index (HRI) which is designed to measure the reproducibility of the scans by evaluating the RNFL changes in the four main quadrants.RESULTSThe average RNFL scores of the first two baseline measurements have good correlation (c=0.930) and good reproducibility scores (0.15±0.07). Superior misaligned measurements had significantly lower superior quadrant score and higher inferior quadrant score, similar nasal and little higher temporal scores (P1, P2<0.001, P3=0.553, P4=0.001). Inferior misaligned measurements had significantly higher superior quadrant score and lower inferior quadrant score with similar temporal and little lower nasal scores (P1, P2<0.001, P3=0.315, P4=0.016). Nasal misaligned measurements had significantly higher temporal quadrant score and lower nasal quadrant score with little lower superior and inferior scores (P1, P2, P4<0.001, P3=0.005). Temporal misaligned measurements had significantly higher nasal quadrant score and lower temporal quadrant score with similar superior and little higher inferior scores (P1, P2<0.001, P3=0.943, P4=0.001).CONCLUSIONGood alignment of the central circle to the borders of optic nerve is crucial to have correct and repeatable RNFL measurements. Misalignment to a quadrant resulted in falsely low readings at that quadrant and falsely high readings at the opposite quadrant.

Misalignments among stacked layers of metamaterial terahertz absorbers

Misalignment among stacked layers of absor- bers is inevitable in practice. Adverse effects induced by this undesired factor was investigated and analyzed in this paper. The absorption responses of thin terahertz metama- terial （MM） absorber with different degree of misalign- ment were simulated by finite-difference time-domain （FDTD） method under both transverse magnetic （TM） and transverse electric （TE） polarization. Results show that slight misalignment deteriorates absorption response due to the decreased spatial resolution. The analyses are given in terms of the magnetic field distribution in the cross section. In addition, the depravation is changed with polarization, which depends on the direction of excursion.

A Modified Iterative Learning Control Approach for the Active Suppression of Rotor Vibration Induced by Coupled Unbalance and Misalignment

This paper proposes a modified iterative learning control(MILC)periodical feedback-feedforward algorithm to reduce the vibration of a rotor caused by coupled unbalance and parallel misalignment.The control of the vibration of the rotor is provided by an active magnetic actuator(AMA).The iterative gain of the MILC algorithm here presented has a self-adjustment based on the magnitude of the vibration.Notch filters are adopted to extract the synchronous(1×Ω)and twice rotational frequency(2×Ω)components of the rotor vibration.Both the notch frequency of the filter and the size of feedforward storage used during the experiment have a real-time adaptation to the rotational speed.The method proposed in this work can provide effective suppression of the vibration of the rotor in case of sudden changes or fluctuations of the rotor speed.Simulations and experiments using the MILC algorithm proposed here are carried out and give evidence to the feasibility and robustness of the technique proposed.

Optimization-based mode selection scheme for OAM millimeter wave system in the off-axis misalignment case

Millimeter-wave transmission combined with Orbital Angular Momentum(OAM)has the advantage of reducing the loss of beam power and increasing the system capacity.However,to fulfill this advantage,the antennas at the transmitter and receiver must be parallel and coaxial;otherwise,the accuracy of mode detection at the receiver can be seriously influenced.In this paper,we design an OAM millimeter-wave communication system for overcoming the above limitation.Specifically,the first contribution is that the power distribution between different OAM modes and the capacity of the system with different mode sets are analytically derived for performance analysis.The second contribution lies in that a novel mode selection scheme is proposed to reduce the total interference between different modes.Numerical results show that system performance is less affected by the offset when the mode set with smaller modes or larger intervals is selected.

Torsional vibration suppression and electromechanical coupling characteristics of electric drive system considering misalignment

The torque ripples resulting from external electromagnetic excitation and mechanical internal excitation contribute to significant torsional vibration issues within electromechanical coupling systems.To mitigate these fluctuations,a passive control strategy centered around a multi-stable nonlinear energy sink(MNES)is proposed.First,models for electromagnetic torque,gear nonlinear meshing torque,and misalignment torque are established.Building upon this foundation,an electromechanical coupling dynamic model of the electric drive system is formulated.Sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine the sensitive nodes of each mode and to provide guidance for the installation of the MNES.The structure of the MNES is introduced,and an electromechanical coupling dynamic model with the MNES is established.Based on this model,the influence of the misaligned angle on the electromechanical coupling characteristics is analyzed.In addition,the vibration suppression performance of the MNES is studied under both speed and uniform speed conditions.Finally,experimental testing is conducted to verify the vibration suppression performance of the MNES.The results indicate that misalignment triggers the emergence of its characteristic frequencies and associated sidebands.Meanwhile,the MNES effectively mitigates the torsional vibrations in the coupled system,demonstrating suppression rates of 52.69%in simulations and 63.3%in experiments.

Robust UKF algorithm in SINS initial alignment

In the traditional unscented Kalman filter（UKF）,accuracy and robustness decline when uncertain disturbances exist in the practical system.To deal with the problem,a robust UKF algorithm based on an H-infinity norm is proposed.In Krein space,a robust element is added in the simplified UKF so as to improve the algorithm.The filtering gain is adjusted by the robust element and in this way the performance of the robustness of the filtering algorithm is promoted.In the initial alignment process of the large heading misalignment angle of the strapdown inertial navigation system（SINS）,comparative studies are conducted on the robust UKF and the simplified UKF.The simulation results illustrate that compared with the simplified UKF,the robust UKF is more accurate,and the estimation error of heading misalignment decreases from 16.9＇ to 4.3＇.In short,the robust UKF can reduce the sensitivity to the system disturbances resulting in better performance.

Mesh Force Modelling and Parametric Studies for Compound Oscillatory Roller Reducer

A compound oscillatory roller reducer(CORR)with a first-stage gear transmission and a second-stage oscillatory roller transmission is presented.The transmission principle of oscillatory roller transmission is introduced,and the tooth profile equation of the inner gear is derived.The analytical model of mesh force considering the installation errors and manufacturing errors is proposed.Then,parametric studies considering different errors on the mesh force are conducted.Results show that the design parameters are significant factors for mesh force.The mesh force is reduced by 17%as the eccentricity of disk cam increases from 2.5 mm to 4 mm.When the radius of the movable roller increases from 7 mm to 20 mm,the mesh force decreases by 8%.As the radius of disk cam increases from 125 mm to 170 mm,the mesh force is decreased by 26.5%.For the impacts of errors,the mesh force has a noticeable fluctuation when these errors exist including the manufacturing error of disk cam,the installation error of disk cam and the manufacturing error of movable roller change.The prototype of the reducer is manufactured and preliminary run-in test proved the feasibility of the transmission principle.

Design Schemes and Comparison Research of the End-effector of Large Space Manipulator

The end-effector of the large space manipulator is employed to assist the manipulator in handling and manipulating large payloads on orbit.Currently,there are few researches about the end-effector,and the existing end-effectors have some disadvantages,such as poor misalignment tolerance capability and complex mechanical components.According to the end positioning errors and the residual vibration characters of the large space manipulators,two basic performance requirements of the end-effector which include the capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture are proposed.And the end-effector should accommodate the following misalignments of the mechanical interface.The translation misalignments in axial and radial directions and the angular misalignments in roll,pitch and yaw are ±100 mm,100 mm,±10°,±15°,±15°,respectively.Seven end-effector schemes are presented and the capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture are analyzed elementarily.The three fingers-three petals end-effector and the steel cable-snared end-effector are the most feasible schemes among the seven schemes,and they are designed in detail.The capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture are validated and evaluated,through the experiment on the micro-gravity simulating device and the dynamic analysis in ADAMS software.The results show that the misalignment tolerance capabilities of these two schemes could satisfy the requirement.And the translation misalignment tolerances in axial and radial directions and the angular misalignment tolerances in roll,pitch and yaw of the steel cable-snared end-effector are 30mm,15mm,6°,3° and 3° larger than those of the three fingers-three petals end-effector,respectively.And the contact force of the steel cable-snared end-effector is smaller and smoother than that of the three fingers-three petals end-effector.The end-effector schemes and research methods are beneficial to the developments of the large space manipulator end-effctor and the space docking mechanism.

Modification Design Method for an Enveloping Hourglass Worm Gear with Consideration of Machining and Misalignment Errors

The influences of machining and misalignment errors play a very critical role in the performance of the anti-backlash double-roller enveloping hourglass worm gear(ADEHWG).However,a corresponding efficient method for eliminating or reducing these errors on the tooth profile of the ADEHWG is seldom reported.The gear engagement equation and tooth profile equation for considering six different errors that could arise from the machining and gear misalignment are derived from the theories of differential geometry and gear meshing.Also,the tooth contact analysis(TCA) is used to systematically investigate the influence of the machining and misalignment errors on the contact curves and the tooth profile by means of numerical analysis and three-dimensional solid modeling.The research results show that vertical angular misalignment of the worm wheel(Δβ) has the strongest influences while the tooth angle error(Δα) has the weakest influences on the contact curves and the tooth profile.A novel efficient approach is proposed and used to minimize the effect of the errors in manufacturing by changing the radius of the grinding wheel and the approaching point of contact.The results from the TCA and the experiment demonstrate that this tooth profile design modification method can indeed reduce the machining and misalignment errors.This modification design method is helpful in understanding the manufacturing technology of the ADEHWG.

Development of space end-effector with capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture based on tendon-sheath transmission system

The essential requirements of the end-effector of large space manipulator are capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture.According to these requirements,an end-effector prototype combining the tendon-sheath transmission system with steel cable snaring mechanism was manufactured.An analysis method based on the coordinate transformation and the projection of key points of the mechanical interface was proposed,and it was a guideline of the end-effector design.Furthermore,the tendon-sheath transmission system was employed in the capture subassembly to reduce the inertia of the capture mechanism and enlarge the capture space.The capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture were validated through the dynamic simulation in ADAMS software.The results of the capture simulation and experiment show that the end-effector has outstanding capabilities of misalignment tolerance and soft capture.The translation misalignments in radial directions are±100 mm,and angular misalignments about pitch and yaw are±15°.

NEW METHOD FOR WEAK FAULT FEATURE EXTRACTION BASED ON SECOND GENERATION WAVELET TRANSFORM AND ITS APPLICATION

A new time-domain analysis method that uses second generation wavelettransform (SGWT) for weak fault feature extraction is proposed. To extract incipient fault feature,a biorthogonal wavelet with the characteristics of impact is constructed by using SGWT. Processingdetail signal of SGWT with a sliding window devised on the basis of rotating operation cycle, andextracting modulus maximum from each window, fault features in time-domain are highlighted. To makefurther analysis on the reason of the fault, wavelet package transform based on SGWT is used toprocess vibration data again. Calculating the energy of each frequency-band, the energy distributionfeatures of the signal are attained. Then taking account of the fault features and the energydistribution, the reason of the fault is worked out. An early impact-rub fault caused by axismisalignment and rotor imbalance is successfully detected by using this method in an oil refinery.

Analysis of Thermoelastohydrodynamic Performance of Journal Misaligned Engine Main Bearings

To understand the engine main bearings＇ working condition is important in order to improve the performance of engine. However, thermal effects and thermal effect deformations of engine main bearings are rarely considered simultaneously in most studies. A typical finite element model is selected and the effect of thermoelastohydrodynamic（TEHD） reaction on engine main bearings is investigated. The calculated method of main bearing＇s thermal hydrodynamic reaction and journal misalignment effect is finite difference method, and its deformation reaction is calculated by using finite element method. The oil film pressure is solved numerically with Reynolds boundary conditions when various bearing characteristics are calculated. The whole model considers a temperature-pressure-viscosity relationship for the lubricant, surface roughness effect, and also an angular misalignment between the journal and the bearing. Numerical simulations of operation of a typical I6 diesel engine main bearing is conducted and importance of several contributing factors in mixed lubrication is discussed. The performance characteristics of journal misaligned main bearings under elastohydrodynamic（EHD） and TEHD loads of an I6 diesel engine are received, and then the journal center orbit movement, minimum oil film thickness and maximum oil film pressure of main bearings are estimated over a wide range of engine operation. The model is verified through the comparison with other present models. The TEHD performance of engine main bearings with various effects under the influences of journal misalignment is revealed, this is helpful to understand EHD and TEHD effect of misaligned engine main bearings.

Model-Based Degree Estimation of Unbalance and Misalignment in Flexible Coupling-rotor System

The condition of rotor system must be assessed in order to develop condition-based maintenance for rotating machinery. It is determined by multiple variables such as unbalance degree, misalignment degree, the amount of bending deformation of the shaft, occurrence of shaft crack of rotor system and so on. The estimation of the degrees of unbalance and misalignment in flexible coupling-rotor system is discussed. The model-based approach is employed to solve this problem. The models of the equivalent external loads for unbalance and misalignment are derived and analyzed. Then, the degrees of unbalance and misalignment are estimated by analyzing the components of the equivalent external loads of which the frequencies are equal to the 1 and 2 times running frequency respectively. The equivalent external loads are calculated according to the dynamic equation of the original rotor system and the differences between the dynamical responses in normal case and the vibrations when the degree of unbalance or misalignment or both changes. The denoise method based on bandpass filter is used to decrease the effect of noise on the estimation accuracy. The numerical examples are given to show that the proposed approach can estimate the degrees of unbalance and misalignment of the flexible coupling-rotor system accurately.

Transient simulation of a pump-turbine with misaligned guide vanes during turbine model start-up

Experimental studies of a model pump-turbine S-curve characteristics and its improvement by misaligned guide vanes （MGV） were extended to prototype pump turbine through 3-D transient flow simulations. The unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations with the SST turbulence model were used to model the transient flow within the entire flow passage of a reversible pump-turbine with and without misaligned guide vanes during turbine model start-up. The unstable S-curve and its improvement by using misaligned guide vane were verified by model test and simulation. The transient flow calculations were used to clarify the variations of pressure pulse and internal flow behavior in the entire flow passage. The use of misaligned guide vanes can eliminate the S-curve characteristics of a pump-turbine, and can significantly increase the pressure pulse amplitude in the entire flow passage and the runner radial forces during start-up. The MGV only decreased the pulse amplitude on the guide vane suction side when the rotating speed was less than 50% rated speed. The hydraulic reason is that the MGV dramatically changed the flow patterns inside the entire flow passage, and destroyed the symmetry of the flow distribution inside the guide vane and runner.

Control of thermal crown in the roller inside the continuous annealing furnace

In a continuous annealing furnace, the hearth rollers are affected by heat, which in turn affects the stable operation of the steel strips. In order to ensure the stable operation of the steel strips the ability of the rollers to correct themselves and to prevent the steel strips from buckling, effective measures are required to control the surface crown of the rollers inside the furnace. Starting from production, this study analyzes the way in which the crown of the hearth rollers inside the continuous annealing furnace changes. The study suggests control measures to prevent buckling and and misalignment. The study definitely provides guidance to the stable operation of steel strips in continuous annealed furnaces.

Experimental study on vibration suppression of gear shaft misalignment with ISFD

Misalignment faults in gear systems lead to violent vibration and noise, shortening the life of equipment. The aim of this work is the demonstration of vibration suppression of parallel-misaligned gear shafts using an integral squeeze film damper(ISFD). Using a first grade spur gear in engineering for reference, an open first-grade spur gear system is built and the vibration characteristics of the gear system with rigid supports and ISFD elastic damping supports are studied under different degrees of misalignment. The experimental results show that ISFD supports have excellent damping and vibration attenuation characteristics, which have improved control of the gear system vibration in horizontal, vertical and axial directions under different degrees of misalignment. This work shows that an ISFD structure can effectively suppress vibration of characteristic frequency components and resonance modulation frequency components. The test results provide evidence for the application of ISFD in vibration control of gear shaft misalignment faults in engineering.

Sliding-Mode-Based Attitude Tracking Control of Spacecraft Under Reaction Wheel Uncertainties

The attitude tracking operations of an on-orbit spacecraft with degraded performance exhibited by potential actuator uncertainties(including failures and misalignments) can be extraordinarily challenging. Thus, the control law development for the attitude tracking task of spacecraft subject to actuator(namely reaction wheel) uncertainties is addressed in this paper. More specially, the attitude dynamics model of the spacecraft is firstly established under actuator failures and misalignment(without a small angle approximation operation). Then, a new non-singular sliding manifold with fixed time convergence and anti-unwinding properties is proposed, and an adaptive sliding mode control(SMC) strategy is introduced to handle actuator uncertainties, model uncertainties and external disturbances simultaneously. Among this, an explicit misalignment angles range that could be treated herein is offered. Lyapunov-based stability analyses are employed to verify that the reaching phase of the sliding manifold is completed in finite time, and the attitude tracking errors are ensured to converge to a small region of the closest equilibrium point in fixed time once the sliding manifold enters the reaching phase. Finally, the beneficial features of the designed controller are manifested via detailed numerical simulation tests.

THz Channel Modeling: Consolidating the Road to THz Communications

For the sake of meeting the demand of data rates at terabit(Tbit)per second scale in future networks,the terahertz(THz)band is widely accepted as one of the potential key enabling technologies for next generation wireless communication systems.With the progressive development of THz devices,regrading THz communications at system level is increasing crucial and captured the interest of plenty of researchers.Within this scope,THz channel modeling serves as an indispensable and fundamental element.By surveying the latest literature findings,this paper reviews the problem of channel modeling in the THz band,with an emphasis on molecular absorption loss,misalignment fading and multipath fading,which are major influence factors in the THz channel modeling.Then,we focus on simulators and experiments in the THz band,after which we give a brief introduction on applications of THz channel models with respects to capacity,security,and sensing as examples.Finally,we discuss some key issues in the future THz channel modeling.

Roll-to-roll imprint for high precision grating manufacturing

In this paper,a novel roll-to-roll imprint process is proposed to fabricate gratings in large area. The key challenges in roll-to-roll imprint process,such as the roller mold preparation,imprint system,misalignment of imprint roller and backup roller,and also the imprint pressure,are investigated. Various gratings with different periods and profiles are obtained by the roll-to-roll process. To calibrate the measuring ability of the self-made grating by imprint,a calibration system is built with a dual-frequency laser interferometer. By the calibration,the self-made gratings can achieve ±4μm accuracy in 45mm measuring distance.

Research on suppress vibration of rotor misalignment with shear viscous damper

A new type of shear viscous damper for rotating machinery is designed. The new damper with good stability and reliability can inhibit all kinds of frequency multiplication vibration caused by misalignment in the condition of nonstop machine. It analyzes and discusses the use of the shear viscous damper for misalignment vibration response inhibition with a finite element method, and experi ments are extensively carried out with a laboratory test rig. Both the simulation and experimental re suits basically agree well in that, the damper can effectively control the misalignment vibration of the rotor system and improves the stability of the plitude of one time running speed component bration has been basically eliminated. entire rotor system. Experimental results show the am decreases by 30% , and the two time running speed vibration has been basically eliminated.