Average Peak Research Articles

Bond performance between surface-modified bamboo bars and concrete under pull-out loading

Bamboo is abundant, eco-friendly, and cost-effective, making it an excellent alternative to traditional building materials with limitations such as resource scarcity, pollution, and increasing price. Additionally, bamboo has excellent strength and durability, and can be used to replace steel bars. In this study, central pull-out tests were conducted on forty bamboo bars embedded in concrete specimens to study the bonding performance at the interface between bamboo bars and concrete. The test variables included surface modification (unmodified, epoxy mortar (EM)-modified and polyurethane (PE)-modified), equivalent diameter (d), and development length (L). The results indicated that (1) the specimens with PE-modified bamboo bars mainly exhibited bamboo bar pull-out failure, whereas the specimens with EM-modified bamboo bars primarily underwent tensile failure of the bamboo bar; (2) the bond stress‒slip curve had four stages: micro-scale slip, slip, descending, and residual stages; (3) the average peak bond stress (τ0) of the specimens with EM-modified bamboo bars was the highest; (4) τ0 decreased with increasing L and d values; and (5) the largest strain values were observed near the loading end. Finally, bond stress-slip constitutive models suitable for pull-out specimens with PE-modified bamboo bars with different L values were obtained by fitting test data. The findings of this study broaden the application of bamboo bars in the concrete structures.

Face Image Segmentation Using Boosted Grey Wolf Optimizer.

Image segmentation methods have received widespread attention in face image recognition, which can divide each pixel in the image into different regions and effectively distinguish the face region from the background for further recognition. Threshold segmentation, a common image segmentation method, suffers from the problem that the computational complexity shows exponential growth with the increase in the segmentation threshold level. Therefore, in order to improve the segmentation quality and obtain the segmentation thresholds more efficiently, a multi-threshold image segmentation framework based on a meta-heuristic optimization technique combined with Kapur's entropy is proposed in this study. A meta-heuristic optimization method based on an improved grey wolf optimizer variant is proposed to optimize the 2D Kapur's entropy of the greyscale and nonlocal mean 2D histograms generated by image computation. In order to verify the advancement of the method, experiments compared with the state-of-the-art method on IEEE CEC2020 and face image segmentation public dataset were conducted in this paper. The proposed method has achieved better results than other methods in various tests at 18 thresholds with an average feature similarity of 0.8792, an average structural similarity of 0.8532, and an average peak signal-to-noise ratio of 24.9 dB. It can be used as an effective tool for face segmentation.

Simultaneous evaluation of rutting-stripping performance and cracking resistance for asphalt mixtures

In this study, the influence of volumetric properties on viscoplastic (VP) deformation, stripping, and cracking performance of asphalt mixtures and the corresponding correlations between these three performance indices were comparatively investigated based on the Hamburg Wheel Tracking Test (HWTT) and Overlay Test (OT) results. A total of 20 different types of asphalt mixtures were comparatively evaluated and divided into two groups, namely: one group for the asphalt mixtures with stripping and another group for the asphalt mixtures without stripping. It was observed that the aggregate gradations of asphalt mixtures prone to stripping were mostly fine graded, and that, the effect of aggregate gradation was more pronounced than that of the asphalt binder content. Additionally, even though the average OT peak loads for all the asphalt mixtures were similar, the numbers of OT load cycles to failure for the fine-graded asphalt mixtures were over twice higher than those with coarse aggregate gradations. Also, whilst the VP deformation and cracking of the asphalt mixtures with stripping were positively correlated, the response-trends for the non-stripping asphalt mixtures were indeterminate. In general, the stripping characteristics were found to be related to the cracking resistance potential, further suggesting that the occurrence of stripping could be largely due to adhesive fracturing between the asphalt binder and the aggregates. Overall, the test results and study findings indicated a potential feasibility to predict and estimate the performance indices (i.e., deformation, rutting, stripping, cracking resistance, etc.) from amongst each other for the asphalt mixtures that are prone to stripping.

Three-dimensional echocardiography for the evaluation of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients: relation to symptoms and exercise capacity

Patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy may exhibit impaired functional capacity, associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Systolic function is one of the determinants of functional capacity. Early identification of systolic disfunction may identify patients at risk for adverse outcomes. Myocardial deformation parameters, derived from three-dimensional (3D) speckle-tracking echocardiography (3DSTE) are useful tools to assess left ventricular systolic function, and are often abnormal before a decline in ejection fraction is seen. The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between myocardial deformation parameters obtained by 3DSTE and functional capacity in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Seventy-four hypertrophic cardiomyopathy adult patients were prospectively evaluated. All patients underwent a dedicated 2D and 3D echocardiographic examination and cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET). Values of 3D global radial (GRS), longitudinal (3DGLS) and circumferential strain (GCS) were overall reduced in our population: 99% (n = 73) of the patients had reduced GLS, 82% (n = 61) had reduced GRS and all patients had reduced GCS obtain by 3DSTE. Average peak VO2 was 21.01 (6.08) ml/Kg/min; 58% (n = 39) of the patients showed reduced exercise tolerance (predicted peak VO2 < 80%). The average VE/VCO2 slope was 29.0 (5.3) and 16% (n = 11) of the patients had impaired ventilatory efficiency (VE/VCO2 > 34). In multivariable analysis, 3D GLS (β1 = 0.10, 95%CI: 0.03;0.23, p = 0.014), age (β1 = -0.15, 95%CI: -0.23; -0.05, p = 0.002) and female gender (β1 = -5.10, 95%CI: -7.7; -2.6, p < 0.01) were independently associated with peak VO2. No association was found between left ventricle ejection fraction obtain and peak VO2 (r = 0.161, p = 0.5). Impaired myocardial deformation parameters evaluated by 3DSTE were associated with worse functional capacity assessed by peak VO2.

Development and Validation of Nonhuman Primate Head-Neck Computational Model for Frontal Impact Injury Analysis

Abstract Severe cervical spine injuries are rare in an automobile crash, however, the recovery for an individual is difficult. With no suitable surrogate in the laboratory setting, the exact head-neck (HN) response to severe impact accelerations is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a nonhuman primate (NHP) HN model and validate it using a historic NHP kinematic dataset that tested noninjury, as well as injury-inducing impact accelerations. The geometry of the NHP HN model was constructed from a previously CT-scanned skeleton and idealized as a two-dimensional quadrilateral shell mesh. Inertial properties of the vertebra and skull were defined, as well as 1D beam elements representing the spinal ligaments and discs. The model was then driven at the T1 vertebra using a literature-derived 10G acceleration curve to simulate frontal impact. Output peak Head X-acceleration was measured at 19.8G, which fell within the average peak response of 18.8 ± 4.6 G. Capsular ligament and interspinous ligament strains were measured along the cervical spine and the relative magnitudes were consistent with areas of likely injury at more severe impact accelerations. Once tested at more severe impact accelerations, this NHP HN model will provide a suitable way to study potential human cervical spine dynamics during frontal impact.

A Novel Metric "Exercise Cardiac Load" Proposed to Track and Predict the Deterioration of the Autonomic Nervous System in Division I Football Athletes.

Current metrics like baseline heart rate (HR) and HR recovery fail in predicting overtraining (OT), a syndrome manifesting from a deteriorating autonomic nervous system (ANS). Preventing OT requires tracking the influence of internal physiological loads induced by exercise training programs on the ANS. Therefore, this study evaluated the predictability of a novel, exercise cardiac load metric on the deterioration of the ANS. Twenty male American football players, with an average age of 21.3 years and body mass indices ranging from 23.7 to 39.2 kg/m2 were included in this study. Subjects participated in 40 strength- and power-focused exercise sessions over 8 weeks and wore armband monitors (Warfighter Monitor, Tiger Tech Solutions) equipped with electrocardiography capabilities. Exercise cardiac load was the product of average training HR and duration. Baseline HR, HR variability (HRV), average HR, and peak HR were also measured. HR recovery was measured on the following day. HRV indices assessed included the standard deviation of NN intervals (SDNN) and root mean square of successive RR interval differences (rMSSD) Linear regression models assessed the relationships between each cardiac metric and HR recovery, with statistical significance set at α < 0.05. Subjects were predominantly non-Hispanic black (70%) and aged 21.3 (±1.4) years. Adjusted models showed that exercise cardiac load elicited the strongest negative association with HR recovery for previous day (β = -0.18 ± 0.03; p < 0.0000), one-week (β = -0.20 ± 0.03; p < 0.0000) and two-week (β = -0.26 ± 0.03; p < 0.0000) training periods compared to average HR (βetas: -0.09 to -0.02; p < 0.0000) and peak HR (βetas: -0.13 to -0.23; p < 0.0000). Statistically significant relationships were also found for baseline HR (p < 0.0000), SDNN (p < 0.0000) and rMSSD (p < 0.0000). Exercise cardiac load appears to best predict ANS deterioration across one- to two-week training periods, showing a capability for tracking an athlete's physiological tolerance and ANS response. Importantly, this information may increase the effectiveness of exercise training programs, enhance performance, and prevent OT.

Quantifying Turning Tasks With Wearable Sensors: A Reliability Assessment.

The aim of this study was to establish the test-retest reliability of metrics obtained from wearable inertial sensors that reflect turning performance during tasks designed to imitate various turns in daily activity. Seventy-one adults who were healthy completed 3 turning tasks: a 1-minute walk along a 6-m walkway, a modified Illinois Agility Test (mIAT), and a complex turning course (CTC). Peak axial turning and rotational velocity (yaw angular velocity) were extracted from wearable inertial sensors on the head, trunk, and lumbar spine. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were established to assess the test-retest reliability of average peak turning speed for each task. Lap time was collected for reliability analysis as well. Turning speed across all tasks demonstrated good to excellent reliability, with the highest reliability noted for the CTC (45-degree turns: ICC= 0.73-0.81; 90-degree turns: ICC = 0.71-0.83; and 135-degree turns: ICC = 0.72-0.80). The reliability of turning speed during 180-degree turns from the 1-minute walk was consistent across all body segments (ICC = 0.74-0.76). mIAT reliability ranged from fair to excellent (end turns: ICC = 0.52-0.72; mid turns: ICC = 0.50-0.56; and slalom turns: ICC = 0.66-0.84). The CTC average lap time demonstrated good test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.69), and the mIAT average lap time test-retest reliability was excellent (ICC = 0.91). Turning speed measured by inertial sensors is a reliable outcome across a variety of ecologically valid turning tasks that can be easily tested in a clinical environment. Turning performance is a reliable and important measure that should be included in clinical assessments and clinical trials.

FRI598 Evolving Growth Hormone Deficiency: A Proof Of Concept

Abstract Disclosure: S. Chimatapu: None. S. Sethuram: None. J. Samuels: None. M. Savage: None. R. Rapaport: None. Introduction: Most cases of growth hormone deficiency (GHD) in pediatric patients are idiopathic, isolated and acquired. All acquired conditions commence with a period during which the diagnosis maybe unapparent. We document here evidence for evolution of GHD in a group of adolescent males who tested sufficient on initial GH stimulation test (GST) but tested deficient upon reevaluation. The rationale for repeat GST was ongoing growth failure. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that GHD in some individuals evolves with time and can be diagnosed by repeat testing (EGHD). We also postulate that their response to GH therapy is similar to other patients with GHD. Methods: We performed an IRB-approved retrospective chart review of children who presented for short stature (height less &amp;lt; 2SD for mean or &amp;lt; 2SD for mid-parental height) to pediatric endocrinology at Kravis Children’s Hospital at Mount Sinai, New York and who had 2 GST. GST were performed using two different stimuli (arginine and glucagon) and highly sensitive assay serum GH measurements were processed by the same laboratory, Esoterix. No patient had obesity, chronic illnesses, or any genetic conditions affecting growth. Data were collected from electronic medical records and analyzed using SPSS v28.0 once at least half the population studied reached adult height. We defined adult height as bone age ≥ 16 years and growth velocity ≤ 2 cm/year. Results: Of 42 charts analyzed, all male, 25 had EGHD. Their average GH peak on initial GST was 15.48 ± 4.92 ng/ml, mean age 10.07 ± 2.65 years, mean height -1.68 ± 0.56 SD , IGF-1 -1.00 ± 0.88 SD. After 2.23 ± 1.22 years, at 12.04 ± 2.41years, height decreased to -1.82 ± 0.63 SD and IGF-1 was -1.08 ± 0.84 SD. At repeat GST, GH peak was 7.59 ± 2.12 ng/mL and 28% were in puberty. All patients had MRI before starting GH therapy; 40% had small anterior pituitary glands. 12 males who reached adult height had a height of -1.88 ± 0.64 SD, IGF-1 of -1.15 ± 0.81 SD, with 42% pubertal and peak GH of 7.33 ± 2.47 ng/mL at repeat GST. They had a mean height gain of 1.83 ± 0.56 SD(p&amp;lt;0.005), with an adult height of 0.09 ± 0.70 SD after 4.64 ± 1.4years of treatment. They were 2.10 ± 4.20 cm taller than their mid-parental target heights. Discussion/Conclusions: We provide proof of concept for the diagnosis of EGHD. The diagnosis could be established by repeat GST in children with ongoing growth deceleration despite pubertal progression and a non-diagnostic initial GST. Our patients who reached adult height had a height gain consistent with that reported by KIGS for patients with growth hormone deficiency (1.7SD; Cutfield,1999) and indeed better than patients with ISS (0.7SD; Maghnie,2022). Presentation: Friday, June 16, 2023

Experimental study on dynamic response of rock tunnel subjected to train moving load

The tunnels might be suffered from damage and destruction under the dynamic loads generated by trains moving on the upper railways, which can in turn threaten the safety of the railways. Understanding the dynamic response of tunnel under the train moving load is of significance for maintaining the operation safety of both the tunnel and upper railway. However, there is currently a lack of relevant research on this topic, especially regarding model experiments. To address this gap, this paper conducts physical model experiments on the train-rail-bridge-shaking table test system to investigate the dynamic response of tunnels subjected to train moving load. The experiment results revealed that except for the average peak particle velocity (PPA) at tunnel vault, the average PPAs at other locations and the vibration dominant frequency (f0) at all locations increase as the train moving speed (vtr) increases. With the exception of some special cases, the average PPAs on tunnel spandrels are generally less than that on the tunnel vault and greater than that on the tunnel invert. When the vtr exceeds 7.03 m/s, except for the average PPA at tunnel invert, the average PPAs on the tunnel wall are generally larger than those inside the surrounding rock mass. As vtr increases, the average f0 on tunnel wall changes more obviously compared to average f0 inside the surrounding rock mass. When the vtr exceeds 10.54 m/s, the average f0 on tunnel wall are noticeably larger than those inside the surrounding rock mass. The high coefficients of determination obtained from the nonlinear regression analysis indicates a power relationship between the average PPA and vtr, while the average f0 shows an exponential association with vtr. The research findings hold great importance in ensuring the safe operation of tunnels and railways.

Flow field reconstruction in inlet of scramjet at Mach 10 based on physical information neural network

This paper proposed the physical information residual spatial pyramid pooling (PIResSpp) convolutional neural network that is highly robust and introduces a residual neural network architecture that can satisfactorily fit high-dimensional functions by using jumping connections to reduce the risk of overfitting. Key features of the flow field were extracted by using pooling kernels of different sizes and were then stitched together to fuse its local and global features. The axisymmetric inlet of the scramjet generated by the Bezier curve was established through highly precise numerical simulations, and datasets of flow fields under different geometric configurations were constructed according to the parametric design. The PIResSpp model was trained on a sample dataset, and mapping relationships were established between the parameters of incoming flow/those of the geometry of the inlet, and the velocity, pressure, and density fields in it. Finally, the results of reconstruction of the flow field at the inlet with different design parameters were tested and compared with the outcomes of various deep learning models. The results show that the average peak signal-to-noise ratio of the flow field reconstructed by the proposed model was 36.427, with a correlation coefficient higher than 97%.

Grid-Sim: Simulating Electric Fleet Charging with Renewable Generation and Battery Storage

The inevitable electrification of the sub-Saharan African paratransit system poses substantial threats to an already crippled electricity supply network. The integration of any electric vehicle fleet in this region will require in-depth analyses and understanding of the grid impact due to charging. This allows informative decisions for sufficient planning to be made for the required network infrastructure or the implementation of applicable ‘load-shifting’ techniques. This paper presents Grid-Sim, a software tool that enables comprehensive analysis of the grid impact implications of electrifying vehicle fleets. Grid-Sim is applied to assess the load profiles, energy demand, load-shifting techniques, and associated emissions for two charging stations serving an electrified minibus taxi fleet of 202 vehicles in Johannesburg, South Africa. It is found that the current operation patterns result in a peak grid power draw of 12 kW/taxi, grid-drawn energy of 87.4 kWh/taxi/day, and, subsequently, 93 kg CO2/taxi/day of emissions. However, when using the built-in option of including external batteries and a solar charging station, the average peak power draw reduces by 66%, and both grid-drawn energy and emissions reduce by 58%.

Wave-impact forces and moments due to random waves on a jacket-type platform for different relative submergence of the deck

Force and moment measurements due to wave impacts were conducted on a jacket platform model under six distinct relative deck submergence conditions. The water depth was carefully chosen to facilitate scenarios ranging from sufficient deck air gaps to partial and complete submergence. For the purpose of our analysis, we focused on peak and average peak wave force and moment values. The study uncovers that the peak wave force towards the shore can escalate to 1.5 times the peak wave force towards the sea. Moreover, the ratio of the peak shoreward force to the average peak shoreward force fluctuates between 3 and 4, contingent upon the relative water level at the deck base and the prevailing wave condition. Remarkably, the peak upward wave force on the deck can reach 5 to 7 times the peak inline wave force. A review of existing guidelines suggests a significant need to enhance research regarding the air gap between the deck and the still water level (SWL), as well as its effect on global and local wave forces and moments on the structures. Our finding establishes that the relative water level from the base of the deck is a crucial parameter in the design process of these structures. This study presents a more in-depth understanding of the physical mechanisms at play by utilizing a realistic jacket platform model. It serves as an initial exploration into the influence of air gap and relative water depth on wave-impact forces and moments. The results obtained from this study shed light on optimal design strategies for jacket-type offshore drilling platforms, considering green water effects. This understanding will enhance the life expectancy and survivability of such platforms.

Effect of Bacillus sp. application on the germination of coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) under salt stress

Coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), one of the annual herbaceous plants widely used as a medicinal and aromatic herb, is used as flavor and aroma, to treat digestive system diseases, as antipyretic, etc. Salinity, which is one of the soil quality index parameters, is one of the most important abiotic stress factors limiting the production of agricultural products. This study examined the effect of Bacillus sp. application on germination rate (%), germination speed (days), average daily germination (days), peak and germination values of coriander at different salt (NaCl) concentrations (0, 50, 100, 150, 200 mM). It was determined that the Bacillus sp. and salt application were significant at the level of 1% in the investigated parameters and that the bacterial application minimized the negative effects of increasing salt concentrations on the germination biology. The germination rate (67%), germination speed (8.4 days), average daily germination (4.5 days), peak (2.33%), and germination values (10.5%) were obtained. It was determined that no Bacillus sp. + 50 mM salt application provided the best germination values in coriander seeds.

SEU Hardened D Flip-Flop Design with Low Area Overhead.

D flip-flop (DFF) is the basic unit of sequential logic in digital circuits. However, because of an internal cross-coupled inverter pair, it can easily appear as a single event upset (SEU) when hit by high-energy particles, resulting in the error in the value stored in the flip-flop. On this basis, a new structure D flip-flop is proposed in this paper. This flip-flop uses an asymmetric scheme in which the master-slave latch adopts different hardening structures. By sacrificing circuit speed in exchange for stronger SEU fortification capability, the SEU threshold of this structure is improved by 10 times compared to traditional D flip-flops. It has also been compared with Dual Interlocked Storage Elements (DICEs), and it saves the area cost of six transistors compared to the DICE structure. Under the same operating conditions, the average power consumption and peak power consumption are, respectively, 9.8% and 18.8% lower than those of the DICE circuit, making it suitable for soft radiation environments where high circuit speed is not a critical requirement.

Socio-economic Profile of Equine Owner, Morphometric Characterization and Reproductive Performance of Indigenous Horses in Bangladesh

Background: The socio-economic importance of horses plays a decisive role in the dynamism of rural economies in remote regions of developing countries such as Bangladesh. Horses are particularly suitable for transportation and recreation in these areas. Methods: The study was conducted from January to March 2023 in 200 randomly selected horse families concentrated in Sherpur, Jamalpur, Tangail, Sirajganj, Natore, and Noagoan districts of Bangladesh. After the necessary corrections and modifications, the final questionnaire was created based on the objectives of the study. The data were collected by respondents individually through personal interviews. Results: The average number of horses per family was 1.18, with 70% of them being transported and only 11.5% participating in horse races. The average peak and the poor seasonal income of the farmers were recorded as BDT (12,920-6,717). On average, 2 kg of concentrate feed per day is supplied to each horse with forages in the morning and afternoon depending on the situation. All farmers practiced natural mating, but they did not perform vaccination (100%). The indigenous horse's face color was observed as a star of 30%, and 45% non-specific, while the coat color was chestnut 38.5%, bay 41.5%, grey 8%, pseudo-Albino 3.5%, black 3.5%, brown 1% and bay roan 4%. The chest stocking color was observed as black 48%, white 33%, black and white 19%. The average body length, chest girth, neck length, ear length, and body weight in the research region were 119.86±0.17 cm, 126.28±0.19 cm, 37.87±0.14 cm, 15.78±0.12 cm, and 160.43±0.65 kg. The body length and body weight (p=0.000) differ significantly from region to region. Age at first service, service per conception (no.), gestation length, and foaling interval were 2.34±0.07 years, 1.21±0.06 years, 10.91±0.33 months and 1.00±0.03 years, respectively. Conclusions: Horses have enormous potential for livelihoods in rural areas, so it is important to preserve and improve horse genetic resources and ensure sustainable horse rearing in Bangladesh.

Benchtop impaction device replicates cadaveric loading conditions of the transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) procedure

Background contextLumbar spine disc pathologies often necessitate removal of the intervertebral disc and implantation of a lumbar interbody fusion (LIF) device. Herein, the objective was to measure use condition forces while simulating intra-operative loading conditions of transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) procedures. MethodsIn this work, we developed a transferable method to measure impact forces in a cadaveric intra-operative setting and designed a drop weight benchtop device equipped with force and displacement sensors to replicate cadaveric impact conditions, including number of strikes required for interbody device insertion, peak force, initial slope of the impact waveform, impact duration, and area under the force-time curve (impulse). Following cadaveric testing, a benchtop biomechanical study varying interbody device height, drop height, and drop weight was performed to evaluate the utility of the benchtop device to replicate impact loading conditions which occurred in the cadaveric model. ResultsSeveral benchtop test groups replicated the cadaver group in number of strikes required for device insertion. The average cadaveric peak force, 13.03 kN, was replicated by three benchtop groups: 12 mm device height, 60 cm drop height, 0.75 lb drop weight; 12 mm device height, 60 cm drop height, 1.0 lb drop weight; and 14 mm device height, 60 cm drop height, 0.50 lb drop weight. The initial slope of the impact waveform was replicated best by 12 mm devices. Both the impact duration and impulse were lower in all benchtop groups than in cadaver testing. ConclusionsThis work validated the outfitting of an impact force sensor onto an interbody device insertion instrument as a reproducible, quantifiable method for collecting impact loading data in a cadaveric model. This benchtop device and methodology will aid in testing interbody devices relative to anticipated use conditions, enhance interbody device designs, and accelerate surgical technique refinement.

Data-driven online energy management framework for HVAC systems: An experimental study

The optimization of the operation of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems has gained considerable attention due to its energy conservation potential. Collecting various building operation data presents an opportunity to improve the efficiency of energy management and reduce consumption. In this paper, a data-driven online energy management framework is proposed for enhancing the effectiveness of HVAC systems and minimizing energy consumption. To streamline the modeling process and improve the accuracy of temperature estimation, our proposed framework adopts a symbolic regression approach to estimate building thermodynamics based on the collected data. It also formulates a model predictive control (MPC)-based HVAC scheduling strategy to optimize HVAC operations while maximizing thermal comfort and reducing energy consumption and peak power demand. We conducted on-site experiments to evaluate the proposed framework and demonstrated a notable reduction in total energy consumption in both HVAC cooling and heating operations: average reductions of 4.9% and 30.2%, and 49.3% and 73.9% for best cases in the on-site experiment under certain conditions. In the heating operation, the proposed data-driven HVAC management framework efficiently utilized indoor/outdoor heat generation to maintain comfortable temperature levels without activating the HVAC. Such effective utilization of heat sources shortened the HVAC runtimes and further reduced the total energy consumption. With the proposed framework, the average HVAC peak power demand fell by 25.8% and 35.1% during cooling and heating operations in the on-site experiment with certain scenarios. On-site experiment results demonstrated the proposed framework can efficiently suppress peak power demand, reduce energy consumption in both cooling and heating operation under certain conditions. The framework’s data-driven approach provides an effective means of optimizing HVAC operations, reducing energy consumption, and improving the thermal comfort of the building’s occupants.

Evaluation of the effect of high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) on function, muscle strength, range of motion, pain level, and femoral cartilage thickness in knee osteoarthritis: randomized controlled study.

This study was designed as a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled study. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) on pain, range of motion, function, muscle strength, and femoral cartilage thickness in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Sixty patients who were admitted between November 2021 and April 2022 and diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis based on anamnesis, physical examination, and imaging methods were included in the study. The patients observed during the research were randomly divided into two groups with 30 patients in each group. Hotpack, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), exercise (5days a week for a total of 15 sessions), and HILT (analgesic mode with a power of 10.0 w, energy density of 12 j/cm2, and 2min for every 25 cm2, biostimulant mode with a power of 5.0 W, energy density of 120 j/cm2, and 10min for each 25 cm2; total 9 sessions 3days a week) were applied for 3weeks for the first group, and hot pack, TENS, exercise (5days a week for a total of 15 sessions), and sham laser treatment (0 W total 9 sessions 3days a week) was applied for 3weeks for the second group. The patients were evaluated with the determined scales before the treatment, at the end of the treatment, and at the third month. A goniometer was used to measure joint range of motion measurement, a visual analog scale (VAS) for pain, WOMAC Osteoarthritis Index to assess pain and function, Biodex System 3 isokinetic device for knee flexion-extension muscle strength measurement, and ultrasonography to measure femoral cartilage thickness. There was no statistically significant difference in VAS, range of motion, WOMAC, muscle strength, and femoral cartilage thickness measurement between the groups, whether before treatment, after treatment or at the third-month follow-up (p > 0.05). There was a statistically significant decrease in pain intensity, an increase in flexion range of motion, WOMAC, and femoral cartilage thickness in both groups (p < 0.005). A statistically significant increase was found in the average peak torque flexion muscle strength measurements at isokinetic 60°/s angular velocities in the post-treatment and third-month checkup compared to the pre-treatment analysis in both groups (p < 0.05). In conclusion, there was no statistically significant difference between HILT + exercise and placebo laser + exercise observed. However, the exercise program performed under the supervision of a physiotherapist has been shown to be effective in improving all parameters.

Numerical Simulation of Uniaxial Compressive Strength and Failure Characteristics of Non-Uniform Water-Bearing Sandstone.

As complex and heterogeneous materials, the mechanical properties of rocks are still in need of further investigation regarding the mechanisms of the effects of water. In engineering projects such as goaf foundation treatment and ecological restoration, it is particularly important to describe the fracturing process of non-uniform water-containing sandstone media. The study utilized the theory of continuum mechanics to adopt an elastoplastic strain-softening constitutive relationship and develop a numerical model for analyzing the uniaxial compressive strength and failure characteristics of non-uniform water-containing sandstone. The results indicate that, compared with the reference rock sample, the shorter the capillary path of water entering the rock sample's internal pores or the larger the contact area with water, the shorter the time required for the rock sample to be saturated. Increasing the water content causes a rapid decline in the rock sample's elastic modulus and intensifies its brittleness. Group D2 and D3 samples exhibited a decrease in average peak strength to 70.4% and 62.1%, respectively, along with a corresponding decrease in the elastic modulus to 90.78% and 76.55%, indicating significant strain softening. While the failure mode of the rock sample remains consistent across different water contents, the homogeneity of failure shows significant variation. Increasing volumetric water content raises the likelihood of interconnecting cracks between rock samples, resulting in a progressive decline in macroscopic mechanical properties such as peak strength, critical strain, and elastic modulus. This research is significant in advancing the theory and construction technology for ecological restoration in goaf areas.

Probabilistic Modeling of Multicamera Interference for Time-of-Flight Sensors.

The behavior of multicamera interference in 3D images (e.g., depth maps), which is based on infrared (IR) light, is not well understood. In 3D images, when multicamera interference is present, there is an increase in the amount of zero-value pixels, resulting in a loss of depth information. In this work, we demonstrate a framework for synthetically generating direct and indirect multicamera interference using a combination of a probabilistic model and ray tracing. Our mathematical model predicts the locations and probabilities of zero-value pixels in depth maps that contain multicamera interference. Our model accurately predicts where depth information may be lost in a depth map when multicamera interference is present. We compare the proposed synthetic 3D interference images with controlled 3D interference images captured in our laboratory. The proposed framework achieves an average root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.0625, an average peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) of 24.1277 dB, and an average structural similarity index measure (SSIM) of 0.9007 for predicting direct multicamera interference, and an average RMSE of 0.0312, an average PSNR of 26.2280 dB, and an average SSIM of 0.9064 for predicting indirect multicamera interference. The proposed framework can be used to develop and test interference mitigation techniques that will be crucial for the successful proliferation of these devices.