An Estimation of Achievable Rate for Digital Transmissions over MIMO Channels

Achievable rate (AR) is significant to communications. As to multi-input multi-output (MIMO) digital transmissions with finite alphabets inputs, which greatly improve the performance of communications, it seems rather difficult to calculate accurate AR. Here we propose an estimation of con-siderable accuracy and low complexity, based on Euclidean measure matrix for given channel states and constellations. The main contribution is explicit expression, non-constraints to MIMO schemes and channel states and constellations, and controllable estimating gap. Numerical results show that the proposition is able to achieve enough accurate AR computation. In addition the estimating gap given by theoretical deduction is well agreed.

Decoding the evolution and transmissions of the novel pneumonia coronavirus(SARS-CoV-2/HCoV-19)using whole genomic data

The outbreak of COVID-19 started in mid-December2019 in Wuhan, China. Up to 29 February 2020,SARS-CoV-2(HCoV-19/2019-nCoV) had infected more than 85 000 people in the world. In this study,we used 93 complete genomes of SARS-CoV-2 from the GISAID EpiFlu TM database to investigate the evolution and human-to-human transmissions of SARS-CoV-2 in the first two months of the outbreak.We constructed haplotypes of the SARS-CoV-2 genomes, performed phylogenomic analyses and estimated the potential population size changes of the virus. The date of population expansion was calculated based on the expansion parameter tau(τ)using the formula t=τ/2 u. A total of 120 substitution sites with 119 codons, including 79 non-synonymous and 40 synonymous substitutions, were found in eight coding-regions in the SARS-CoV-2 genomes.Forty non-synonymous substitutions are potentially associated with virus adaptation. No combinations were detected. The 58 haplotypes(31 found in samples from China and 31 from outside China)were identified in 93 viral genomes under study and could be classified into five groups. By applying the reported bat coronavirus genome(bat-RaTG13-CoV)as the outgroup, we found that haplotypes H13 and H38 might be considered as ancestral haplotypes,and later H1 was derived from the intermediate haplotype H3. The population size of the SARS-CoV-2 was estimated to have undergone a recent expansion on 06 January 2020, and an early expansion on 08 December 2019. Furthermore,phyloepidemiologic approaches have recovered specific directions of human-to-human transmissions and the potential sources for international infected cases.

Geometry Design and Tooth Contact Analysis of Crossed Beveloid Gears for Marine Transmissions

Beveloid gears,also known as conical gears,gain more and more importance in industry practice due to their abilities for power transmission between parallel,intersected and crossed axis.However,this type of gearing with crossed axes has no common plane of action which results in a point contact and low tooth durability.Therefore,a geometry design approach assuming line contact is developed to analyze the tooth engagement process of crossed beveloid gears with small shaft angle for marine transmission applications.The loaded gear tooth contact behavior is simulated by applying a quasi-static analysis to study the effects of gearing parameters on mesh characteristics.Using the proposed method,a series of sensitivity analyses to examine the effects of critical gearing parameters such as shaft angle,cone angle,helix angle and profile-shift coefficient on the theoretical gear mesh is performed.The parametric analysis of pitch cone design shows that the dominant design parameters represented by the angle between the first principle directions（FPD） and normal angular factor are more sensitive to the shaft and cone angles than they are to the helix angle.The theoretical contact path is highly sensitive to the profile-shift coefficient,which is determined from the theoretical tooth contact analysis.The FPD angle is found to change the distribution of contact pattern,contact pressure and root stress as well as the translational transmission error and the variation of the mesh stiffness significantly.The contact pattern is clearly different between the drive and coast sides due to different designed FPD angles.Finally,a practical experimental setup for marine transmission is performed and tooth bearing test is conducted to demonstrate the proposed design procedure.The experimental result compared well with the simulation.Results of this study yield a better understanding of the geometry design and loaded gear mesh characteristics for crossed beveloid gears used in marine transmission.

STURM-LIOUVILLE PROBLEMS WITH EIGENDEPENDENT BOUNDARY AND TRANSMISSIONS CONDITIONS

The purpose of this paper is to extend some fundamental spectral properties of regular Sturm-Liouville problems to special kind discontinuous boundary value problem, which consist of a Sturm-Liouville equation with piecewise continuous potential together with eigenvalue parameter on the boundary and transmission conditions. The authors suggest their own approach for finding asymptotic approximations formulas for eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of such discontinuous problems.

Developing Additive Technology for Wet Dual Clutch Transmissions

Wet dual clutch transmissions(W-DCTs) show overall benefits including excellent fuel efficiency,wide torque capacity range,long durability,driving comfort and sportiness.Many breakthroughs have been made to further improve the fuel efficiency by design innovations and introductions of new hardware.Each W-DCT has its unique design and hardware.It demands the lubricant to provide excellent wet clutch friction performance and anti-shudder friction durability,good synchronizer friction performance and durability,high load-carrying ability,excellent bearing performance,strong anti-corrosion performance,high thermal and oxidative stability,excellent material compatibility,etc.Particularly,the requirement of the wet clutch friction performance in W-DCT is much more severe than conventional ATFs and CVTFs.We report here our latest W-DCTF technologies developed for different W-DCT applications.DCTF-1 was optimized for a two-sump W-DCT application with the clutch lining material of friction material A(FM-A).DCTF-1 shows high and stable dynamic friction,static friction,particularly,high quasi-static friction without any shudder tendency in GK tests.DCTF-2 was designed for a one-sump W-DCT application with the same clutch lining material of FM-A.DCTF-2 completes 42,000 cycles of the severe GTI chassis dynamometer vehicle test without any issues,which is comparable to the factory fill fluid DCTF-FF.DCTF-3 was developed for a one-sump W-DCT application with a different clutch lining material of FM-B.DCTF-3 shows high and stable dynamic friction in the severe newly developed SAE DCT test procedure.DCTF-3 also gives excellent LVFA durability of over 720 h in the JASO M349 test procedure on FM-B.

Preventions and Controls on Congenital Transmissions of Zika: Mathematical Analysis

Vector-borne diseases threat lives of millions of people in many countries of the world. Zika is one of the vector-borne diseases which initially spread by the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus) and then it transmits vertically from a pregnant woman to her fetus or from an infected human to their sexual partners. The congenital transmission of Zika virus (ZIKV) results in new born with microcephaly and other neurological abnormalities. The control of infected mosquitos is the best efficient way to control spread of ZIKV. Spraying insecticide is the safest and easiest way to control mosquitos, but sometimes it is cost worthy for long period of spraying. Controlled prevention from the vector bites can also help to control disease spread. To control congenital transmission and sexual transmission of ZIKV, preventions should be taken to reduce/stop pregnancy rate and safe heterosexual transmission among adults. Also, there is no specific treatment available for Zika disease. Treatment is aimed at relieving symptoms with rest, fluids and medications. Controlled combinations of rest, fluids and medications will help to recover early. As costs are incorporated with spraying, preventions and treatment, our aim is to minimise the total cost associated by controlling spraying, preventions and treatment. To fulfil this purpose a mathematical model is developed with disease dynamics in nine compartments namely Susceptible human child, Susceptible human male, Susceptible human female, Infected human child, Infected human male, Infected human female, Recovered human, Susceptible vector and Infected vector including vertical transmission of Zika disease. Numerical simulations have been carried out to optimise controls, and basic reproduction number and stability are calculated.

Efficiency Evaluation of Continuously Variable Transmissions Including a Planetary Gear Train

With their advantages, continuously variable transmissions have gained more popularity in the last decade by their use in mechanical transmission systems. The present paper aims to analysis the efficiency of the transmission based on the mechanical efficiency of the planetary gear train integrated in such transmission. In this analysis, we consider the mechanical efficiency of the transmission has been determined considering how the efficiency of the CVT members changes as a function of the operating conditions. The efficiency of the planetary gear train as a function of the configuration, speeds in his three input/output shafts, and also with respect to the power flow type. Results are compared with those obtained from other methods performance evaluation of the transmission, available in the literature.

Multi-band asymmetric transmissions based on bi-layer windmill-shaped metamaterial

This study proposes a bi-layer windmill-shaped metamaterial that consists of resonators, with similar shapes, on both sides of a dielectric substrate. In this study, the second layer is rotated clockwise around the substrate normal at 90°and thereafter flipped in the first layer. Due to the introduction of a windmill-like shape, the resonant structures result in new resonant modes and thus can achieve multi-band high-efficiency cross-polarization conversions and asymmetric transmissions(ATs) for a linearly polarized incident plane wave with a maximum asymmetric parameter of 0.72. Depending on the geometric parameters of our windmill-shaped structures, the AT effects can be flexibly modulated in a broad multiband from 160 THz to 400 THz, which has not been reported in previous studies. These outstanding AT effects provide potential applications in optical diodes, polarization control switches, and other nano-devices.

TORQUE CAPACITY AND CONTACT EFFICIENCY OF A HALF TOROIDAL CONTINUOUSLY VARIABLE TRANSMISSIONS

The automotive industry is seeking new concepts for a continuously variabletransmission (CVT) in the driveline. One possible solution for a CVT design is half toroidaltraction drive, providing a high torque capacity with quick ratio change. An analytical study on thecontact points of the half toroidal CVT has been detailed. The shapes of the contact areas amongthe input disk, power roller and output disk are considered ellipses. Mathematical equations forestimating the torque capacity, power loss due to spin action, and contact efficiency of theelliptical contacts of the half toroidal CVT are formulated and expressed in the form of integralswhich can be readily evaluated by numerical scheme. The contact efficiency calculations of the halftoroidal CVT have been developed for the proper spin point locations under the effect of systemparameters. Numerical results are presented hi graphical forms for considered parameters, which canhelp the designer to select the proper system parameters to minimize the undesirable spin effects.

Configuration Synthesis and Performance Analysis of 9‑Speed Automatic Transmissions

Current research of automatic transmission(AT)mainly focuses on the improvement of driving performance,and configuration innovation is one of the main research directions.However,finding new configurations of ATs is one of the main limitations of configuration innovation.In the present study,epicyclic gear trains(EGTs)are applied to investigate mechanisms of 9-speed ATs.Then four kinematic configurations are proposed for automatic transitions.In order to evaluate the performance of proposed mechanisms,the lever analogy method is applied to conduct kinematic and mechanical analyses.The power flow analysis is conducted,and then transmission efficiencies are calculated based on the torque method.The comparative analysis between the proposed and existing mechanisms is carried out where obtained results show that proposed mechanisms have reasonable performance and can be used in ATs.The prototype of an AT is manufactured and the speed test is conducted,which proves the accuracy of analysis and the feasibility of proposed mechanisms.

Multi-Source Spinal Coding for Coded Caching Multicast Transmissions in Wireless Networks

Recently,coded caching has been treated as a promising technique to alleviate the traffic burden in wireless networks.To support high efficient coded caching multicast transmissions,the time-varying heterogeneous channel conditions need to be considered.In this paper,a practical and novel multi-source spinal coding(MSSC)scheme is developed for coded caching multicast transmissions under heterogeneous channel conditions.By exploring joint design of network coding and spinal coding(SC),MSSC can achieve unequal link rates in multicast transmissions for different users.Moreover,by leveraging the rateless feature of SC in our design,MSSC can well adapt the link rates of all users in multicast transmissions without any feedback of time-varying channel conditions.A maximum likelihood(ML)based decoding process for MSSC is also developed,which can achieve a linear complexity with respect to the user number in the multicast transmission.Simulation results validate the effectiveness of the MSSC scheme.Compared to the existing scheme,the sum rate of MSSC in multicast transmissions is improved by about 20%.When applying MSSC in coded caching systems,the total transmission time can be reduced by up to 48% for time-varying channels.

Coverage Analyses on Directional Transmissions Ultra-Dense Networks with Imperfect Beam Alignment

Blockage and imperfect beam alignment are two principal difficulties in high-frequency bands directional transmissions.In this paper,the coverage performance of downlink directional transmissions in ultra-dense networks is analyzed,with the consideration of beam alignment error and link blockage through stochastic geometry.Numerical experiments demonstrate that narrower beam leads to higher coverage probability with perfect beam alignment,but it is not the case with imperfect beam alignment.Therefore,the optimal beamwidth that maximize the coverage probability is characterized and a closed-form approximation of the optimal beamwidth is derived under imperfect beam alignment,accordingly.Furthermore,the optimal beamwidth is a monotonically increasing function of the standard deviation of the beam alignment error,and a monotonically decreasing function of the beamwidth of correspondent communication end,indicating that the beamwidth of the communication pairs ought to be jointly designed.

Fragmental Weight-Conservation Combining Scheme for Statistical Signal Transmissions under Fast Time-Varying Channels

Statistical Signal Transmission(SST)is a technique based on orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing(OFDM)and adopts cyclostationary features,which can transmit extra information without additional bandwidth.However,the more complicated environment in 5G communication systems,especially the fast time-varying scenarios,will dramatically degrade the performance of the SST.In this paper,we propose a fragmental weight-conservation combining(FWCC)scheme for SST,to overcome its performance degradation under fast time-varying channels.The proposed FWCC scheme consists of three phases:1、incise the received OFDM stream into pieces;2、endue different weights for fine and contaminated pieces,respectively;3、combine cyclic autocorrelation function energies of all the pieces;and 4、compute the final feature and demodulate data of SST.Through these procedures above,the detection accuracy of SST will be theoretically refined under fast time-varying channels.Such an inference is confirmed through numerical results in this paper.It is demonstrated that the BER performance of proposed scheme outperforms that of the original scheme both in ideal channel estimation conditions and in imperfect channel estimation conditions.In addition,we also find the experiential optimal weight distribution strategy for the proposed FWCC scheme,which facilitates practical applications.

Assessment of Initial Investment Valuation Methodology of Brazilian Power Transmissions Auction

This paper aims to assess the Initial Investment Valuation Methodology of the local regulator, facing the results of auctions, due to the high occurrence of low clearing prices observed from 2003 to 2008 and the high percentage of auctions without any bidder recently. The regulator investment forecasted defines the maximum value of Yearly Allowed Revenue and the bidder that offers the lowest YAR value wins the auction. The first type of analysis considers project cost, location, execution deadline, transmission line extension and type of all actions from 1999 to 2015, totalling about 3.361 billion USD. It was not found any correlation of those variables and the result of the actions. The second analysis compared the equipment and the additional costs breakdown of the regulator investment forecast with the real investment in projects from 2009 to 2013 and it rarely surpasses 5%. Suggestions are proposed based on the analysis.

Joint Beamforming Design for RIS-Assisted Cell-Free Network with Multi-Hop Transmissions

The collaboration of multiple Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces(RISs)and Access Points(APs)enjoys advantages of capacity enhancement,power saving,etc.,making the RIS-assisted cell-free network an important architecture for future communications.Similar to most existing works on RIS-assisted communications,the multi-hop link among RISs,i.e.,the reflecting link including more than one RISs,is usually ignored in RIS-assisted cell-free networks.In these scenarios,however,since multiple RISs are closely deployed,we find that the multi-hop channels should not be simply ignored due to their potential for capacity improvement.Unfortunately,to the best of our knowledge,there is no work exploring the multi-hop transmission of RIS-assisted cell-free networks.To fill in this blank,we investigate the multi-hop transmission of RIS-assisted cell-free networks,including the multi-hop channel model and the corresponding beamforming design.Specifically,we propose a general multi-hop transmission model,which takes the direct links,single-reflecting links,and multi-hop links into account.Based on this model,we formulate a beamforming design problem in an RIS-assisted cell-free network,which allows us to maximize the multi-user sum-rate with considering the impact of multi-hop channels.To address the non-convexity of the formulated problem,a joint active and passive beamforming scheme is proposed to solve the problem.Particularly,by utilizing fractional programming,we decouple the coupled beamforming parameters in the problem,and then these parameters are alternately optimized until the convergence of the sum-rate.Simulation results verify that the consideration for multi-hop links is necessary,and the capacity performance of the proposed scheme is 20%higher than those of the existing schemes.

Intrusion Detection Model Using Chaotic MAP for Network Coding Enabled Mobile Small Cells

Wireless Network security management is difficult because of the ever-increasing number of wireless network malfunctions,vulnerabilities,and assaults.Complex security systems,such as Intrusion Detection Systems(IDS),are essential due to the limitations of simpler security measures,such as cryptography and firewalls.Due to their compact nature and low energy reserves,wireless networks present a significant challenge for security procedures.The features of small cells can cause threats to the network.Network Coding(NC)enabled small cells are vulnerable to various types of attacks.Avoiding attacks and performing secure“peer”to“peer”data transmission is a challenging task in small cells.Due to the low power and memory requirements of the proposed model,it is well suited to use with constrained small cells.An attacker cannot change the contents of data and generate a new Hashed Homomorphic Message Authentication Code(HHMAC)hash between transmissions since the HMAC function is generated using the shared secret.In this research,a chaotic sequence mapping based low overhead 1D Improved Logistic Map is used to secure“peer”to“peer”data transmission model using lightweight H-MAC(1D-LM-P2P-LHHMAC)is proposed with accurate intrusion detection.The proposed model is evaluated with the traditional models by considering various evaluation metrics like Vector Set Generation Accuracy Levels,Key Pair Generation Time Levels,Chaotic Map Accuracy Levels,Intrusion Detection Accuracy Levels,and the results represent that the proposed model performance in chaotic map accuracy level is 98%and intrusion detection is 98.2%.The proposed model is compared with the traditional models and the results represent that the proposed model secure data transmission levels are high.

Effects of cross-Kerr coupling on transmission spectrum of double-cavity optomechanical system

We theoretically study the transmission spectrum of the cavity field in a double-cavity optomechanical system with cross-Kerr(CK) effect. The system consists of two tunneling coupling optomechanical cavities with a mechanical resonator as a coupling interface. By doping CK medium into the mechanical resonator, CK couplings between the cavity fields and the mechanical resonator are introduced. We investigate the effects of CK coupling strength on the transmission spectrum of the cavity field, including the transmission rate, nonreciprocity and four-wave mixing(FWM). We find that the transmission spectrum of the probe field can show two obvious transparent windows, which can be widened by increasing the CK coupling strength. For the transmission between the two cavity fields, the perfect nonreciprocity and reciprocity are present and modulated by CK coupling and phase difference between two effective optomechanical couplings. In addition, the effects of the optomechanical and CK couplings on FWM show that the single peak of FWM is split into three symmetrical peaks due to the introduction of the CK effect.

Finite element model updating for structural damage detection using transmissibility data

This paper presents a new finite element model updating method for estimating structural parameters and detecting structural damage location and severity based on the structural responses(output-only data).The method uses the sensitivity relation of transmissibility data through a least-squares algorithm and appropriate normalization of the extracted equations.The proposed transmissibility-based sensitivity equation produces a more significant number of equations than the sensitivity equations based on the frequency response function(FRF),which can estimate the structural parameters with higher accuracy.The abilities of the proposed method are assessed by using numerical data of a two-story two-bay frame model and a plate structure model.In evaluating different damage cases,the number,location,and stiffness reduction of the damaged elements and the severity of the simulated damage have been accurately identified.The reliability and stability of the presented method against measurement and modeling errors are examined using error-contaminated data.The parameter estimation results prove the method’s capabilities as an accurate model updating algorithm.

Resident immune responses to spinal cord injury:role of astrocytes and microglia

Spinal cord injury can be traumatic or non-traumatic in origin,with the latter rising in incidence and prevalence with the aging demographics of our society.Moreove r,as the global population ages,individuals with co-existent degenerative spinal pathology comprise a growing number of traumatic spinal cord injury cases,especially involving the cervical spinal cord.This makes recovery and treatment approaches particula rly challenging as age and comorbidities may limit regenerative capacity.For these reasons,it is critical to better understand the complex milieu of spinal cord injury lesion pathobiology and the ensuing inflammatory response.This review discusses microglia-specific purinergic and cytokine signaling pathways,as well as microglial modulation of synaptic stability and plasticity after injury.Further,we evaluate the role of astrocytes in neurotransmission and calcium signaling,as well as their border-forming response to neural lesions.Both the inflammatory and reparative roles of these cells have eluded our complete understanding and remain key therapeutic targets due to their extensive structural and functional roles in the nervous system.Recent advances have shed light on the roles of glia in neurotransmission and reparative injury responses that will change how interventions are directed.Understanding key processes and existing knowledge gaps will allow future research to effectively target these cells and harness their regenerative potential.

Analytical solution to incident angle quasi-phase-matching engineering for second harmonic generation in a periodic-poled lithium niobate crystal

Phase matching or quasi-phase matching(QPM)is of significant importance to the conversion efficiency of second harmonic generation(SHG)in artificial nonlinear crystals like lithium niobate(LN)crystal or microstructured nonlinear crystals like periodic-poled lithium niobate(PPLN)crystals.In this paper,we propose and show that the incident angle of pump laser light can be harnessed as an alternative versatile tool to engineer QPM for high-efficiency SHG in a PPLN crystal,in addition to conventional means of period adjusting or temperature tuning.A rigorous model is established and analytical solution of the nonlinear conversion efficiency under the small and large signal approximation theory is obtained at different incident angles.The variation of phase mismatching and walk-off length with incident angle or incident wavelength are also explored.Numerical simulations for a PPLN crystal with first order QPM structure are used to confirm our theoretical predictions based on the exact analytical solution of the general large-signal theory.The results show that the narrow-band tunable SHG output covers a range of 532 nm–552.8 nm at the ideal incident angle from 0°to 90°.This theoretical scheme,fully considering the reflection and transmission at the air-crystal interface,would offer an efficient theoretical system to evaluate the nonlinear frequency conversion and help to obtain the maximum SHG conversion efficiency by selecting an optimum incident wavelength and incident angle in a specially designed PPLN crystal,which would be very helpful for the design of tunable narrow-band pulse nanosecond,picosecond,and femtosecond laser devices via PPLN and other microstructured LN crystals.