Wire Running Research Articles

Physical activity of mice on dietary sulfur amino acid restriction is influenced by age of diet initiation and biological sex

Please use the attached pdf file for corrections.Sulfur amino acid restriction (SAAR)—the reduction of methionine and cysteine concentrations either in the diet or by genetic manipulation—promotes health span and extends lifespan, but its effects on physical activity remain unclear. We investigated whether age of diet initiation and biological sex could influence physical activity in mice fed either a control diet (CF, 0.86% methionine w/w) or SAAR (0.12% methionine w/w). Quadriceps femoris muscle mass is smaller in SAAR than in CF mice. Young mice fed a chronic SAAR diet at 8 weeks of age exhibited improved wire hang and running wheel activities compared to young CF mice, while aged mice showed comparable results. The effects of chronic SAAR on physical activity was mildly influenced by sex as observed in middle-aged male SAAR mice who showed minor improvements than CF males while middle-aged females displayed no discernible effects. Muscle mass is minimally affected by changes in markers of protein synthesis, autophagy and atrophy. Improvements to physical activity in young SAAR mice could be partially attributed to increased skeletal muscle mitochondrial activity. Furthermore, SAAR in C2C12 myotubes increased citrate synthase protein expression and enhanced succinyl dehydrogenase enzyme activity compared to CF myotubes. Overall, our data reveal that SAAR can improve mouse physical activity without compromising muscle proteostasis. This is partially due to enhanced mitochondrial activity, but the effects are influenced by age of diet initiation and sex.

Between the Border of Despair and the "Circle of Tears": Musrara on the Margins of Jewish-Arab Existence in Jerusalem

Abstract: This article focuses on Jerusalem's Musrara—a neighborhood trapped between borders—between 1948 and 1967. Barbed wire running along the eastern side of the neighborhood divided the city of Jerusalem between 1948 and 1967. Musrara's western border separated it from West Jerusalem, thus enhancing the division between its residents—new immigrants of Middle Eastern descent—and the mainly Ashkenazi population of the western part of Jerusalem. Our analysis of a neighborhood on the margins of Jewish and Arab existence in post-1948 Jerusalem considers the perspectives of immigrants and refugees living on a double border that separated the Eastern-Arab part of the city from its Western-Jewish part, or between "old Jerusalem" and "new Jerusalem." The border also signified the boundary between "first Israel" and "second Israel," or the Jewish frontier and neighborhoods in the city center.

Between the Border of Despair and the "Circle of Tears": Musrara on the Margins of Jewish-Arab Existence in Jerusalem

Abstract: This article focuses on Jerusalem's Musrara—a neighborhood trapped between borders—between 1948 and 1967. Barbed wire running along the eastern side of the neighborhood divided the city of Jerusalem between 1948 and 1967. Musrara's western border separated it from West Jerusalem, thus enhancing the division between its residents—new immigrants of Middle Eastern descent—and the mainly Ashkenazi population of the western part of Jerusalem. Our analysis of a neighborhood on the margins of Jewish and Arab existence in post-1948 Jerusalem considers the perspectives of immigrants and refugees living on a double border that separated the Eastern-Arab part of the city from its Western-Jewish part, or between "old Jerusalem" and "new Jerusalem." The border also signified the boundary between "first Israel" and "second Israel," or the Jewish frontier and neighborhoods in the city center.

Study on shear fracture performance of subsea test tree under emergency conditions in the deepwater oil and gas completion testing

Subsea test tree (SSTT) is an essential safety device for the completion testing operations of deepwater extraction of oil, natural gas, and natural gas hydrate. During the implementation of the emergency release procedure of the SSTT, the coiled tubing or steel wire running in it must be quickly and effectively sheared by its ball valve mechanism. Therefore, clearly revealing the shearing mechanism and accurately evaluating the shearing performance of the ball valve mechanism is essential for maximizing the safety performance of SSTT operation. The finite element numerical simulation method established a dynamic shear model of the SSTT's ball valve under different working conditions and structural parameters to clarify the influencing factors and laws of the ball valve shearing performance. The results of numerical simulation model agree well with the laboratory tests, verifying the scientific validity and accuracy of the numerical simulation method and the generated model. Further, the SSTT's shearing process under different working conditions and geometry was calculated based on the method and model mentioned above. It shows that the tension of coiled tubing is greater, the required of shear moment is smaller. The internal pressure lead to more difficult shearing conditions. In the eccentric position, the ball valve was subjected to a reaction force moment perpendicular to the rotation direction of the ball valve. The larger the ball valve diameter, the shear force required to shear coiled tubing. The SSTT upper seat Angle also affects shear failure performance, and coiled tubing can be shear at 10°, 30°, and 40° with less shear moment. The minimum shear moment is required when the edge of the shearing ball valve has a 1.5 mm circular chamfering. This study proposes an optimization method to improve the shear fracture performance of ball valves. Moreover, this study provides essential guidelines for the optimal design and application operation on the SSTT's ball-valve mechanism.

RoboCrane: A system for providing a power and a communication link between lunar surface and lunar caves for exploring robots

Lava caves are the result of a geological process related to the cooling of basaltic lava flows. On the Moon, this process may lead to caves several kilometers long and diameters of hundreds of meters. Access to lava tubes can be granted through skylights, a vertical pit between the lava tube and the lunar surface. This represents an outstanding opportunity for long-term missions, for future permanent human settlements, and for accessing pristine samples of lava, secondary minerals and volatiles. Given this, the ESA launched a campaign through the Open Space Innovation Platform calling for ideas that would tackle the many challenges of exploring lava pits. Five projects, including Robocrane, were selected.Solar light and direct line of sight (for communications) with the lunar surface are not available inside lava tubes. This is a problem for any robot (or swarm of robots) exploring the lava tubes. Robocrane tackles both problems by deploying an element (called the Charging head, or CH) at the bottom of the skylight by means of a crane. This CH behaves as a battery charger and a communication relay for the exploring robots. The required energy is extracted from the crane’s solar panel (on the surface) and driven to the bottom of the skylight through an electrical wire running in parallel to the crane hoisting wire. Using a crane allows the system to deal with unstable terrain around the skylight rim and protect the wires from abrasion from the rocky surface and the pit rim. The charger in the CH is wireless so that the charging process can begin as soon as any of the robots get close enough to the CH. This avoids complex and time-consuming docking operations, aggravated by the skylight floor orography. The crane infrastructure can also be used to deploy the exploring robots inside the pit, reducing their design constraints and mass budget, as the robots do not need to implement their own self-deployment system. Finally, RoboCrane includes all the sensors and actuators for remote operation from a ground station.RoboCrane has been designed in a parametric tool so it can be dynamically and rapidly adjusted to input-variable changes, such as the number of exploring robots, their electrical characteristics, and crane reach, etc.

Machining of cylindrical parts by wire electrical discharge grinding using thin plate guide

In order to meet the processing requirements of precise cylindrical parts on hard and difficult-to-machine materials, this paper introduces wire electrical discharge grinding (WEDG) using thin plate wire guide for cylindrical parts machining. The spindle system and the wire transport system to realize this processing method was added to a low speed wire electrical discharge machining (LS-WEDM) machine tool. In order to realize the online measurement of the machining accuracy of the cylindrical parts, an online measurement system of two-degree-of-freedom based on laser displacement sensor was built. The reasons for the incomplete removal of the machined surface were analyzed. Through the application of a new tool setting strategy and reasonable selection of processing parameters, the phenomenon of incomplete processing can be avoided. The experimental research on the effects of part rotational speed, wire feed rate, wire running speed and wire tension on roundness, surface roughness Sa, and surface morphology were carried out. Finally, example of the cylindrical parts is given to verify the machining accuracy.

Fundamental Investigation of Working Fluid Flow Formed by High-speed Wire Running in Multi-wire EDM Slicing

Fundamental Investigation of Working Fluid Flow Formed by High-speed Wire Running in Multi-wire EDM Slicing

Research on the Method of Wire Impact Suspension Type Spanning Frame

With the intensive construction of the UHV DC transmission project, the hidden dangers of the wire running line impacting the suspension type spanning frame are gradually increasing, and the dynamics of the wire-to-suspension type spanning frame is rarely studied in depth. In this paper, the dynamic response of the wire to the suspension type span at different heights is studied. It is concluded that as the height of the wire increases, the value of the main stress received by the wire rope is gradually increased when the net is hit. The greater the vibration that the net is subjected to, the slower the main stress of the netting rope decays with time.

All-Fiber Integrated In-Line Semiconductor Photoconductor

Here, we present a fully fiber-integrated semiconductor wire based photoconductor for the photodetection of light at visible and near-infrared wavelengths. The device consisting of an electrically connected micrometer sized germanium wire running parallel to a single-mode core of a gradient index fiber shows features such as temporal responses shorter than 20 ns and a linear response between 10 nW and 20 μW in the wavelength domain between 600 nm and 1300 nm, while light powers up to 2 mW can be measured. A sophisticated polarization dependency has been revealed, showing a non-intuitive dependence on wavelength and light power that has been explained by a developed model. Due to its design flexibility our electrically connected semiconductor enhanced fiber concept principally allows to detect a defined fraction of light, while the remaining part is still available for further diagnostics, thus defining a novel type of detection scheme for all-in-fiber optoelectronic light detection.

Optimization of machining parameters and wire vibration in wire electrical discharge machining process

BackgroundWire Electrical discharge machining (WEDM) has higher capability for cutting complex shapes with high precision for very hard materials without using high cost of cutting tools. During the WEDM process, the wire behaves like a metal string, straightened by two axial pulling forces and deformed laterally by a sum of forces from the discharge process. Major forces acting on the wire can be classified into three categories. The first is a tensile force, pulling the wire from both sides in axial direction and keeping it straight. The second is the dielectric flushing force that comes from circulation of the dielectric fluid in the machining area. The third category consists of forces of different kinds resulting from sparking and discharging. Large amplitude of wire vibration leads to large kerf widths, low shape accuracies, rough machined surfaces, low cutting speeds and high risk of wire breakage. Such tendencies for poor machining performance due to wire instability behavior appear with thinner wires.MethodsThe present work investigates a mathematical modeling solution for correlating the interactive and higher order influences of various parameters affecting wire vibration during the WEDM process through response surface methodology (RSM). The adequacy of the above proposed model has been tested using analysis of variance (ANOVA).ResultsOptimal combination of machining parameters such as wire tension, wire running speed, flow rate and servo voltage parameters has been obtained to minimize wire vibration.ConclusionsThe analysis of the experimental observations highlights that the wire tension, wire running speed, flow rate and servo voltage in WEDM greatly affect average wire vibration and kerf width.

Transcatheter, inflatable, and fully repositionable aortic valve: Preliminary results using a modified implantation technique.

We present our experience with an inflatable, non-metallic, fully retrievable, and repositionable transcatheter aortic valve [Direct Flow® Medical (DFM)] focusing on technical features adopted during implantation. Implantation techniques of new generation percutaneous aortic valves are still developing and with experience implementations are described. The "low pressure" (initial valve inflation at 4 ATM, lower than the recommended 12 ATM) and the "alternate aortic curve" techniques (initial valve pulling either from the wire running on the side of the inner or from the one on the outer aortic curve) are part of our modified protocol for DFM® implantation. Forty-two consecutive patients underwent TAVI with DFM. The "low pressure" technique was used in all patients. In 27 (64.3%) patients the bulkiest calcifications were on the inner aortic curve side, and an inner curve technique was used to initiate valve pulling toward the annular hinge point. In the remaining 15 (35.7%) patients, an outer curve technique was used. Neither pull-through nor re-valving was reported. Valve performance showed mean gradient of 8.9 mm Hg. Mild paravalvular leak was reported in seven (16%) patients. No one experienced moderate or severe aortic insufficiency. Thirty-day mortality was 9.5% (4/42). The "low pressure technique" and the "alternate curve technique" guarantee an anatomy and patient tailored approach to achieve controlled and finely tuned valve seating.

Temperature Field Simulation of Wire Electrode in High-speed and Medium-speed WEDM under Moving Heat Source

The high-speed and medium-speed wire electrical discharge machines which are originally developed in China are playing an important role in mold making. However, the wire electrode wear is a universal problem in the machining process because the wire electrode is used repeatedly. Considering the relative motion between the wire electrode and the workpiece, the heat transfer model of wire electrode under moving heat source was established, and the temperature field of wire electrode was simulated in single pulse discharge by FEM. The results indicated that the size of the melted zone along the wire electrode axial direction increased remarkably while the depth size, the width size and the volume of the melted zone reduced apparently when the wire running speed increased. It can be concluded that the high relative speed between the wire electrode and the workpiece is beneficial to reduce the wire electrode wear in radial direction. Furthermore, when the wire running speed is higher than a certain value, the discharge column will slide over the wire electrode surface before the wire material reaches its melting point, thus the melting and ablation of the wire electrode material does not happen, which can almost realize no wire electrode wear.

Effect of Wind Chill on Wire Ladder Climbing and Running Performance

Maritime Interdiction (MI) operations may require Special Forces personnel, in open high-speed boats (OHSB) to chase and board large ships using wire ladders followed by an assault involving running and jumping. We have previously demonstrated a reduction of 40% in running performance following a 3-hour OHSB transit in the cold (ambient temperature (tamb) -2.5°C; air speed (v) 17.9 m·s-1; wind chill index (WCI) 1435 W·m-2; chilling temperature (tch) -23°C). It is unclear if the same level of performance degradation would have occurred if personnel had been sheltered from the high airflow. PURPOSE: To quantify the effect of high airflow in cold ambient conditions on ladder climbing and run performance. METHODS: Twelve men (age 21 ± 1 y; height 182 ± 6 cm; nude mass 78 ± 2 kg) completed a familiarization session and then in a crossover design, two 60-min cold (tamb 0°C) environmental chamber exposures (CON, v 0.04 m·s-1; WCI 479 W·m-2; tch 14°C; WIND, v 3.6 m·s-1; WCI 986 W·m-2; tch -5°C) followed by a timed 14 m wire ladder climb and an incremental 10 m shuttle run to exhaustion, wearing a standardized clothing ensemble (thermal base-layer, coveralls, specialist MI boots) with additional thermal protection (hands, head, face) during the exposures. Core temperature (tcore) was recorded continuously and thermal comfort ratings ((TC) global, face, hands, feet) every 10 min. RESULTS: Ladder climb times increased (CON, 43 ± 6 s; WIND, 46 ± 8 s, 11%; p<0.01) and distance run decreased (CON, 1003 ± 108 m; WIND, 891 ± 109 m, 7%; p<0.05) following the WIND exposure compared to CON. In both conditions tcore was maintained, but WIND reported lower global TC ratings (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Ladder climbing and shuttle running require strength, endurance and neuromuscular coordination all of which appear to be degraded by cold exposure and more so with a high airflow. The lower global TC ratings reported in the WIND condition suggest localized muscle cooling may be a cause of this degradation. The ladder climb has been identified as a key MI mission failure point, therefore the performance degradation observed for this and subsequent shuttle running, following exposure to a high airflow and WCI may have a serious operational impact. It is recommended that the provision of airflow protection for personnel during the MI insertion phase be addressed.

Field-to-Wire Coupling in an Electrically Large Cavity: A Semianalytic Solution

This paper proposes a semianalytic solution to the problem of high frequency coupling on a wire running in electrically large enclosures. This model is basically derived from the transmission-line (TL) theory in which the electromagnetic (EM) environment, represented as a random plane-wave spectrum, is characterized by its statistical parameters. The results are compared to those obtained by randomly generating elementary plane-wave samples and numerically calculating their EM coupling through a TL model.

ERCP cannulation and sphincterotomy devices

The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) Technology Committee provides reviews of existing, new, or emerging endoscopic technologies that have an impact on the practice of GI endoscopy. Evidence-based methodology is used, with a MEDLINE literature search to identify pertinent clinical studies on the topic, and a MAUDE (Food and Drug Administration Center for Devices and Radiological Health) database search to identify the reported complications of a given technology. Both are supplemented by accessing the "related articles" feature of PubMed and by scrutinizing pertinent references cited by the identified studies. Controlled clinical trials are emphasized, but, in many cases, data from randomized controlled trials are lacking. In such cases, large case series, preliminary clinical studies, and expert opinions are used. Technical data are gathered from traditional and Web-based publications, proprietary publications, and informal communications with pertinent vendors. Technology Status Evaluation Reports are drafted by 1 or 2 members of the ASGE Technology Committee, reviewed and edited by the committee as a whole, and approved by the governing board of the ASGE. When financial guidance is indicated, the most recent coding data and list prices at the time of publication are provided. For this review the MEDLINE database was searched through February 2009 for articles related to cannulation and sphincterotomy devices by using the keywords ERCP, standard catheter, sphincterotome, cannulation, sphincterotomy, precut, major papilla, minor papilla, needle-knife, complication, pancreatitis, biliary, and pancreatic in different search term combinations. Technology Status Evaluation Reports are scientific reviews provided solely, for educational and informational purposes. Technology Status Evaluation Reports are not rules and should not be construed as establishing a legal standard of care or as encouraging, advocating, requiring, ordiscouraginganyparticulartreatmentorpayment for such treatment.

Evaluations of spark distribution and wire vibration in wire EDM by high-speed observation

In fine wire EDM using thin wire electrode, uniform distribution of spark location is necessary to achieve stable machining performance. However, it is difficult to precisely evaluate the distribution of spark location by the conventional branched electric current method when the workpiece is thin. A new evaluation method by using a high-speed video camera is proposed. The locations of spark are measured by analyzing the recorded images. Then the effects of machining parameters, such as servo voltage, pulse interval time, wire running speed and others on the distribution of spark location are investigated. The possibility of evaluating the wire vibration is also discussed.

A novel technique to secure the occlusal wafer during orthognathic surgery

cclusal wafers are an essential adjunct for maintaining a table occlusion and intermaxillary fixation during orthogathic surgery. Many techniques exist for securing an occlusal afer to the dental arch. A commonly accepted technique nvolves fixation of a wafer to the dentition using a wire igature running between a hole or cleat in the wafer and ooks on the orthodontic appliance. Suboptimal wafer fixtion may result from an inadequate number or position of rthodontic hooks or loosening of the orthodontic bracket tself. We report a case during which the orthodontic brackets olding the archwire became detached from the dentition ausing lost occlusal wafer support leading to ineffectual ntermaxillary fixation. We used a standard pre-tensioned 0.45 mm wire running nterproximally and trans-dentally (cf. eyelet wire) which was hen fed labially through the wafer eyelets to secure the wafer n place thereby providing excellent occlusal wafer fixation. This technique depends on adequate interproximal conact between adjacent teeth and the normal convex crown orphology to provide an adequate undercut for wire stabilty and retention. A number of teeth may be used to improve ire tension. In our case two buccal segment teeth with a stale orthodontic bracket were employed to good effect. We feel his technique is simple, rapid and atraumatic. The technique

E36 Evaluation of Spark Location Distribution in Wire EDM by High-speed Observation(Electrical machining)

In wire EDM using a fine wire electrode, uniform distribution of spark location is necessary to achieve high-performance machining. It is difficult to precisely evaluate the distribution of spark location by the conventional method. In this study, a new evaluation method by using a high-speed video camera is proposed. The locations of spark are analyzed using the recorded images during machining. Then, the effects of servo voltage, pulse interval time and wire running speed on the distribution of spark location are investigated by the new method. The new method clarified that spark distribution became uniform when servo voltage was high, pulse interval time was long, and wire running speed was low.

Development of a Novel Micro Wire-EDM Mechanism for the Fabricating of Micro Parts

The wire running system of the tabletop Wire-EDM machine for making intricate micro parts developed in our previous study is improved in the paper. A very simple but novel micro-wire cutting mechanism that allows the use of the thin wire of a diameter as small as 20μm is designed. The vibration of the micro wire is suppressed by implementing a unique tension control principle and vibration absorbers. In actual machining the workpiece is mounted on the spindle having indexing ability. By proper planning the wire moving path, micro gear, micro turbine, micro screw, etc. can be manufactured. In the paper the micro bevel gear, which has special appearance and is very difficult if not impossible to be machined by other micro fabrication technologies, is also manufactured satisfactorily.

A new development of micro wire-EDM for the fabrication of meso-scale parts(M^4 processes and micro-manufacturing for science (continued))

Micro wire-EDM is one type of Micro-EDM (Micro electrical discharge machining). In our previous study a high precision tabletop Wire-EDM machine for making intricate micro parts was developed. In the present paper the wire running system is improved, and a very simple and novel micro-wire cutting mechanism is developed. By mounting the workpiece on the spindle that has indexing ability, together with a proposed cutting tool path generating method, parts such as micro gear, micro turbine and micro screw can be manufactured. In particular, the micro bevel gear, which has special appearance and is very difficult if not impossible to be made by other micro fabrication technologies, is manufactured satisfactorily.