Joint sampling programme-Verification of data obtained in environmental monitoring

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lauria, D.C. [Instituto de Radioprotecao e Dosimetria, Comissao Nacional de Energia Nuclear, Av. Salvador Allende s/no., CEP 22780-160, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)], E-mail: dejanira@ird.gov.br; Martins, N.S.F.; Vasconcellos, M.L.H.; Zenaro, R.; Peres, S.S.; Pires do Rio, M.A. [Instituto de Radioprotecao e Dosimetria, Comissao Nacional de Energia Nuclear, Av. Salvador Allende s/no., CEP 22780-160, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2008-11-15

The objective of the Environmental Radiological Monitoring Control programme carried out by the Institute of Radiation Protection and Dosimetry (IRD) in Brazil is to verify the licensee's compliance with the requirements for environmental monitoring of Brazilian facilities. The Joint Sampling Programme (JSP) is just one part of the control programme. In order to verify that the data reported by the licensees is representative and legitimate, this programme verifies sampling procedures, accuracy and precision of the data and the changes in the environmental conditions. This paper discusses the main findings of this programme that allowed IRD to optimize its available resources to control the monitoring of the eight facilities in Brazil.

The Ageing Effect of Mechanical Joints on the Tyre/Joint Noises Monitored by a Control Vehicle Method without Traffic Disturbance

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C. K. Wong

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper studies the ageing effect of mechanical joints reflecting from the tyre/joint impacting noise by measuring the vehicle structure-borne noise change. Field data is collected applying two measurement methods suitable for newly installed and existing old expansion joints. The measurement methodology is improved by designing and applying a trailer for equipment installation. The main advantage of this method is not to disturb existing traffic by lane closure for measurement. Field measurements were conducted regularly for a study period up to 16 months after new joint replacement to monitor the variation of the structure-borne noise change inside a test vehicle while passing through mechanical joints. Empirical relationship is developed based on the field data of the roadside airborne noise change and the vehicle structure-borne noise change. The roadside tyre/joint noises could be converted using calibrated empirical formula. Key result findings include the following. (1 The vehicle structure-borne noise change is found smallest during the 3rd–6th months even lower than that measured when a new joint is installed. The structure-borne noise change then keeps increasing afterwards till the end of the study period. (2 Similar observations are found in all study cases incorporating various mechanical joint types and test vehicle types.

In-field implementation of impedance-based structural health monitoring for insulated rail joints

Science.gov (United States)

Albakri, Mohammad I.; Malladi, V. V. N. Sriram; Woolard, Americo G.; Tarazaga, Pablo A.

2017-04-01

Track defects are a major safety concern for the railroad industry. Among different track components, insulated rail joints, which are widely used for signaling purposes, are considered a weak link in the railroad track. Several joint-related defects have been identified by the railroad community, including rail wear, torque loss, and joint bar breakage. Current track inspection techniques rely on manual and visual inspection or on specially equipped testing carts, which are costly, timeconsuming, traffic disturbing, and prone to human error. To overcome the aforementioned limitations, the feasibility of utilizing impedance-based structural health monitoring for insulated rail joints is investigated in this work. For this purpose, an insulated joint, provided by Koppers Inc., is instrumented with piezoelectric transducers and assembled with 136 AREA rail plugs. The instrumented joint is then installed and tested at the Facility for Accelerated Service Testing, Transportation Technology Center Inc. The effects of environmental and operating conditions on the measured impedance signatures are investigated through a set of experiments conducted at different temperatures and loading conditions. The capabilities of impedance-based SHM to detect several joint-related damage types are also studied by introducing reversible mechanical defects to different joint components.

Collaborative Measurement of Performance of Jointly Managed Protected Areas in Northern Australia

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Natasha Stacey

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Responsibility for the management of many protected areas in the Northern Territory, Australia, is shared between the management agency and the aboriginal owners of that land. We describe (1 the creation and types of indicators developed by partners in a participatory process to measure management effectiveness, (2 the assessment method used to monitor progress, and (3 the results of the first cycle of evaluations in four jointly managed parks. Although each pilot park area has distinctive features, we were able to identify a set of twelve common indicators that were applied across the four park areas. The agreed indicators, which were scored using a color scale to indicate level of achievement, were primarily concerned with process rather than outcome, with particular emphasis on the strength of social relationships. Thus, there were indicators that assessed performance in governance and decision making, application and interpretation of cultural heritage and traditional ecological knowledge, expansion of social capital, human and financial resources, and visitors, with little emphasis on the biophysical outcomes of the management. The emphasis on the quality of the process of joint management was thought to indicate that the relationship between the joint management partners was relatively new, with trust only starting to develop. We discuss opportunities and difficulties for replication and adaptation of indicators to all jointly managed parks in the Northern Territory.

Designs and performance of three new microprocessor-controlled knee joints.

Science.gov (United States)

Thiele, Julius; Schöllig, Christina; Bellmann, Malte; Kraft, Marc

2018-02-09

A crossover design study with a small group of subjects was used to evaluate the performance of three microprocessor-controlled exoprosthetic knee joints (MPKs): C-Leg 4, Plié 3 and Rheo Knee 3. Given that the mechanical designs and control algorithms of the joints determine the user outcome, the influence of these inherent differences on the functional characteristics was investigated in this study. The knee joints were evaluated during level-ground walking at different velocities in a motion analysis laboratory. Additionally, technical analyses using patents, technical documentations and X-ray computed tomography (CT) for each knee joint were performed. The technical analyses showed that only C-Leg 4 and Rheo Knee 3 allow microprocessor-controlled adaptation of the joint resistances for different gait velocities. Furthermore, Plié 3 is not able to provide stance extension damping. The biomechanical results showed that only if a knee joint adapts flexion and extension resistances by the microprocessor all known advantages of MPKs can become apparent. But not all users may benefit from the examined functions: e.g. a good accommodation to fast walking speeds or comfortable stance phase flexion. Hence, a detailed comparison of user demands and performance of the designated knee joint is mandatory to ensure a maximum in user outcome.

A self-diagnostic adhesive for monitoring bonded joints in aerospace structures

Science.gov (United States)

Zhuang, Yitao; Li, Yu-hung; Kopsaftopoulos, Fotis; Chang, Fu-Kuo

2016-04-01

Bondline integrity is still one of the most critical concerns in the design of aircraft structures up to date. Due to the lack of confidence on the integrity of the bondline both during fabrication and service, the industry standards and regulations still require assembling the composite using conventional fasteners. Furthermore, current state-of-the-art non-destructive evaluation (NDE) and structural health monitoring (SHM) techniques are incapable of offering mature solutions on the issue of bondline integrity monitoring. Therefore, the objective of this work is the development of an intelligent adhesive film with integrated micro-sensors for monitoring the integrity of the bondline interface. The proposed method makes use of an electromechanical-impedance (EMI) based method, which is a rapidly evolving approach within the SHM family. Furthermore, an innovative screen-printing technique to fabricate piezoelectric ceramic sensors with minimal thickness has been developed at Stanford. The approach presented in this study is based on the use of (i) micro screen-printed piezoelectric sensors integrated into adhesive leaving a minimal footprint on the material, (ii) numerical and analytical modeling of the EMI spectrum of the adhesive bondline, (iii) novel diagnostic algorithms for monitoring the bondline integrity based on advanced signal processing techniques, and (iv) the experimental assessment via prototype adhesively bonded structures in static (varying loads) and dynamic (fatigue) environments. The proposed method will provide a huge confidence on the use of bonded joints for aerospace structures and lead to a paradigm change in their design by enabling enormous weight savings while maximizing the economic and performance efficiency.

Health Monitoring of Bolted Spherical Joint Connection Based on Active Sensing Technique Using Piezoceramic Transducers

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Jing Xu

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Bolted spherical joints are widely used to form space steel structures. The stiffness and load capacity of the structures are affected by the looseness of bolted spherical joint connections in the structures. The looseness of the connections, which can be caused by fabrication error, low modeling accuracy, and “false twist” in the installation process, may negatively impact the load capacity of the structure and even lead to severe accidents. Furthermore, it is difficult to detect bolted spherical joint connection looseness from the outside since the bolts connect spheres with rods together from the inside. Active sensing methods are proposed in this paper to monitor the tightness status of the bolted spherical connection using piezoceramic transducers. A triangle-on-triangle offset grid composed of bolted spherical joints and steel tube bars was fabricated as the specimen and was used to validate the active sensing methods. Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT patches were used as sensors and actuators to monitor the bolted spherical joint tightness status. One PZT patch mounted on the central bolted sphere at the upper chord was used as an actuator to generate a stress wave. Another PZT patch mounted on the bar was used as a sensor to detect the propagated waves through the bolted spherical connection. The looseness of the connection can impact the energy of the stress wave propagated through the connection. The wavelet packet analysis and time reversal (TR method were used to quantify the energy of the transmitted signal between the PZT patches by which the tightness status of the connection can be detected. In order to verify the effectiveness, repeatability, and consistency of the proposed methods, the experiments were repeated six times in different bolted spherical connection positions. The experimental results showed that the wavelet packet analysis and TR method are effective in detecting the tightness status of the connections. The

Joint pathology and behavioral performance in autoimmune MRL-lpr Mice.

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Sakić, B; Szechtman, H; Stead, R H; Denburg, J A

1996-09-01

Young autoimmune MRL-lpr mice perform more poorly than age-matched controls in tests of exploration, spatial learning, and emotional reactivity. Impaired behavioral performance coincides temporally with hyperproduction of autoantibodies, infiltration of lymphoid cells into the brain, and mild arthritic-like changes in hind paws. Although CNS mechanisms have been suggested to mediate behavioral deficits, it was not clear whether mild joint pathology significantly affected behavioral performance. Previously we observed that 11-week-old MRL-lpr mice showed a trend for disturbed performance when crossing a narrow beam. The first aim of the present study was to test the significance of this trend by increasing the sample size and, second, to examine the possibility that arthritis-like changes interfere with performance in brief locomotor tasks. For the purpose of the second goal, 18-week-old mice that differ widely in severity of joint disease were selectively taken from the population and tested in beam walking and swimming tasks. It was expected that the severity of joint inflammation would be positively correlated with the degree of locomotor impairment. The larger sample size revealed that young MRL-lpr mice perform significantly more poorly than controls on the beam-walking test, as evidenced by more foot slips and longer traversing time. However, significant correlation between joint pathology scores and measures of locomotion could not be detected. The lack of such relationship suggests that mild joint pathology does not significantly contribute to impaired performance in young, autoimmune MRL-lpr mice tested in short behavioral tasks.

Molecular monitoring of equine joint homeostasis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Grauw, J.C.

2010-01-01

Chronic joint disorders are a major cause of impaired mobility and loss of quality of life in both humans and horses. Regardless of the primary insult, any joint disorder is characterized by an upset in normal joint homeostasis, the balance between tissue anabolism and catabolism that is normally

Joint kinetic determinants of starting block performance in athletic sprinting.

Science.gov (United States)

Brazil, Adam; Exell, Timothy; Wilson, Cassie; Willwacher, Steffen; Bezodis, Ian N; Irwin, Gareth

2018-07-01

The aim of this study was to explore the relationships between lower limb joint kinetics, external force production and starting block performance (normalised average horizontal power, NAHP). Seventeen male sprinters (100 m PB, 10.67 ± 0.32 s) performed maximal block starts from instrumented starting blocks (1000 Hz) whilst 3D kinematics (250 Hz) were also recorded during the block phase. Ankle, knee and hip resultant joint moment and power were calculated at the rear and front leg using inverse dynamics. Average horizontal force applied to the front (r = 0.46) and rear (r = 0.44) block explained 86% of the variance in NAHP. At the joint level, many "very likely" to "almost certain" relationships (r = 0.57 to 0.83) were found between joint kinetic data and the magnitude of horizontal force applied to each block although stepwise multiple regression revealed that 55% of the variance in NAHP was accounted for by rear ankle moment, front hip moment and front knee power. The current study provides novel insight into starting block performance and the relationships between lower limb joint kinetic and external kinetic data that can help inform physical and technical training practices for this skill.

Electrical Properties of PPy-Coated Conductive Fabrics for Human Joint Motion Monitoring

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Jiyong Hu

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Body motion signals indicate several pathological features of the human body, and a wearable human motion monitoring system can respond to human joint motion signal in real time, thereby enabling the prevention and treatment of some diseases. Because conductive fabrics can be well integrated with the garment, they are ideal as a sensing element of wearable human motion monitoring systems. This study prepared polypyrrole conductive fabric by in situ polymerization, and the anisotropic property of the conductive fabric resistance, resistance–strain relationship, and the relationship between resistance and the human knee and elbow movements are discussed preliminarily.

Perceptions and misconceptions regarding the Joint Commission's view of quality monitoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Patterson, C H

1989-10-01

The Joint Commission recently has revised its hospital standards for infection control to reflect more accurately current state-of-the-art practices. In addition, the Joint Commission's Agenda for Change initiatives include the development of clinical indicators; one of the topics that will be included in those clinical indicator sets will be infection control. How the hospital chooses to organize itself to conduct the historically required monitoring and evaluation of clinical patient care currently required by the standards of the Joint Commission is at the option of the hospital. How the hospital will organize and collect data specific to infection control indicators yet to be developed by the Joint Commission has not been determined and will not be defined until specific research and development projects are completed. The hospital is expected to have in place infection prevention, surveillance, and control programs; it also is expected to have in place a quality assurance program that focuses not only on solving identified problems but also on the improvement of patient care quality. How the hospitals organize and/or integrate these activities is also at its option. It is expected that qualified professionals will direct and enforce infection prevention, surveillance, and control practices; indicators for infection control can provide data that will help assess the relative success of those practices and activities. The Joint Commission is not developing the capability to judge, on its own part, the actual quality of care provided by an organization seeking accreditation. Rather, the Joint Commission is committed to developing more accurate means to evaluate the structures, processes, and outcomes of diagnosis and treatment activities, as well as their interrelationships. Clinical excellence is supported by quality in the organizational environment and the managerial and leadership contexts within which patient care is delivered. Both clinical and

Molecular monitoring of equine joint homeostasis

OpenAIRE

de Grauw, J.C.

2010-01-01

Chronic joint disorders are a major cause of impaired mobility and loss of quality of life in both humans and horses. Regardless of the primary insult, any joint disorder is characterized by an upset in normal joint homeostasis, the balance between tissue anabolism and catabolism that is normally maintained by resident articular cells. This upset is often fuelled by a local inflammatory response in the synovial membrane and the articular cartilage. Our current understanding of the pathogenesi...

Monitoring Human Performance During Suited Operations: A Technology Feasibility Study Using EMU Gloves

Science.gov (United States)

Bekdash, Omar; Norcross, Jason; McFarland, Shane

2015-01-01

Mobility tracking of human subjects while conducting suited operations still remains focused on the external movement of the suit and little is known about the human movement within it. For this study, accelerometers and bend sensitive resistors were integrated into a custom carrier glove to quantify range of motion and dexterity from within the pressurized glove environment as a first stage feasibility study of sensor hardware, integration, and reporting capabilities. Sensors were also placed on the exterior of the pressurized glove to determine if it was possible to compare a glove joint angle to the anatomical joint angle of the subject during tasks. Quantifying human movement within the suit was feasible, with accelerometers clearly detecting movements in the wrist and reporting expected joint angles at maximum flexion or extension postures with repeatability of plus or minus 5 degrees between trials. Bend sensors placed on the proximal interphalangeal and distal interphalangeal joints performed less well. It was not possible to accurately determine the actual joint angle using these bend sensors, but these sensors could be used to determine when the joint was flexed to its maximum and provide a general range of mobility needed to complete a task. Further work includes additional testing with accelerometers and the possible inclusion of hardware such as magnetometers or gyroscopes to more precisely locate the joint in 3D space. We hope to eventually expand beyond the hand and glove and develop a more comprehensive suit sensor suite to characterize motion across more joints (knee, elbow, shoulder, etc.) and fully monitor the human body operating within the suit environment.

Joint angle affects volitional and magnetically-evoked neuromuscular performance differentially.

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Minshull, C; Rees, D; Gleeson, N P

2011-08-01

This study examined the volitional and magnetically-evoked neuromuscular performance of the quadriceps femoris at functional knee joint angles adjacent to full extension. Indices of volitional and magnetically-evoked neuromuscular performance (N=15 healthy males, 23.5 ± 2.9 years, 71.5 ± 5.4 kg, 176.5 ± 5.5 cm) were obtained at 25°, 35° and 45° of knee flexion. Results showed that volitional and magnetically-evoked peak force (PF(V) and P(T)F(E), respectively) and electromechanical delay (EMD(V) and EMD(E), respectively) were enhanced by increased knee flexion. However, greater relative improvements in volitional compared to evoked indices of neuromuscular performance were observed with increasing flexion from 25° to 45° (e.g. EMD(V), EMD(E): 36% vs. 11% improvement, respectively; F([2,14])=6.8, pjoint positions. These findings suggest that the extent of the relative differential between volitional and evoked neuromuscular performance capabilities is joint angle-specific and not correlated with performance capabilities at adjacent angles, but tends to be smaller with increased flexion. As such, effective prediction of volitional from evoked performance capabilities at both analogous and adjacent knee joint positions would lack robustness. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Body sway reflects leadership in joint music performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Andrew; Livingstone, Steven R; Bosnyak, Dan J; Trainor, Laurel J

2017-05-23

The cultural and technological achievements of the human species depend on complex social interactions. Nonverbal interpersonal coordination, or joint action, is a crucial element of social interaction, but the dynamics of nonverbal information flow among people are not well understood. We used joint music making in string quartets, a complex, naturalistic nonverbal behavior, as a model system. Using motion capture, we recorded body sway simultaneously in four musicians, which reflected real-time interpersonal information sharing. We used Granger causality to analyze predictive relationships among the motion time series of the players to determine the magnitude and direction of information flow among the players. We experimentally manipulated which musician was the leader (followers were not informed who was leading) and whether they could see each other, to investigate how these variables affect information flow. We found that assigned leaders exerted significantly greater influence on others and were less influenced by others compared with followers. This effect was present, whether or not they could see each other, but was enhanced with visual information, indicating that visual as well as auditory information is used in musical coordination. Importantly, performers' ratings of the "goodness" of their performances were positively correlated with the overall degree of body sway coupling, indicating that communication through body sway reflects perceived performance success. These results confirm that information sharing in a nonverbal joint action task occurs through both auditory and visual cues and that the dynamics of information flow are affected by changing group relationships.

Technical tips to perform safe and effective ultrasound guided steroid joint injections in children.

Science.gov (United States)

Parra, Dimitri A

2015-01-01

The aim of this article is to describe the technique used to perform ultrasound guided steroid joint injections in children in a group of joints that can be injected using ultrasound as the only image guidance modality. The technique is described and didactic figures are provided to illustrate key technical concepts. It is very important to be familiar with the sonographic appearance of the pediatric joints and the developing bone when performing ultrasound-guided joint injections in children.

Performance Monitoring Applied to System Supervision

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Bertille Somon

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, automation is present in every aspect of our daily life and has some benefits. Nonetheless, empirical data suggest that traditional automation has many negative performance and safety consequences as it changed task performers into task supervisors. In this context, we propose to use recent insights into the anatomical and neurophysiological substrates of action monitoring in humans, to help further characterize performance monitoring during system supervision. Error monitoring is critical for humans to learn from the consequences of their actions. A wide variety of studies have shown that the error monitoring system is involved not only in our own errors, but also in the errors of others. We hypothesize that the neurobiological correlates of the self-performance monitoring activity can be applied to system supervision. At a larger scale, a better understanding of system supervision may allow its negative effects to be anticipated or even countered. This review is divided into three main parts. First, we assess the neurophysiological correlates of self-performance monitoring and their characteristics during error execution. Then, we extend these results to include performance monitoring and error observation of others or of systems. Finally, we provide further directions in the study of system supervision and assess the limits preventing us from studying a well-known phenomenon: the Out-Of-the-Loop (OOL performance problem.

The Security Plan for the Joint Euratom/IAEA Remote Monitoring Network

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stronkhorst, J.; Schoop, K.; Ruuska, K.; Kurek, S.; Levert, J.F.

2015-01-01

The European Commission and the IAEA have installed surveillance systems in all larger civil European nuclear facilities. The monitoring data is gathered by optical surveillance systems, electronic sealing systems and numerous measuring devices. The on-site joint Euratom/IAEA monitoring networks operate in general completely isolated from the operator's IT systems. To largely improve data security and reliability, remote data transmission (RDT) is installed on a growing number of sites, and the inspection data is daily transferred to the Data Collect Servers in Luxembourg and Vienna. A growing number of RDT connections and a growing number of security threats require an IT security policy that is pro-active as well as reactive in an efficient way. The risk based approach used in setting up the security plans assesses all elements of the monitoring network, from the implemented technical solution and the assessment of the security needs and threats, up to the incident handling and lessons learned. The results of the assessments are, for each individual RDT connection, described in the technical paragraphs and annexes, including system descriptions, network plans and contact information. The principles of secure data handling as implemented in the shared Euratom /IAEA monitoring network can apply to a broad range of industrial monitoring systems, where human interaction is in general the largest security risk. (author)

5 CFR 430.306 - Monitoring performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Monitoring performance. 430.306 Section 430.306 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT Managing Senior Executive Performance § 430.306 Monitoring performance. (a) Supervisors must...

Interdependency in joint ventures: The relationship between dependency asymmetry and performance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kemp, R.G.M.; Ghauri, P.N.

2001-01-01

This paper reports the results of a survey on joint venture collaborations. It focuses on the relations between the level and intensity of conflict, trust and norms of exchange, and ultimately the performance of a joint venture, in case of dependency asymmetry between the partners. In management

Potential of optical spectral transmission measurements for joint inflammation measurements in rheumatoid arthritis patients

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Meier, A. J. Louise; Rensen, Wouter H. J.; de Bokx, Pieter K.; de Nijs, Ron N. J.

2012-08-01

Frequent monitoring of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients enables timely treatment adjustments and improved outcomes. Currently this is not feasible due to a shortage of rheumatologists. An optical spectral transmission device is presented for objective assessment of joint inflammation in RA patients, while improving diagnostic accuracy and clinical workflow. A cross-sectional, nonrandomized observational study was performed with this device. In the study, 77 proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints in 67 patients have been analyzed. Inflammation of these PIP joints was also assessed by a rheumatologist with a score varying from 1 (not inflamed) to 5 (severely inflamed). Out of 77 measurements, 27 were performed in moderate to strongly inflamed PIP joints. Comparison between the clinical assessment and an optical measurement showed a correlation coefficient r=0.63, p<0.001, 95% CI [0.47, 0.75], and a ROC curve (AUC=0.88) that shows a relative good specificity and sensitivity. Optical spectral transmission measurements in a single joint correlate with clinical assessment of joint inflammation, and therefore might be useful in monitoring joint inflammation in RA patients.

Heat exchanger performance monitoring guidelines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stambaugh, N.; Closser, W. Jr.; Mollerus, F.J.

1991-12-01

Fouling can occur in many heat exchanger applications in a way that impedes heat transfer and fluid flow and reduces the heat transfer or performance capability of the heat exchanger. Fouling may be significant for heat exchanger surfaces and flow paths in contact with plant service water. This report presents guidelines for performance monitoring of heat exchangers subject to fouling. Guidelines include selection of heat exchangers to monitor based on system function, safety function and system configuration. Five monitoring methods are discussed: the heat transfer, temperature monitoring, temperature effectiveness, delta P and periodic maintenance methods. Guidelines are included for selecting the appropriate monitoring methods and for implementing the selected methods. The report also includes a bibliography, example calculations, and technical notes applicable to the heat transfer method

Neuropharmacology of performance monitoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Jocham, Gerhard; Ullsperger, Markus

2009-01-01

Adaptive, goal-directed behavior requires that organisms evaluate their actions in terms of their outcomes. Neuroimaging studies show that unfavorable outcomes or situations with high level of conflict engage the posterior medial frontal cortex (pMFC). Recording of event-related potentials revealed that these situations are accompanied by a negative deflection, the so-called error-related negativity (ERN), which appears after an erroneous response or after negative feedback. Both activation of the pMFC and the ERN are thought to represent a signal that indicates the need for behavioral adjustment, and to recruit other brain regions that implement these adjustments. While many fMRI and EEG studies have shed light on the anatomical structures and the cognitive processes involved in performance monitoring, only very recently have researchers begun to investigate the underlying neurochemical mechanisms. Drawing on the putative involvement of dopamine (DA) neurons in coding a reward prediction error, an influential theory has ascribed a pivotal role to DA in performance monitoring. However, although important, DA is certainly not the only neuromodulator involved. Recent studies point to a role for serotonin, norepinephrine and GABA, but also for adenosine in performance monitoring. Here, we review the evidence for neurotransmitter effects on this function in humans. In this light, we critically discuss currently debated models of performance monitoring and potential alternatives.

Longitudinal joint specifications and performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-08-01

Deterioration of longitudinal joints is widely recognized as one of the major factors contributing to failure of asphalt pavements. Finding : ways to improve the durability of longitudinal joints will lead to improved service lives and lower life cyc...

Performance monitoring of safeguards equipment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sirisena, K.; Peltoranta, M.; Goussarov, V.; Vodrazka, P.

1999-01-01

SGTCS is responsible for monitoring and reporting the performance of the SG equipment. Performance monitoring (PM) has been implemented in most important safeguards equipment operating unattended in nuclear facilities. Inspectors acquire equipment performance data in facilities. After inspection, the data package is submitted to SGTCS for processing and analysis. The performance data is used for identification of systems or components, which should be changed in the field and for identification of modules which, should be diagnosed at HQ in order to determine the cause of failure. Moreover, the performance data is used for preventive maintenance and spares distribution planning, and to provide statistics for official reports and management decision making. An important part of the performance monitoring is reporting. Equipment performance reports contain information about equipment inventory, utilization, failure types, failure distribution, and reliability. Trends in performance are given in graphical form in cases, where past data is available. Reliability estimates such as expected times between failures are provided. The automated reporting tools are obtainable through EMIS database application. (author)

Thermal performance monitoring and optimisation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sunde, Svein; Berg; Oeyvind

1998-01-01

Monitoring of the thermal efficiency of nuclear power plants is expected to become increasingly important as energy-market liberalisation exposes plants to increasing availability requirements and fiercer competition. The general goal in thermal performance monitoring is straightforward: to maximise the ratio of profit to cost under the constraints of safe operation. One may perceive this goal to be pursued in two ways, one oriented towards fault detection and cost-optimal predictive maintenance, and another determined at optimising target values of parameters in response to any component degradation detected, changes in ambient conditions, or the like. Annual savings associated with effective thermal-performance monitoring are expected to be in the order of $ 100 000 for power plants of representative size. A literature review shows that a number of computer systems for thermal-performance monitoring exists, either as prototypes or commercially available. The characteristics and needs of power plants may vary widely, however, and decisions concerning the exact scope, content and configuration of a thermal-performance monitor may well follow a heuristic approach. Furthermore, re-use of existing software modules may be desirable. Therefore, we suggest here the design of a flexible workbench for easy assembly of an experimental thermal-performance monitor at the Halden Project. The suggested design draws heavily on our extended experience in implementing control-room systems featured by assets like high levels of customisation, flexibility in configuration and modularity in structure, and on a number of relevant adjoining activities. The design includes a multi-computer communication system and a graphical user's interface, and aims at a system adaptable to any combination of in-house or end user's modules, as well as commercially available software. (author)

Structural Performance of Inconel 625 Superalloy Brazed Joints

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jianqiang; Demers, Vincent; Cadotte, Eve-Line; Turner, Daniel; Bocher, Philippe

2017-02-01

The purpose of this work was to investigate tensile and fatigue behaviors of Inconel 625 superalloy brazed joints after transient liquid-phase bonding process. Brazing was performed in a vacuum furnace using a nickel-based filler metal in a form of paste to join wrought Inconel 625 plates. Mechanical tests were carried out on single-lap joints under various lap distance-to-thickness ratios. The fatigue crack initiation and crack growth modes were examined via metallographic analysis, and the effect of local stress on fatigue life was assessed by finite element simulations. The fatigue results show that fatigue strength and endurance limit increase with overlap distance, leading to a relatively large scatter of results. Fatigue cracks nucleated in the high-stressed region of the weld fillets from brittle eutectic phases or from internal brazing cavities. The present work proposes to rationalize the results by using the local stress at the brazing fillet. When using this local stress, all fatigue-obtained results find themselves on a single S- N curve, providing a design curve for any joint configuration in fatigue solicitation.

Autonomy and control in dyads: effects on interaction quality and joint creative performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinstein, Netta; Hodgins, Holley S; Ryan, Richard M

2010-12-01

Two studies examined interaction quality and joint performance on two creative tasks in unacquainted dyads primed for autonomy or control orientations. It was hypothesized that autonomy-primed dyads would interact more constructively, experience more positive mood, and engage the task more readily, and as a result these dyads would perform better. To test this, Study 1 primed orientation and explored verbal creative performance on the Remote Associates Task (RAT). In Study 2, dyads were primed with autonomy and control orientation and videotaped during two joint creative tasks, one verbal (RAT) and one nonverbal (charades). Videotapes were coded for behavioral indicators of closeness and task engagement. Results showed that autonomy-primed dyads felt closer, were more emotionally and cognitively attuned, provided empathy and encouragement to partners, and performed more effectively. The effects of primed autonomy on creative performance were mediated by interpersonal quality, mood, and joint engagement.

Autonomous Quality Control of Joint Orientation Measured with Inertial Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karina Lebel

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Clinical mobility assessment is traditionally performed in laboratories using complex and expensive equipment. The low accessibility to such equipment, combined with the emerging trend to assess mobility in a free-living environment, creates a need for body-worn sensors (e.g., inertial measurement units—IMUs that are capable of measuring the complexity in motor performance using meaningful measurements, such as joint orientation. However, accuracy of joint orientation estimates using IMUs may be affected by environment, the joint tracked, type of motion performed and velocity. This study investigates a quality control (QC process to assess the quality of orientation data based on features extracted from the raw inertial sensors’ signals. Joint orientation (trunk, hip, knee, ankle of twenty participants was acquired by an optical motion capture system and IMUs during a variety of tasks (sit, sit-to-stand transition, walking, turning performed under varying conditions (speed, environment. An artificial neural network was used to classify good and bad sequences of joint orientation with a sensitivity and a specificity above 83%. This study confirms the possibility to perform QC on IMU joint orientation data based on raw signal features. This innovative QC approach may be of particular interest in a big data context, such as for remote-monitoring of patients’ mobility.

Quantitative performance monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heller, A.S.

1987-01-01

In the recently published update of NUREG/CR 3883, it was shown that Japanese plants of size and design similar to those in the US have significantly fewer trips in a given year of operation. One way to reduce such imbalance is the efficient use of available plant data. Since plant data are recorded and monitored continuously for management feedback and timely resolution of problems, this data should be actively used to increase the efficiency of operations and, ultimately, for a reduction of plant trips in power plants. A great deal of information is lost, however, if the analytical tools available for the data evaluation are misapplied or not adopted at all. This paper deals with a program developed to use quantitative techniques to monitor personnel performance in an operating power plant. Visual comparisons of ongoing performance with predetermined quantitative performance goals are made. A continuous feedback is provided to management for early detection of adverse trends and timely resolution of problems. Ultimately, costs are reduced through effective resource management and timely decision making

Cultural Distance and the Performance of International Joint Ventures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christoffersen, Jeppe; Globerman, Steven; Nielsen, Bo Bernhard

2013-01-01

This study provides a critical summary and assessment of the empirical literature on the relationship between cultural distance and the performance of international joint ventures (IJVs) based on studies published over the period 1993-2008. The existing literature reports inconsistent and largely...

Joint inversion of time-lapse VSP data for monitoring CO2 injection at the Farnsworth EOR field in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, M.; Gao, K.; Balch, R. S.; Huang, L.

2016-12-01

During the Development Phase (Phase III) of the U.S. Southwest Regional Partnership on Carbon Sequestration (SWP), time-lapse 3D vertical seismic profiling (VSP) data were acquired to monitor CO2 injection/migration at the Farnsworth Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) field, in partnership with the industrial partner Chaparral Energy. The project is to inject a million tons of carbon dioxide into the target formation, the deep oil-bearing Morrow Formation in the Farnsworth Unit EOR field. Quantitative time-lapse seismic monitoring has the potential to track CO2 movement in geologic carbon storage sites. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has recently developed new full-waveform inversion methods to jointly invert time-lapse seismic data for changes in elastic and anisotropic parameters in target monitoring regions such as a CO2 reservoir. We apply our new joint inversion methods to time-lapse VSP data acquired at the Farnsworth EOR filed, and present some preliminary results showing geophysical properties changes in the reservoir.

Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) Common Ground System (CGS) Current Technical Performance Measures

Science.gov (United States)

Cochran, S.; Panas, M.; Jamilkowski, M. L.; Miller, S. W.

2015-12-01

ABSTRACT The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are jointly acquiring the next-generation civilian weather and environmental satellite system: the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS). The Joint Polar Satellite System will replace the afternoon orbit component and ground processing system of the current Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) managed by NOAA. The JPSS satellites will carry a suite of sensors designed to collect meteorological, oceanographic, climatological and geophysical observations of the Earth. The ground processing system for JPSS is known as the JPSS Common Ground System (JPSS CGS). Developed and maintained by Raytheon Intelligence, Information and Services (IIS), the CGS is a multi-mission enterprise system serving NOAA, NASA and their national and international partners. The CGS has demonstrated its scalability and flexibility to incorporate multiple missions efficiently and with minimal cost, schedule and risk, while strengthening global partnerships in weather and environmental monitoring. The CGS architecture is being upgraded to Block 2.0 in 2015 to "operationalize" S-NPP, leverage lessons learned to date in multi-mission support, take advantage of more reliable and efficient technologies, and satisfy new requirements and constraints in the continually evolving budgetary environment. To ensure the CGS meets these needs, we have developed 49 Technical Performance Measures (TPMs) across 10 categories, such as data latency, operational availability and scalability. This paper will provide an overview of the CGS Block 2.0 architecture, with particular focus on the 10 TPM categories listed above. We will provide updates on how we ensure the deployed architecture meets these TPMs to satisfy our multi-mission objectives with the deployment of Block 2.0.

Body sway reflects leadership in joint music performance

Science.gov (United States)

Livingstone, Steven R.; Bosnyak, Dan J.; Trainor, Laurel J.

2017-01-01

The cultural and technological achievements of the human species depend on complex social interactions. Nonverbal interpersonal coordination, or joint action, is a crucial element of social interaction, but the dynamics of nonverbal information flow among people are not well understood. We used joint music making in string quartets, a complex, naturalistic nonverbal behavior, as a model system. Using motion capture, we recorded body sway simultaneously in four musicians, which reflected real-time interpersonal information sharing. We used Granger causality to analyze predictive relationships among the motion time series of the players to determine the magnitude and direction of information flow among the players. We experimentally manipulated which musician was the leader (followers were not informed who was leading) and whether they could see each other, to investigate how these variables affect information flow. We found that assigned leaders exerted significantly greater influence on others and were less influenced by others compared with followers. This effect was present, whether or not they could see each other, but was enhanced with visual information, indicating that visual as well as auditory information is used in musical coordination. Importantly, performers’ ratings of the “goodness” of their performances were positively correlated with the overall degree of body sway coupling, indicating that communication through body sway reflects perceived performance success. These results confirm that information sharing in a nonverbal joint action task occurs through both auditory and visual cues and that the dynamics of information flow are affected by changing group relationships. PMID:28484007

Shared performance monitor in a multiprocessor system

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, George; Gara, Alan G.; Salapura, Valentina

2012-07-24

A performance monitoring unit (PMU) and method for monitoring performance of events occurring in a multiprocessor system. The multiprocessor system comprises a plurality of processor devices units, each processor device for generating signals representing occurrences of events in the processor device, and, a single shared counter resource for performance monitoring. The performance monitor unit is shared by all processor cores in the multiprocessor system. The PMU comprises: a plurality of performance counters each for counting signals representing occurrences of events from one or more the plurality of processor units in the multiprocessor system; and, a plurality of input devices for receiving the event signals from one or more processor devices of the plurality of processor units, the plurality of input devices programmable to select event signals for receipt by one or more of the plurality of performance counters for counting, wherein the PMU is shared between multiple processing units, or within a group of processors in the multiprocessing system. The PMU is further programmed to monitor event signals issued from non-processor devices.

Joint inversion of geophysical data for site characterization and restoration monitoring. 1998 annual progress report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berge, P.A.; Berryman, J.G.; Roberts, J.J.; Wildenschild, D.

1998-01-01

'The purpose of this project is to develop a computer code for joint inversion of seismic and electrical data, to improve underground imaging for site characterization and remediation monitoring. The computer code developed in this project will invert geophysical data to obtain direct estimates of porosity and saturation underground, rather than inverting for seismic velocity and electrical resistivity or other geophysical properties. This is intended to be a significant improvement in the state-of-the-art of underground imaging, since interpretation of data collected at a contaminated site would become much less subjective. Potential users include DOE scientists and engineers responsible for characterizing contaminated sites and monitoring remediation of contaminated sites. In this three-year project, the authors use a multi-phase approach consisting of theoretical and numerical code development, laboratory investigations, testing on available laboratory and borehole geophysics data sets, and a controlled field experiment, to develop practical tools for joint electrical and seismic data interpretation. This report summarizes work after about 1.7 years of a 3-year project. Progress on laboratory measurements is described first, followed by progress on developing algorithms for the inversion code to relate geophysical data to porosity and saturation.'

Real-time performance monitoring and management system

Science.gov (United States)

Budhraja, Vikram S [Los Angeles, CA; Dyer, James D [La Mirada, CA; Martinez Morales, Carlos A [Upland, CA

2007-06-19

A real-time performance monitoring system for monitoring an electric power grid. The electric power grid has a plurality of grid portions, each grid portion corresponding to one of a plurality of control areas. The real-time performance monitoring system includes a monitor computer for monitoring at least one of reliability metrics, generation metrics, transmission metrics, suppliers metrics, grid infrastructure security metrics, and markets metrics for the electric power grid. The data for metrics being monitored by the monitor computer are stored in a data base, and a visualization of the metrics is displayed on at least one display computer having a monitor. The at least one display computer in one said control area enables an operator to monitor the grid portion corresponding to a different said control area.

Study on Fatigue Performance of Composite Bolted Joints with Bolt-Hole Delamination

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, M. J.; Yu, S.; Zhao, Q. Y.

2018-03-01

Fatigue performance of composite structure with imperfections is a challenging subject at present. Based on cohesive zone method and multi-continuum theory, delamination evolution response and fatigue life prediction of a 3D composite single-lap joint with a bolt-hole have been investigated through computer codes Abaqus and Fe-safe. Results from the comparison of a perfect composite bolted joint with another defect one indicates that a relatively small delamination damage around the bolt hole brings about significant degradation of local material performance. More notably, fatigue life of stress concentration region of composite bolted joints is highly sensitive to external loads, as an increase of 67% cyclic load amplitude leads to an decrease of 99.5% local fatigue life in this study. However, the numerical strategy for solving composite fatigue problems is meaningful to engineering works.

Performance analysis of joint diversity combining, adaptive modulation, and power control schemes

KAUST Repository

Qaraqe, Khalid A.

2011-01-01

Adaptive modulation and diversity combining represent very important adaptive solutions for future generations of wireless communication systems. Indeed, in order to improve the performance and the efficiency of these systems, these two techniques have been recently used jointly in new schemes named joint adaptive modulation and diversity combining (JAMDC) schemes. Considering the problem of finding low hardware complexity, bandwidth-efficient, and processing-power efficient transmission schemes for a downlink scenario and capitalizing on some of these recently proposed JAMDC schemes, we propose and analyze in this paper three joint adaptive modulation, diversity combining, and power control (JAMDCPC) schemes where a constant-power variable-rate adaptive modulation technique is used with an adaptive diversity combining scheme and a common power control process. More specifically, the modulation constellation size, the number of combined diversity paths, and the needed power level are jointly determined to achieve the highest spectral efficiency with the lowest possible processing power consumption quantified in terms of the average number of combined paths, given the fading channel conditions and the required bit error rate (BER) performance. In this paper, the performance of these three JAMDCPC schemes is analyzed in terms of their spectral efficiency, processing power consumption, and error-rate performance. Selected numerical examples show that these schemes considerably increase the spectral efficiency of the existing JAMDC schemes with a slight increase in the average number of combined paths for the low signal-to-noise ratio range while maintaining compliance with the BER performance and a low radiated power which yields to a substantial decrease in interference to co-existing users and systems. © 2011 IEEE.

Separate and joint effects of alcohol and caffeine on conflict monitoring and adaptation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bailey, Kira; Amlung, Michael T; Morris, David H; Price, Mason H; Von Gunten, Curtis; McCarthy, Denis M; Bartholow, Bruce D

2016-04-01

Caffeine is commonly believed to offset the acute effects of alcohol, but some evidence suggests that cognitive processes remain impaired when caffeine and alcohol are coadministered. No previous study has investigated the separate and joint effects of alcohol and caffeine on conflict monitoring and adaptation, processes thought to be critical for self-regulation. This was the purpose of the current study. Healthy, young adult social drinkers recruited from the community completed a flanker task after consuming one of four beverages in a 2 × 2 experimental design: Alcohol + caffeine, alcohol + placebo caffeine, placebo alcohol + caffeine, or placebo alcohol + placebo caffeine. Accuracy, response time, and the amplitude of the N2 component of the event-related potential (ERP), a neural index of conflict monitoring, were examined as a function of whether or not conflict was present (i.e., whether or not flankers were compatible with the target) on both the previous trial and the current trial. Alcohol did not abolish conflict monitoring or adaptation. Caffeine eliminated conflict adaptation in sequential trials but also enhanced neural conflict monitoring. The combined effect of alcohol and caffeine was apparent only in how previous conflict affected the neural conflict monitoring response. Together, the findings suggest that caffeine leads to exaggeration of attentional resource utilization, which could provide short-term benefits but lead to problems conserving resources for when they are most needed.

Monitoring of fatigue damage in composite lap-joints using guided waves and FBG sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Karpenko, Oleksii; Khomenko, Anton; Koricho, Ermias; Haq, Mahmoodul; Udpa, Lalita

2016-02-01

Adhesive bonding is being increasingly employed in many applications as it offers possibility of light-weighting and efficient multi-material joining along with reduction in time and cost of manufacturing. However, failure initiation and progression in critical components like joints, specifically in fatigue loading is not well understood, which necessitates reliable NDE and SHM techniques to ensure structural integrity. In this work, concurrent guided wave (GW) and fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor measurements were used to monitor fatigue damage in adhesively bonded composite lap-joints. In the present set-up, one FBG sensor was strategically embedded in the adhesive bond-line of a lap-joint, while two other FBGs were bonded on the surface of the adherends. Full spectral responses of FBG sensors were collected and compared at specific intervals of fatigue loading. In parallel, guided waves were actuated and sensed using PZT wafers mounted on the composite adherends. Experimental results demonstrated that time-of-flight (ToF) of the fundamental modes transmitted through the bond-line and spectral response of FBG sensors were sensitive to fatigue loading and damage. Combination of guided wave and FBG measurements provided the desired redundancy and synergy in the data to evaluate the degradation in bond-line properties. Measurements taken in the presence of continuously applied load replicated the in-situ/service conditions. The approach shows promise in understanding the behavior of bonded joints subjected to complex loading.

Modular Software Performance Monitoring

CERN Document Server

Kruse, D F

2011-01-01

CPU clock frequency is not likely to be increased significantly in the coming years, and data analysis speed can be improved by using more processors or buying new machines, only if one is willing to change the paradigm to a parallel one. Therefore, performance monitoring procedures and tools are needed to help programmers to optimize existing software running on current and future hardware. Low level information from hardware performance counters is vital to spot specific performance problems slowing program execution. HEP software is often huge and complex, and existing tools are unable to give results with the required granularity. We will report on the approach we have chose to solve this problem that involves decomposing the application into parts and monitoring each of them separately. Both counting and sampling methods are used to allow an analysis with the required custom granularity: from global level, up to the function level. A set of tools (based on perfmon2 – a software interface to hardware co...

Norwegian 1990 sediment data for the North Sea Task Force (NSTF) and the Joint Monitoring Group (JMG)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Green, N.W.; Klungsoeyr, J.

1994-12-31

This report presents the 1990 sediment data compiled as part of the Norwegian contribution to the North Sea Task Force Monitoring Master Plan and the Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP). The JMP is ordered under the Oslo and Paris Commissions, which were established to protect the marine environment against anthropogenic contamination. The stations monitored by Norway are spread over the Kattegat, Skagerrak, North Sea south to the Dogger Bank and the Faeroe Islands. The contaminants investigated are mainly selected metals, organochlorines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and the samples were collected by gravity cores and grab/box samplers. The raw data and the mean and standard deviations of parallel samples (if relevant) are presented. 6 refs., 2 tabs.

WiMAX network performance monitoring & optimization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhang, Qi; Dam, H

2008-01-01

frequency reuse, capacity planning, proper network dimensioning, multi-class data services and so on. Furthermore, as a small operator we also want to reduce the demand for sophisticated technicians and man labour hours. To meet these critical demands, we design a generic integrated network performance......In this paper we present our WiMAX (worldwide interoperability for microwave access) network performance monitoring and optimization solution. As a new and small WiMAX network operator, there are many demanding issues that we have to deal with, such as limited available frequency resource, tight...... this integrated network performance monitoring and optimization system in our WiMAX networks. This integrated monitoring and optimization system has such good flexibility and scalability that individual function component can be used by other operators with special needs and more advanced function components can...

Real-time monitoring of laser welding of galvanized high strength steel in lap joint configuration

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Fanrong; Ma, Junjie; Carlson, Blair; Kovacevic, Radovan

2012-10-01

Two different cases regarding the zinc coating at the lap joint faying surface are selected for studying the influence of zinc vapor on the keyhole dynamics of the weld pool and the final welding quality. One case has the zinc coating fully removed at the faying surface; while the other case retains the zinc coating on the faying surface. It is found that removal of the zinc coating at the faying surface produces a significantly better weld quality as exemplified by a lack of spatters whereas intense spatters are present when the zinc coating is present at the faying surface. Spectroscopy is used to detect the optical spectra emitted from a laser generated plasma plume during the laser welding of galvanized high strength DP980 steel in a lap-joint configuration. A correlation between the electron temperature and defects within the weld bead is identified by using the Boltzmann plot method. The laser weld pool keyhole dynamic behavior affected by a high-pressure zinc vapor generated at the faying surface of galvanized steel lap-joint is monitored in real-time by a high speed charge-coupled device (CCD) camera assisted with a green laser as an illumination source.

Jointly reconstructing ground motion and resistivity for ERT-based slope stability monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Boyle, Alistair; Wilkinson, Paul B.; Chambers, Jonathan E.; Meldrum, Philip I.; Uhlemann, Sebastian; Adler, Andy

2018-02-01

Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) is increasingly being used to investigate unstable slopes and monitor the hydrogeological processes within. But movement of electrodes or incorrect placement of electrodes with respect to an assumed model can introduce significant resistivity artefacts into the reconstruction. In this work, we demonstrate a joint resistivity and electrode movement reconstruction algorithm within an iterative Gauss-Newton framework. We apply this to ERT monitoring data from an active slow-moving landslide in the UK. Results show fewer resistivity artefacts and suggest that electrode movement and resistivity can be reconstructed at the same time under certain conditions. A new 2.5-D formulation for the electrode position Jacobian is developed and is shown to give accurate numerical solutions when compared to the adjoint method on 3-D models. On large finite element meshes, the calculation time of the newly developed approach was also proven to be orders of magnitude faster than the 3-D adjoint method and addressed modelling errors in the 2-D perturbation and adjoint electrode position Jacobian.

Spine epidural and sacroiliac joints injections--when and how to perform.

Science.gov (United States)

D'Orazio, Federico; Gregori, Lorenzo Maria; Gallucci, Massimo

2015-05-01

To review the state-of-the-art of image-guided techniques used to treat painful syndromes of the lower back, their indications, how they should be performed, their related risks and the expected results. We describe the actual standards about image-guided infiltrative therapies both on spine and on sacroiliac joints. Both spinal epidural and sacroiliac injections appear useful in a large percentage of treated patients to get control of the perceived pain. Performing these therapies under CT or fluoroscopic guidance is the best and safest way to obtain satisfactory results because it is possible to target the use of drugs directly to the involved painful structures. Image-guided injections of the epidural space and of the sacroiliac joints are effective techniques for the treatment of pain; their effectiveness is sometimes not lasting for long periods of time but considering the low associated risk when performed by trained personnel, they can be easily repeated. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving stability and curving passing performance for railway vehicles with a variable stiffness MRF rubber joint

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, B. J.; Sun, S. S.; Li, W. H.

2017-03-01

With the growing need for effective intercity transport, the need for more advanced rail vehicle technology has never been greater. The conflicting primary longitudinal suspension requirements of high speed stability and curving performance limit the development of rail vehicle technology. This paper presents a novel magnetorheological fluid based joint with variable stiffness characteristics for the purpose of overcoming this parameter conflict. Firstly, the joint design and working principle is developed. Following this, a prototype is tested by MTS to characterize its variable stiffness properties under a range of conditions. Lastly, the performance of the proposed MRF rubber joint with regard to improving train stability and curving performance is numerically evaluated.

Performance audit procedures for opacity monitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plaisance, S.J.; Peeler, J.W.

1987-04-01

This manual contains monitor-specific performance audit procedures and data forms for use in conducting audits of installed opacity continuous emission monitoring systems (CEMS). General auditing procedures and acceptance limits for various audit criteria are discussed. Practical considerations and common problems encountered in conducting audits are delineated, and recommendations are included to optimize the successful completion of performance audits. Performance audit procedures and field-data forms were developed for six common opacity CEMS: (1) Lear Siegler, Inc. Model RM-41; (2) Lear Siegler, Inc. Model RM-4; (3) Dynatron Model 1100; (4) Thermo Electron, Inc. Model 400; (5) Thermo Electron, Inc. Model 1000A; and (6) Enviroplan Model D-R280 AV. Generic audit procedures are included for use in evaluating opacity CEMS with multiple transmissometers and combiner devices. In addition, several approaches for evaluating the zero-alignment or clear-path zero response are described. The zero-alignment procedures are included since the factor is fundamental to the accuracy of opacity monitoring data, even though the zero-alignment checks cannot usually be conducted during a performance audit

Enabling Technology for Monitoring & Predicting Gas Turbine Health & Performance in IGCC Powerplants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kenneth A. Yackly

2005-12-01

The ''Enabling & Information Technology To Increase RAM for Advanced Powerplants'' program, by DOE request, was re-directed, de-scoped to two tasks, shortened to a 2-year period of performance, and refocused to develop, validate and accelerate the commercial use of enabling materials technologies and sensors for coal/IGCC powerplants. The new program was re-titled ''Enabling Technology for Monitoring & Predicting Gas Turbine Health & Performance in IGCC Powerplants''. This final report summarizes the work accomplished from March 1, 2003 to March 31, 2004 on the four original tasks, and the work accomplished from April 1, 2004 to July 30, 2005 on the two re-directed tasks. The program Tasks are summarized below: Task 1--IGCC Environmental Impact on high Temperature Materials: The first task was refocused to address IGCC environmental impacts on high temperature materials used in gas turbines. This task screened material performance and quantified the effects of high temperature erosion and corrosion of hot gas path materials in coal/IGCC applications. The materials of interest included those in current service as well as advanced, high-performance alloys and coatings. Task 2--Material In-Service Health Monitoring: The second task was reduced in scope to demonstrate new technologies to determine the inservice health of advanced technology coal/IGCC powerplants. The task focused on two critical sensing needs for advanced coal/IGCC gas turbines: (1) Fuel Quality Sensor to rapidly determine the fuel heating value for more precise control of the gas turbine, and detection of fuel impurities that could lead to rapid component degradation. (2) Infra-Red Pyrometer to continuously measure the temperature of gas turbine buckets, nozzles, and combustor hardware. Task 3--Advanced Methods for Combustion Monitoring and Control: The third task was originally to develop and validate advanced monitoring and control methods for coal/IGCC gas

Treatment of lumbar facet joint syndrome by CT-guided intraarticular infiltration of fact joints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schleifer, J.; Fenzl, G.; Wolf, A.; Diehl, K.

1994-01-01

In 62 patients with facet syndrome a total of 205 joints were infiltrated, CT monitoring being used in all cases. Each facet joint was infiltrated with 0.3 ml bupivacaine and 0.8 ml methylprednisolone. The patients were divided into three groups. Group 1 consisted of 24 persons who had undergone lumbar disc surgery, group 2 of 23 patients with spondylarthrosis of the facet joints, and group 3 of 15 patients who had undergone lumbar disc surgery but hat additional spondylarthrosis. Very good results were defined as pain relief for longer than 4 weeks, good results as pain relief for up to 4 weeks and poor results as brief pain relief or none at all. In 27 patients facet infiltration was performed for the purpose of diagnosis. Results were significantly in group 2 than in group 1. In group 3 results were better than in group 1, but worse than in group 2. These differences were not statistical by significant. Seven patients in the diagnostic group had no pain relief, and facet syndrome was excluded. (orig.) [de

Segmented Forefoot Plate in Basketball Footwear: Does it Influence Performance and Foot Joint Kinematics and Kinetics?

Science.gov (United States)

Lam, Wing-Kai; Lee, Winson Chiu-Chun; Lee, Wei Min; Ma, Christina Zong-Hao; Kong, Pui Wah

2018-02-01

This study examined the effects of shoes' segmented forefoot stiffness on athletic performance and ankle and metatarsophalangeal joint kinematics and kinetics in basketball movements. Seventeen university basketball players performed running vertical jumps and 5-m sprints at maximum effort with 3 basketball shoes of various forefoot plate conditions (medial plate, medial + lateral plates, and no-plate control). One-way repeated measures ANOVAs were used to examine the differences in athletic performance, joint kinematics, and joint kinetics among the 3 footwear conditions (α = .05). Results indicated that participants wearing medial + lateral plates shoes demonstrated 2.9% higher jump height than those wearing control shoes (P = .02), but there was no significant differences between medial plate and control shoes (P > .05). Medial plate shoes produced greater maximum plantar flexion velocity than the medial + lateral plates shoes (P jumping, but not sprinting performances. The use of a medial plate alone, although induced greater plantar flexion velocity at the metatarsophalangeal joint during sprinting, was not effective in improving jump heights or sprint times.

Effect of steel reinforcement with different degree of corrosion on degeneration of mechanical performance of reinforced concrete frame joints

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wu Xu

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Beam-column joints which shoulders high-level and vertical shearing effect that maintains balance of beam and column end is the major component influencing the performance of the whole framework. Post earthquake investigation suggests that collapse of frame structure is induced by failure of joints in most cases. Thus, beam-column joints must have strong bearing capacity and good ductility, and reinforced concrete structure just meets the above requirement. But corrosion caused by long time use of reinforced concrete framework will lead to degeneration of mechanical performance of joints. To find out the rule of effect of steel reinforcement with different corrosion rate on degeneration of bearing capacity of reinforced concrete framework joints, this study made a nonlinear numerical analysis on fifteen models without stirrup in the core area of reinforced concrete frame joints using displacement method considering axial load ratio of column end and constraint condition. This work aims to find out the key factor that influences mechanical performance of joints, thus to provide a basis for repair and reinforcement of degenerated framework joints.

5 CFR 430.207 - Monitoring performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Monitoring performance. 430.207 Section 430.207 Administrative Personnel OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT CIVIL SERVICE REGULATIONS PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT Performance Appraisal for General Schedule, Prevailing Rate, and Certain Other Employees § 430.207...

Reliability of Tubular Joints

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, John Dalsgaard; Thoft-Christensen, Palle

In this paper the preliminary results obtained by tests on tubular joints are presented. The joints are T-joints and the loading is static. It is the intention in continuation of these tests to perform tests on other types of joints (e.g. Y-joints) and also with dynamic loading. The purpose...... of the test is partly to obtain empirical data for the ultimate load-carrying capacity of tubular T-joints and partly to obtain some experience in performing tests with tubular joints. It is well known that tubular joints are usually designed in offshore engineering on the basis of empirical formulas obtained...... by experimental test results. Therefore, there is a need for performing experimental tests in this area....

In Situ Monitoring of Pb2+ Leaching from the Galvanic Joint Surface in a Prepared Chlorinated Drinking Water.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Xiangmeng; Armas, Stephanie M; Soliman, Mikhael; Lytle, Darren A; Chumbimuni-Torres, Karin; Tetard, Laurene; Lee, Woo Hyoung

2018-02-20

A novel method using a micro-ion-selective electrode (micro-ISE) technique was developed for in situ lead monitoring at the water-metal interface of a brass-leaded solder galvanic joint in a prepared chlorinated drinking water environment. The developed lead micro-ISE (100 μm tip diameter) showed excellent performance toward soluble lead (Pb 2+ ) with sensitivity of 22.2 ± 0.5 mV decade -1 and limit of detection (LOD) of 1.22 × 10 -6 M (0.25 mg L -1 ). The response time was less than 10 s with a working pH range of 2.0-7.0. Using the lead micro-ISE, lead concentration microprofiles were measured from the bulk to the metal surface (within 50 μm) over time. Combined with two-dimensional (2D) pH mapping, this work clearly demonstrated that Pb 2+ ions build-up across the lead anode surface was substantial, nonuniform, and dependent on local surface pH. A large pH gradient (ΔpH = 6.0) developed across the brass and leaded-tin solder joint coupon. Local pH decreases were observed above the leaded solder to a pH as low as 4.0, indicating it was anodic relative to the brass. The low pH above the leaded solder supported elevated lead levels where even small local pH differences of 0.6 units (ΔpH = 0.6) resulted in about four times higher surface lead concentrations (42.9 vs 11.6 mg L -1 ) and 5 times higher fluxes (18.5 × 10 -6 vs 3.5 × 10 -6 mg cm -2 s -1 ). Continuous surface lead leaching monitoring was also conducted for 16 h.

Plant performance monitoring program at Krsko NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bach, B.; Kavsek, D.

2004-01-01

A high level of nuclear safety and plant reliability results from the complex interaction of a good design, operational safety and human performance. This is the reason for establishing a set of operational plant safety performance indicators, to enable monitoring of both plant performance and progress. Performance indicators are also used for setting challenging targets and goals for improvement, to gain additional perspective on performance relative to other plants and to provide an indication of a potential need to adjust priorities and resources to achieve improved overall plant performance. A specific indicator trend over a certain period can provide an early warning to plant management to evaluate the causes behind the observed changes. In addition to monitoring the changes and trends, it is also necessary to compare the indicators with identified targets and goals to evaluate performance strengths and weaknesses. Plant Performance Monitoring Program at Krsko NPP defines and ensures consistent collection, processing, analysis and use of predefined relevant plant operational data, providing a quantitative indication of nuclear power plant performance. When the program was developed, the conceptual framework described in IAEA TECDOC-1141 Operational Safety Performance Indicators for Nuclear Power Plants was used as its basis in order to secure that a reasonable set of quantitative indications of operational safety performance would be established. Safe, conservative, cautious and reliable operation of the Krsko NPP is a common goal for all plant personnel. It is provided by continuous assurance of both health and safety of the public and employees according to the plant policy stated in program MD-1 Notranje usmeritve in cilji NEK, which is the top plant program. Establishing a program of monitoring and assessing operational plant safety performance indicators represents effective safety culture of plant personnel.(author)

Joint Operation Planning

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

2006-01-01

.... It sets forth joint doctrine to govern the joint operation planning activities and performance of the Armed Forces of the United States in joint operations, and provides the joint doctrinal basis...

Radioactivity monitor for high-performance liquid chromatography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reeve, D.R.; Crozier, A.

1977-01-01

The coupling of a homogeneous radioactivity monitor to a liquid chromatograph involves compromises between the sensitivity of the monitor and the resolution and speed of analysis of the chromatograph. The theoretical relationships between these parameters are considered and expressions derived which make it possible to calculate suitable monitor operating conditions for most types of high-performance liquid chromatography

Analysis of Financial Ratio to Distinguish Indonesia Joint Venture General Insurance Company Performance using Discriminant Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Subiakto Soekarno

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Insurance industry stands as a service business that plays a significant role in Indonesiaeconomical condition. The development of insurance industry in Indonesia, both of generalinsurance and life insurance, has increased very fast. The general insurance industry itselfdivided into two major players which are local private company and Joint Venture Company.Lately, the use of statistical techniques and financial ratios models to asses financial institutionsuch as insurance company have been used as one of the appropriate combination inpredicting the performance of an industry. This research aims to distinguish between JointVenture General Insurance Companies that have a good performance and those who are lessperforming well using Discriminant Analysis. Further, the findings led that DiscriminantAnalysis is able to distinguish Joint Venture General Insurance Companies that have a goodperformance and those who are not performing well. There are also six ratios which are RBC,Technical Reserve to Investment Ratio, Debt Ratio, Return on Equity, Loss Ratio, and ExpenseRatio that stand as the most influential ratios to distinguish the performance of joint venturegeneral insurance companies. In addition, the result suggest business people to be concernedtoward those six ratios, to increase their companies’ performance.Key words: general insurance, financial ratio, discriminant analysis

A structural health monitoring fastener for tracking fatigue crack growth in bolted metallic joints

Science.gov (United States)

Rakow, Alexi Schroder

Fatigue cracks initiating at fastener hole locations in metallic components are among the most common form of airframe damage. The fastener hole site has been surveyed as the second leading initiation site for fatigue related accidents of fixed wing aircraft. Current methods for inspecting airframes for these cracks are manual, whereby inspectors rely on non-destructive inspection equipment or hand-held probes to scan over areas of a structure. Use of this equipment often demands disassembly of the vehicle to search appropriate hole locations for cracks, which elevates the complexity and cost of these maintenance inspections. Improved reliability, safety, and reduced cost of such maintenance can be realized by the permanent integration of sensors with a structure to detect this damage. Such an integrated system of sensors would form a structural health monitoring (SHM) system. In this study, an Additive, Interleaved, Multi-layer Electromagnetic (AIME) sensor was developed and integrated with the shank of a fastener to form a SHM Fastener, a new SHM technology targeted at detection of fastener hole cracks. The major advantages of the SHM Fastener are its installation, which does not require joint layer disassembly, its capability to detect inner layer cracks, and its capability to operate in a continuous autonomous mode. Two methods for fabricating the proposed SHM Fastener were studied. The first option consisted of a thin flexible printed circuit film that was bonded around a thin metallic sleeve placed around the fastener shank. The second option consisted of coating sensor materials directly to the shank of a part in an effort to increase the durability of the sensor under severe loading conditions. Both analytical and numerical models were developed to characterize the capability of the sensors and provide a design tool for the sensor layout. A diagnostic technique for crack growth monitoring was developed to complete the SHM system, which consists of the

Performance monitoring for brain-computer-interface actions.

Science.gov (United States)

Schurger, Aaron; Gale, Steven; Gozel, Olivia; Blanke, Olaf

2017-02-01

When presented with a difficult perceptual decision, human observers are able to make metacognitive judgements of subjective certainty. Such judgements can be made independently of and prior to any overt response to a sensory stimulus, presumably via internal monitoring. Retrospective judgements about one's own task performance, on the other hand, require first that the subject perform a task and thus could potentially be made based on motor processes, proprioceptive, and other sensory feedback rather than internal monitoring. With this dichotomy in mind, we set out to study performance monitoring using a brain-computer interface (BCI), with which subjects could voluntarily perform an action - moving a cursor on a computer screen - without any movement of the body, and thus without somatosensory feedback. Real-time visual feedback was available to subjects during training, but not during the experiment where the true final position of the cursor was only revealed after the subject had estimated where s/he thought it had ended up after 6s of BCI-based cursor control. During the first half of the experiment subjects based their assessments primarily on the prior probability of the end position of the cursor on previous trials. However, during the second half of the experiment subjects' judgements moved significantly closer to the true end position of the cursor, and away from the prior. This suggests that subjects can monitor task performance when the task is performed without overt movement of the body. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Locations of Joint Physical Activity in Parent-Child Pairs Based on Accelerometer and GPS Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Dunton, Genevieve Fridlund; Liao, Yue; Almanza, Estela; Jerrett, Micheal; Spruijt-Metz, Donna; Pentz, Mary Ann

2012-01-01

Background Parental factors may play an important role in influencing children’s physical activity levels. Purpose This cross-sectional study sought to describe the locations of joint physical activity among parents and children. Methods Parent-child pairs (N = 291) wore an Actigraph GT2M accelerometer and GlobalSat BT-335 Global Positioning Systems (GPS) device over the same 7-day period. Children were ages 8–14 years. Joint behavior was defined by a linear separation distance of less than 50m between parent and child. Land use classifications were assigned to GPS data points. Results Joint physical activity was spread across residential locations (35%), and commercial venues (24%), and open spaces/parks (20%). Obese children and parents performed less joint physical activity in open spaces/parks than under/normal weight children and parents (p’s parent-child physical activity naturally occurs may inform location-based interventions to promote these behaviors. PMID:23011914

GPS Civil Monitoring Performance Specification

Science.gov (United States)

2009-02-10

This Civil Monitoring Performance Specification (CMPS) is published and maintained at : the direction of the Program Manager for Civil Applications, Global Positioning Systems : Wing (GPSW). The purpose of this document is to provide a comprehensive ...

The Clinical Study on Bee Venom Acupuncture Treatment on Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lim Jeong a

2005-06-01

Full Text Available Objective : This study is performed for the purpose of examining into the efficacy of the Bee Venom Acupuncture Treatment for Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint Methods : We investitigated 25 cases of patients with Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint from 1st June 2005 to 13th July 2005. The 25 patients were taken Bee Venom Acupuncture over three times irregularly. Treatment efficiency was monitored through VAS (Visual Analog Scale and improvement degree of the grade of clinical symptoms Conclusion : We brought to the conclusion that the Bee Venom Acupuncture has possibility to be efficient to cure the Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint patients. So we suggest the possibility to use this new remedy for the Osteoarthritis of Knee Joint

Examining Big Brother's Purpose for Using Electronic Performance Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Bartels, Lynn K.; Nordstrom, Cynthia R.

2012-01-01

We examined whether the reason offered for electronic performance monitoring (EPM) influenced participants' performance, stress, motivation, and satisfaction. Participants performed a data-entry task in one of five experimental conditions. In one condition, participants were not electronically monitored. In the remaining conditions, participants…

Performance of overlapped shield tunneling through an integrated physical model tests, numerical simulations and real-time field monitoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junlong Yang

2017-03-01

Full Text Available In this work, deformations and internal forces of an existing tunnel subjected to a closely overlapped shield tunneling are monitored and analyzed using a series of physical model experiments and numerical simulations. Effects of different excavation sequences and speeds are explicitly considered in the analysis. The results of the physical model experiments show that the bottom-up tunneling procedure is better than the top-down tunneling procedure. The incurred deformations and internal forces of the existing tunnel increase with the excavation speed and the range of influence areas also increase accordingly. For construction process control, real-time monitoring of the power tunnel is used. The monitoring processes feature full automation, adjustable frequency, real-time monitor and dynamic feedback, which are used to guide the construction to achieve micro-disturbance control. In accordance with the situation of crossing construction, a numerical study on the performance of power tunnel is carried out. Construction control measures are given for the undercrossing construction, which helps to accomplish the desired result and meet protection requirements of the existing tunnel structure. Finally, monitoring data and numerical results are compared, and the displacement and joint fracture change models in the power tunnel subject to the overlapped shield tunnel construction are analyzed. Keywords: Overlapped tunnel, Automatic monitoring, Micro-disturbance control

Evaluating the Relationship between Team Performance and Joint Attention with Longitudinal Multivariate Mixed Models

Science.gov (United States)

2016-09-23

Sweller, J. (2005). Cognitive load theory and complex learning: Recent developments and future directions. Educational Psychology Review, 17(2), 147–177...Relationship between Team Performance and Joint Attention with Longitudinal Multivariate Mixed Models 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER FA8650-14-D-6501-0009 5b...Annual Meeting, 19-23 September 2016. 14. Previous research indicates that measures of joint attention provide unique insight into team cognition

Genetic conditions of joint Nordic genetic evaluations of lifetime competition performance in warmblood sport horses.

Science.gov (United States)

Viklund, Å; Furre, S; Eriksson, S; Vangen, O; Philipsson, J

2015-08-01

Breeding programmes for warmblood sport horses are similar in the Nordic countries Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway, and stallions of same origin are used. The aim was to investigate whether a joint Nordic genetic evaluation based on lifetime competition performance is feasible and beneficial for breeding competitive sport horses in the Nordic countries. Results for almost 45,000 horses in show jumping and 30,000 horses in dressage were available. The larger populations in Sweden and Denmark contributed with 85% of the results. Heritabilities and genetic correlations between performances in the different countries were estimated, and comparisons of accuracies of estimated breeding values (EBVs) and number of stallions with EBVs based on national or joint data were studied. The heritabilities ranged between 0.25 and 0.42 for show jumping and between 0.14 and 0.55 for dressage. The genetic correlations between competition performances in the Nordic countries were estimated to 0.63-1.00. EBVs based on joint data increased accuracies for EBVs for stallions by 38-81% and increased the number of available stallions with EBVs by 40-288%, compared to EBVs based on national data only. A joint Nordic genetic evaluation for sport horses is recommended. © 2015 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Expert monitoring and verbal feedback as sources of performance pressure.

Science.gov (United States)

Buchanan, John J; Park, Inchon; Chen, Jing; Mehta, Ranjana K; McCulloch, Austin; Rhee, Joohyun; Wright, David L

2018-05-01

The influence of monitoring-pressure and verbal feedback on the performance of the intrinsically stable bimanual coordination patterns of in-phase and anti-phase was examined. The two bimanual patterns were produced under three conditions: 1) no-monitoring, 2) monitoring-pressure (viewed by experts), and 3) monitoring-pressure (viewed by experts) combined with verbal feedback emphasizing poor performance. The bimanual patterns were produced at self-paced movement frequencies. Anti-phase coordination was always less stable than in-phase coordination across all three conditions. When performed under conditions 2 and 3, both bimanual patterns were performed with less variability in relative phase across a wide range of self-paced movement frequencies compared to the no-monitoring condition. Thus, monitoring-pressure resulted in performance stabilization rather than degradation and the presence of verbal feedback had no impact on the influence of monitoring pressure. The current findings are inconsistent with the predictions of explicit monitoring theory; however, the findings are consistent with studies that have revealed increased stability for the system's intrinsic dynamics as a result of attentional focus and intentional control. The results are discussed within the contexts of the dynamic pattern theory of coordination, explicit monitoring theory, and action-focused theories as explanations for choking under pressure. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Performance Health Monitoring of Large-Scale Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rajamony, Ram [IBM Research, Austin, TX (United States)

2014-11-20

This report details the progress made on the ASCR funded project Performance Health Monitoring for Large Scale Systems. A large-­scale application may not achieve its full performance potential due to degraded performance of even a single subsystem. Detecting performance faults, isolating them, and taking remedial action is critical for the scale of systems on the horizon. PHM aims to develop techniques and tools that can be used to identify and mitigate such performance problems. We accomplish this through two main aspects. The PHM framework encompasses diagnostics, system monitoring, fault isolation, and performance evaluation capabilities that indicates when a performance fault has been detected, either due to an anomaly present in the system itself or due to contention for shared resources between concurrently executing jobs. Software components called the PHM Control system then build upon the capabilities provided by the PHM framework to mitigate degradation caused by performance problems.

Systems engineering approach towards performance monitoring of emergency diesel generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nurhayati Ramli; Lee, Y.K.

2013-01-01

Full-text: Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary approach and means to enable the realization of successful systems. In this study, systems engineering approach towards the performance monitoring of Emergency Diesel Generator (EDG) is presented. Performance monitoring is part and parcel of predictive maintenance where the systems and components conditions can be detected before they result into failures. In an effort to identify the proposal for addressing performance monitoring, the EDG boundary has been defined. Based on the Probabilistic Safety Analysis (PSA) results and industry operating experiences, the most critical component is identified. This paper proposed a systems engineering concept development framework towards EDG performance monitoring. The expected output of this study is that the EDG reliability can be improved by the performance monitoring alternatives through the systems engineering concept development effort. (author)

Impact of Self-Interference on the Performance of Joint Partial RAKE Receiver and Adaptive Modulation

KAUST Repository

Nam, Sung Sik

2016-11-23

In this paper, we investigate the impact of self-interference on the performance of a joint partial RAKE (PRAKE) receiver and adaptive modulation over both independent and identically distributed and independent but non-identically distributed Rayleigh fading channels. To better observe the impact of self-interference, our approach starts from considering the signal to interference plus noise ratio. Specifically, we accurately analyze the outage probability, the average spectral efficiency, and the average bit error rate as performance measures in the presence of self-interference. Several numerical and simulation results are selected to present the performance of the joint PRAKE receiver and adaptive modulation subject to self-interference.

IMPACTS OF DIFFERENT JOINT ANGLES AND ADHESIVES ON DIAGONAL TENSION PERFORMANCES OF BOX-TYPE FURNITURE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Musa Atar

2010-02-01

Full Text Available The goal of this study was to determine the effects of different joint angles and adhesives on diagonal tension performances of the box-type furniture made from solid wood and medium density fiberboard (MDF. After drilling joints of 75º, 78º, 81º, 84º, and 87º degrees on Oriental beech, European oak, Scotch pine, and MDF samples, a diagonal tensile test was applied on corners glued with polyvinyl acetate (PVAc and polyurethane (D-VTKA = Desmodur-Vinyl Trieketonol Acetate according to ASTM D 1037 standard. With reference to the obtained results, the highest tensile strength was obtained in European oak with PVAc glue and joint angle of 84º, while the lowest value was obtained in MDF with D-VTKA glue and joint angle of 75º. Considering the interaction of wood, adhesive, and joint angle, the highest tensile strength was obtained in European oak with joint angle of 81º and D-VTKA glue (1.089 N.mm-2, whereas the lowest tensile strength was determined in MDF with joint angle of 75º and PVAc glue (0.163 N.mm-2. Therefore, PVAc as glue and 81º as joint angle could be suggested to obtain some advantageous on the dovetail joint process for box-type furniture made from both solid wood and MDF.

Multidimensional Monitoring of Recovery Status and Implications for Performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Heidari, Jahan; Beckmann, Jürgen; Bertollo, Maurizio; Brink, Michel; Kallus, Wolfgang; Robazza, Claudio; Kellmann, Michael

2018-03-15

Monitoring of recovery in the context of athletic performance has gained significant importance during recent years. As a systematic process of data collection and evaluation, the monitoring of recovery can be implemented for various purposes. It may aid to prevent negative outcomes of training or competition, such as underrecovery, overtraining, or injuries. Further, it aims at establishing routines and strategies necessary to guarantee athletes' readiness for performance by restoring their depleted resources. Comprehensive monitoring of recovery ideally encompasses a multidimensional approach, thereby considering biological, psychological, and social monitoring methods. From a biological perspective, physiological (e.g., cardiac parameters), biochemical (e.g., creatine kinase), hormonal (e.g., salivary cortisol) and immunological (e.g., immunoglobulin A) markers can be taken into account to operationalize training loads and recovery needs. Psychological approaches suggest the application of validated and reliable psychometric questionnaires (e.g., Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes) to measure a subjective perception of recovery as well as the subjective degree of training- or competition-induced fatigue. Social aspects also play a role in performance monitoring and may hence provide essential performance-related information. The implementation of a monitoring routine within athletic environments represents a continuous process which functions as an effective addition to training and depends on a range of conditions (e.g., organizational regulations, commitment of athletes). Current research in the field of monitoring aims at establishing individualized monitoring regimes that are referring to intraindividual reference values with the help of innovative technological devices.

Corrosion Performance of Friction Stir Linear Lap Welded AM60B Joints

Science.gov (United States)

Kish, J. R.; Birbilis, N.; McNally, E. M.; Glover, C. F.; Zhang, X.; McDermid, J. R.; Williams, G.

2017-11-01

A corrosion investigation of friction stir linear lap welded AM60B joints used to fabricate an Mg alloy-intensive automotive front end sub-assembly was performed. The stir zone exhibited a slightly refined grain size and significant break-up and re-distribution of the divorced Mg17Al12 (β-phase) relative to the base material. Exposures in NaCl (aq) environments revealed that the stir zone was more susceptible to localized corrosion than the base material. Scanning vibrating electrode technique measurements revealed differential galvanic activity across the joint. Anodic activity was confined to the stir zone surface and involved initiation and lateral propagation of localized filaments. Cathodic activity was initially confined to the base material surface, but was rapidly modified to include the cathodically-activated corrosion products in the filament wake. Site-specific surface analyses revealed that the corrosion observed across the welded joint was likely linked to variations in Al distribution across the surface film/metal interface.

Condenser performance monitoring and cleaning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walden, J.V.

1998-01-01

The main condenser at Ginna Station was retubed from admiralty brass to 316 stainless steel. A condenser performance monitoring spreadsheet was developed using EPRI guidelines after fouling was discovered. PEPSE computer models were used to determine the power loss and confirm the spreadsheet results. Cleaning of the condenser was performed using plastic scrubbers. Condenser performance improved dramatically following the cleaning. PEPSE, condenser spreadsheet performance, and actual observed plant data correlated well together. The fouling mechanism was determined to be a common lake bacteria and fungus growth which was combined with silt. Chlorination of the circulating water system at the allowable limits is keeping the biofouling under control

The joint effects of personality and workplace social exchange relationships in predicting task performance and citizenship performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamdar, Dishan; Van Dyne, Linn

2007-09-01

This field study examines the joint effects of social exchange relationships at work (leader-member exchange and team-member exchange) and employee personality (conscientiousness and agreeableness) in predicting task performance and citizenship performance. Consistent with trait activation theory, matched data on 230 employees, their coworkers, and their supervisors demonstrated interactions in which high quality social exchange relationships weakened the positive relationships between personality and performance. Results demonstrate the benefits of consonant predictions in which predictors and outcomes are matched on the basis of specific targets. We discuss theoretical and practical implications. (c) 2007 APA.

Joint responsibility between the EU and Member States for non-performance of obligations under multilateral environmental agreements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nollkaemper, A.; Morgera, E.

2012-01-01

This chapter explores the basis and manifestations of joint responsibility between the European Union (EU) and its Member States for non-performance of obligations contained in multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). Joint responsibility has often been advanced as an attractive solution where

Joint Responsibility between the EU and Member States for Non-Performance of Obligations under Multilateral Environmental Agreements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nollkaemper, A.

2011-01-01

This chapter explores the basis and manifestations of joint responsibility between the European Union (EU) and its Member States for non-performance of obligations contained in multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). Joint responsibility has often been advanced as an attractive solution where

Joint OSNR monitoring and modulation format identification in digital coherent receivers using deep neural networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Faisal Nadeem; Zhong, Kangping; Zhou, Xian; Al-Arashi, Waled Hussein; Yu, Changyuan; Lu, Chao; Lau, Alan Pak Tao

2017-07-24

We experimentally demonstrate the use of deep neural networks (DNNs) in combination with signals' amplitude histograms (AHs) for simultaneous optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) monitoring and modulation format identification (MFI) in digital coherent receivers. The proposed technique automatically extracts OSNR and modulation format dependent features of AHs, obtained after constant modulus algorithm (CMA) equalization, and exploits them for the joint estimation of these parameters. Experimental results for 112 Gbps polarization-multiplexed (PM) quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), 112 Gbps PM 16 quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM), and 240 Gbps PM 64-QAM signals demonstrate OSNR monitoring with mean estimation errors of 1.2 dB, 0.4 dB, and 1 dB, respectively. Similarly, the results for MFI show 100% identification accuracy for all three modulation formats. The proposed technique applies deep machine learning algorithms inside standard digital coherent receiver and does not require any additional hardware. Therefore, it is attractive for cost-effective multi-parameter estimation in next-generation elastic optical networks (EONs).

Strategies of performance self-monitoring in automotive production.

Science.gov (United States)

Faye, Hélène; Falzon, Pierre

2009-09-01

Production in the automotive industry, based on assembly line work, is now characterized by lean manufacturing and customization. This results in greater flexibility and increased quality demands, including worker performance self-monitoring. The objectives of this study are to refine the concept of performance self-monitoring and to characterize the strategies developed by operators to achieve it. Data were collected based on the method of individual auto-confrontation, consisting of two steps: eleven assembly-line operators of a French automotive company were individually observed and video-taped while they were working; an interview then allowed each operator to discuss his/her activity based on the video-tape. This study expands the concept of performance self-monitoring by highlighting three types of strategies directly oriented toward quality: prevention, feedback control and control action strategies.

Behavioral and electrophysiological evidence of enhanced performance monitoring in meditators

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Andreu, C.I.; Moënne-Loccoz, C.; López, V.; Slagter, H.A.; Franken, I.H.A.; Cosmelli, D.

2017-01-01

Performance monitoring—the ability to monitor ongoing performance to detect and correct errors—is a core component of cognitive control. Impairments in performance monitoring have been associated with several psychiatric disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and substance use

Developing Indicators for Monitoring and Evaluating Joint Management Effectiveness in Protected Areas in the Northern Territory, Australia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arturo Izurieta

2011-09-01

We consider the effectiveness of a participatory process within the context of the relationships, capacities, skills, communication, and cross-cultural information sharing. We found that at the early stages of joint management, the partners mostly identify process indicators related to human and social capital assets. Cross-cultural engagement in the early stages of the monitoring and evaluation cycle is challenged by issues relating to communication, institutional and community capacities, representation, and flexibility in ways of working together while learning by doing. We conclude, however, that a participatory monitoring and evaluation approach in which partners agree equally on the identification of criteria and indicators to measure agreed management outcomes has the potential of improving equitable participation, decision making and working relationships, which in turn will lead to improved park management effectiveness and community outcomes.

14 CFR 152.319 - Monitoring and reporting of program performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... performance. 152.319 Section 152.319 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (CONTINUED) AIRPORTS AIRPORT AID PROGRAM Accounting and Reporting Requirements § 152.319 Monitoring and reporting of program performance. (a) The sponsor or planning agency shall monitor performance...

Runtime Performance Monitoring Tool for RTEMS System Software

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, B.; Kim, S.; Park, H.; Kim, H.; Choi, J.; Chae, D.; Lee, J.

2007-08-01

RTEMS is a commercial-grade real-time operating system that supports multi-processor computers. However, there are not many development tools for RTEMS. In this paper, we report new RTEMS-based runtime performance monitoring tool. We have implemented a light weight runtime monitoring task with an extension to the RTEMS APIs. Using our tool, software developers can verify various performance- related parameters during runtime. Our tool can be used during software development phase and in-orbit operation as well. Our implemented target agent is light weight and has small overhead using SpaceWire interface. Efforts to reduce overhead and to add other monitoring parameters are currently under research.

FAO UN-REDD- INPE Joint Programme on Forest Monitoring Systems based on RS and GIS techniques

Science.gov (United States)

Jonckheere, I. G.; FAO UN-REDD MRV Team

2010-12-01

Capacity Development and Training for National Forest Monitoring Systems for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (REDD+) REDD+, which stands for ’Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries’ - is an effort to create a financial value for the carbon stored in forests, offering incentives for developing countries to reduce emissions from forested lands and invest in low-carbon paths to sustainable development. The UN-REDD Programme, a collaborative partnership between FAO, UNDP and UNEP launched in September 2008, supports countries to develop capacity to REDD+ and to implement a future REDD+ mechanism in a post-2012 climate regime. The programme works at both the national and global scale, through support mechanisms for country-driven REDD strategies and international consensus-building on REDD+ processes. The UN-REDD Programme gathers technical teams from around the world to develop common approaches, analyses and guidelines on issues such as measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of carbon emissions and flows, remote sensing, and greenhouse gas inventories. Within the partnership, FAO supports countries on technical issues related to forestry and the development of cost effective and credible MRV processes for emission reductions. While at the international level, it fosters improved guidance on MRV approaches, including consensus on principles and guidelines for MRV and training programmes. It provides guidance on how best to design and implement REDD+, to ensure that forests continue to provide multiple benefits for livelihoods and biodiversity to societies while storing carbon at the same time. Other areas of work include national forest assessments and monitoring of in-country policy and institutional change. FAO and INPE (Brazilian Space Agency) have joint forces through a MoU signed last year in Copenhagen. A major joint programme has been agreed upon to set

Who can monitor the court interpreter's performance?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martinsen, Bodil

2009-01-01

and the conflict about her competence was negotiated. Because of this unusual constellation, combined with a multi-method approach, this single case study can shed some light on the question of the participants' ability to monitor the interpreter's performance. Legal professional users of interpreters tend......  Who can monitor the court interpreter's performance? Results of a case study This paper presents the results of a case study of an unusual interpreting event in a Danish courtroom setting. During the trial, the interpreter's non-normative performance was explicitly criticised by the audience...... are far less transparent for the legal participants than they normally assume. This problem, in turn, stresses the importance of a) the interpreter's competence and self-awareness and b) the use of check interpreters.  ...

Performance of a rigid and a flexible adhesive in lumber joints subjected to moisture content changes

Science.gov (United States)

G. P. Krueger; R. F. Blomquist

1964-01-01

Experimental work was undertaken to investigate the extent and magnitude of deterioration that can occur in typical plywood-to-lumber glue joints subjected to stresses resulting from changes in the moisture content of the wood, and to compare the performance of a somewhat flexible or deformable adhesive to that of a rigid adhesive in these joints. Results showed that...

Performance monitoring and analysis of task-based OpenMP.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yi Ding

Full Text Available OpenMP, a typical shared memory programming paradigm, has been extensively applied in high performance computing community due to the popularity of multicore architectures in recent years. The most significant feature of the OpenMP 3.0 specification is the introduction of the task constructs to express parallelism at a much finer level of detail. This feature, however, has posed new challenges for performance monitoring and analysis. In particular, task creation is separated from its execution, causing the traditional monitoring methods to be ineffective. This paper presents a mechanism to monitor task-based OpenMP programs with interposition and proposes two demonstration graphs for performance analysis as well. The results of two experiments are discussed to evaluate the overhead of monitoring mechanism and to verify the effects of demonstration graphs using the BOTS benchmarks.

The characteristics and performance of international joint ventures in Thailand

OpenAIRE

Suwannarat, P

2010-01-01

The importance of strategic alliances in the form of international joint ventures (IJVs) is growing in the present international business environment where competition is on a global scale. A review of the IJV literature, especially in developing countries, shows an over-emphasis on China and the NIEs (the first tier newly-industrialising economies: Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and South Korea). To date, relatively little attention has been paid to the ASEAN4 countries (the high-performing e...

Perfmon2: a leap forward in performance monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jarp, S; Jurga, R; Nowak, A

2008-01-01

This paper describes the software component, perfmon2, that is about to be added to the Linux kernel as the standard interface to the Performance Monitoring Unit (PMU) on common processors, including x86 (AMD and Intel), Sun SPARC, MIPS, IBM Power and Intel Itanium. It also describes a set of tools for doing performance monitoring in practice and details how the CERN openlab team has participated in the testing and development of these tools

Perfmon2: a leap forward in performance monitoring

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jarp, S; Jurga, R; Nowak, A [CERN, Geneva (Switzerland)], E-mail: Sverre.Jarp@cern.ch

2008-07-15

This paper describes the software component, perfmon2, that is about to be added to the Linux kernel as the standard interface to the Performance Monitoring Unit (PMU) on common processors, including x86 (AMD and Intel), Sun SPARC, MIPS, IBM Power and Intel Itanium. It also describes a set of tools for doing performance monitoring in practice and details how the CERN openlab team has participated in the testing and development of these tools.

Perfmon2 a leap forward in performance monitoring

CERN Document Server

Jarp, S; Nowak, A

2008-01-01

This paper describes the software component, perfmon2, that is about to be added to the Linux kernel as the standard interface to the Performance Monitoring Unit (PMU) on common processors, including x86 (AMD and Intel), Sun SPARC, MIPS, IBM Power and Intel Itanium. It also describes a set of tools for doing performance monitoring in practice and details how the CERN openlab team has participated in the testing and development of these tools.

Perfmon2: a leap forward in performance monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Jarp, S.; Jurga, R.; Nowak, A.

2008-07-01

This paper describes the software component, perfmon2, that is about to be added to the Linux kernel as the standard interface to the Performance Monitoring Unit (PMU) on common processors, including x86 (AMD and Intel), Sun SPARC, MIPS, IBM Power and Intel Itanium. It also describes a set of tools for doing performance monitoring in practice and details how the CERN openlab team has participated in the testing and development of these tools.

BWR fuel performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baily, W.E.; Armijo, J.S.; Jacobson, J.; Proebstle, R.A.

1979-01-01

The General Electric experience base on BWR fuel includes over 29,000 fuel assemblies which contain 1,600,000 fuel rods. Over the last five years, design, process and operating changes have been introduced which have had major effects in improving fuel performance. Monitoring this fuel performance in BWRs has been accomplished through cooperative programs between GE and utilities. Activities such as plant fission product monitoring, fuel sipping and fuel and channel surveillance programs have jointly contributed to the value of this extensive experience base. The systematic evaluation of this data has established well-defined fuel performance trends which provide the assurance and confidence in fuel reliability that only actual operating experience can provide

Alignment performance monitoring for ASML systems

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Woong-Jae; Temchenko, Vlad; Hauck, Tarja; Schmidt, Sebastian

2006-03-01

In today's semiconductor industry downscaling of the IC design puts a stringent requirement on pattern overlay control. Tighter overlay requirements lead to exceedingly higher rework rates, meaning additional costs to manufacturing. Better alignment control became a target of engineering efforts to decrease rework rate for high-end technologies. Overlay performance is influenced by known parameters such as "Shift, Scaling, Rotation, etc", and unknown parameters defined as "Process Induced Variation", which are difficult to control by means of a process automation system. In reality, this process-induced variation leads to a strong wafer to wafer, or lot to lot variation, which are not easy to detect in the mass-production environment which uses sampling overlay measurements for only several wafers in a lot. An engineering task of finding and correcting a root cause for Process Induced Variations of overlay performance will be greatly simplified if the unknown parameters could be tracked for each wafer. This paper introduces an alignment performance monitoring method based on analysis of automatically generated "AWE" files for ASML scanner systems. Because "AWE" files include alignment results for each aligned wafer, it is possible to use them for monitoring, controlling and correcting the causes of "process induced" overlay performance without requiring extra measurement time. Since "AWE" files include alignment information for different alignment marks, it is also possible to select and optimize the best alignment recipe for each alignment strategy. Several case studies provided in our paper will demonstrate how AWE file analysis can be used to assist engineer in interpreting pattern alignment data. Since implementing our alignment data monitoring method, we were able to achieve significant improvement of alignment and overlay performance without additional overlay measurement time. We also noticed that the rework rate coming from alignment went down and

International trade shows: Structure, strategy and performance of exhibitors at individual booths vs. joint booths

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Kåre

2000-01-01

This paper examines differences in exhibitors who participate at international trade shows at joint booths and those who participate at individual booths. The structure, strategy, and trade show performance of exhibitors at joint booths and those at individual booths are analysed. The analysis...... implications for exhibitors at interna-tional trade shows and export marketing programmes and other marketing programmes offering services to international trade show exhibitors....... of exhibitors at the international food shows SIAL (Paris) and ANUGA (Cologne) showed several significant differences with regard to structure and strategy. However, no significant differences in the performance assessments between the two partici-pation modes were found. The findings have important...

Digital Image Correlation for Performance Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Palaviccini, Miguel; Turner, Dan; Herzberg, Michael

2016-01-01

Evaluating the health of a mechanism requires more than just a binary evaluation of whether an operation was completed. It requires analyzing more comprehensive, full-field data. Health monitoring is a process of non-destructively identifying characteristics that indicate the fitness of an engineered component. In order to monitor unit health in a production setting, an automated test system must be created to capture the motion of mechanism parts in a real-time and non-intrusive manner. One way to accomplish this is by using high-speed video and Digital Image Correlation (DIC). In this approach, individual frames of the video are analyzed to track the motion of mechanism components. The derived performance metrics allow for state-of-health monitoring and improved fidelity of mechanism modeling. The results are in-situ state-of-health identification and performance prediction. This paper introduces basic concepts of this test method, and discusses two main themes: the use of laser marking to add fiducial patterns to mechanism components, and new software developed to track objects with complex shapes, even as they move behind obstructions. Finally, the implementation of these tests into an automated tester is discussed.

Reconstruction of fiber Bragg grating strain profile used to monitor the stiffness degradation of the adhesive layer in carbon fiber–reinforced plastic single-lap joint

OpenAIRE

Song Chunsheng; Zhang Jiaxiang; Yang Mo; Shang Erwei; Zhang Jinguang

2017-01-01

The adhesive-bonded joint of carbon fiber–reinforced plastic is one of the core components in aircraft structure design. It is an effective guarantee for the safety and reliability of the aerospace aircraft structure to use effective methods for monitoring and early warning of internal failure. In this article, the mapping relation model between the strain profiles of the adherend of the carbon fiber–reinforced plastic single-lap adhesive joint and the stiffness degradation evolution of adhes...

Wearable human body joint and posture measuring system

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dunias, P.; Gransier, R.; Jin, A.; Statham, A.; Willems, P.

2011-01-01

In many medical applications, especially the orthopaedic setting, ambulatory, monitoring of human joint angles could be of substantial value to improving rehabilitation strategies and unravelling the pathomechanics of many degenerative joint diseases (e.g. knee osteoarthritis). With the ageing of

Evaluation of the gait performance of above-knee amputees while walking with 3R20 and 3R15 knee joints

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

AliReza Taheri

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Background: The performance of the subjects with above-knee amputation is noticeably poorer than normal subjects. Various types of components have been designed to compensate their performance. Among various prosthetic components, the knee joint has great influence on the function. Two types of knee joints (3R15, 3R20 have been used broadly for above-knee prostheses. However, there is not enough research to highlight the influence of these joints on the gait performance of the subjects. Therefore, an aim of this research was to investigate the performance of the above-knee amputees while walking with 3R15 and 3R20 knee joints. Materials and Methods: 7 above-knee amputees were recruited in this research study. They were asked to walk with a comfortable speed to investigate the gait function of the subjects with 3 cameras 3D motion analysis system (Kinematrix system. The difference between the performances of the subjects with these joints was compared by use of paired t-test. Results: The results of this study showed that, the performances of the subjects with 3R20 were better than that with 3R15. The walking speed of the subjects with 3R20 was 66.7 m/min compared to 30.4 m/min (P-value = 0.045. Moreover; the symmetry of walking with 3R20 was more than that with 3R15, based on the spatio- temporal gait parameters values (P-value <0.05. Conclusion: The difference between the performances of the subjects with 3R20 and 3R15 knee joints was related to the walking speed, which improved while walking with 3R20 joint.

Design and Performance Analysis of a new Rotary Hydraulic Joint

Science.gov (United States)

Feng, Yong; Yang, Junhong; Shang, Jianzhong; Wang, Zhuo; Fang, Delei

2017-07-01

To improve the driving torque of the robots joint, a wobble plate hydraulic joint is proposed, and the structure and working principle are described. Then mathematical models of kinematics and dynamics was established. On the basis of this, dynamic simulation and characteristic analysis are carried out. Results show that the motion curve of the joint is continuous and the impact is small. Moreover the output torque of the joint characterized by simple structure and easy processing is large and can be rotated continuously.

Analysis of NSTX TF Joint Voltage Measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woolley R

2005-01-01

This report presents findings of analyses of recorded current and voltage data associated with 72 electrical joints operating at high current and high mechanical stress. The analysis goal was to characterize the mechanical behavior of each joint and thus evaluate its mechanical supports. The joints are part of the toroidal field (TF) magnet system of the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX) pulsed plasma device operating at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). Since there is not sufficient space near the joints for much traditional mechanical instrumentation, small voltage probes were installed on each joint and their voltage monitoring waveforms have been recorded on sampling digitizers during each NSTX ''shot''

Computer-aided performance monitoring program at Diablo Canyon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nelson, T.; Glynn, R. III; Kessler, T.C.

1992-01-01

This paper describes the thermal performance monitoring program at Pacific Gas ampersand Electric Company's (PG ampersand E's) Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant. The plant performance monitoring program at Diablo Canyon uses the THERMAC performance monitoring and analysis computer software provided by Expert-EASE Systems. THERMAC is used to collect performance data from the plant process computers, condition that data to adjust for measurement errors and missing data points, evaluate cycle and component-level performance, archive the data for trend analysis and generate performance reports. The current status of the program is that, after a fair amount of open-quotes tuningclose quotes of the basic open-quotes thermal kitclose quotes models provided with the initial THERMAC installation, we have successfully baselined both units to cycle isolation test data from previous reload cycles. Over the course of the past few months, we have accumulated enough data to generate meaningful performance trends and, as a result, have been able to use THERMAC to track a condenser fouling problem that was costing enough megawatts to attract corporate-level attention. Trends from THERMAC clearly related the megawatt loss to a steadily degrading condenser cleanliness factor and verified the subsequent gain in megawatts after the condenser was cleaned. In the future, we expect to rebaseline THERMAC to a beginning of cycle (BOC) data set and to use the program to help track feedwater nozzle fouling

Fast Flux Test Facility performance monitoring management information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Newland, D.J.

1987-11-01

The purpose of this report is to provide performance data on key performance indicators selected from the FFTF Early Warning System performance indicators. This report contains the results for key performance indicators divided into two categories of ''overall'' and ''other''. The ''overall'' performance indicators, when considered in the aggregate, provide one means of monitoring overall plant performance

The Advanced Monitoring Systems Initiative--Performance Monitoring for DOE Environmental Remediation and Contaminant Containment

Science.gov (United States)

Haas, W. J.; Venedam, R. J.; Lohrstorfer, C. F.; Weeks, S. J.

2005-05-01

The Advanced Monitoring System Initiative (AMSI) is a new approach to accelerate the development and application of advanced sensors and monitoring systems in support of Department of Energy needs in monitoring the performance of environmental remediation and contaminant containment activities. The Nevada Site Office of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and Bechtel Nevada manage AMSI, with funding provided by the DOE Office of Environmental Management (DOE EM). AMSI has easy access to unique facilities and capabilities available at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), including the Hazardous Materials (HazMat) Spill Center, a one-of-a-kind facility built and permitted for releases of hazardous materials for training purposes, field-test detection, plume dispersion experimentation, and equipment and materials testing under controlled conditions. AMSI also has easy access to the facilities and considerable capabilities of the DOE and NNSA National Laboratories, the Special Technologies Laboratory, Remote Sensing Laboratory, Desert Research Institute, and Nevada Universities. AMSI provides rapid prototyping, systems integration, and field-testing, including assistance during initial site deployment. The emphasis is on application. Important features of the AMSI approach are: (1) customer investment, involvement and commitment to use - including definition of needs, desired mode of operation, and performance requirements; and (2) employment of a complete systems engineering approach, which allows the developer to focus maximum attention on the essential new sensing element or elements while AMSI assumes principal responsibility for infrastructure support elements such as power, packaging, and general data acquisition, control, communication, visualization and analysis software for support of decisions. This presentation describes: (1) the needs for sensors and performance monitoring for environmental systems as seen by the DOE Long Term Stewardship Science and

Image Registration-Based Bolt Loosening Detection of Steel Joints

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-01

Self-loosening of bolts caused by repetitive loads and vibrations is one of the common defects that can weaken the structural integrity of bolted steel joints in civil structures. Many existing approaches for detecting loosening bolts are based on physical sensors and, hence, require extensive sensor deployment, which limit their abilities to cost-effectively detect loosened bolts in a large number of steel joints. Recently, computer vision-based structural health monitoring (SHM) technologies have demonstrated great potential for damage detection due to the benefits of being low cost, easy to deploy, and contactless. In this study, we propose a vision-based non-contact bolt loosening detection method that uses a consumer-grade digital camera. Two images of the monitored steel joint are first collected during different inspection periods and then aligned through two image registration processes. If the bolt experiences rotation between inspections, it will introduce differential features in the registration errors, serving as a good indicator for bolt loosening detection. The performance and robustness of this approach have been validated through a series of experimental investigations using three laboratory setups including a gusset plate on a cross frame, a column flange, and a girder web. The bolt loosening detection results are presented for easy interpretation such that informed decisions can be made about the detected loosened bolts. PMID:29597264

Image Registration-Based Bolt Loosening Detection of Steel Joints.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Xiangxiong; Li, Jian

2018-03-28

Self-loosening of bolts caused by repetitive loads and vibrations is one of the common defects that can weaken the structural integrity of bolted steel joints in civil structures. Many existing approaches for detecting loosening bolts are based on physical sensors and, hence, require extensive sensor deployment, which limit their abilities to cost-effectively detect loosened bolts in a large number of steel joints. Recently, computer vision-based structural health monitoring (SHM) technologies have demonstrated great potential for damage detection due to the benefits of being low cost, easy to deploy, and contactless. In this study, we propose a vision-based non-contact bolt loosening detection method that uses a consumer-grade digital camera. Two images of the monitored steel joint are first collected during different inspection periods and then aligned through two image registration processes. If the bolt experiences rotation between inspections, it will introduce differential features in the registration errors, serving as a good indicator for bolt loosening detection. The performance and robustness of this approach have been validated through a series of experimental investigations using three laboratory setups including a gusset plate on a cross frame, a column flange, and a girder web. The bolt loosening detection results are presented for easy interpretation such that informed decisions can be made about the detected loosened bolts.

System and Method for Monitoring Piezoelectric Material Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Moses, Robert W. (Inventor); Fox, Christopher L. (Inventor); Fox, Melanie L. (Inventor); Chattin, Richard L. (Inventor); Shams, Qamar A. (Inventor); Fox, Robert L. (Inventor)

2007-01-01

A system and method are provided for monitoring performance capacity of a piezoelectric material that may form part of an actuator or sensor device. A switch is used to selectively electrically couple an inductor to the piezoelectric material to form an inductor-capacitor circuit. Resonance is induced in the inductor-capacitor circuit when the switch is operated to create the circuit. The resonance of the inductor-capacitor circuit is monitored with the frequency of the resonance being indicative of performance capacity of the device's piezoelectric material.

Analysis of Joint Masonry Moisture Content Monitoring

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ueno, Kohta [Building Science Corporation, Westford, MA (United States)

2015-10-01

Adding insulation to the interior side of walls of masonry buildings in cold (and wet) climates may cause performance and durability problems. Some concerns, such as condensation and freeze-thaw, have known solutions, but wood members embedded in the masonry structure will be colder (and potentially wetter) after an interior insulation retrofit. Moisture content & relative humidity were monitored at joist ends in historic mass brick masonry walls retrofitted with interior insulation in a cold climate (Zone 5A); data were collected from 2012-2015. Eleven joist ends were monitored in all four orientations. One limitation of these results is that the renovation is still ongoing, with limited wintertime construction heating and no permanent occupancy to date. Measurements show that many joists ends remain at high moisture contents, especially at north- and east-facing orientations, with constant 100% RH conditions at the worst cases. These high moisture levels are not conducive for wood durability, but no evidence for actual structural damage has been observed. Insulated versus non-insulated joist pockets do not show large differences. South facing joists have safe (10-15%) moisture contents. Given the uncertainty pointed out by research, definitive guidance on the vulnerability of embedded wood members is difficult to formulate. In high-risk situations, or when a very conservative approach is warranted, the embedded wood member condition can be eliminated entirely, supporting the joist ends outside of the masonry pocket.

Experimental Adaptive Digital Performance Monitoring for Optical DP-QPSK Coherent Receiver

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Borkowski, Robert; Zhang, Xu; Zibar, Darko

2011-01-01

We report on a successful experimental demonstration of a digital optical performance monitoring (OPM) yielding satisfactory estimation accuracy along with adaptive impairment equalization. No observable penalty is measured when equalizer is driven by monitoring module.......We report on a successful experimental demonstration of a digital optical performance monitoring (OPM) yielding satisfactory estimation accuracy along with adaptive impairment equalization. No observable penalty is measured when equalizer is driven by monitoring module....

Performance Monitoring and Evaluation in Botswana’s Public Service: Achievements and Challenges

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dorothy Mpabanga

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The paper aims to explore the implementation of performance monitoring and evaluation tools used in Botswana’s public service. The paper also identifies achievements and challenges of implementing performance monitoring and evaluation system and suggests ways for improvement. This paper uses secondary data sources. The paper reveals lack of performance monitoring and evaluation skills, poor supervision, poor conditions of service and a poor work ethic as some of the factors contributing to ineffective use of performance monitoring and evaluation tools in the service. Leadership commitment and support, benchmarking reforms, training and education, developed administrative and governance structures as well as well-defined public policy and program formulation and implementation processes are some of the success factors to enhanced performance management and evaluation systems in Botswana. The paper argues for adoption of a developmental-led model in order to enhance existing performance monitoring and evaluation system that would improve implementation of government policies and programs. Botswana has been striving to excel in service delivery through performance monitoring and evaluation oriented reforms.

A minimal architecture for joint action

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vesper, Cordula; Butterfill, Stephen; Knoblich, Günther

2010-01-01

What kinds of processes and representations make joint action possible? In this paper we suggest a minimal architecture for joint action that focuses on representations, action monitoring and action prediction processes, as well as ways of simplifying coordination. The architecture spells out...... minimal requirements for an individual agent to engage in a joint action. We discuss existing evidence in support of the architecture as well as open questions that remain to be empirically addressed. In addition, we suggest possible interfaces between the minimal architecture and other approaches...... to joint action. The minimal architecture has implications for theorizing about the emergence of joint action, for human-machine interaction, and for understanding how coordination can be facilitated by exploiting relations between multiple agents’ actions and between actions and the environment....

Optical Performance Monitoring and Signal Optimization in Optical Networks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Martin Nordal

2006-01-01

The thesis studies performance monitoring for the next generation optical networks. The focus is on all-optical networks with bit-rates of 10 Gb/s or above. Next generation all-optical networks offer large challenges as the optical transmitted distance increases and the occurrence of electrical-optical......-electrical regeneration points decreases. This thesis evaluates the impact of signal degrading effects that are becoming of increasing concern in all-optical high-speed networks due to all-optical switching and higher bit-rates. Especially group-velocity-dispersion (GVD) and a number of nonlinear effects will require...... enhanced attention to avoid signal degradations. The requirements for optical performance monitoring features are discussed, and the thesis evaluates the advantages and necessity of increasing the level of performance monitoring parameters in the physical layer. In particular, methods for optical...

Human ResourceManagement Practices and Organizational Performance: Evidence from Japanese and US Subsidiaries/Joint Venture in Bangladesh

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Khasro Miah

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this research is to examine the conditions of home and host country culture as well as country of origin effect of HRM practices and its result on organizational performance (OP. The empirical findings showed that Japanese and U.S subsidiaries and joint ventures adapt localization practices with their modifying home host technique with the local business environment. The findings recommend that managers in the US and Japanese subsidiaries and joint ventures in Bangladesh are more strongly influenced by its host country’s national culture (as an adoptive host country national and corporate culture. Finally, it can be stated that foreign subsidiaries and joint ventures are trying to achieve the location advantage to create a particular type of HRM practices, with a combined and confined HRM practice that can fit for better organizational performance.

Performance test of personal RF monitor for area monitoring at magnetic confinement fusion facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanaka, M.; Uda, T.; Wang, J.; Fujiwara, O.

2012-01-01

For safety management at a magnetic confinement fusion-test facility, protection from not only ionising radiation, but also non-ionising radiation such as the leakage of static magnetic and electromagnetic fields is an important issue. Accordingly, the use of a commercially available personal RF monitor for multipoint area monitoring is proposed. In this study, the performance of both fast- and slow-type personal RF monitors was investigated by using a transverse electromagnetic cell system. The range of target frequencies was between 10 and 300 MHz, corresponding to the ion cyclotron range of frequency in a fusion device. The personal RF monitor was found to have good linearity, frequency dependence and isotropic response. However, the time constant for the electric field sensor of the slow-type monitor was much longer than that for the fast-type monitor. Considering the time-varying field at the facility, it is found that the fast-type monitor is suitable for multipoint monitoring at magnetic confinement fusion test facilities. (authors)

High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) Quantification of Liposome-Delivered Doxorubicin in Arthritic Joints of Collagen-Induced Arthritis Rats.

Science.gov (United States)

Niu, Hongqing; Xu, Menghua; Li, Shuangtian; Chen, Junwei; Luo, Jing; Zhao, Xiangcong; Gao, Chong; Li, Xiaofeng

2017-04-14

BACKGROUND Neoangiogenesis occurring in inflamed articular synovium in early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by enhanced vascular permeability that allows nanoparticle agents, including liposomes, to deliver encapsulated drugs to arthritic joints and subsequently improve therapeutic efficacy and reduce adverse effects. However, the targeting distribution of liposomes in arthritic joints during RA has not been quantitatively demonstrated. We performed this study to evaluate the targeting distribution of PEGylated doxorubicin liposomes in the arthritic joints of collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) rats by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). MATERIAL AND METHODS Two doxorubicin formulations were administered to CIA rats via tail intravenous injection at a single dose (50 mg/m²). CIA rats were sacrificed and the tissues of the inflamed ankle joints were collected. The content of doxorubicin in the arthritic joints was analyzed by a validated and reproducible HPLC method. A two-way ANOVA for 2×5 factorial design was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS The developed HPLC method was sensitive, precise, and reproducible. The method was successfully applied to quantify doxorubicin content in arthritic tissues. At each time point (6, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h), doxorubicin content in the arthritic joints of the doxorubicin liposome group (DOX-LIP group) was higher than in the free doxorubicin group (DOX group) (P<0.05). In the DOX-LIP group, doxorubicin levels in the arthritic joints increased gradually and significantly in the interval of 6-72 h post-administration. CONCLUSIONS PEGylated doxorubicin liposomes were targeted to, accumulated, and retained in the arthritic joints of CIA rats. The present study indicates that liposome encapsulation increases the therapeutic efficacy of antirheumatic drugs, presenting a promising therapeutic strategy for RA.

Standard guide for in-plant performance evaluation of automatic pedestrian SNM monitors

CERN Document Server

American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

1997-01-01

1.1 This guide is affiliated with Guide C1112 on special nuclear material (SNM) monitors, Guide C1169 on laboratory performance evaluation, and Guide C1189 on calibrating pedestrian SNM monitors. This guide to in-plant performance evaluation is a comparatively rapid way to verify whether a pedestrian SNM monitor performs as expected for detecting SNM or SNM-like test sources. 1.1.1 In-plant performance evaluation should not be confused with the simple daily functional test recommended in Guide C1112. In-plant performance evaluation takes place less often than daily tests, usually at intervals ranging from weekly to once every three months. In-plant evaluations are also more extensive than daily tests and may examine both a monitor's nuisance alarm record and its detection sensitivity for a particular SNM or alternative test source. 1.1.2 In-plant performance evaluation also should not be confused with laboratory performance evaluation. In-plant evaluation is comparatively rapid, takes place in the monitor...

Monitoring SLAC High Performance UNIX Computing Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lettsome, Annette K.

2005-01-01

Knowledge of the effectiveness and efficiency of computers is important when working with high performance systems. The monitoring of such systems is advantageous in order to foresee possible misfortunes or system failures. Ganglia is a software system designed for high performance computing systems to retrieve specific monitoring information. An alternative storage facility for Ganglia's collected data is needed since its default storage system, the round-robin database (RRD), struggles with data integrity. The creation of a script-driven MySQL database solves this dilemma. This paper describes the process took in the creation and implementation of the MySQL database for use by Ganglia. Comparisons between data storage by both databases are made using gnuplot and Ganglia's real-time graphical user interface

Temporomandibular Joint Septic Arthritis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gianfranco Frojo, MD

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Summary:. Infection of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ is a rare pediatric condition resulting from the introduction of pathogens into the joint by hematogenous seeding, local extension, or trauma. Early recognition of the typical signs and symptoms including fever, trismus, preauricular swelling, and TMJ region tenderness are critical in order to initiate further evaluation and prevent feared complications of fibrosis, ankylosis, abnormal facial structure, or persistence of symptoms. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography with ancillary laboratory analysis including erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, and white blood cell count are beneficial in confirming the suspected diagnosis and monitoring response to therapy. Initial intervention should include empiric parenteral antibiotics, early mandibular mobilization, and joint decompression to provide synovial fluid for analysis including cultures. This report describes a case of TMJ bacterial arthritis in a healthy 6-year-old male who was promptly treated nonsurgically with intravenous antibiotics and localized needle joint decompression with return to normal function after completion of oral antibiotics and physical therapy.

Spine epidural and sacroiliac joints injections – when and how to perform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D’Orazio, Federico; Gregori, Lorenzo Maria; Gallucci, Massimo

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Image guided interventions focused to administer drugs inside the epidural space are effective in reducing the perceived spinal pain, but their efficacy seems to be limited in time. • To treat spinal pain with image guided interventions is safe and repeatable. • Sacroiliac dysfunction is a common cause of sciatica-like pain which can be treated with CT-guided interventions (both steroids and pulsed RF denervation). - Abstract: Objectives: To review the state-of-the-art of image – guided techniques used to treat painful syndromes of the lower back, their indications, how they should be performed, their related risks and the expected results. Methods: We describe the actual standards about image-guided infiltrative therapies both on spine and on sacroiliac joints. Results: Both spinal epidural and sacroiliac injections appear useful in a large percentage of treated patients to get control of the perceived pain. Performing these therapies under CT or fluoroscopic guidance is the best and safest way to obtain satisfactory results because it is possible to target the use of drugs directly to the involved painful structures. Conclusions: Image-guided injections of the epidural space and of the sacroiliac joints are effective techniques for the treatment of pain; their effectiveness is sometimes not lasting for long periods of time but considering the low associated risk when performed by trained personnel, they can be easily repeated

Spine epidural and sacroiliac joints injections – when and how to perform

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

D’Orazio, Federico, E-mail: federico.dorazio@gmail.com; Gregori, Lorenzo Maria, E-mail: lollog@hotmail.it; Gallucci, Massimo, E-mail: massimo.gallucci@cc.univaq.it

2015-05-15

Highlights: • Image guided interventions focused to administer drugs inside the epidural space are effective in reducing the perceived spinal pain, but their efficacy seems to be limited in time. • To treat spinal pain with image guided interventions is safe and repeatable. • Sacroiliac dysfunction is a common cause of sciatica-like pain which can be treated with CT-guided interventions (both steroids and pulsed RF denervation). - Abstract: Objectives: To review the state-of-the-art of image – guided techniques used to treat painful syndromes of the lower back, their indications, how they should be performed, their related risks and the expected results. Methods: We describe the actual standards about image-guided infiltrative therapies both on spine and on sacroiliac joints. Results: Both spinal epidural and sacroiliac injections appear useful in a large percentage of treated patients to get control of the perceived pain. Performing these therapies under CT or fluoroscopic guidance is the best and safest way to obtain satisfactory results because it is possible to target the use of drugs directly to the involved painful structures. Conclusions: Image-guided injections of the epidural space and of the sacroiliac joints are effective techniques for the treatment of pain; their effectiveness is sometimes not lasting for long periods of time but considering the low associated risk when performed by trained personnel, they can be easily repeated.

Dual joint space arthrography in temporomandibular joint disorders: Comparison with single inferior joint space arthrography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Hyung Sik; Chang, Duk Soo; Lee, Kyung Soo; Kim, Woo Sun; Sung, Jung Ho; Jun, Young Hwan [Capital Armed Forces General Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1989-02-15

The temporomandibular joint(TMJ) is really a complex of two synovial space separated by fibrocartilaginous disc. Single inferior joint space arthrography is commonly performed for evaluation of TMJ disorders, which is known to be superior in demonstrating joint dynamics. But it reveals only the inferior surface of the disc. Therefore, dual space arthrography is superior to demonstrate the soft tissue anatomic feature of the joint such as disc position and shape. Authors performed 83 TMJ arthrograms in TMJ problems. Initially, the inferior joint space was done and then the superior space was sequentially contrasted. The follow results were noted: 1. In all cases, dual space arthrography revealed accurate disc shape and positions. 2. Concordant findings between the two techniques: 68 cases (82%). Discordance between the two techniques: 15 cases (18%) 3. Possible causes of discordance between inferior and dual space arthrography. a) Normal varians of anterior recess: 3 cases b) Posterior disc displacement: 4 cases c) Influence of the patient's head position change :4 cases d) False perforation: 2 cases e) Reduction change: 2 cases 4. In 5 cases with anterior displacement, dual space arthrography gave additional findings such as adhesion within the superior space, which could not be evaluated by single inferior space.

PingER: Internet performance monitoring -- How do collisions make better physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, W.

2000-01-01

Internet connectivity is critical infrastructure for modern high energy nuclear and particle physics experiments at laboratories around the world. Achieving the ambitious computing goals is dependent on reliable and fast connections between collaborators in geographically separate regions. The ambitious computing goals of experiments such as BaBar, RHIC and the LHC place internet connectivity in a highly critical position. More over the ability to monitor performance and identify weak points for upgrades has become pivotal to recruiting collaborators not only overseas from the location of the experiment but in locations previously considered remote. The methodology of the Internet End-to-End Performance Monitoring (IEPM) project and long-term trends in regional and trans-oceanic performance measured by the PingER tools has previously been described. The project has grown significantly and now 593 nodes at 424 sites in 72 countries are monitored by 28 monitoring sites in 15 countries. A total of 2,138 end-to-end pairs are monitored, making PingER probably the largest performance monitoring project in the world. Recently particular effort has been made to extend the monitoring of locations in East Europe and the former USSR and to Central and South America and the Middle East, reflecting the increasing reach of high energy nuclear and particle physics research

Infrared monitoring of friction welds and adhesive bond curing in automotive manufacturing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chapman, G.B.

2005-01-01

The need for improving automotive assembly, energy-efficiency, performance, durability and quality is intensifying as customer demands and competitive pressures drive the industry toward unrelenting improvements in energy conservation, cost, quality and speed to market, without compromising the vehicle capacity, performance, appearance and affordability to which North Americans have become accustomed. This presentation describes the need for and the development and use of infrared detection methods to assure the joint quality of friction welds in thermoplastic assemblies and to monitor adhesive bond-joint curing in metal assemblies. Some remaining barriers to the wider applications of this technology in the quality assurance of joints in automotive body structures will also be presented as indicators of further research and development opportunities. (author)

The effect of additional joint mobilization on neuromuscular performance in individuals with functional ankle instability.

Science.gov (United States)

Shih, Yi-Fen; Yu, Hsiang-Ting; Chen, Wen-Yin; Liao, Kwong-Kum; Lin, Hsiu-Chen; Yang, Yea-Ru

2018-03-01

To examine the effects of joint mobilization and exercise training on neuromuscular performance in individuals with functional ankle instability (FAI). A cross-sectional study. Forty five subjects with FAI were randomized into three groups: control (CG, n = 15, 27.9 ± 6.6yr), training (TG, n = 15, 26.9 ± 5.8yr) and mobilization with training group (MTG, n = 15, 26.5 ± 4.8yr). Four weeks of neuromuscular training for TG; neuromuscular training and joint mobilization for MTG. Electromyography of the peroneus longus (PL), tibialis anterior (TA), and soleus (SOL) and the reaching distance of the Y balance test (YBT), dorsiflexion range of motion (DFROM), Cumberland ankle instability tool (CAIT), and global rating scale (GRS). Two-way repeated measures MANOVA were used with the significance level p Joint mobilization resulted in additional benefits on self-reported ankle instability severity, dorsiflexion mobility, and posterolateral balance performance in individuals with FAI, but its effects on general improvement, muscle activation, and other balance tasks remained uncertain. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrating policy-based management and SLA performance monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Tzong-Jye; Lin, Chin-Yi; Chang, Shu-Hsin; Yen, Meng-Tzu

2001-10-01

Policy-based management system provides the configuration capability for the system administrators to focus on the requirements of customers. The service level agreement performance monitoring mechanism helps system administrators to verify the correctness of policies. However, it is difficult for a device to process the policies directly because the policies are the management concept. This paper proposes a mechanism to decompose a policy into rules that can be efficiently processed by a device. Thus, the device may process the rule and collect the performance statistics information efficiently; and the policy-based management system may collect these performance statistics information and report the service-level agreement performance monitoring information to the system administrator. The proposed policy-based management system achieves both the policy configuration and service-level agreement performance monitoring requirements. A policy consists of a condition part and an action part. The condition part is a Boolean expression of a source host IP group, a destination host IP group, etc. The action part is the parameters of services. We say that an address group is compact if it only consists of a range of IP address that can be denoted by a pair of IP address and corresponding IP mask. If the condition part of a policy only consists of the compact address group, we say that the policy is a rule. Since a device can efficiently process a compact address and a system administrator prefers to define a range of IP address, the policy-based management system has to translate policy into rules and supplements the gaps between policy and rules. The proposed policy-based management system builds the relationships between VPN and policies, policy and rules. Since the system administrator wants to monitor the system performance information of VPNs and policies, the proposed policy-based management system downloads the relationships among VPNs, policies and rules to the

Joint Ventures: The Promise, Power and Performance of Partnering.

Science.gov (United States)

Francisco, Grace; Hannah, Kathryn Covier; Keller, Shelly G.; Waters, Joan; Wong, Patricia M. Y.

This document provides case studies that represent a sampling of successful public library joint ventures in California and other U.S. cities and counties. Chapter 1 defines what a partnership is and how a joint venture differs from a partnership. It also describes the benefits of partnering, the knowledge, attitude, and skills required, and how…

Performance monitoring in the medial frontal cortex and related neural networks: From monitoring self actions to understanding others' actions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ninomiya, Taihei; Noritake, Atsushi; Ullsperger, Markus; Isoda, Masaki

2018-04-27

Action is a key channel for interacting with the outer world. As such, the ability to monitor actions and their consequences - regardless as to whether they are self-generated or other-generated - is of crucial importance for adaptive behavior. The medial frontal cortex (MFC) has long been studied as a critical node for performance monitoring in nonsocial contexts. Accumulating evidence suggests that the MFC is involved in a wide range of functions necessary for one's own performance monitoring, including error detection, and monitoring and resolving response conflicts. Recent studies, however, have also pointed to the importance of the MFC in performance monitoring under social conditions, ranging from monitoring and understanding others' actions to reading others' mental states, such as their beliefs and intentions (i.e., mentalizing). Here we review the functional roles of the MFC and related neural networks in performance monitoring in both nonsocial and social contexts, with an emphasis on the emerging field of a social systems neuroscience approach using macaque monkeys as a model system. Future work should determine the way in which the MFC exerts its monitoring function via interactions with other brain regions, such as the superior temporal sulcus in the mentalizing system and the ventral premotor cortex in the mirror system. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Electronic Performance Monitoring: An Organizational Justice and Concertive Control Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Alder, G. Stoney; Tompkins, Phillip K.

1997-01-01

Applies theories of organizational justice/concertive control to account for contradictions inherent in electronic monitoring of workers by organizations. Argues that results are usually positive when workers are involved in the design and implementation of monitoring systems, and monitoring is restricted to performance-related activities with…

Performance analysis of the TNO TLD individual monitoring service

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dijk, J.W.E. van; Julius, H.W.

1990-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyse the performance and to establish the lowest detectable occupational dose (LDOD) of the TNO TL dosemeter, in use for large scale routine individual monitoring since 1983. The TNO individual monitoring service uses three TLD reader systems and over 45000 TL dosemeters, designed to measure H s (0.07) and H p (10). Each reader system is normalised daily and each individual dosemeter is calibrated every ten readout cycles. The performance of the service is monitored by a double blind experimental set-up. A series of 10 routine dosemeters is issued every fortnight, mailed, exposed by staff not involved in the monitoring service, sent back and evaluated. The conclusion of this study is that the lowest detectable occupational dose is less than 0.04 mSv and that the integrated dose at the level of the annual dose limit is measured within 2%. (author)

Impact of Self-Interference on the Performance of Joint Partial RAKE Receiver and Adaptive Modulation

KAUST Repository

Nam, Sung Sik; Choi, Yungho; Alouini, Mohamed-Slim; Choi, Seyeong

2016-01-01

In this paper, we investigate the impact of self-interference on the performance of a joint partial RAKE (PRAKE) receiver and adaptive modulation over both independent and identically distributed and independent but non-identically distributed

Iranian Joint Registry(Iranian National Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Registry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamidreza Aslani

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Periodic evaluation and monitoring the health and economic outcome of joint replacement surgery is a common and popular process under the territory of joint registries in many countries. In this article we introduce the methodology used for the foundation of the National Iranian Joint Registry (IJR with a joint collaboration of the Social Security Organization (SSO and academic research departments considering the requirements of the Iran’s Ministry of Health and Education.

Reconstruction of fiber Bragg grating strain profile used to monitor the stiffness degradation of the adhesive layer in carbon fiber–reinforced plastic single-lap joint

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Song Chunsheng

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The adhesive-bonded joint of carbon fiber–reinforced plastic is one of the core components in aircraft structure design. It is an effective guarantee for the safety and reliability of the aerospace aircraft structure to use effective methods for monitoring and early warning of internal failure. In this article, the mapping relation model between the strain profiles of the adherend of the carbon fiber–reinforced plastic single-lap adhesive joint and the stiffness degradation evolution of adhesive layer was achieved by finite element software ABAQUS. The fiber Bragg grating was embedded in the adherend between the first and second layers at the end of the adhesive layer to calculate the reflection spectrum of fiber Bragg grating sensor region with improved T-matrix method for reconstruction of the adherend strain profile of fiber Bragg grating sensing area with the help of genetic algorithm. According to the reconstruction results, the maximum error between the ideal and reconstructed strain profile under different tension loads did not exceed 7.43%, showing a good coincidence degree. The monitoring method of the stiffness degradation evolution of adhesive layer of the carbon fiber–reinforced plastic single-lap joint based on the reconstruction of the adherend strain profile of fiber Bragg grating sensing area thus was figured out.

Electoronic Performance Monitoring in Call Centers: An Ethical Decision Model

OpenAIRE

Perkins, David

2013-01-01

Ever since it emerged on a widespread basis in the 1990s, electronic performance monitoring of employees has received significant scrutiny in the literature. Call centers have been the focus of many of these studies. This particular study addresses the issue of electronic performance monitoring in call centers from an ethical perspective. The following ethical dilemma is offered: "Is it ethical for a call center manager to evaluate the performance of a call center employee using electronic pe...

200-BP-1 Prototype Hanford Barrier -- 15 Years of Performance Monitoring

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ward, Anderson L.; Draper, Kathryn E.; Link, Steven O.; Clayton, Ray E.

2011-09-30

Monitoring is an essential component of engineered barrier system design and operation. A composite capacitive cover, including a capillary break and an evapotranspiration (ET) barrier at the Hanford Site, is generating data that can be used to help resolve these issues. The prototype Hanford barrier was constructed over the 216-B-57 Crib in 1994 to evaluate surface-barrier constructability, construction costs, and physical and hydrologic performance at the field scale. The barrier has been routinely monitored between November 1994 and September 1998 as part of a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) treatability test of barrier performance for the 200 BP 1 Operable Unit. Since FY 1998, monitoring has focused on a more limited set of key water balance, stability, and biotic parameters. In FY 2009, data collection was focused on: (1) water-balance monitoring, consisting of precipitation, runoff, soil moisture storage, and drainage measurements with evapotranspiration calculated by difference; (2) stability monitoring, consisting of asphalt-layer-settlement, basalt-side-slope-stability, and surface-elevation measurements; (3) vegetation dynamics; and (4) animal use. September 2009 marked 15 years since the start of monitoring and the collection of performance data. This report describes the results of monitoring activities during the period October 1, 2008, through September 30, 2009, and summarizes the 15 years of performance data collected from September 1994 through September 2009.

High-Performance Monitoring Architecture for Large-Scale Distributed Systems Using Event Filtering

Science.gov (United States)

Maly, K.

1998-01-01

Monitoring is an essential process to observe and improve the reliability and the performance of large-scale distributed (LSD) systems. In an LSD environment, a large number of events is generated by the system components during its execution or interaction with external objects (e.g. users or processes). Monitoring such events is necessary for observing the run-time behavior of LSD systems and providing status information required for debugging, tuning and managing such applications. However, correlated events are generated concurrently and could be distributed in various locations in the applications environment which complicates the management decisions process and thereby makes monitoring LSD systems an intricate task. We propose a scalable high-performance monitoring architecture for LSD systems to detect and classify interesting local and global events and disseminate the monitoring information to the corresponding end- points management applications such as debugging and reactive control tools to improve the application performance and reliability. A large volume of events may be generated due to the extensive demands of the monitoring applications and the high interaction of LSD systems. The monitoring architecture employs a high-performance event filtering mechanism to efficiently process the large volume of event traffic generated by LSD systems and minimize the intrusiveness of the monitoring process by reducing the event traffic flow in the system and distributing the monitoring computation. Our architecture also supports dynamic and flexible reconfiguration of the monitoring mechanism via its Instrumentation and subscription components. As a case study, we show how our monitoring architecture can be utilized to improve the reliability and the performance of the Interactive Remote Instruction (IRI) system which is a large-scale distributed system for collaborative distance learning. The filtering mechanism represents an Intrinsic component integrated

The effects of monitoring environment on problem-solving performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Laird, Brian K; Bailey, Charles D; Hester, Kim

2018-01-01

While effective and efficient solving of everyday problems is important in business domains, little is known about the effects of workplace monitoring on problem-solving performance. In a laboratory experiment, we explored the monitoring environment's effects on an individual's propensity to (1) establish pattern solutions to problems, (2) recognize when pattern solutions are no longer efficient, and (3) solve complex problems. Under three work monitoring regimes-no monitoring, human monitoring, and electronic monitoring-114 participants solved puzzles for monetary rewards. Based on research related to worker autonomy and theory of social facilitation, we hypothesized that monitored (versus non-monitored) participants would (1) have more difficulty finding a pattern solution, (2) more often fail to recognize when the pattern solution is no longer efficient, and (3) solve fewer complex problems. Our results support the first two hypotheses, but in complex problem solving, an interaction was found between self-assessed ability and the monitoring environment.

A joint-constraint model for human joints using signed distance-fields

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Engell-Nørregård, Morten Pol; Abel, Sarah Maria Niebe; Erleben, Kenny

2012-01-01

We present a local joint-constraint model for a single joint which is based on distance fields. Our model is fast, general, and well suited for modeling human joints. In this work, we take a geometric approach and model the geometry of the boundary of the feasible region, i.e., the boundary of all...... allowed poses. A region of feasible poses can be built by embedding motion captured data points in a signed distance field. The only assumption is that the feasible poses form a single connected set of angular values. We show how signed distance fields can be used to generate fast and general joint......-joint dependencies, or joints with more than three degrees of freedom. The resolution of the joint-constraints can be tweaked individually for each degree of freedom, which can be used to optimize memory usage. We perform a comparative study of the key-properties of various joint-constraint models, as well...

A Modelling Method of Bolt Joints Based on Basic Characteristic Parameters of Joint Surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Yuansheng, Li; Guangpeng, Zhang; Zhen, Zhang; Ping, Wang

2018-02-01

Bolt joints are common in machine tools and have a direct impact on the overall performance of the tools. Therefore, the understanding of bolt joint characteristics is essential for improving machine design and assembly. Firstly, According to the experimental data obtained from the experiment, the stiffness curve formula was fitted. Secondly, a finite element model of unit bolt joints such as bolt flange joints, bolt head joints, and thread joints was constructed, and lastly the stiffness parameters of joint surfaces were implemented in the model by the secondary development of ABAQUS. The finite element model of the bolt joint established by this method can simulate the contact state very well.

Performance monitoring of GRID superscalar with OCM-G/G-PM: Integration issues

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Badia, R.M.; Sirvent, R.; Bubak, M.; Funika, W.; Machner, P.; Gorlatch, S.; Bubak, M.; Priol, T.

2008-01-01

In this paper the use of a Grid-enabled system for performance monitoring of GRID superscalar-compliant applications is addressed. Performance monitoring is built on top of the OCM-G monitoring system developed in the EU IST CrossGrid project. A graphical user tool G-PM is used to interpret

In-flight spectral performance monitoring of the Airborne Prism Experiment.

Science.gov (United States)

D'Odorico, Petra; Alberti, Edoardo; Schaepman, Michael E

2010-06-01

Spectral performance of an airborne dispersive pushbroom imaging spectrometer cannot be assumed to be stable over a whole flight season given the environmental stresses present during flight. Spectral performance monitoring during flight is commonly accomplished by looking at selected absorption features present in the Sun, atmosphere, or ground, and their stability. The assessment of instrument performance in two different environments, e.g., laboratory and airborne, using precisely the same calibration reference, has not been possible so far. The Airborne Prism Experiment (APEX), an airborne dispersive pushbroom imaging spectrometer, uses an onboard in-flight characterization (IFC) facility, which makes it possible to monitor the sensor's performance in terms of spectral, radiometric, and geometric stability in flight and in the laboratory. We discuss in detail a new method for the monitoring of spectral instrument performance. The method relies on the monitoring of spectral shifts by comparing instrument-induced movements of absorption features on ground and in flight. Absorption lines originate from spectral filters, which intercept the full field of view (FOV) illuminated using an internal light source. A feature-fitting algorithm is used for the shift estimation based on Pearson's correlation coefficient. Environmental parameter monitoring, coregistered on board with the image and calibration data, revealed that differential pressure and temperature in the baffle compartment are the main driving parameters explaining the trend in spectral performance deviations in the time and the space (across-track) domains, respectively. The results presented in this paper show that the system in its current setup needs further improvements to reach a stable performance. Findings provided useful guidelines for the instrument revision currently under way. The main aim of the revision is the stabilization of the instrument for a range of temperature and pressure conditions

10 CFR 600.341 - Monitoring and reporting program and financial performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Monitoring and reporting program and financial performance. 600.341 Section 600.341 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (CONTINUED) ASSISTANCE REGULATIONS FINANCIAL... Organizations Post-Award Requirements § 600.341 Monitoring and reporting program and financial performance. (a...

The use of embedded sensors for the monitoring of adhesive joints in marine environments

Science.gov (United States)

McGovern, Scott T.; Spinks, Geoffrey M.; Wallace, Gordon G.

2005-05-01

A copolymer incorporating polyaniline was used as a sensing medium in the construction of a resistance based humidity sensor. Aniline monomer was polymerised in the presence of poly (butyl acrylate / vinyl acetate) and a copolymer containing polyaniline emeraldine salt was obtained. The sensing medium was then developed by redissolving 1-2 w/w% of the resulting polymer residue in dichloromethane to produce a processable polymer blend solution. Some of this polymer residue was also de-doped in a solution of ammonia, and then washed with distilled water until the waste water had a neutral pH. This residue was then redissolved at 1-2 w/w% in dichloromethane to produce a second processable polymer blend this time containing polyaniline emeraldine base. The final sensor design utilised 125μm polyester insulated platinum wire as conducting electrodes that were dip coated in the emeraldine salt copolymer solution and allowed to dry in a desiccator. The sensor was then dip-coated in a protective barrier layer of the emeraldine base copolymer to prevent over-oxidation and/or de-protonation of the emeraldine salt sensing medium under this coating. The sensors had an overall final thickness of less than 150μm and showed high sensitivity to humidity, low resistance, and good reversibility without hysteresis. Sensors were monitored for 2-probe resistance changes when in contact with water. Calibration curves for each sensor were produced to convert the resistance reading to mass uptake of water. Individual sensors were embedded within Aluminium 5083 / Araldite 2015 adhesive joints to monitor mass uptake of water when exposed to marine environments. Correlations between mass uptake of water and joint strength were made. There are various advantages of such a sensor design. Polymer based thin film humidity sensors have the advantage that the high processability of the material allows for simple fabrication of a range of geometries including smaller sensor designs. The ease of

Optimization and Characterization of the Friction Stir Welded Sheets of AA 5754-H111: Monitoring of the Quality of Joints with Thermographic Techniques

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luigi Alberto Ciro De Filippis

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Friction Stir Welding (FSW is a solid-state welding process, based on frictional and stirring phenomena, that offers many advantages with respect to the traditional welding methods. However, several parameters can affect the quality of the produced joints. In this work, an experimental approach has been used for studying and optimizing the FSW process, applied on 5754-H111 aluminum plates. In particular, the thermal behavior of the material during the process has been investigated and two thermal indexes, the maximum temperature and the heating rate of the material, correlated to the frictional power input, were investigated for different process parameters (the travel and rotation tool speeds configurations. Moreover, other techniques (micrographs, macrographs and destructive tensile tests were carried out for supporting in a quantitative way the analysis of the quality of welded joints. The potential of thermographic technique has been demonstrated both for monitoring the FSW process and for predicting the quality of joints in terms of tensile strength.

Optimization and Characterization of the Friction Stir Welded Sheets of AA 5754-H111: Monitoring of the Quality of Joints with Thermographic Techniques.

Science.gov (United States)

De Filippis, Luigi Alberto Ciro; Serio, Livia Maria; Palumbo, Davide; De Finis, Rosa; Galietti, Umberto

2017-10-11

Friction Stir Welding (FSW) is a solid-state welding process, based on frictional and stirring phenomena, that offers many advantages with respect to the traditional welding methods. However, several parameters can affect the quality of the produced joints. In this work, an experimental approach has been used for studying and optimizing the FSW process, applied on 5754-H111 aluminum plates. In particular, the thermal behavior of the material during the process has been investigated and two thermal indexes, the maximum temperature and the heating rate of the material, correlated to the frictional power input, were investigated for different process parameters (the travel and rotation tool speeds) configurations. Moreover, other techniques (micrographs, macrographs and destructive tensile tests) were carried out for supporting in a quantitative way the analysis of the quality of welded joints. The potential of thermographic technique has been demonstrated both for monitoring the FSW process and for predicting the quality of joints in terms of tensile strength.

Mechanical performances of lead-free solder joint connections with applications in the aerospace domain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georgiana PADURARU

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The paper presents some theoretical and experimental aspects regarding the tribological performances of lead-free solder joint connections, with application in the aerospace domain. In order to highlight the mechanical and tribological properties of solder joint in correlation with different pad finishes, there were made some mechanical determinations using a dedicated Share Test System. The theoretical model highlights the link between the experimental results and the influence of gravitational acceleration on the mechanical and functional integrity of the electronic assemblies that works in vibration environment. The paper novelty is provided by the interdisciplinary experiment that offers results that can be used in the mechanical, tribological, electronical and aerospace domains.

LHCb online infrastructure monitoring tools

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Granado Cardoso, L.; Gaspar, C.; Haen, C.; Neufeld, N.; Varela, F.; Galli, D.

2012-01-01

The Online System of the LHCb experiment at CERN is composed of a very large number of PCs: around 1500 in a CPU farm for performing the High Level Trigger; around 170 for the control system, running the SCADA system - PVSS; and several others for performing data monitoring, reconstruction, storage, and infrastructure tasks, like databases, etc. Some PCs run Linux, some run Windows but all of them need to be remotely controlled and monitored to make sure they are correctly running and to be able, for example, to reboot them whenever necessary. A set of tools was developed in order to centrally monitor the status of all PCs and PVSS Projects needed to run the experiment: a Farm Monitoring and Control (FMC) tool, which provides the lower level access to the PCs, and a System Overview Tool (developed within the Joint Controls Project - JCOP), which provides a centralized interface to the FMC tool and adds PVSS project monitoring and control. The implementation of these tools has provided a reliable and efficient way to manage the system, both during normal operations as well as during shutdowns, upgrades or maintenance operations. This paper will present the particular implementation of this tool in the LHCb experiment and the benefits of its usage in a large scale heterogeneous system

Fire monitoring capability of the joint Landsat and Sentinel 2 constellation

Science.gov (United States)

Murphy, S.; Wright, R.

2017-12-01

Fires are a global hazard. Landsat and Sentinel 2 can monitor the Earth's surface every 2 - 4 days. This provides an important opportunity to complement the operational (lower resolution) fire monitoring systems. Landsat-class sensors can detect small fires that would be missed by MODIS-classed sensors. All large fires start out as small fires. We analyze fire patterns in California from 1984 to 2017 and compare the performance of Landsat-type and MODIS-type sensors. Had an operational Landsat-Sentinel 2 fire detection system been in place at the time of the Soberanes fire last year (i.e. August 2016), the cost of suppressing of this fire event (US $236 million) could potentially have been reduced by an order of magnitude.

Lower limb joint kinetics and ankle joint stiffness in the sprint start push-off.

Science.gov (United States)

Charalambous, Laura; Irwin, Gareth; Bezodis, Ian N; Kerwin, David

2012-01-01

Sprint push-off technique is fundamental to sprint performance and joint stiffness has been identified as a performance-related variable during dynamic movements. However, joint stiffness for the push-off and its relationship with performance (times and velocities) has not been reported. The aim of this study was to quantify and explain lower limb net joint moments and mechanical powers, and ankle stiffness during the first stance phase of the push-off. One elite sprinter performed 10 maximal sprint starts. An automatic motion analysis system (CODA, 200 Hz) with synchronized force plates (Kistler, 1000 Hz) collected kinematic profiles at the hip, knee, and ankle and ground reaction forces, providing input for inverse dynamics analyses. The lower-limb joints predominately extended and revealed a proximal-to-distal sequential pattern of maximal extensor angular velocity and positive power production. Pearson correlations revealed relationships (P push-off in different ways, depending on the phase of stance considered.

SCALEA-G: A Unified Monitoring and Performance Analysis System for the Grid

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hong-Linh Truong

2004-01-01

Full Text Available This paper describes SCALEA-G, a unified monitoring and performance analysis system for the Grid. SCALEA-G is implemented as a set of grid services based on the Open Grid Services Architecture (OGSA. SCALEA-G provides an infrastructure for conducting online monitoring and performance analysis of a variety of Grid services including computational and network resources, and Grid applications. Both push and pull models are supported, providing flexible and scalable monitoring and performance analysis. Source code and dynamic instrumentation are implemented to perform profiling and monitoring of Grid applications. A novel instrumentation request language for dynamic instrumentation and a standardized intermediate representation for binary code have been developed to facilitate the interaction between client and instrumentation services.

Performance Monitoring in Children Following Traumatic Brain Injury Compared to Typically Developing Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amy A. Wilkinson PhD

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Children with traumatic brain injury are reported to have deficits in performance monitoring, but the mechanisms underlying these deficits are not well understood. Four performance monitoring hypotheses were explored by comparing how 28 children with traumatic brain injury and 28 typically developing controls (matched by age and sex performed on the stop-signal task. Control children slowed significantly more following incorrect than correct stop-signal trials, fitting the error monitoring hypothesis. In contrast, the traumatic brain injury group showed no performance monitoring difference with trial types, but significant group differences did not emerge, suggesting that children with traumatic brain injury may not perform the same way as controls.

Fatigue crack growth in welded joints in seawater

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lambert, S.B.

1988-01-01

A pipe-to-plate specimen has been developed to study the influence of seawater on the fatigue behaviour of welded tubular joints. DC potential drop techniques have been used to detect fatigue crack initiation, and to monitor the subsequent growth of fatigue cracks. Results for three specimens, tested in air are compared with similar data for tubular and T-plate joints. These comparisons indicate that the pipe/plate is a reasonable model of a tubular joint. Testing was performed on a further six specimens in artificial seawater; two each with free corrosion, optimum cathodic protection, and cathodic overprotection. Fatigue life reduction factors compared with corresponding tests in air were 1.8 and 2.8 for free corrosion, 1.7 and 1.1 with cathodic protection, and 4.2 and 3.3 with cathodic over-protection. These fatigue life reduction factors were comparable to results on T-plate specimens, and were strongly dependent on crack shape development. Linear elastic fracture mechanics techniques appear suitable for the calculation of fatigue crack propagation life. Three approximate solution techniques for crack tip stress intensity factors show reasonable agreement with experimentally derived values. It is recommended that forcing functions be used to model crack aspect ratio development in welded joints. Such forcing functions are influenced by the initial stress distribution and the environment. 207 refs., 192 figs., 22 tabs.

Managing Joint Production Motivation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindenberg, Siegwart; Foss, Nicolai Juul

2011-01-01

We contribute to the microfoundations of organizational performance by proffering the construct of joint production motivation. Under such motivational conditions individuals see themselves as part of a joint endeavor, each with his or her own roles and responsibilities; generate shared...... representations of actions and tasks; cognitively coordinate cooperation; and choose their own behaviors in terms of joint goals. Using goal-framing theory, we explain how motivation for joint production can be managed by cognitive/symbolic management and organizational design....

Quality Assurance in Individual Monitoring: 10 Years of Performance Monitoring of the TLD Based TNO Individual Monitoring Service (invited paper)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dijk, J.W.E. van

1998-07-01

The QA subscription forms the nucleus of the Quality Assurance (QA) programme of the TLD-based Individual Monitoring Service of TNO-CSD. This QA subscription is the subscription of a dummy customer to the service. As this customer is treated exactly like a normal customer, all aspects of the service are monitored by the QA subscription. An overview is given of 10 years of monitoring the performance of the service. Various improvements over the past decade have resulted in a standard deviation in a low dose measurement of 0.01 mSv and a relative standard deviation at higher doses of 5%. These figures represent the performance under routine circumstances and thus include variations due to variations in the natural background from place to place and, for example, due to transport. (author)

Quality Assurance in Individual Monitoring: 10 Years of Performance Monitoring of the TLD Based TNO Individual Monitoring Service (invited paper)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dijk, J.W.E. van

1998-01-01

The QA subscription forms the nucleus of the Quality Assurance (QA) programme of the TLD-based Individual Monitoring Service of TNO-CSD. This QA subscription is the subscription of a dummy customer to the service. As this customer is treated exactly like a normal customer, all aspects of the service are monitored by the QA subscription. An overview is given of 10 years of monitoring the performance of the service. Various improvements over the past decade have resulted in a standard deviation in a low dose measurement of 0.01 mSv and a relative standard deviation at higher doses of 5%. These figures represent the performance under routine circumstances and thus include variations due to variations in the natural background from place to place and, for example, due to transport. (author)

Effect of jointing work performed as an energy-saving measure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brandt, A

1983-12-01

In order to establish the effect of replacing mortar joints by plastic or elastic sealants, an investigation of a number of multistory buildings has been carried out within the framework of the Danish Energy Research Programme EFP-81. An actual heat-saving effect could be established only in a few cases after replacement of windows and joints. The condition of the sealants was good after a few years of practical exposure. A surface cracking wich was not found to have any significant importance to the life of the joints was noted. The adhesion was good to tiles, wood and PVC. It was not possible to establish any decomposition of wooden windows owing to formation of condensate behind the tight seaplants placed at the outside, i.e. as a one-stage joint. It must be underlined that the investigation has only comprised brick built buildings.

Development of an air-operated actuator performance monitoring system for regulatory usage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sung, K. Y.; Kwon, S. J.

2004-01-01

The performance monitoring system of air-operated actuators for regulatory usage has been being developed. Essential elements and operating parameters affecting the actuator performance have been investigated to provide basic information for system development. The monitoring system including an air-operated actuator testing facility and analysis softwares for monitoring and evaluation are also introduced in this paper. As a result of simulated tests, it was known that the system could be a useful tool for the effective monitoring of actuator performance change and fault conditions. This system would be applied to regulatory inspection for utility's data validation and to the training of regulatory staff in future after some modification and expansion

A FRAMEWORK FOR PERFORMANCE EVALUATION AND MONITORING OF PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM USING COMPOSITE PERFORMANCE INDEX

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susanta Kumar Gauri

2017-12-01

Full Text Available A public health program (PHP taken up by the government of a country refers to all organized measures to prevent disease and promote health among the population, by providing different planned cares/services to the people. Usually, the target population for different PHP are different. The basic requirement for success of a PHP is to ensure that all the planned cares/services are reached to each member of the target population. Therefore, the important performance measures for a PHP are the implementation status of all the planned cares/services under the PHP. However, management and monitoring of a PHP become quite difficult by interpreting separately the information contained in a large number of performance measures. Therefore, usually a metric, called composite performance index (CPI, is evaluated to understand the overall performance of a PHP. However, due a scaling operation involved in the CPI computation procedure, the CPI value does not reveal the true overall implementation status of a PHP and consequently, it is effective for management of a PHP. This paper presents a new approach for CPI computation, in which scaling/normalization of the performance variables is not required and therefore, it can be used for monitoring the true overall implementation status of a PHP in a region. A systematic approach for monitoring a PHP using the CPI values is proposed and applied for monitoring the maternal and child healthcare (MCH program. The results are found effective towards continuous improvement of implementation status.

Effects of the curing pressure on the torsional fatigue characteristics of adhesively bonded joints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, Hui Yun; Kim, Byung Jung; Lee, Dai Gil

2004-01-01

Adhesive joints have been widely used for fastening thin adherends because they can distribute the load over a larger area than mechanical joints, require no hole, add very little weight to the structure and have superior fatigue resistance. However, the fatigue characteristics of adhesive joints are much affected by applied pressure during curing operation because actual curing temperature is changed by applied pressure and the adhesion characteristics of adhesives are very sensitive to manufacturing conditions. In this study, cure monitoring and torsional fatigue tests of adhesive joints with an epoxy adhesive were performed in order to investigate the effects of the applied pressure during curing operation. From the experiments, it was found that the actual curing temperature increased as the applied pressure increased, which increased residual thermal stress in the adhesive layer. Therefore, the fatigue life decreased as the applied pressure increased because the mean stress during fatigue tests increased due to the residual thermal stress

Medial Elbow Joint Space Increases With Valgus Stress and Decreases When Cued to Perform A Maximal Grip Contraction.

Science.gov (United States)

Pexa, Brett S; Ryan, Eric D; Myers, Joseph B

2018-04-01

Previous research indicates that the amount of valgus torque placed on the elbow joint during overhead throwing is higher than the medial ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) can tolerate. Wrist and finger flexor muscle activity is hypothesized to make up for this difference, and in vitro studies that simulated activity of upper extremity musculature, specifically the flexor digitorum superficialis and flexor carpi ulnaris, support this hypothesis. To assess the medial elbow joint space at rest, under valgus stress, and under valgus stress with finger and forearm flexor contraction by use of ultrasonography in vivo. Controlled laboratory study. Participants were 22 healthy males with no history of elbow dislocation or UCL injury (age, 21.25 ± 1.58 years; height, 1.80 ± 0.08 m; weight, 79.43 ± 18.50 kg). Medial elbow joint space was measured by use of ultrasonography during 3 separate conditions: at rest (unloaded), under valgus load (loaded), and with a maximal grip contraction under a valgus load (loaded-contracted) in both limbs. Participants lay supine with their arm abducted 90° and elbow flexed 30° with the forearm in full supination. A handgrip dynamometer was placed in the participants' hand to grip against during the contracted condition. Images were reduced in ImageJ to assess medial elbow joint space. A 2-way (condition × limb) repeated-measures analysis of variance and Cohen's d effect sizes were used to assess changes in medial elbow joint space. Post hoc testing was performed with a Bonferroni adjustment to assess changes within limb and condition. The medial elbow joint space was significantly larger in the loaded condition (4.91 ± 1.16 mm) compared with the unloaded condition (4.26 ± 1.23 mm, P space increases under a valgus load and then decreases when a maximal grip contraction is performed. This indicates that wrist and finger flexor muscle contraction may assist in limiting medial elbow joint space, a result similar to findings of previous

UCIMS: Advances in geotechnical construction and performance monitoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raphael Siebenmann

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The Crossrail project currently under construction in Central London has been described as “The Big Dig on Steroids”, obviously referencing the Central Artery/Tunnel project in Boston completed in 2007. To address the multiple demands for timely construction performance monitoring, Crossrail envisioned the underground construction information management system (UCIMS to monitor construction progress and structural health along the entire route, with a network of geotechnical instruments (i.e. slope inclinometers, extensometers, piezometers, etc. and tunnel boring machine (TBM position information. The UCIMS is a geospatially referenced relational database that was developed using an open source geographic information system (GIS that allowed all stakeholders near immediate feedback of construction performance. The purpose of this article is to provide a brief history of geotechnical and structural monitoring software, to describe the structure and operation of the UCIMS, and to demonstrate how the functionality afforded by this system provided the requisite feedback to the stakeholders. Examples will be given regarding how the data management and visualization concepts incorporated into the UCIMS advanced the geotechnical construction industry.

Monitoring and Controlling an Underwater Robotic Arm

Science.gov (United States)

Haas, John; Todd, Brian Keith; Woodcock, Larry; Robinson, Fred M.

2009-01-01

The SSRMS Module 1 software is part of a system for monitoring an adaptive, closed-loop control of the motions of a robotic arm in NASA s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, where buoyancy in a pool of water is used to simulate the weightlessness of outer space. This software is so named because the robot arm is a replica of the Space Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS). This software is distributed, running on remote joint processors (RJPs), each of which is mounted in a hydraulic actuator comprising the joint of the robotic arm and communicating with a poolside processor denoted the Direct Control Rack (DCR). Each RJP executes the feedback joint-motion control algorithm for its joint and communicates with the DCR. The DCR receives joint-angular-velocity commands either locally from an operator or remotely from computers that simulate the flight like SSRMS and perform coordinated motion calculations based on hand-controller inputs. The received commands are checked for validity before they are transmitted to the RJPs. The DCR software generates a display of the statuses of the RJPs for the DCR operator and can shut down the hydraulic pump when excessive joint-angle error or failure of a RJP is detected.

Preliminary Analysis of Remote Monitoring and Robotic Concepts for Performance Confirmation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McAffee, D.A.

1997-01-01

As defined in 10 CFR Part 60.2, Performance Confirmation is the ''program of tests, experiments and analyses which is conducted to evaluate the accuracy and adequacy of the information used to determine with reasonable assurance that the performance objectives for the period after permanent closure will be met''. The overall Performance Confirmation program begins during site characterization and continues up to repository closure. The main purpose of this document is to develop, explore and analyze initial concepts for using remotely operated and robotic systems in gathering repository performance information during Performance Confirmation. This analysis focuses primarily on possible Performance Confirmation related applications within the emplacement drifts after waste packages have been emplaced (post-emplacement) and before permanent closure of the repository (preclosure). This will be a period of time lasting approximately 100 years and basically coincides with the Caretaker phase of the project. This analysis also examines, to a lesser extent, some applications related to Caretaker operations. A previous report examined remote handling and robotic technologies that could be employed during the waste package emplacement phase of the project (Reference 5.1). This analysis is being prepared to provide an early investigation of possible design concepts and technical challenges associated with developing remote systems for monitoring and inspecting activities during Performance Confirmation. The writing of this analysis preceded formal development of Performance Confirmation functional requirements and program plans and therefore examines, in part, the fundamental Performance Confirmation monitoring needs and operating conditions. The scope and primary objectives of this analysis are to: (1) Describe the operating environment and conditions expected in the emplacement drifts during the preclosure period. (Presented in Section 7.2). (2) Identify and discuss the

Modelling and Experimental Testing of Hybrid Joints Made of: Aluminium Adherends, Adhesive Layers and Rivets for Aerospace Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sadowski T.

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The contemporary demands in different branches of engineering require application of new multi-component materials and structural systems. Appropriately chosen joining technology can offer significant enhancement of structural system performance in terms of effectiveness, reliability, safety and other design criteria. The modern applications of complex joints are of great technological interest as they permit to combine and to enhance the individual effects of each kind of joint. This is of great importance for modern applications in different branches of engineering: aerospace, mechanical and civil. Therefore in this paper we will focus on the analysis of mechanical response of adhesive joint of aluminium strips reinforced by rivets. The aim of the paper is to investigate experimentally the mechanical behaviour of adhesive joint of aluminium strips reinforced by rivets for industrial applications in aerospace. The considered joint was subjected to uniaxial loading. The tests in this paper were performed for: • classical adhesive joint in order to investigate material parameters for numerical modelling of the hybrid joint • hybrid joining of the structural elements in order to investigate the reinforcement effect. The experiments with application of digital image ARAMIS system allowed for on-line monitoring of the deformation process of the considered joining elements. The particular distributions of displacement fields at the joint surface were estimated for any stage of loading process. Numerical modelling was performed for experimentally investigated specimens. The materials parameters, necessary for calculation, were estimated from experiments. FEA modelling was done with the help of ABAQUS code.

Passive performance monitoring and traffic characteristics on the SLAC internet border

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Logg, C.; Cottrell, L.

2001-01-01

Understanding how the Internet is used by HEP is critical to optimizing the performance of the inter-lab computing environment. Typically use requirements have been defined by discussions between collaborators. However, later analysis of the actual traffic has show this is often misunderstood and actual use is significantly different to that predicted. Passive monitoring of the real traffic provides insight into the true communications requirements and the performance of a large number of inter-communicating nodes. It may be useful in identifying performance problems that are due to factors other than Internet congestion, especially when compared to other methods such as active monitoring where traffic is generated specifically to measure its performance. Controlled active monitoring between dedicated servers often gives an indication of what can be achieved on a network. Passive monitoring of the real traffic gives a picture of the true performance. The authors will discuss the method and results of collecting and analyzing flows of data obtained from the SLAC Internet border. The insights this has brought to understanding the network will be reviewed and the benefit it can bring to engineering networks will be discussed

On-Line Monitoring of Instrument Channel Performance in Nuclear Power Plant Using PEANO

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fantoni, Paolo F.; Hoffmann, Mario; Shankar, Ramesh; Davis, Eddie L.

2002-01-01

On-Line monitoring evaluates instrument channel performance by assessing its consistency with other plant indications. Industry and EPRI experience at several plants has shown this overall approach to be very effective in identifying instrument channels that are exhibiting degrading or inconsistent performance characteristics. On-Line monitoring of instrument channels provides information about the condition of the monitored channels through accurate, more frequent monitoring of each channel's performance over time. This type of performance monitoring is a methodology that offers an alternate approach to traditional time-directed calibration. On-line monitoring of these channels can provide an assessment of instrument performance and provide a basis for determining when adjustments are necessary. Elimination or reduction of unnecessary field calibrations can reduce associated labor costs, reduce personnel radiation exposure and reduce the potential for miss-calibration. PEANO is a system for on-line calibration monitoring developed in the years 1995-2000 at the Institutt for energiteknikk (IFE), Norway, which makes use of Artificial Intelligence techniques for its purpose. The system has been tested successfully in Europe in off-line tests with EDF (France), Tecnatom (Spain) and ENEA (Italy). PEANO is currently installed and used for on-line monitoring at the HBWR reactor in Halden. This paper describes the results of performance tests on PEANO with real data from a US PWR plant, in the framework of a co-operation among IFE, EPRI and Edan Engineering, to evaluate the potentials of PEANO for future installations in US nuclear plants. (authors)

Monitoring the performance of off-site processors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miller, C.C.

1995-01-01

Commercial nuclear power plants have been able to utilize the latest technologies and achieve large volume reduction by obtaining off-site waste processor services. Although the use of such services reduce the burden of waste processing it also reduces the utility's control over the process. Monitoring the performance of off-site processors is important so that the utility is cognizant of the waste disposition for required regulatory reporting. In addition to obtaining data for Reg Guide 1.21 reporting, Performance monitoring is important to determine which vendor and which services to utilize. Off-site processor services were initially offered for the decontamination of metallic waste. Since that time the list of services has expanded to include supercompaction, survey for release, incineration and metal melting. The number of vendors offering off-site services has increased and the services they offer vary. processing rates vary between vendors and have different charge bases. Determining which vendor to use for what service can be complicated and confusing

Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) Common Ground System (CGS) Technical Performance Measures of the Block 2 Architecture

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, K. D.; Panas, M.

2016-12-01

NOAA and NASA are jointly acquiring the next-generation civilian weather satellite system: the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS). JPSS replaced the afternoon orbit component and ground processing of NOAA's old POES system. JPSS satellites carry sensors that collect meteorological, oceanographic, climatological, and solar-geophysical observations of the earth, atmosphere, and space. The ground processing system for JPSS is known as the JPSS Common Ground System (JPSS CGS). Developed and maintained by Raytheon Intelligence, Information and Services (IIS), the CGS is a globally distributed, multi-mission system serving NOAA, NASA and their national and international partners. The CGS has demonstrated its scalability and flexibility to incorporate multiple missions efficiently and with minimal cost, schedule and risk, while strengthening global partnerships in weather and environmental monitoring. The CGS architecture has been upgraded to Block 2.0 to satisfy several key objectives, including: "operationalizing" the first satellite, Suomi NPP, which originally was a risk reduction mission; leveraging lessons learned in multi-mission support, taking advantage of newer, more reliable and efficient technologies and satisfying constraints due of the continually evolving budgetary environment. To ensure the CGS meets these needs, we have developed 48 Technical Performance Measures (TPMs) across 9 categories: Data Availability, Data Latency, Operational Availability, Margin, Scalability, Situational Awareness, Transition (between environments and sites), WAN Efficiency, and Data Recovery Processing. This paper will provide an overview of the CGS Block 2.0 architecture, with particular focus on the 9 TPM categories listed above. We will describe how we ensure the deployed architecture meets these TPMs to satisfy our multi-mission objectives with the deployment of Block 2.0.

Part 6: Forest monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

In this part the results of forest monitoring on Hungarian and Slovak territory are presented. The two countries examine the growth and the health conditions of trees in similar ways. The monitoring sites in the Slovak and Hungarian territories, included in the joint monitoring, are shown on figure. The Slovak Party has already evaluated the wood yield data for 1996, the weekly girth growth observations in 1996 were not performed yet. So far on the Hungarian side only the weekly girth growth data are available for the year 1996, the wood yield data for 1996 are being processed. In the evaluation of Hungarian side only the results obtained for the period from 1992 to 1995 were analysed. Moreover, on the Slovak side an evaluation of the health conditions of trees based on aerial was carried out. The Hungarian party did not carried out such a survey, therefore the evaluation is based only on field (on-the-spot) observations

Stochastic joint inversion of hydrogeophysical data for salt tracer test monitoring and hydraulic conductivity imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Jardani, A.; Revil, A.; Dupont, J. P.

2013-02-01

The assessment of hydraulic conductivity of heterogeneous aquifers is a difficult task using traditional hydrogeological methods (e.g., steady state or transient pumping tests) due to their low spatial resolution. Geophysical measurements performed at the ground surface and in boreholes provide additional information for increasing the resolution and accuracy of the inverted hydraulic conductivity field. We used a stochastic joint inversion of Direct Current (DC) resistivity and self-potential (SP) data plus in situ measurement of the salinity in a downstream well during a synthetic salt tracer experiment to reconstruct the hydraulic conductivity field between two wells. The pilot point parameterization was used to avoid over-parameterization of the inverse problem. Bounds on the model parameters were used to promote a consistent Markov chain Monte Carlo sampling of the model parameters. To evaluate the effectiveness of the joint inversion process, we compared eight cases in which the geophysical data are coupled or not to the in situ sampling of the salinity to map the hydraulic conductivity. We first tested the effectiveness of the inversion of each type of data alone (concentration sampling, self-potential, and DC resistivity), and then we combined the data two by two. We finally combined all the data together to show the value of each type of geophysical data in the joint inversion process because of their different sensitivity map. We also investigated a case in which the data were contaminated with noise and the variogram unknown and inverted stochastically. The results of the inversion revealed that incorporating the self-potential data improves the estimate of hydraulic conductivity field especially when the self-potential data were combined to the salt concentration measurement in the second well or to the time-lapse cross-well electrical resistivity data. Various tests were also performed to quantify the uncertainty in the inverted hydraulic conductivity

Standard guide to In-Plant performance evaluation of Hand-Held SNM monitors

CERN Document Server

American Society for Testing and Materials. Philadelphia

1999-01-01

1.1 This guide is one of a series on the application and evaluation of special nuclear material (SNM) monitors. Other guides in the series are listed in Section 2, and the relationship of in-plant performance evaluation to other procedures described in the series is illustrated in Fig. 1. Hand-held SNM monitors are described in of Guide C1112, and performance criteria illustrating their capabilities can be found in Appendix X1. 1.2 The purpose of this guide to in-plant performance evaluation is to provide a comparatively rapid procedure to verify that a hand-held SNM monitor performs as expected for detecting SNM or alternative test sources or to disclose the need for repair. The procedure can be used as a routine operational evaluation or it can be used to verify performance after a monitor is calibrated. 1.3 In-plant performance evaluations are more comprehensive than daily functional tests. They take place less often, at intervals ranging from weekly to once every three months, and derive their result fr...

CLASSIFICATION OF THE MGR PERFORMANCE CONFIRMATION DATA ACQUISITION/MONITORING SYSTEM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

J.A. Ziegler

1999-01-01

The purpose of this analysis is to document the Quality Assurance (QA) classification of the Monitored Geologic Repository (MGR) performance confirmation data acquisition/monitoring system structures, systems and components (SSCs) performed by the MGR Safety Assurance Department. This analysis also provides the basis for revision of YMP/90-55Q, Q-List (YMF 1998). The Q-List identifies those MGR SSCs subject to the requirements of DOE/RW-0333PY ''Quality Assurance Requirements and Description'' (QARD) (DOE 1998)

Environmental performance, profitability, asset utilization, debt monitoring and firm value

Science.gov (United States)

Bukit, R. Br; Haryanto, B.; Ginting, P.

2018-02-01

The growing issue on firm value shows that firm value is not only determined by the firm ability to increase financial profit, but also by the company's concern in maintaining the environmental condition. The industrial development produces waste that pollutes the environment that has potential to serious impact on the next life. In addition to provide financial benefits, companies are increasingly facing pressure to be socially responsible for the survival of the company. However, past findings demonstrate that the effect of environmental performance, profitability, and asset utilization to the firm’s value are still unclear. This study aims to test whether environmental performance, firm profitability and asset utilization can effectively enhance firm value in two different conditions: intensive debt monitoring and less intensive debt monitoring. Sample of companies is taken from the list of Indonesia Stock Exchange during the period of 2013 to 2015. Using multiple regression analysis, discloses that: in intensive monitoring, managers tend to have high firm value when company has high environmental performance and or high profitability and high asset utilization. Monitoring system needs to be intensified especially for companies with the above characteristics.

MRI of the hip joint

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Czerny, C.; Noebauer-Huhmann, I.M.; Imhof, H.

2005-01-01

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is performed to diagnose many pathologic conditions affecting the hip joint. Either conventional MRI (without contrast enhancement of the joint cavity) or MR arthrography is used to detect and most accurately differentiate hip joint pathologies. Conventional MRI is performed in cases of bone marrow edema, necrosis, arthrosis and especially the so-called ''activated arthrosis'', as well as in inflammatory and tumorous entities. MR arthography, which has only recently become available for use, is excellently suited for diagnosing lesions of the acetabular labrum, cartilage lesions, and free articular bodies. This article provides an overview about MRI characteristics and their accuracy of hip joint diseases and the impact on the therapeutic procedure. (orig.)

High heat flux performance of W-Eurofer brazed joints

Science.gov (United States)

de Prado, J.; Sánchez, M.; Wirtz, M.; Pintsuk, G.; Du, J.; Linke, J.; Ureña, A.

2018-02-01

The qualification process of the materials and components for the next generation of fusion reactors makes it necessary to expose them to similar service conditions as expected during the service life of the reactor. In the present work, W-Eurofer brazed joints (tungsten block: 8 × 8 × 4 mm; steel block: 8 × 8 × 4 mm; joined to an actively cooled copper heat sink) were exposed to steady state heat loads to study the effect of the thermal fatigue on their microstructure and mechanical integrity. Three different W surface temperatures were tested (400, 500 and 600 °C) varying the number of applied cycles (100 and 1000). The results allowed identifying a braze temperature of 359 °C as threshold condition under which the brazed joints could be used without deterioration. The increase of the surface temperature deteriorated the mechanical integrity of the joints in comparison to those analyzed after the brazing process and accordingly reduced the refrigeration capabilities.

New analysis and performance of a wall-current monitor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Suwada, T.; Urano, T.; Kobayashi, H. [National Lab. for High Energy Physics, Tsukuba, Ibaraki (Japan); Tamiya, K.; Asami, A. [Naruto University of Education, Takashima, Naruto-cho, Naruto-shi 772 (Japan)

1997-09-01

A new wall-current monitor has been developed in order to reinforce the beam-monitoring system in the PF 2.5-GeV linac for the KEK B-Factory. A prototype monitor was tested for its performance and characteristics. The experimental results in terms of both bench tests and beam tests by single-bunch electron beams were analyzed on the basis of equivalent-circuit models. The frequency response of the monitor agreed well with a lumped equivalent-circuit model for both time- and frequency-domain measurements. The position dependence and its frequency characteristics of the monitor also agreed well with a distributed equivalent-circuit model for both time- and frequency-domain measurements. The rise time of the monitor was about 3 ns, which indicated a poor response for short-pulse beams (<1) ns. The reason could be attributed to the stray inductance of the ceramic solid resistor and not very good frequency response of the ferrite core. (orig.).

New analysis and performance of a wall-current monitor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suwada, T.; Urano, T.; Kobayashi, H.; Tamiya, K.; Asami, A.

1997-01-01

A new wall-current monitor has been developed in order to reinforce the beam-monitoring system in the PF 2.5-GeV linac for the KEK B-Factory. A prototype monitor was tested for its performance and characteristics. The experimental results in terms of both bench tests and beam tests by single-bunch electron beams were analyzed on the basis of equivalent-circuit models. The frequency response of the monitor agreed well with a lumped equivalent-circuit model for both time- and frequency-domain measurements. The position dependence and its frequency characteristics of the monitor also agreed well with a distributed equivalent-circuit model for both time- and frequency-domain measurements. The rise time of the monitor was about 3 ns, which indicated a poor response for short-pulse beams (<1) ns. The reason could be attributed to the stray inductance of the ceramic solid resistor and not very good frequency response of the ferrite core. (orig.)

Monitoring diver kinematics with dielectric elastomer sensors

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Christopher R.; Anderson, Iain A.

2017-04-01

Diving, initially motivated for food purposes, is crucial to the oil and gas industry, search and rescue, and is even done recreationally by millions of people. There is a growing need however, to monitor the health and activity of divers. The Divers Alert Network has reported on average 90 fatalities per year since 1980. Furthermore an estimated 1000 divers require recompression treatment for dive-related injuries every year. One means of monitoring diver activity is to integrate strain sensors into a wetsuit. This would provide kinematic information on the diver potentially improving buoyancy control assessment, providing a platform for gesture communication, detecting panic attacks and monitoring diver fatigue. To explore diver kinematic monitoring we have coupled dielectric elastomer sensors to a wetsuit worn by the pilot of a human-powered wet submarine. This provided a unique platform to test the performance and accuracy of dielectric elastomer strain sensors in an underwater application. The aim of this study was to assess the ability of strain sensors to monitor the kinematics of a diver. This study was in collaboration with the University of Auckland's human-powered submarine team, Team Taniwha. The pilot, completely encapsulated in a hull, pedals to propel the submarine forward. Therefore this study focused on leg motion as that is the primary motion of the submarine pilot. Four carbon-filled silicone dielectric elastomer sensors were fabricated and coupled to the pilot's wetsuit. The first two sensors were attached over the knee joints, with the remaining two attached between the pelvis and thigh. The goal was to accurately measure leg joint angles thereby determining the position of each leg relative to the hip. A floating data acquisition unit monitored the sensors and transmitted data packets to a nearby computer for real-time processing. A GoPro Hero 4 silver edition was used to capture the experiments and provide a means of post-validation. The

Impact of ANSI 2009 criteria for performance testing in TLD personnel monitoring

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MeenaI, P.; Rakesh, R.B.; Srivastava, Kshama; KoIambe, D.H.; Sapra, B.K.

2014-01-01

External Quality Assurance in TLD Personnel Monitoring Service was initiated in 1985, for periodic performance evaluation of various TLD Laboratories through postal exercise. Presently, all the 16 laboratories involved in Personnel Monitoring Service are covered under QA exercise. Since beginning, American National Standards Institute (ANSI) criteria have been adopted for performance testing in QA exercise. Presently, ANSI 2001 performance criteria along with ISO trumpet curve analysis method are being used for performance evaluation. In 2009, ANSI modified the performance evaluation criteria and this study evaluates its impact and feasibility of implementation of ANSI 2009 criteria in the quality assurance program for personnel monitoring. The performance of some laboratories evaluated using both ANSI 2001 and ANSI 2009 criteria have been discussed. The study shows that the ANSI 2009 criteria is more stringent and encourages even distribution of bias and standard deviation. This can be implemented with suitable modifications for performance evaluation

Performance monitoring pavements with thermal segregation in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-01

This project conducted work to investigate the performance of asphalt surface mixtures that exhibited : thermal segregation during construction. From 2004 to 2009, a total of 14 construction projects were : identified for monitoring. Five of these pr...

Together I Can! Joint Attention Boosts 3- to 4-Year-Olds' Performance in a Verbal False-Belief Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Psouni, Elia; Falck, Andreas; Boström, Leni; Persson, Martin; Sidén, Lisa; Wallin, Maria

2018-04-20

Effects of joint attention were addressed on 3- to 4-year-olds' performance in a verbal false-Belief Test (FBT), featuring the experimenter as co-watcher rather than narrator. In two experiments, children (N = 183) watched a filmed-FBT jointly with a test leader, disjointed from a test leader, or alone. Children attending jointly with a test leader were more likely to pass the FBT compared with normative data and to spontaneously recall information indicating false-belief understanding, suggesting that joint attention strengthens the plausibility of the FBT and renders plot-critical information more salient. In a third experiment (N = 59), results were replicated using a typical, image-based FBT. Overall findings highlight the profound impact of experimenter as social context in verbal FBTs, and link recall of specific story features to false-belief understanding. © 2018 Society for Research in Child Development.

Taking two to tango: fMRI analysis of improvised joint action with physical contact

Science.gov (United States)

Belyk, Michel; Brown, Steven

2018-01-01

Many forms of joint action involve physical coupling between the participants, such as when moving a sofa together or dancing a tango. We report the results of a novel two-person functional MRI study in which trained couple dancers engaged in bimanual contact with an experimenter standing next to the bore of the magnet, and in which the two alternated between being the leader and the follower of joint improvised movements. Leading showed a general pattern of self-orientation, being associated with brain areas involved in motor planning, navigation, sequencing, action monitoring, and error correction. In contrast, following showed a far more sensory, externally-oriented pattern, revealing areas involved in somatosensation, proprioception, motion tracking, social cognition, and outcome monitoring. We also had participants perform a “mutual” condition in which the movement patterns were pre-learned and the roles were symmetric, thereby minimizing any tendency toward either leading or following. The mutual condition showed greater activity in brain areas involved in mentalizing and social reward than did leading or following. Finally, the analysis of improvisation revealed the dual importance of motor-planning and working-memory areas. We discuss these results in terms of theories of both joint action and improvisation. PMID:29324862

Self-, other-, and joint monitoring using forward models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin John Pickering

2014-03-01

Full Text Available In the psychology of language, most accounts of self-monitoring assume that it is based on comprehension. Here we outline and develop the alternative account proposed by Pickering and Garrod (2013, in which speakers construct forward models of their upcoming utterances and compare them with the utterance as they produce them. We propose that speakers compute inverse models derived from the discrepancy (error between the utterance and the predicted utterance and use that to modify their production command or (occasionally begin anew. We then propose that comprehenders monitor other people’s speech by simulating their utterances using covert imitation and forward models, and then comparing those forward models with what they hear. They use the discrepancy to compute inverse models and modify their representation of the speaker’s production command, or realize that their representation is incorrect and may develop a new production command. We then discuss monitoring in dialogue, paying attention to sequential contributions, concurrent feedback, and the relationship between monitoring and alignment.

The infiltration of the AC joint performed by one specialist: Ultrasound versus palpation a prospective randomized pilot study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sabeti-Aschraf, M., E-mail: manuel.sabeti-aschraf@meduniwien.ac.a [Vienna Medical School, Department for Orthopaedics and Orthopaedic Surgery, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Ochsner, A. [Vienna Medical School, Department for Orthopaedics and Orthopaedic Surgery, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Schueller-Weidekamm, C. [Vienna Medical School, Department for Radiology, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Schmidt, M. [Vienna Medical School, Department for Orthopaedics and Orthopaedic Surgery, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Funovics, Ph.T. [Vienna Medical School, Department for Radiology, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Skrbensky, G. von [Vienna Medical School, Department for Orthopaedics and Orthopaedic Surgery, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Goll, A. [Vienna Medical School, Core Unit for Medical Statistics and Wien, Waehringer Guertel18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria); Schatz, K.D. [Vienna Medical School, Department for Orthopaedics and Orthopaedic Surgery, AKH-Wien, Waehringer Guertel18-20, 1090 Vienna (Austria)

2010-07-15

Introduction: The acromio-clavicular (AC) joint is very susceptible to degenerative processes that result in pain and functional impairment. One common modality of treatment has been local infiltration of the joint space. Although this procedure has produced notable positive results, needle misplacement occurs frequently. The aim of this investigation is to evaluate the effects of an intra articular infiltration by comparing precise needle placement into the joint space using high-resolution-ultrasound with the conventional palpation technique. Methods: This prospective and randomized pilot study analysed 20 patients who were assigned either to the 'ultrasound' or the 'palpation' group. Clinical examinations were performed before treatment and at 1 h, 1 week and 3 weeks after a single infiltration of local anaesthetic and corticoid carried out by one specialist. Results: In both groups significant improvement in pain and function was obtained up to one-week post injection. Function remained significantly improved until the last follow-up and did not differ between the two groups. The agent was administered in all patients into the joint space in the ultrasound group. Conclusion: Ultrasound guided infiltration of the AC joint is an easily achieved procedure without any complications. However, clinical follow-up did not differ between free-hand and ultrasound-guided AC joint space infiltration.

The infiltration of the AC joint performed by one specialist: Ultrasound versus palpation a prospective randomized pilot study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sabeti-Aschraf, M.; Ochsner, A.; Schueller-Weidekamm, C.; Schmidt, M.; Funovics, Ph.T.; Skrbensky, G. von; Goll, A.; Schatz, K.D.

2010-01-01

Introduction: The acromio-clavicular (AC) joint is very susceptible to degenerative processes that result in pain and functional impairment. One common modality of treatment has been local infiltration of the joint space. Although this procedure has produced notable positive results, needle misplacement occurs frequently. The aim of this investigation is to evaluate the effects of an intra articular infiltration by comparing precise needle placement into the joint space using high-resolution-ultrasound with the conventional palpation technique. Methods: This prospective and randomized pilot study analysed 20 patients who were assigned either to the 'ultrasound' or the 'palpation' group. Clinical examinations were performed before treatment and at 1 h, 1 week and 3 weeks after a single infiltration of local anaesthetic and corticoid carried out by one specialist. Results: In both groups significant improvement in pain and function was obtained up to one-week post injection. Function remained significantly improved until the last follow-up and did not differ between the two groups. The agent was administered in all patients into the joint space in the ultrasound group. Conclusion: Ultrasound guided infiltration of the AC joint is an easily achieved procedure without any complications. However, clinical follow-up did not differ between free-hand and ultrasound-guided AC joint space infiltration.

Magnetic resonance imaging of hip joint cartilage and labrum

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christoph Zilkens

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Hip joint instability and impingement are the most common biomechanical risk factors that put the hip joint at risk to develop premature osteoarthritis. Several surgical procedures like periacetabular osteotomy for hip dysplasia or hip arthroscopy or safe surgical hip dislocation for femoroacetabular impingement aim at restoring the hip anatomy. However, the success of joint preserving surgical procedures is limited by the amount of pre-existing cartilage damage. Biochemically sensitive MRI techniques like delayed Gadolinium Enhanced MRI of Cartilage (dGEMRIC might help to monitor the effect of surgical or non-surgical procedures in the effort to halt or even reverse joint damage.

Interrogation of fibre Bragg gratings through a fibre optic rotary joint on a geotechnical centrifuge

Science.gov (United States)

Correia, Ricardo; James, Stephen W.; Marshall, Alec; Heron, Charles; Korposh, Sergiy

2016-05-01

The monitoring of an array of fibre Bragg gratings (FBGs) strain sensors was performed through a single channel, single mode fibre optic rotary joint (FORJ) mounted on a geotechnical centrifuge. The array of three FBGs was attached to an aluminum plate that was anchored at the ends and placed on the model platform of the centrifuge. Acceleration forces of up to 50g were applied and the reflection signal of the monitored FBGs recorded dynamically using a 2.5kHz FBG interrogator placed outside the centrifuge. The use of a FORJ allowed the monitoring of the FBGs without submitting the FBG interrogator to the high g-forces experienced in the centrifuge.

Respiratory pattern changes during costovertebral joint movement.

Science.gov (United States)

Shannon, R

1980-05-01

Experiments were conducted to determine if costovertebral joint manipulation (CVJM) could influence the respiratory pattern. Phrenic efferent activity (PA) was monitored in dogs that were anesthetized with Dial-urethane, vagotomized, paralyzed, and artificially ventilated. Ribs 6-10 (bilaterally) were cut and separated from ribs 5-11. Branches of thoracic nerves 5-11 were cut, leaving only the joint nerve supply intact. Manual joint movement in an inspiratory or expiratory direction had an inhibitory effect on PA. Sustained displacement of the ribs could inhibit PA for a duration equal to numerous respiratory cycles. CVJM in synchrony with PA resulted in an increased respiratory rate. The inspiratory inhibitory effect of joint receptor stimulation was elicited with manual chest compression in vagotomized spontaneously breathing dogs, but not with artificial lung inflation or deflation. It is concluded that the effect of CVJM on the respiratory pattern is due to stimulation of joint mechanoreceptors, and that they exert their influence in part via the medullary-pontine rhythm generator.

Performance monitoring in obsessive-compulsive undergraduates: Effects of task difficulty.

Science.gov (United States)

Riesel, Anja; Richter, Anika; Kaufmann, Christian; Kathmann, Norbert; Endrass, Tanja

2015-08-01

Both obsessive-compulsive disorder and subclinical obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms seem to be associated with hyperactive error-related brain activity. The current study examined performance monitoring in subjects with subclinical OC symptoms using a new task with different levels of difficulty. Nineteen subjects with high and 18 subjects with low OC characteristics performed a random dot cinematogram (RDC) task with three levels of difficulty. The high and low OC groups did not differ in error-related negativity (ERN), correct-related negativity (CRN) and performance irrespective of task difficulty. The amplitude of the ERN decreased with increasing difficulty whereas the magnitude of CRN did not vary. ERN and CRN approached in size and topography with increasing difficulty, which suggests that errors and correct responses are processed more similarly. These results add to a growing number of studies that fail to replicate hyperactive performance monitoring in individuals with OC symptoms in task with higher difficulty or requiring learning. Together with these findings our results suggest that the relationship between OC symptoms and performance monitoring may be sensitive to type of task and task characteristics and cannot be observed in a RDC that differs from typically used tasks in difficulty and the amount of response-conflict. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

12 CFR 621.10 - Monitoring of performance categories and other property owned.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Monitoring of performance categories and other property owned. 621.10 Section 621.10 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION FARM CREDIT SYSTEM ACCOUNTING AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS Loan Performance and Valuation Assessment § 621.10 Monitoring of...

Fast Flux Test Facility performance monitoring management information: [Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Newland, D.J.

1987-09-01

The purpose of this report is to provide management with performance data on key performance indicators for the month of July, 1987. This report contains the results for key performance indicators divided into two categories of ''overall'' and ''other''. The ''overall'' performance indicators, when considered in the aggregate, provide one means of monitoring overall plant performance

JET Joint Undertaking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keen, B.E.

1987-03-01

The paper presents the progress report of the Joint European Torus (JET) Joint Undertaking, 1986. The report contains a survey of the scientific and technical achievements on JET during 1986; the more important articles referred to in this survey are reproduced as appendices to this Report. The last section discusses developments which might improve the overall performance of the machine. (U.K.)

Fast beam condition monitor for CMS. Performance and upgrade

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leonard, Jessica L.; Bell, Alan; Burtowy, Piotr

2014-05-01

The CMS beam and radiation monitoring subsystem BCM1F (Fast Beam Condition Monitor) consists of 8 individual diamond sensors situated around the beam pipe within the pixel detector volume, for the purpose of fast bunch-by-bunch monitoring of beam background and collision products. In addition, effort is ongoing to use BCM1F as an online luminosity monitor. BCM1F will be running whenever there is beam in LHC, and its data acquisition is independent from the data acquisition of the CMS detector, hence it delivers luminosity even when CMS is not taking data. A report is given on the performance of BCM1F during LHC run I, including results of the van der Meer scan and on-line luminosity monitoring done in 2012. In order to match the requirements due to higher luminosity and 25 ns bunch spacing, several changes to the system must be implemented during the upcoming shutdown, including upgraded electronics and precise gain monitoring. First results from Run II preparation are shown.

Fast Beam Condition Monitor for CMS: performance and upgrade

CERN Document Server

INSPIRE-00009152; Bell, Alan; Burtowy, Piotr; Dabrowski, Anne; Hempel, Maria; Henschel, Hans; Lange, Wolfgang; Lohmann, Wolfgang; Odell, Nathaniel; Penno, Marek; Pollack, Brian; Przyborowski, Dominik; Ryjov, Vladimir; Stickland, David; Walsh, Roberval; Warzycha, Weronika; Zagozdzinska, Agnieszka

2014-11-21

The CMS beam and radiation monitoring subsystem BCM1F (Fast Beam Condition Monitor) consists of 8 individual diamond sensors situated around the beam pipe within the pixel detector volume, for the purpose of fast bunch-by-bunch monitoring of beam background and collision products. In addition, effort is ongoing to use BCM1F as an online luminosity monitor. BCM1F will be running whenever there is beam in LHC, and its data acquisition is independent from the data acquisition of the CMS detector, hence it delivers luminosity even when CMS is not taking data. A report is given on the performance of BCM1F during LHC run I, including results of the van der Meer scan and on-line luminosity monitoring done in 2012. In order to match the requirements due to higher luminosity and 25 ns bunch spacing, several changes to the system must be implemented during the upcoming shutdown, including upgraded electronics and precise gain monitoring. First results from Run II preparation are shown.

Creep behavior evaluation of welded joint

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Susei, Shuzo; Matsui, Shigetomo; Mori, Eisuke; Shimizu, Shigeki; Satoh, Keisuke.

1980-01-01

In the creep design of high temperature structural elements, it is necessary to grasp the creep performance of joints as a whole, paying attention to the essential lack of uniformity between the material qualities of parent metals and welds. In this study, the factors controlling the creep performance of butt welded joints were investigated theoretically, when they were subjected to lateral tension and longitudinal tension. It was clarified that the rupture time in the case of laterally pulled joints was determined by the ratio of the creep rupture times of weld metals and parent metals, and the rupture time in the case of longitudinally pulled joints was determined by the ratio of the creep rupture times and the ratio of the creep strain rates of weld metals and parent metals. Moreover, when the joints of the former ratio less than 1 and the latter ratio larger than 1 were investigated experimentally, the rupture time in the case of laterally pulled joints was affected by the relative thickness, and when the relative thickness was large, the theoretical and the experimental values coincided, but the relative thickness was small, the theoretical values gave the evaluation on safe side as compared with the experimental values due to the effect of restricting deformation. In the case of longitudinally pulled joints, the theoretical and the experimental values coincided relatively well. The diagram of classifying the creep performance of welded joints was proposed. (Kako, I.)

The joint flanker effect and the joint Simon effect: On the comparability of processes underlying joint compatibility effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Dittrich, Kerstin; Bossert, Marie-Luise; Rothe-Wulf, Annelie; Klauer, Karl Christoph

2017-09-01

Previous studies observed compatibility effects in different interference paradigms such as the Simon and flanker task even when the task was distributed across two co-actors. In both Simon and flanker tasks, performance is improved in compatible trials relative to incompatible trials if one actor works on the task alone as well as if two co-actors share the task. These findings have been taken to indicate that actors automatically co-represent their co-actor's task. However, recent research on the joint Simon and joint flanker effect suggests alternative non-social interpretations. To which degree both joint effects are driven by the same underlying processes is the question of the present study, and it was scrutinized by manipulating the visibility of the co-actor. While the joint Simon effect was not affected by the visibility of the co-actor, the joint flanker effect was reduced when participants did not see their co-actors but knew where the co-actors were seated. These findings provide further evidence for a spatial interpretation of the joint Simon effect. In contrast to recent claims, however, we propose a new explanation of the joint flanker effect that attributes the effect to an impairment in the focusing of spatial attention contingent on the visibility of the co-actor.

Multisensory teamwork: using a tactile or an auditory display to exchange gaze information improves performance in joint visual search.

Science.gov (United States)

Wahn, Basil; Schwandt, Jessika; Krüger, Matti; Crafa, Daina; Nunnendorf, Vanessa; König, Peter

2016-06-01

In joint tasks, adjusting to the actions of others is critical for success. For joint visual search tasks, research has shown that when search partners visually receive information about each other's gaze, they use this information to adjust to each other's actions, resulting in faster search performance. The present study used a visual, a tactile and an auditory display, respectively, to provide search partners with information about each other's gaze. Results showed that search partners performed faster when the gaze information was received via a tactile or auditory display in comparison to receiving it via a visual display or receiving no gaze information. Findings demonstrate the effectiveness of tactile and auditory displays for receiving task-relevant information in joint tasks and are applicable to circumstances in which little or no visual information is available or the visual modality is already taxed with a demanding task such as air-traffic control. Practitioner Summary: The present study demonstrates that tactile and auditory displays are effective for receiving information about actions of others in joint tasks. Findings are either applicable to circumstances in which little or no visual information is available or when the visual modality is already taxed with a demanding task.

Performance of the upgraded NSLS beam position monitors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nawrocky, R.J.; Keane, J.

1997-01-01

The design and initial performance of the original NSLS beam position monitor were described by J. Bittner and R. Biscardi in 1989. The receiver, which processes signals from four button type pick-up electrodes by time-division multiplexing, operates at the third harmonic of the ring rf frequency (158.66 MHz). It has an output bandwidth of about 2 kHz and a dynamic signal range of approximately 36 dB. A total of 92 receivers have been installed in the NSLS X-ray and VUV storage rings for orbit monitoring and for real time feedback. As part of a continuous effort to improve the NSLS storage ring performance, the BPMs as well as other instrumentation systems have also been undergoing upgrades over the past two years to improve their performance. In the BPM, the front end has been modified to prevent saturation of the rf multiplexing switch, the detector operating point was changed to improve output signal linearity, the dynamic range was increased to over 60 dB, and the gain calibration was standardized to 0.5 volts/mm (i.e. 2 microm/mV). This paper describes the BPM modifications and presents some performance data and measurements on stored beam

Wearable Vector Electrical Bioimpedance System to Assess Knee Joint Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Hersek, Sinan; Toreyin, Hakan; Teague, Caitlin N; Millard-Stafford, Mindy L; Jeong, Hyeon-Ki; Bavare, Miheer M; Wolkoff, Paul; Sawka, Michael N; Inan, Omer T

2017-10-01

We designed and validated a portable electrical bioimpedance (EBI) system to quantify knee joint health. Five separate experiments were performed to demonstrate the: 1) ability of the EBI system to assess knee injury and recovery; 2) interday variability of knee EBI measurements; 3) sensitivity of the system to small changes in interstitial fluid volume; 4) reducing the error of EBI measurements using acceleration signals; and 5) use of the system with dry electrodes integrated to a wearable knee wrap. 1) The absolute difference in resistance ( R) and reactance (X) from the left to the right knee was able to distinguish injured and healthy knees (p knee R was 2.5 Ω and for X was 1.2 Ω. 3) Local heating/cooling resulted in a significant decrease/increase in knee R (p knee R and X measured using the wet electrodes and the designed wearable knee wrap were highly correlated ( R 2 = 0.8 and 0.9, respectively). This study demonstrates the use of wearable EBI measurements in monitoring knee joint health. The proposed wearable system has the potential for assessing knee joint health outside the clinic/lab and help guide rehabilitation.

Joint action without and beyond planning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Blomberg, Olle

2013-01-01

” that one must have in order to be a party to a shared intention (consider, for example, the social play of young children or the cooperative hunting of non-human primates or social carnivores). The second lacuna concerns how participants (including adult human agents) are able to coordinate their actions......, to make sense of the idea that joint activities are non-accidentally coordinated. In chapter 3, I offer an account of a kind of joint activity in which agents such as young children and some non-human primates could participate, given what we know about their socio-cognitive capacities. In chapter 4, I...... to perform “our” joint action. I reject this constraint and argue that some joint actions (such as a joint manoeuvre performed by two figure skaters) are joint in virtue of each participant having what I call ‘socially extended intention-in-action’ that overlap. In chapter 5, I review empirical work...

Semiextended approach for intramedullary nailing via a patellar eversion technique for tibial-shaft fractures: Evaluation of the patellofemoral joint.

Science.gov (United States)

Yasuda, Tomohiro; Obara, Shu; Hayashi, Junji; Arai, Masayuki; Sato, Kaoru

2017-06-01

Intramedullary nail fixation is a common treatment for tibial-shaft fractures, and it offers a better functional prognosis than other conservative treatments. Currently, the primary approach employed during intramedullary nail insertion is the semiextended position is the suprapatellar approach, which involves a vertical incision of the quadriceps tendon Damage to the patellofemoral joint cartilage has been highlighted as a drawback associated with this approach. To avoid this issue, we perform surgery using the patellar eversion technique and a soft sleeve. This method allows the articular surface to be monitored during intramedullary nail insertion. We arthroscopically assessed the effect of this technique on patellofemoral joint cartilage. The patellar eversion technique allows a direct view and protection of the patellofemoral joint without affecting the patella. Thus, damage to the patellofemoral joint cartilage can be avoided. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Exterior beam-column joint study with non-conventional ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Reinforced concrete structures beam-column joints are the most critical regions in seismic prone areas. Proper reinforcement anchorage is essential to enhance the performance of the joints. An attempt has been made to appraise the performance of the anchorages and joints. The anchorages are detailed as per ACI-352 ...

Performance of an rf beam monitor on the NBS-Los Alamos racetrack microtron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Young, L.M.; Cutler, R.I.

1985-01-01

A prototype rf beam-position, current, and phase monitor has been used on the 100-keV injector beamline of the racetrack microtron (RTM) where performance was measured with the chopped and bunched beam. This monitor works with both a pulsed beam and a cw beam. The pulsed beam consists of beam pulses with a FWHM of 40 ns. The rf beam monitor was tested with beam currents from approx. 50 to 600 μA. The rf beam monitor will be described and its performance will be reported. 6 refs., 5 figs

Development and test of the ITER conductor joints

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martovetsky, N., LLNL

1998-05-14

Joints for the ITER superconducting Central Solenoid should perform in rapidly varying magnetic field with low losses and low DC resistance. This paper describes the design of the ITER joint and presents its assembly process. Two joints were built and tested at the PTF facility at MIT. Test results are presented, losses in transverse and parallel field and the DC performance are discussed. The developed joint demonstrates sufficient margin for baseline ITER operating scenarios.

A Mountain-Scale Monitoring Network for Yucca Mountain Performance Confirmation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freifeld, Barry; Tsang, Yvonne

2006-01-01

Confirmation of the performance of Yucca Mountain is required by 10 CFR Part 63.131 to indicate, where practicable, that the natural system acts as a barrier, as intended. Hence, performance confirmation monitoring and testing would provide data for continued assessment during the pre-closure period. In general, to carry out testing at a relevant scale is always important, and in the case of performance confirmation, it is particularly important to be able to test at the scale of the repository. We view the large perturbation caused by construction of the repository at Yucca Mountain as a unique opportunity to study the large-scale behavior of the natural barrier system. Repository construction would necessarily introduce traced fluids and result in the creation of leachates. A program to monitor traced fluids and construction leachates permits evaluation of transport through the unsaturated zone and potentially downgradient through the saturated zone. A robust sampling and monitoring network for continuous measurement of important parameters, and for periodic collection of agrochemical samples, is proposed to observe thermo-hydrogeochemical changes near the repository horizon and down to the water table. The sampling and monitoring network can be used to provide data to (1) assess subsurface conditions encountered and changes in those conditions during construction and waste emplacement operations; and (2) for modeling to determine that the natural system is functioning as intended

Creep of timber joints

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van de Kuilen, J.W.G.

2008-01-01

A creep analysis has been performed on nailed, toothed-plates and split-ring joints in a varying uncontrolled climate. The load levels varied between 30% and 50% of the average ultimate short term strength of these joints, tested in accordance with ISO 6891. The climate in which the tests were

Joint impact of ERP systems and non financial performance indicators on corporate financial performance: Evidence from French listed companies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmed Kouki

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to examine the joint impact of Enterprise Resource Planning systems (ERP systems and Non Financial Performance Indicators (NFPI on corporate financial performance. Our study is based on a comparative analysis between firms that adopt ERP only, firms that use NFPI only and firms that combining both strategies (ERP and NFPI during the period from 2001 to 2006.The implementation process remains highly uncertain. In fact, the use of Non Financial performance indicators is an important determinant of corporate financial performance. At the operational level, combining ERP systems with NFPI reflects a long-term business strategy to improve business process. In summary, the ERP and NFPI literatures demonstrate the vital importance of aligning business process, information technologies and key performance indicators with the strategic objectives of the firm. Results support the hypothesis in which firms that combining ERP and NFPI have significantly higher ROA than either ERP-only or NFPI-only firms.

Rehabilitation after total joint replacement: a scoping study.

Science.gov (United States)

L Snell, Deborah; Hipango, Julia; Sinnott, K Anne; Dunn, Jennifer A; Rothwell, Alastair; Hsieh, C Jean; DeJong, Gerben; Hooper, Gary

2018-07-01

The evidence supporting rehabilitation after joint replacement, while vast, is of variable quality making it difficult for clinicians to apply the best evidence to their practice. We aimed to map key issues for rehabilitation following joint replacement, highlighting potential avenues for new research. We conducted a scoping study including research published between January 2013 and December 2016, evaluating effectiveness of rehabilitation following hip and knee total joint replacement. We reviewed this work in the context of outcomes described from previously published research. Thirty individual studies and seven systematic reviews were included, with most research examining the effectiveness of physiotherapy-based exercise rehabilitation after total knee replacement using randomized control trial methods. Rehabilitation after hip and knee replacement whether carried out at the clinic or monitored at home, appears beneficial but type, intensity and duration of interventions were not consistently associated with outcomes. The burden of comorbidities rather than specific rehabilitation approach may better predict rehabilitation outcome. Monitoring of recovery and therapeutic attention appear important but little is known about optimal levels and methods required to maximize outcomes. More work exploring the role of comorbidities and key components of therapeutic attention and the therapy relationship, using a wider range of study methods may help to advance the field. Implications for Rehabilitation Physiotherapy-based exercise rehabilitation after total hip replacement and total knee replacement, whether carried out at the clinic or monitored at home, appears beneficial. Type, intensity, and duration of interventions do not appear consistently associated with outcomes. Monitoring a patient's recovery appears to be an important component. The available research provides limited guidance regarding optimal levels of monitoring needed to achieve gains following hip

The JET neutron emission profile monitor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adams, J.M.; Syme, D.B.; Watkins, N.; Jarvis, O.N.; Sadler, G.J.

1993-01-01

This paper provides a technical description of the neutron emission profile monitor as used routinely at the Joint European Torus (JET), and includes representative examples of its operational capabilities. The primary function of this instrument is to measure the neutron emission as a function of both position and time in a poloidal (vertical along major radius) section through the torus. For the first time the spatially localised effects of sawteeth (magnetic relaxation phenomena) have been observed using a neutron diagnostic. The total (global) neutron emission can be obtained from the profile monitor data by performing a volume integral over the plasma; the absolute neutron emission rates agree with those obtained from the JET time-resolved neutron monitor to within ±15%. This was the first such instrument routinely in use on any tokamak. It provides unique data which are independent of all other diagnostic measurements. (orig.)

Parameter identification for joint elements in a revolute-joint detector manipulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Preissner, C.; Shu, D.; Royston, T.

2005-01-01

A revolute-joint robot is being developed for the spatial positioning of an x-ray detector at the Advanced Photon Source. Commercially available revolute-joint manipulators do not meet our size, positioning, or payload specifications. One idea being considered is the modification of a commercially available robot, with the goal of improving the repeatability and trajectory accuracy. Theoretical, computational, and experimental procedures are being used to (1) identify, (2) simulate the dynamics of an existing robot system using a multibody approach, and eventually (3) design an improved version, with low dynamic positioning uncertainty. A key aspect of the modeling and performance prediction is accurate stiffness and damping values for the robot joints. This paper discusses the experimental identification of the stiffness and damping parameters for one robot harmonic drive joint

Performance monitoring of zircaloy-4 square fuel channels at TAPS-1 and 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akhtar, J.; Ramu, A.; Anilkumar, K.R.; Sharma, B.L.; Bhattacharjee, S.; Ramamurty, U.; Srivastava, S.P.; Prasad, P.N.; Anantharaman, K.

2006-01-01

Tarapur Atomic Power Station is a twin unit Boiling Water Reactors. The initial rated capacity of each unit was 210 MWe. Subsequently due to Secondary Steam Generator tube leak problem, the units were de-rated to 160 MWe in the year 1984-85. The station has completed 36 years of successful commercial operation. TAPS reactor fuel channels are made of Zircaloy-4, material. These are used along with 6x6 array nuclear fuel assemblies. The fuel channels need to be discharged once it reaches an optimum exposure limit and based on the surveillance programme, which monitors the channels performance. NFC has indigenously developed fuel channels for TAPS and these are at various stages of exposure in both the reactor cores. The performance review of these channels was carried out by the experts from TAPS-Site, NPCIL-ED and RED, BARC. The two major factors, which affect fuel channels performance, are (a) Bulge and (b) Bow. The phenomenon of longitudinal bow occurs due to the neutron flux gradient across the channels faces. Studies made on this subject by General Electric (GE) indicated that this channel deflection occurs at a slow rate. Therefore, fuel channels surveillance programme is essential to check the irradiated fuel channels performance in order to replace the fuel channels once it reaches the optimum exposure limit. To estimate the useful life of irradiated fuel channels, channel deflection/bulge measurement inspection system and methodology was developed jointly by TAPS and Centre for Design and manufacture (CDM), BARC. This system was successfully deployed at TAPS. This paper briefly describes the developmental efforts made by Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC), Hyderabad, NPCIL-Fuel Group, Engg.Directorate, RED/BARC, CDM/BARC. (author)

In-flight spectral performance monitoring of the Airborne Prism Experiment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Odorico, D' P.; Alberti, E.; Schaepman, M.E.

2010-01-01

Spectral performance of an airborne dispersive pushbroom imaging spectrometer cannot be assumed to be stable over a whole flight season given the environmental stresses present during flight. Spectral performance monitoring during flight is commonly accomplished by looking at selected absorption

Extending role by Japanese pharmacists after training for performing vital signs monitoring

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hasegawa F

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Background: In Japan, the circumstances in which pharmacists work are changing. Pharmacists are expected to assess conditions of patients subject to medication to ensure proper use of pharmaceutical products. To ensure fulfilment of these roles, there have already been pharmacists’ efforts in performing vital signs monitoring. Objective: To clarify the necessity and related issues, by investigating the state of vital sign monitoring in clinical field by pharmacists who have been trained in vital sign monitoring. Method: A web survey was conducted from 4th October to 3rd December 2012, subjecting 1,026 pharmacists who completed the vital signs training hosted by The Japanese Association of Home Care Pharmacies (JAHCP. Survey items were 1 basic information of a respondent, 2 situation of homecare conducted by pharmacists, 3 seminar attendance status, and 4 vital signs monitoring status after the seminar. Results: The number of valid respondents was 430 and the response rate was 41.9%. As a result of the present research, it was revealed that 168 pharmacists (41.4%, had the opportunity to perform vital signs monitoring. By conducting vital sign monitoring, effects such as 1 improved motivation of pharmacists and better communication with patients, 2 proper use of medication, and 3 cost reduction were confirmed. Conclusion: Judging from the results of the survey, pharmacists can improve medication therapy for patients by attaining vital sign skills and conduct vital sign monitoring. Pharmacists who perform vital sign monitoring should share cases where they experienced positive patient outcomes.

Monitoring User-System Performance in Interactive Retrieval Tasks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boldareva, L.; de Vries, A.P.; Hiemstra, Djoerd

Monitoring user-system performance in interactive search is a challenging task. Traditional measures of retrieval evaluation, based on recall and precision, are not of any use in real time, for they require a priori knowledge of relevant documents. This paper shows how a Shannon entropy-based

Effect of aerated concrete blockwork joints on the heat transfer performance uniformity

Science.gov (United States)

Pukhkal, Viktor; Murgul, Vera

2018-03-01

Analysis of data on the effect of joints of the aerated concrete blocks on the heat transfer uniformity of exterior walls was carried out. It was concluded, that the values of the heat transfer performance uniformity factor in the literature sources were obtained for the regular fragment of a wall construction by approximate addition of thermal conductivities. Heat flow patterns for the aerated concrete exterior walls amid different values of the thermal conductivity factors and design ambient air temperature of -26 °C were calculated with the use of "ELCUT" software for modelling of thermal patterns by finite element method. There were defined the values for the heat transfer performance uniformity factor, reduced total thermal resistance and heat-flux density for the exterior walls. The calculated values of the heat transfer performance uniformity factors, as a function of the coefficient of thermal conductivity of aerated concrete blocks, differ from the known data by a more rigorous thermal and physical substantiation.

Effect of aerated concrete blockwork joints on the heat transfer performance uniformity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pukhkal Viktor

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Analysis of data on the effect of joints of the aerated concrete blocks on the heat transfer uniformity of exterior walls was carried out. It was concluded, that the values of the heat transfer performance uniformity factor in the literature sources were obtained for the regular fragment of a wall construction by approximate addition of thermal conductivities. Heat flow patterns for the aerated concrete exterior walls amid different values of the thermal conductivity factors and design ambient air temperature of -26 °C were calculated with the use of “ELCUT” software for modelling of thermal patterns by finite element method. There were defined the values for the heat transfer performance uniformity factor, reduced total thermal resistance and heat-flux density for the exterior walls. The calculated values of the heat transfer performance uniformity factors, as a function of the coefficient of thermal conductivity of aerated concrete blocks, differ from the known data by a more rigorous thermal and physical substantiation.

Part 7: Monitoring of biota

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

The present state of the biota, in respect to the previous state and in respect to the development after the realised technical measures on both sides, was evaluated according to the data included in the Slovak-Hungarian joint monitoring covering the period from 1992 to 1996. The river branch water supply on the Slovak side was introduced in May 1993 through the intake structure at Dobrohost. On the Hungarian side the water supply is accomplished by the underwater weir put into operation in June 1995. The biological monitoring on the Slovak side was performed at six monitoring areas, where all the groups agreed in the joint monitoring were monitored. On the Hungarian side each group were monitored on different monitoring sites. The water supply introduced on the Hungarian side by the underwater weir operation has no impact on the Slovak side. Similar impact as it is now observed on the Hungarian side has been observed on the Slovak side since introduction of water supply in 1993. The increased amount of water discharged to the Danube was reflected by changes of the habitat of aquatic communities. The water supply on the Hungarian side was accomplished by the construction of the underwater weir and therefore a connection of the river branch system with the Danube at two factors have had very significant influence on the bio-tops existing in the river branch system and subsequently to the fauna and flora. Generally large amount of water became available, which was reflected in change of stagnant or slowly flowing water into water flow with higher velocity or in increase of the water surface. In some locations the water level returned to the state before damming, in others new bio-tops were created, and in some locations the previous bio-tops disappeared. To these changed conditions the aquatic fauna reacted the most rapidly.The terrestrial communities prove the necessity of flooding and raising of ground water level on some of the inundation areas, because in spite

SLIM (secondary emission monitor for low interception monitoring) an innovative non-destructive beam monitor for the extraction lines of a hadrontherapy centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gibson, P.N.; Holzwarth, U.; Abbas, K.

2005-01-01

Real time monitoring of hadron therapy beam intensity and profile is a critical issue for the optimisation of dose delivery to carcinogenic tissue, patient safety and operation of the accelerator complex. For this purpose an innovative beam monitor, SLIM (Secondary electron emission for Low Interception Monitoring) is being developed in the framework of the EC-funded SUCIMA (Silicon Ultra-fast Cameras for electrons and gamma sources In Medical Application) project. The detector system is based on the secondary emission of electrons by a non-perturbative, sub-micron thick Al foil placed directly in the extracted beam path. The secondary electrons, accelerated by an electrostatic focusing system, are detected by a monolithic silicon position-sensitive sensor, which provides the beam intensity and its position with a precision of 1 mm at 10 kHz frame rate. The results of the laboratory tests of the first system prototype with thermoionic electrons emitted from a hot Tungsten wire are presented together with the measurements performed on a low intensity hadron beam at the Cyclotron of the Joint Research Centre in Ispra. (author)

Development of a computerized system for performance monitoring and diagnostics in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chou, G.H.; Chao, H.J.

1995-01-01

An on-line computerized system for thermal performance monitoring and diagnostics has been developed at the Institute of Nuclear Energy Research (INER). It was the product of the ChinShan plant performance Monitoring, Analysis and Diagnostics Expert System (CS-MADES) project sponsored by Taiwan Power Company (TPC). The system can carry out turbine performance monitoring and analysis during normal operation, and yield diagnostic results of component degradation after finding out the missing generation problems. Three subsystems were generated to support the whole system framework. They are Test Data Processing Subsystem (TDPS), On-line Monitoring and Analysis Subsystem (OMAS), and Thermal Performance Diagnostics Expert System (TPDES). Some visible benefits have been gained so far through the prototype system installed at the Chinshan nuclear power station

Joint-2D-SL0 Algorithm for Joint Sparse Matrix Reconstruction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dong Zhang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Sparse matrix reconstruction has a wide application such as DOA estimation and STAP. However, its performance is usually restricted by the grid mismatch problem. In this paper, we revise the sparse matrix reconstruction model and propose the joint sparse matrix reconstruction model based on one-order Taylor expansion. And it can overcome the grid mismatch problem. Then, we put forward the Joint-2D-SL0 algorithm which can solve the joint sparse matrix reconstruction problem efficiently. Compared with the Kronecker compressive sensing method, our proposed method has a higher computational efficiency and acceptable reconstruction accuracy. Finally, simulation results validate the superiority of the proposed method.

Photoacoustic tomography of joints aided by an Etanercept-conjugated gold nanoparticle contrast agent-an ex vivo preliminary rat study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chamberland, David L; Agarwal, Ashish; Kotov, Nicholas; Fowlkes, J Brian; Carson, Paul L; Wang Xueding

2008-01-01

Monitoring of anti-rheumatic drug delivery in experimental models and in human diseases would undoubtedly be very helpful for both basic research and clinical management of inflammatory diseases. In this study, we have investigated the potential of an emerging hybrid imaging technology-photoacoustic tomography-in noninvasive monitoring of anti-TNF drug delivery. After the contrast agent composed of gold nanorods conjugated with Etanercept molecules was produced, ELISA experiments were performed to prove the conjugation and to show that the conjugated anti-TNF-α drug was biologically active. PAT of ex vivo rat tail joints with the joint connective tissue enhanced by intra-articularly injected contrast agent was conducted to examine the performance of PAT in visualizing the distribution of the gold-nanorod-conjugated drug in articular tissues. By using the described system, gold nanorods with a concentration down to 1 pM in phantoms or 10 pM in biological tissues can be imaged with good signal-to-noise ratio and high spatial resolution. This study demonstrates the feasibility of conjugating TNF antagonist pharmaceutical preparations with gold nanorods, preservation of the mechanism of action of TNF antagonist along with preliminary evaluation of novel PAT technology in imaging optical contrast agents conjugated with anti-rheumatic drugs. Further in vivo studies on animals are warranted to test the specific binding between such conjugates and targeted antigen in joint tissues affected by inflammation

Design and expected performance of the new SLS beam size monitor

CERN Document Server

Milas, N.; Saa Hernandez, A.; Schlott, V.; Streun, A.; Andersson, A.; Breunlin, J.

2012-01-01

The vertical emittance minimization campaign at SLS, realized in the context of the TIARA WP6, has already achieved the world's smallest vertical beam size of 3.6 μm, corresponding to a vertical emittance of 0.9 pm, in a synchrotron light source. The minimum value reached for the vertical emittance is only about five times larger than the quantum limit of 0.2 pm. However, the resolution limit of the present SLS emittance monitor has also been reached during this campaign, thus, to further continue the emittance minimization program the construction of an improved second monitor is necessary. In this paper we present the design and studies on the performance of this new monitor based on the image formation method using vertically polarized synchrotron radiation in the visible and UV spectral ranges. This new monitor includes an additional feature, providing the possibility of performing full interferometric measurement by the use of a set of vertical obstacles that can be driven on the light path. Simulations...

Plug-and-play monitoring and performance optimization for industrial automation processes

CERN Document Server

Luo, Hao

2017-01-01

Dr.-Ing. Hao Luo demonstrates the developments of advanced plug-and-play (PnP) process monitoring and control systems for industrial automation processes. With aid of the so-called Youla parameterization, a novel PnP process monitoring and control architecture (PnP-PMCA) with modularized components is proposed. To validate the developments, a case study on an industrial rolling mill benchmark is performed, and the real-time implementation on a laboratory brushless DC motor is presented. Contents PnP Process Monitoring and Control Architecture Real-Time Configuration Techniques for PnP Process Monitoring Real-Time Configuration Techniques for PnP Performance Optimization Benchmark Study and Real-Time Implementation Target Groups Researchers and students of Automation and Control Engineering Practitioners in the area of Industrial and Production Engineering The Author Hao Luo received the Ph.D. degree at the Institute for Automatic Control and Complex Systems (AKS) at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany, ...

Performance monitoring and error significance in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Science.gov (United States)

Endrass, Tanja; Schuermann, Beate; Kaufmann, Christan; Spielberg, Rüdiger; Kniesche, Rainer; Kathmann, Norbert

2010-05-01

Performance monitoring has been consistently found to be overactive in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The present study examines whether performance monitoring in OCD is adjusted with error significance. Therefore, errors in a flanker task were followed by neutral (standard condition) or punishment feedbacks (punishment condition). In the standard condition patients had significantly larger error-related negativity (ERN) and correct-related negativity (CRN) ampliudes than controls. But, in the punishment condition groups did not differ in ERN and CRN amplitudes. While healthy controls showed an amplitude enhancement between standard and punishment condition, OCD patients showed no variation. In contrast, group differences were not found for the error positivity (Pe): both groups had larger Pe amplitudes in the punishment condition. Results confirm earlier findings of overactive error monitoring in OCD. The absence of a variation with error significance might indicate that OCD patients are unable to down-regulate their monitoring activity according to external requirements. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Monitoring of performance and training in rowing.

Science.gov (United States)

Mäestu, Jarek; Jürimäe, Jaak; Jürimäe, Toivo

2005-01-01

Rowing is a strength-endurance type of sport and competition performance depends on factors such as aerobic and anaerobic power, physical power, rowing technique and tactics. Therefore, a rower has to develop several capacities in order to be successful and a valid testing battery of a rower has to include parameters that are highly related to rowing performance. Endurance training is the mainstay in rowing. For the 2000 m race, power training at high velocities should be preferred to resistance training at low velocities in order to train more specifically during the off-season. The specific training of the international rower has to be approximately 70% of the whole training time. Several studies have reported different biochemical parameters for monitoring the training of rowers. There is some evidence that plasma leptin is more sensitive to training volume changes than specific stress hormones (e.g. cortisol, testosterone, growth hormone). In rowing, the stress hormone reactions to training volume and/or intensity changes are controversial. The Recovery-Stress Questionnaire for Athletes measures both stress and recovery, and may therefore be more effective than the previously used Borg ratio scale or the Profile of Mood States, which both focus mainly on the stress component. In the future, probably the most effective way to evaluate the training of rowers is to monitor both stress and recovery components at the same time, using both psychometric data together with the biochemical and performance parameters.

Development and implementation of a PV performance monitoring system based on inverter measurements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Spataru, Sergiu; Gavriluta, Anamaria Florina; Maaløe, Lars

2016-01-01

Performance monitoring and fault detection systems have become necessary for decreasing operation and maintenance cost in large photovoltaic (PV) plants, as well for maximizing plan yield and lifetime. We expect a similar development for residential and commercial PV system applications, where...... the inverter’s own monitoring and communication capabilities. We also aim to lower the implementation cost, by using a simple, but accurate performance monitoring approach, and show the practical issues that can arise when implementing such a system....

Vibration-based monitoring for performance evaluation of flexible civil structures in Japan

Science.gov (United States)

FUJINO, Yozo

2018-01-01

The vibration-based monitoring of flexible civil structures and performance evaluation from this monitoring are reviewed, with an emphasis on research and practice in Japan and the author’s experiences. Some new findings and unexpected vibrations from the monitoring of real bridges and buildings are reported to emphasize the importance of monitoring. Future developments and applications of vibration-based monitoring to civil infrastructure management are also described. Many examples are taken from the author’s past 30 years’ experience of research on bridge dynamics. PMID:29434082

Cost-Effective Mobile-Based Healthcare System for Managing Total Joint Arthroplasty Follow-Up.

Science.gov (United States)

Bitsaki, Marina; Koutras, George; Heep, Hansjoerg; Koutras, Christos

2017-01-01

Long-term follow-up care after total joint arthroplasty is essential to evaluate hip and knee arthroplasty outcomes, to provide information to physicians and improve arthroplasty performance, and to improve patients' health condition. In this paper, we aim to improve the communication between arthroplasty patients and physicians and to reduce the cost of follow-up controls based on mobile application technologies and cloud computing. We propose a mobile-based healthcare system that provides cost-effective follow-up controls for primary arthroplasty patients through questions about symptoms in the replaced joint, questionnaires (WOMAC and SF-36v2) and the radiological examination of knee or hip joint. We also perform a cost analysis for a set of 423 patients that were treated in the University Clinic for Orthopedics in Essen-Werden. The estimation of healthcare costs shows significant cost savings (a reduction of 63.67% for readmission rate 5%) in both the University Clinic for Orthopedics in Essen-Werden and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia when the mobile-based healthcare system is applied. We propose a mHealth system to reduce the cost of follow-up assessments of arthroplasty patients through evaluation of diagnosis, self-monitoring, and regular review of their health status.

Sacroiliac joint tuberculosis: surgical management by posterior open-window focal debridement and joint fusion.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Guo; Jiang, Li-Yuan; Yi, Zhang; Ping, Li; Duan, Chun-Yue; Yong, Cao; Liu, Jin-Yang; Hu, Jian-Zhong

2017-11-29

Sacroiliac joint tuberculosis(SJT) is relatively uncommon, but it may cause severe sacroiliac joint destruction and functional disorder. Few studies in the literature have been presented on SJT, reports of surgical treatment for SJT are even fewer. In this study, we retrospectively reviewed surgical management of patients with severe SJT of 3 different types and proposed to reveal the clinical manifestations and features and aim to determine the efficiency and security of such surgical treatment. We reviewed 17 patients with severe SJT of 3 different types who underwent posterior open-window focal debridement and bone graft for joint fusion. Among them,five patients with anterior sacral abscess had anterior abscess curettage before debridement. Two patients with lumbar vertebral tuberculosis received one-stage posterior tuberculous debridement, interbody fusion and instrumentation. Follow-up was performed 36 months (26 to 45 months) using the following parameters: erythrocyte sedimentation rate(ESR), status of joint bony fusion on CT scan, visual analogue scale (VAS) and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). Buttock pain and low back pain were progressively relieved with time. 6 months later, pain was not obvious, and ESR resumed to normal levels within 3 months. Solid fusion of the sacroiliac joint occurred within 12 months in all cases. No complications or recurrence occurred. At final follow-up, all patients had no pain or only minimal discomfort over the affected joint and almost complete functional recovery. Posterior open-window focal debridement and joint fusion is an efficient and secure surgical method to treat severe SJT. If there is an abscess in the front of the sacroiliac joint, anterior abscess curettage should be performed as a supplement.

Monitoring total-body inflammation and damage in joints and entheses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Axelsen, M. B.; Eshed, I.; Østergaard, M.

2017-01-01

Objective: To investigate changes in whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (WBMRI) inflammatory and structural lesions in most joints and entheses in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) treated with adalimumab. Methods: WBMRI was obtained at weeks 0, 6, 16, and 52 in a 52 week follow-up study...

Monitoring of performance management using Quality Assurance Indicators and ISO requirement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dargahi H

2007-06-01

Full Text Available Background: Quality assurance is a prevention-oriented system that can be used to improve the quality of care, increase productivity and monitor the performance management in clinical laboratories. ISO 9001: 2000 requirements are a collection of management and technical systems designed to implement quality assurance and monitor performance management in organizations. Methods: A checklist was prepared to monitor the preanalytical, analytical and postanalytical stages of laboratory performance management in 16 areas and all laboratory activities in 14 of the clinical laboratories of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS hospitals. Collected data were stored and statistically analyzed using SPSS software. Results: The best performance, in which 77.73% of quality assurance indicators were observed, was found in Sina Hospital. However, only 57.56% of these indicators were fulfilled at Farabi Hospital, with the lowest-level performance among the clinical laboratories of TUMS hospitals. The highest level of compliance with quality assurance indicators was in the hematology departments and for facility demands in management areas. Overall, quality assurance indicators were appropriately followed in only 7% of the clinical laboratories. Conclusion: The average quality assurance observation rate in the clinical laboratories studied was 67.22%, which is insufficient and must be remedied with stricter enforcement of the ISO 9001: 2000 regulations.

Performance Monitoring Techniques Supporting Cognitive Optical Networking

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Caballero Jambrina, Antonio; Borkowski, Robert; Zibar, Darko

2013-01-01

High degree of heterogeneity of future optical networks, such as services with different quality-of-transmission requirements, modulation formats and switching techniques, will pose a challenge for the control and optimization of different parameters. Incorporation of cognitive techniques can help...... to solve this issue by realizing a network that can observe, act, learn and optimize its performance, taking into account end-to-end goals. In this letter we present the approach of cognition applied to heterogeneous optical networks developed in the framework of the EU project CHRON: Cognitive...... Heterogeneous Reconfigurable Optical Network. We focus on the approaches developed in the project for optical performance monitoring, which enable the feedback from the physical layer to the cognitive decision system by providing accurate description of the performance of the established lightpaths....

Tractor performance monitor based on a single-chip microcomputer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bedri, A.R.; Marley, S.J.; Buchelle, W.F.; Smay, T.A.

1981-01-01

A tractor performance monitor based on a single-chip microcomputer was developed to measure ground speed, slip, fuel consumption (rate and total), total area, theoretical time, and total time. Transducers used are presented in detail. 5 refs.

Cluster analysis of received constellations for optical performance monitoring

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Weerdenburg, J.J.A.; van Uden, R.; Sillekens, E.; de Waardt, H.; Koonen, A.M.J.; Okonkwo, C.

2016-01-01

Performance monitoring based on centroid clustering to investigate constellation generation offsets. The tool allows flexibility in constellation generation tolerances by forwarding centroids to the demapper. The relation of fibre nonlinearities and singular value decomposition of intra-cluster

Digital tomosynthesis rendering of joint margins for arthritis assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Duryea, Jeffrey W.; Neumann, Gesa; Yoshioka, Hiroshi; Dobbins, James T., III

2004-05-01

PURPOSE: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) of the hand is a significant healthcare problem. Techniques to accurately quantity the structural changes from RA are crucial for the development and prescription of therapies. Analysis of radiographic joint space width (JSW) is widely used and has demonstrated promise. However, radiography presents a 2D view of the joint. In this study we performed tomosynthesis reconstructions of proximal interphalangeal (PIP), and metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints to measure the 3D joint structure. METHODS: We performed a reader study using simulated radiographs of 12 MCP and 12 PIP joints from skeletal specimens imaged with micro-CT. The tomosynthesis technique provided images of reconstructed planes with 0.75 mm spacing, which were presented to 2 readers with a computer tool. The readers were instructed to delineate the joint surfaces on tomosynthetic slices where they could visualize the margins. We performed a quantitative analysis of 5 slices surrounding the central portion of each joint. Reader-determined JSW was compared to a gold standard. As a figure of merit we calculated the average root-mean square deviation (RMSD). RESULTS: RMSD was 0.22 mm for both joints. For the individual joints, RMSD was 0.18 mm (MCP), and 0.26 mm (PIP). The reduced performance for the smaller PIP joints suggests that a slice spacing less than 0.75 mm may be more appropriate. CONCLUSIONS: We have demonstrated the capability of limited 3D rendering of joint surfaces using digital tomosynthesis. This technique promises to provide an improved method to visualize the structural changes of RA.

Link Performance Analysis and monitoring - A unified approach to divergent requirements

Science.gov (United States)

Thom, G. A.

Link Performance Analysis and real-time monitoring are generally covered by a wide range of equipment. Bit Error Rate testers provide digital link performance measurements but are not useful during real-time data flows. Real-time performance monitors utilize the fixed overhead content but vary widely from format to format. Link quality information is also present from signal reconstruction equipment in the form of receiver AGC, bit synchronizer AGC, and bit synchronizer soft decision level outputs, but no general approach to utilizing this information exists. This paper presents an approach to link tests, real-time data quality monitoring, and results presentation that utilizes a set of general purpose modules in a flexible architectural environment. The system operates over a wide range of bit rates (up to 150 Mbs) and employs several measurement techniques, including P/N code errors or fixed PCM format errors, derived real-time BER from frame sync errors, and Data Quality Analysis derived by counting significant sync status changes. The architecture performs with a minimum of elements in place to permit a phased update of the user's unit in accordance with his needs.

Multileaf collimator performance monitoring and improvement using semiautomated quality control testing and statistical process control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Létourneau, Daniel; McNiven, Andrea; Keller, Harald; Wang, An; Amin, Md Nurul; Pearce, Jim; Norrlinger, Bernhard; Jaffray, David A.

2014-01-01

Purpose: High-quality radiation therapy using highly conformal dose distributions and image-guided techniques requires optimum machine delivery performance. In this work, a monitoring system for multileaf collimator (MLC) performance, integrating semiautomated MLC quality control (QC) tests and statistical process control tools, was developed. The MLC performance monitoring system was used for almost a year on two commercially available MLC models. Control charts were used to establish MLC performance and assess test frequency required to achieve a given level of performance. MLC-related interlocks and servicing events were recorded during the monitoring period and were investigated as indicators of MLC performance variations. Methods: The QC test developed as part of the MLC performance monitoring system uses 2D megavoltage images (acquired using an electronic portal imaging device) of 23 fields to determine the location of the leaves with respect to the radiation isocenter. The precision of the MLC performance monitoring QC test and the MLC itself was assessed by detecting the MLC leaf positions on 127 megavoltage images of a static field. After initial calibration, the MLC performance monitoring QC test was performed 3–4 times/week over a period of 10–11 months to monitor positional accuracy of individual leaves for two different MLC models. Analysis of test results was performed using individuals control charts per leaf with control limits computed based on the measurements as well as two sets of specifications of ±0.5 and ±1 mm. Out-of-specification and out-of-control leaves were automatically flagged by the monitoring system and reviewed monthly by physicists. MLC-related interlocks reported by the linear accelerator and servicing events were recorded to help identify potential causes of nonrandom MLC leaf positioning variations. Results: The precision of the MLC performance monitoring QC test and the MLC itself was within ±0.22 mm for most MLC leaves

Multileaf collimator performance monitoring and improvement using semiautomated quality control testing and statistical process control.

Science.gov (United States)

Létourneau, Daniel; Wang, An; Amin, Md Nurul; Pearce, Jim; McNiven, Andrea; Keller, Harald; Norrlinger, Bernhard; Jaffray, David A

2014-12-01

High-quality radiation therapy using highly conformal dose distributions and image-guided techniques requires optimum machine delivery performance. In this work, a monitoring system for multileaf collimator (MLC) performance, integrating semiautomated MLC quality control (QC) tests and statistical process control tools, was developed. The MLC performance monitoring system was used for almost a year on two commercially available MLC models. Control charts were used to establish MLC performance and assess test frequency required to achieve a given level of performance. MLC-related interlocks and servicing events were recorded during the monitoring period and were investigated as indicators of MLC performance variations. The QC test developed as part of the MLC performance monitoring system uses 2D megavoltage images (acquired using an electronic portal imaging device) of 23 fields to determine the location of the leaves with respect to the radiation isocenter. The precision of the MLC performance monitoring QC test and the MLC itself was assessed by detecting the MLC leaf positions on 127 megavoltage images of a static field. After initial calibration, the MLC performance monitoring QC test was performed 3-4 times/week over a period of 10-11 months to monitor positional accuracy of individual leaves for two different MLC models. Analysis of test results was performed using individuals control charts per leaf with control limits computed based on the measurements as well as two sets of specifications of ± 0.5 and ± 1 mm. Out-of-specification and out-of-control leaves were automatically flagged by the monitoring system and reviewed monthly by physicists. MLC-related interlocks reported by the linear accelerator and servicing events were recorded to help identify potential causes of nonrandom MLC leaf positioning variations. The precision of the MLC performance monitoring QC test and the MLC itself was within ± 0.22 mm for most MLC leaves and the majority of the

A monitoring tool for performance improvement in plastic surgery at the individual level.

Science.gov (United States)

Maruthappu, Mahiben; Duclos, Antoine; Orgill, Dennis; Carty, Matthew J

2013-05-01

The assessment of performance in surgery is expanding significantly. Application of relevant frameworks to plastic surgery, however, has been limited. In this article, the authors present two robust graphic tools commonly used in other industries that may serve to monitor individual surgeon operative time while factoring in patient- and surgeon-specific elements. The authors reviewed performance data from all bilateral reduction mammaplasties performed at their institution by eight surgeons between 1995 and 2010. Operative time was used as a proxy for performance. Cumulative sum charts and exponentially weighted moving average charts were generated using a train-test analytic approach, and used to monitor surgical performance. Charts mapped crude, patient case-mix-adjusted, and case-mix and surgical-experience-adjusted performance. Operative time was found to decline from 182 minutes to 118 minutes with surgical experience (p factors is essential for correct interpretation of performance in plastic surgery at the individual surgeon level. Cumulative sum and exponentially weighted moving average charts represent accurate methods of monitoring operative time to control and potentially improve surgeon performance over the course of a career.

Generalised joint hypermobility and knee joint hypermobility

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Junge, Tina; Henriksen, Peter; Hansen, Sebrina

2018-01-01

. Respondents with GJHk and KJH reported lower HRQoL. CONCLUSION: GJHk and KJH were frequently reported in the Danish adult population, mostly in women. Respondents with GJHk and KJH were two times more likely to report knee joint-related symptoms such as pain, reduced performance of usual activity and lower...

32 CFR 34.41 - Monitoring and reporting program and financial performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring and reporting program and financial performance. 34.41 Section 34.41 National Defense Department of Defense OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE DoD... ORGANIZATIONS Post-award Requirements Reports and Records § 34.41 Monitoring and reporting program and financial...

Dorsoradial capsulodesis for trapeziometacarpal joint instability.

Science.gov (United States)

Rayan, Ghazi; Do, Viet

2013-02-01

We describe an alternative method for treating chronic trapeziometacarpal (TM) joint instability after acute injury or chronic repetitive use of the thumb by performing a dorsoradial capsulodesis procedure. The procedure is done by imbricating the redundant TM joint dorsoradial ligament and capsule after reducing the joint by pronating the thumb. The dorsoradial capsulodesis is a reasonable reconstructive option for chronic TM joint instability and subluxation. Copyright © 2013 American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of high-performance monitoring system under severe accident condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeuchi, Tomoaki; Tsuchiya, Kunihiro; Ishihara, Masahiro; Komanome, H.; Miura, K.

2017-01-01

A research and development of a monitoring system for NPPs situations even during severe accidents have been performed. The R and D consists of the three objectives. The major findings are briefly summarized in the followings: 1) Radiation-resistant monitoring camera. The image sensor with the photogate and three transistors was found to be advantageous in terms of dark current and sensitivity. In addition, radiation-resistant optical parts and signal circuits were successfully fabricated. The results suggested that the monitoring camera system with 10 6 Gy in radiation resistance was possible. 2) Radiation-resistant in-water wireless transmission system. A two-dimensional LED matrix with 10 6 Gy in radiation resistance and a camera were used as the transmission devices. The results of the in-water transmission tests suggested that stable wireless transmission between 5 m distance was possible even with bubble, turbidity, or obstacles. 3) Heat-resistant signal cable. In order to develop a cable that can transmit the data inside reactor pressure vessels, heat-proof tests were performed for candidate metallic sheath materials of mineral insulation (MI) cables. The results indicated MI cables which can be used at 1000degC in air were possible. These results indicate the feasibility of the monitoring system even during severe accidents. (author)

Marine mammal observations collected by aircraft and ship and submitted as part of the ConocoPhillips and Shell Joint Monitoring Program in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, 2006-2007 (NODC Accession 0120531)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This data set was collected as part of the Joint Monitoring Program during seismic activities in the Chukchi Sea. The 2006 data was collected by ship and aircraft as...

How joint characteristics between a piezoelectric beam and the main structure affect the performance of an energy harvester

Science.gov (United States)

Jahani, K.; Rafiei, M. M.; Aghazadeh, P.

2017-09-01

In this paper, the influence of the joint region between a piezoelectric energy harvesting beam and the vibratory main structure is studied. The investigations are conducted in two separate sections, namely numerical and experimental studies. In numerical studies, the effects of nonlinear parameters on generated power are investigated while the joint characteristics the between vibrating base and a piezoelectric energy harvester are taken into consideration. A unimorph beam with a tip mass and a nonlinear piezoelectric layer that undergoes a large-amplitude deflection is considered as an energy harvester. By applying the Euler-Lagrange equation and Gauss’s law the mechanical and electrical equations of motion are obtained, respectively. The excitation frequency is assumed to be close to the first natural frequency. Thus, a unimodal response is considered to be like that of a system with a single degree of freedom (SDOF). The joint between the vibrating main structure and the cantilevered beam is then added to the SDOF model. The joint characteristics are simulated with a light mass, mj , linear spring stiffness, kj , and equivalent viscous damper, cj . In two scenarios, i.e. with a rigid joint and with a flexible one, a numerical approach is followed to investigate the effects of each nonlinear parameter of the harvester (stiffness, damping and piezoelectric coefficient) on the harvested power. In experimental studies, the influence of a bolted joining technique and a flexible adhesive bonding method on the harvested power is investigated. The results achieved experimentally confirm those obtained numerically, i.e. a stiffer joint leads to a greater power produced by the harvester. In other words, neglecting the joint characteristics will cause the performance (maximum output power and the range of excitation frequency) of the harvester to be overestimated in numerical simulations.

Performance of Hybrid Reinforced Concrete Beam Column Joint: A Critical Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Md Rashedul Kabir

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Large residual strain in reinforced concrete structures after a seismic event is a major concern for structural safety and serviceability. Alternative reinforcement materials like fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP have been widely used to mitigate corrosion problems associated with steel. Low modulus of elasticity and brittle behavior compared to steel has made the use of FRP unsuitable in seismic resistant strictures. A combination of steel-FRP reinforcement configuration can address the problem of corrosion. Therefore, introducing a material that shows strong post elastic behavior without any decay due to corrosion is in demand. Shape memory alloy (SMA, a novel material, is highly corrosion resistive and shows super elastic property. Coupling SMA with FRP or steel in the plastic hinge region allows the structure to undergo large deformations, but regains its original shape upon unloading. In this study, the performance characteristics of four previously tested beam-column joints reinforced with different configurations (steel, SMA/steel, glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP and SMA/FRP are compared to assess their capacity to endure extreme loading. Experimental results are scrutinized to compare the behavior of these specimens in terms of load-story drift and energy dissipation capacity. SMA/FRP and SMA/Steel couples have been found to be an acceptable approach to reduce residual deformation in beam-column joints with adequate energy dissipation capacity. However, SMA/FRP is superior to SMA/Steel concerning to the corrosion issue in steel.

Do conventional monitoring practices indicate in situ air sparging performance?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, P.C.

1995-01-01

Short-term pilot tests play a key role in the selection and design of in situ air sparging systems. Most pilot tests are less than 24 h in duration and consist of monitoring changes in dissolved oxygen, water levels in wells, soil gas pressures, and soil gas contaminant concentrations while air is injected into the aquifer. These parameters are assumed to be indicators of air sparging feasibility and performance, and are also used in the design of full-scale systems. In this work the authors assess the validity of this critical assumption. Data are presented from a study site where a typical pilot-scale short-term test was conducted, followed by continued operation of a full-scale system for 110 days. Conventional sampling practices were augmented with more discrete and detailed assessment methods. In addition, a tracer gas was used to better understand air distributions, vapor flow paths, and vapor recovery efficiency. The data illustrate that conclusions regarding the performance and applicability of air sparging at the study site vary significantly depending on the monitoring approach used. There was no clear correlation between short-term pilot-test data and extended system performance when using data collected only from conventional groundwater monitoring wells. Attention is focused on petroleum hydrocarbons

New portable monitor enhances the ability to evaluate heat exchanger performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Toole, W.; Lacy, J.R.; Karlovich, D.N.

1992-01-01

Corrosion and fouling problems in nuclear power plant service water systems have led to industry-wide concern. These problems can affect the ability of these important heat exchangers to remove design heat loads. In addition, a limited amount of permanently installed on-line instrumentation is available to monitor key heat transfer parameters. A new, computerized monitoring system has been developed that acquires and manipulates process data. This enables power plant personnel to evaluate the on-line performance of important cooling system heat exchangers. The equipment provides the capability to continuously monitor, graph, and record cooling and process heat transfer parameters. The computer hardware is in a portable cabinet on wheels, which can be easily rolled from exchanger to exchanger for monitoring. This new monitoring system is being used at Consolidated Edison Company of New York Inc.'s Indian Point 2 Nuclear Station. They are currently expanding their performance testing on service water system heat exchangers and other auxiliary components to include those units that have limited on-line instrumentation. The ability to use clamp on flow and temperature sensing devices is necessary for trending exchanger performance. With on-line testing capabilities it is possible to: evaluate the cleanliness of plant heat transfer surfaces; make judgments about biofouling or antiscalant programs; and determine when equipment needs to be shut down for inspection or cleaning This paper describes this state-of-the-art equipment in detail and its application at the Indian Point 2 Nuclear Station. 9 refs., 8 figs., 1 tab

Sentinel 4: a geostationary imaging UVN spectrometer for air quality monitoring: status of design, performance and development

Science.gov (United States)

Gulde, S. T.; Kolm, M. G.; Smith, D. J.; Maurer, R.; Bazalgette Courrèges-Lacoste, G.; Sallusti, M.; Bagnasco, G.

2017-11-01

SENTINEL 4 is an imaging UVN (UV-VIS-NIR) spectrometer, developed by Airbus Defence and Space under ESA contract in the frame of the joint European Union (EU)/ESA COPERNICUS program. The mission objective is the operational monitoring of trace gas concentrations for atmospheric chemistry and climate applications. To this end SENTINEL 4 will provide accurate measurements of key atmospheric constituents such as ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, formaldehyde, as well as aerosol and cloud properties.

Co-consolidation of titanium-C/PAEK joints: an investigation into the interfacial performance governing mechanisms

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Su, Y.

2017-01-01

Fastener free metal-carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic composite hybrid joints show a potential for application in aerospace structures. In comparison with fastened hybrid joints, fastener free hybrid joints exhibit advantages in terms of joint weight reduction and a more uniformly distributed

Performance Analysis of a Self-Propelling Flat Plate Fin with Joint Compliance

Science.gov (United States)

Reddy, N. Srinivasa; Sen, Soumen; Pal, Sumit; Shome, Sankar Nath

2017-12-01

Fish fin muscles are compliant and they regulate the stiffness to suit different swimming conditions. This article attempts to understand the significance of presence of compliance in fin muscle with help of a flexible joint flat plate fin model. Blade element method is employed to model hydrodynamics and to compute the forces of interaction during motion of the plate within fluid. The dynamic model of self-propelling fin is developed through multi-body dynamics approach considering the hydrodynamic forces as external forces acting on the fin. The derived hydrodynamic model is validated with experiments on rigid flat plate fin. The effect of the joint stiffness and flapping frequency on the propulsion speed and efficiency is investigated through simulations using the derived and validated model. The propulsion efficiency is found to be highly influenced by the joint stiffness at a given flapping frequency. The fin attained maximum propulsion efficiency when the joint stiffness is tuned to a value at which flapping frequency matches near natural frequency of the fin. At this tuned joint stiffness and flapping frequency, the resulted Strouhal numbers are observed to fall within the optimum range (0.2 to 0.4) for maximized propulsion efficiency of flying birds and swimming aquatic animals reported in literature.

Batse/Sax and Batse/RXTE-ASM Joint Spectral Studies of GRBs

Science.gov (United States)

Paciesas, William S.

2002-01-01

We proposed to make joint spectral analysis of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) in the BATSE data base that are located within the fields of view of either the BeppoSAX wide field cameras (WFCs) or the RXTE all-sky monitor (ASM). The very broad-band coverage obtained in this way would facilitate various studies of GRB spectra that are difficult to perform with BATSE data alone. Unfortunately, the termination of the CGRO mission in June 2000 was not anticipated at the time of the proposal, and the sample of common events turned out to be smaller than we would have liked.

Water flow in single rock joints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hakami, Eva

1989-05-01

To study the hydromechanical properties of single rock joints a technique to make transparent replicas of natural joint surfaces has been developed. Five different joint samples were replicated and studied. The aperture distribution of the joints were obtained through a measurement method provided by the transparent replicas. The principle behind the method is that a water drop with a known volume, which is placed inside a joint, will cover a certain area of the surface depending on the average size of aperture at the actual point. Flow tests were performed on the same joint replicas. The tortuousity of the flow and the velocity along single stream lines were measured using colour injections into the water flow through the joints. The equivalent hydraulic apertures determined from the flow tests where shown to be smaller than the average mechanical apertures. The velocity of the flow varies strongly between different paths over the joint depending on the spatial distribution of the apertures. The degree of matedness between the joint surfaces is an important factor influencing the channeling character of the joints. (author) (38 refs.)

Effects of Energy Density and Shielding Medium on Performance of Laser Beam Welding (LBW) Joints on SAF2205 Duplex Stainless Steel

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, W. W.; Cong, S.; Luo, S. B.; Fang, J. H.

2018-05-01

The corrosion resistance performance of SAF2205 duplex stainless steel depends on the amount of ferrite to austenite transformation, but the ferrite content after power beam welding is always excessively high. To obtain laser beam welding joints with better mechanical and corrosion resistance performance, the effects of the energy density and shielding medium on the austenite content, hardness distribution, and shear strength were investigated. The results showed that ferrite to austenite transformation was realized with increase in the energy density. When the energy density was increased from 120 J/mm to 200 J/mm, the austenite content of the welding joint changed from 2.6% to 38.5%. Addition of nitrogen gas to the shielding medium could promote formation of austenite. When the shielding medium contained 50% and 100% nitrogen gas, the austenite content of the welding joint was 42.7% and 47.2%, respectively. The hardness and shear strength were significantly improved by increase in the energy density. However, the shielding medium had less effect on the mechanical performance. Use of the optimal welding process parameters resulted in peak hardness of 375 HV and average shear strength of 670 MPa.

Performance Monitoring for Nuclear Safety Related Instrumentation at PUSPATI TRIGA Reactor (RTP)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zareen Khan Abdul Jalil Khan; Ridzuan Abdul Mutalib; Mohd Sabri Minhat

2015-01-01

The Reactor TRIGA PUSPATI (RTP) at Malaysia Nuclear Agency is a TRIGA Mark II type reactor and pool type cooled by natural circulation of light water. This paper describe on performance monitoring for nuclear safety related instrumentation in TRIGA PUSPATI Reactor (RTP) of based on various parameter of reactor safety instrument channel such as log power, linear power, Fuel temperature, coolant temperature will take into consideration. Methodology of performance on estimation and monitoring is to evaluate and analysis of reactor parameters which is important of reactor safety and control. And also to estimate power measurement, differential of log and linear power and fuel temperature during reactor start-up, operation and shutdown .This study also focus on neutron power fluctuation from fission chamber during reactor start-up and operation. This work will present result of performance monitoring from RTP which indicated the safety parameter identification and initiate safety action on crossing the threshold set point trip. Conclude that performance of nuclear safety related instrumentation will improved the reactor control and safety parameter during reactor start-up, operation and shutdown. (author)

An Adaptive Joint Sparsity Recovery for Compressive Sensing Based EEG System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamza Djelouat

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The last decade has witnessed tremendous efforts to shape the Internet of things (IoT platforms to be well suited for healthcare applications. These platforms are comprised of a network of wireless sensors to monitor several physical and physiological quantities. For instance, long-term monitoring of brain activities using wearable electroencephalogram (EEG sensors is widely exploited in the clinical diagnosis of epileptic seizures and sleeping disorders. However, the deployment of such platforms is challenged by the high power consumption and system complexity. Energy efficiency can be achieved by exploring efficient compression techniques such as compressive sensing (CS. CS is an emerging theory that enables a compressed acquisition using well-designed sensing matrices. Moreover, system complexity can be optimized by using hardware friendly structured sensing matrices. This paper quantifies the performance of a CS-based multichannel EEG monitoring. In addition, the paper exploits the joint sparsity of multichannel EEG using subspace pursuit (SP algorithm as well as a designed sparsifying basis in order to improve the reconstruction quality. Furthermore, the paper proposes a modification to the SP algorithm based on an adaptive selection approach to further improve the performance in terms of reconstruction quality, execution time, and the robustness of the recovery process.

22 CFR 226.51 - Monitoring and reporting program performance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Monitoring and reporting program performance. 226.51 Section 226.51 Foreign Relations AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION OF... more frequently than quarterly or, less frequently than annually. Annual reports shall be due 90...

Improving Performance of Polymer Fiber Reinforced Sandwich X-Joints in Naval Vessels

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berggreen, Christian; Lundsgaard-Larsen, Christian; Karlsen, Kasper

2007-01-01

In many naval ships of fiber composite sandwich construction an X-joint exists where the end bulkhead of the superstructure is attached to the deck, with a bulkhead placed in the same vertical plane below the deck. As the hull girder flexes this joint is subjected to alternating tensile and compr...

Complete Web Monitoring Watching Performance, Users, and Communities

CERN Document Server

Croll, Alistair

2009-01-01

Complete Web Monitoring demonstrates how to measure every aspect of your web presence -- including analytics, backend performance, usability, communities, customer feedback, and competitive analysis -- whether you're running an e-commerce site, a community, a media property, or a Software-as-a-Service company. This book's concrete examples, clear explanations, and practical recommendations make it essential for anyone who runs a website.

An Integrated Architecture for On-Board Aircraft Engine Performance Trend Monitoring and Gas Path Fault Diagnostics

Science.gov (United States)

Simon, Donald L.

2010-01-01

Aircraft engine performance trend monitoring and gas path fault diagnostics are closely related technologies that assist operators in managing the health of their gas turbine engine assets. Trend monitoring is the process of monitoring the gradual performance change that an aircraft engine will naturally incur over time due to turbomachinery deterioration, while gas path diagnostics is the process of detecting and isolating the occurrence of any faults impacting engine flow-path performance. Today, performance trend monitoring and gas path fault diagnostic functions are performed by a combination of on-board and off-board strategies. On-board engine control computers contain logic that monitors for anomalous engine operation in real-time. Off-board ground stations are used to conduct fleet-wide engine trend monitoring and fault diagnostics based on data collected from each engine each flight. Continuing advances in avionics are enabling the migration of portions of the ground-based functionality on-board, giving rise to more sophisticated on-board engine health management capabilities. This paper reviews the conventional engine performance trend monitoring and gas path fault diagnostic architecture commonly applied today, and presents a proposed enhanced on-board architecture for future applications. The enhanced architecture gains real-time access to an expanded quantity of engine parameters, and provides advanced on-board model-based estimation capabilities. The benefits of the enhanced architecture include the real-time continuous monitoring of engine health, the early diagnosis of fault conditions, and the estimation of unmeasured engine performance parameters. A future vision to advance the enhanced architecture is also presented and discussed

Time-Lapse Joint Inversion of Cross-Well DC Resistivity and Seismic Data: A Numerical Investigation

Science.gov (United States)

Time-lapse joint inversion of geophysical data is required to image the evolution of oil reservoirs during production and enhanced oil recovery, CO2 sequestration, geothermal fields during production, and to monitor the evolution of contaminant plumes. Joint inversion schemes red...

Performance Management and Monitoring of Internal Audit for the Public Sector in Romania

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena Doina Dascălu

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Performance management is an on-going process, which has an essential component part, performance measurement, which involves the identification, supervision and communication of performance results, through the relation to a set of performance indicators. Based on the assessment results, corrective measures are established to ensure attainment of targeted results, offering a feedback, essential for the decision grounding enhancement, at all levels: strategic, operational or individual. As concerns performance management in public institutions in Romania, The Code on managerial internal control provides a hierarchy type model, in the framework of which, the head of the public entity, which is on the first level, needs to provide for performance monitoring for each objective and activity, through the intermediary of relevant quantitative and qualitative indicators, including referring to economy, efficiency, and effectiveness. Given the importance of the internal audit in the process of performance management, identifying solutions for continuous improvement of the public internal audit was subject to a study that was based on questioning public sector auditors on how to monitor the performance of public internal audit activity. Considering issues arising, the article proposes a series of directions for improving the monitoring of the performance of public internal audit activity in the public sector.

Evaluation of the RSG-GAS Alpha-Beta Aerosol Contaminant Monitor Performance Under Reactor Operation Condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hartoyo, Unggul; Setiawanto, Anto; Sumarno, Yulius

2000-01-01

Analysis to evaluate the RSG-GAS alpha-beta aerosol contaminant monitor performance was done. The high potential radiation working area such as in RSG-GAS is important to monitored for personal safety. Further it is necessary to assure that the system monitor is reliable enough under normal conditions as well as emergency condition. The method uses in this analysis are monitoring and comparing with the standard source. The standard course indicator and panel in main control room indicate that the result is 1 x 110 exp 9 Ci/m exp 3. Based on data monitor observation, the RSG-GAS alpha-beta aerosol contaminant monitor system under reactor operation condition has a good enough performance

Equal Rights Monitor 2002

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wil Portegijs; Annemarie Boelens; Saskia Keuzenkamp

2002-01-01

Original title: Emancipatiemonitor 2002. The Emancipation Monitor 2002 (Emancipatiemonitor 2002) provides statistics on the progress of the emancipation process, collected and analysed jointly by Statistics Netherlands (CBS) and the Netherlands Institute for Social Research/SCP. Is the

Advanced Performance Modeling with Combined Passive and Active Monitoring

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dovrolis, Constantine [Georgia Inst. of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States); Sim, Alex [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

2015-04-15

To improve the efficiency of resource utilization and scheduling of scientific data transfers on high-speed networks, the "Advanced Performance Modeling with combined passive and active monitoring" (APM) project investigates and models a general-purpose, reusable and expandable network performance estimation framework. The predictive estimation model and the framework will be helpful in optimizing the performance and utilization of networks as well as sharing resources with predictable performance for scientific collaborations, especially in data intensive applications. Our prediction model utilizes historical network performance information from various network activity logs as well as live streaming measurements from network peering devices. Historical network performance information is used without putting extra load on the resources by active measurement collection. Performance measurements collected by active probing is used judiciously for improving the accuracy of predictions.

Appendix A.3. Minutes from meeting of the 1995th Joint Annual Report's Proposals and on the Slovak-Hungarian monitoring of underwater weir impacts according to the Inter-governmental Agreement held on October 10, 1996 in Gyoer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

This part contains: (1) Points of the agenda: 1. Evaluation of the water discharged by the Slovak Party according to the Agreement from 1995; 2. Information about the monitoring data exchange: - surface and groundwater regimes in 1996, - surface and ground water quality, - soil moisture, - bio-monitoring including Proposals in the 1995 th Joint Annual Report; 3 Schedule of the 1995 th Joint Annual Report's proposals fulfillment; 4 Tasks concerning the 1996 th National and Annual Reports preparation. In the annexes tabular forms and digital formats for data exchange are presented: Surface water discharge; Surface water level; Surface water quality, Ground Water level; Ground Water quality; Soil moisture. (2) Annex 1: Minutes from meeting of experts for surface and ground water regime and quality held on September 11, 1996 in Bratislava. (3) Annex 2: Minutes from meeting of experts for soil moisture monitoring and biology held on October 2, 1996 in Mosonmagyarovar

Subtalar joint stress imaging with tomosynthesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Teramoto, Atsushi; Watanabe, Kota; Takashima, Hiroyuki; Yamashita, Toshihiko

2014-06-01

The purpose of this study was to perform stress imaging of hindfoot inversion and eversion using tomosynthesis and to assess the subtalar joint range of motion (ROM) of healthy subjects. The subjects were 15 healthy volunteers with a mean age of 29.1 years. Coronal tomosynthesis stress imaging of the subtalar joint was performed in a total of 30 left and right ankles. A Telos stress device was used for the stress load, and the load was 150 N for both inversion and eversion. Tomographic images in which the posterior talocalcaneal joint could be confirmed on the neutral position images were used in measurements. The angle of the intersection formed by a line through the lateral articular facet of the posterior talocalcaneal joint and a line through the surface of the trochlea of the talus was measured. The mean change in the angle of the calcaneus with respect to the talus was 10.3 ± 4.8° with inversion stress and 5.0 ± 3.8° with eversion stress from the neutral position. The result was a clearer depiction of the subtalar joint, and inversion and eversion ROM of the subtalar joint was shown to be about 15° in healthy subjects. Diagnostic, Level IV.

On line performance monitoring for predictive maintenance [Paper No.: VIA - 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gupta, R.K.; Chandra, Rajesh

1981-01-01

There will always be progressive deterioration in the performance of dynamic equipment due to normal inevitable wear, malfunctions, failures and other reasons. In most cases it is possible to monitor some parameters of a system which would get progressively affected with the deterioration in the health of the system. By on-line monitoring of such predetermined parameters, compared with preset base data generated for a healthy system earlier, would prove very helpful in avoiding breakdowns and in proper planning of preventive and predictive maintenance. With increasing use of on-line computerised controls the generation of design base data and also the in-built self checking feature of monitoring the equipment health can be achieved by incorporating suitable software. This type of system will be helpful in: (a) predicting the life of component, (b) prewarning the operator about impending malfunctions, (c) establishing a maintenance schedule and spare inventory, and (d) analysing the failures. This type of centralised predictive maintenance is increasingly becoming important where: (a) the number of equipments are large, (b) the operation of equipment is critical from safety criteria, and (c) the minimum safety margin in the performance of the component is to be maintained. Keeping this in mind, the Fuel Handling System of Narora Atomic Power Project and the future power plants having computerised controls will have facility for on-line performance monitoring for predictive maintenance. The paper also describes methodology of the technique in detail, with a few representative cases. (author)

Monitoring and Evaluating Government Performance in Botswana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. K. Botlhale

2015-03-01

Full Text Available In an era characterised by fiscal stress in the post-global recession era, clichés such as ‘bang for the buck’ are commonplace. Governments are under increasing pressure to spend limited public resources in efficient and  effective ways. Efficient and  effective governments are a necessary, though not sufficient, condition for economic development. Hence, governments have adopted performance-improving interventions such as New Public Management. Botswana jumped into the bandwagon of public sector reforms in the 1990s through interventions such as Performance-based Management Systems. The focus was almost entirely on performance enhancement to the neglect of performance measurement through a result-based Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E framework. However, in 2009, the government decided to mainstream M&E into the development planning regime. Since the M&E tool is still in draft form, Botswana is very favourably circumstanced to learn from others. Meanwhile essentials to do are: attitudinal change, shared vision on M&E, stakeholder management and demand and use of M&E information by policy-makers such as Members of Parliament.

Synchronous monitoring of muscle dynamics and electromyogram

Science.gov (United States)

Zakir Hossain, M.; Grill, Wolfgang

2011-04-01

A non-intrusive novel detection scheme has been implemented to detect the lateral muscle extension, force of the skeletal muscle and the motor action potential (EMG) synchronously. This allows the comparison of muscle dynamics and EMG signals as a basis for modeling and further studies to determine which architectural parameters are most sensitive to changes in muscle activity. For this purpose the transmission time for ultrasonic chirp signal in the frequency range of 100 kHz to 2.5 MHz passing through the muscle under observation and respective motor action potentials are recorded synchronously to monitor and quantify biomechanical parameters related to muscle performance. Additionally an ultrasonic force sensor has been employed for monitoring. Ultrasonic traducers are placed on the skin to monitor muscle expansion. Surface electrodes are placed suitably to pick up the potential for activation of the monitored muscle. Isometric contraction of the monitored muscle is ensured by restricting the joint motion with the ultrasonic force sensor. Synchronous monitoring was initiated by a software activated audio beep starting at zero time of the subsequent data acquisition interval. Computer controlled electronics are used to generate and detect the ultrasonic signals and monitor the EMG signals. Custom developed software and data analysis is employed to analyze and quantify the monitored data. Reaction time, nerve conduction speed, latent period between the on-set of EMG signals and muscle response, degree of muscle activation and muscle fatigue development, rate of energy expenditure and motor neuron recruitment rate in isometric contraction, and other relevant parameters relating to muscle performance have been quantified with high spatial and temporal resolution.

Oxide thickness measurement for monitoring fuel performance at high burnup

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaeger, M.A.; Van Swam, L.F.P.; Brueck-Neufeld, K.

1991-01-01

For on-site monitoring of the fuel performance at high burnup, Advanced Nuclear Fuels uses the linear scan eddy current method to determine the oxide thickness of irradiated Zircaloy fuel cans. Direct digital data acquisition methods are employed to collect the data on magnetic storage media. This field-proven methodology allows oxide thickness measurements and rapid interpretation of the data during the reactor outages and makes it possible to immediately reinsert the assemblies for the next operating cycle. The accuracy of the poolside measurements and data acquisition/interpretation techniques have been verified through hot cell metallographic measurements of rods previously measured in the fuel pool. The accumulated data provide a valuable database against which oxide growth models have been benchmarked and allow for effective monitoring of fuel performance. (orig.) [de

Detecting communicative intent in a computerised test of joint attention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nathan Caruana

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The successful navigation of social interactions depends on a range of cognitive faculties—including the ability to achieve joint attention with others to share information and experiences. We investigated the influence that intention monitoring processes have on gaze-following response times during joint attention. We employed a virtual reality task in which 16 healthy adults engaged in a collaborative game with a virtual partner to locate a target in a visual array. In the Search task, the virtual partner was programmed to engage in non-communicative gaze shifts in search of the target, establish eye contact, and then display a communicative gaze shift to guide the participant to the target. In the NoSearch task, the virtual partner simply established eye contact and then made a single communicative gaze shift towards the target (i.e., there were no non-communicative gaze shifts in search of the target. Thus, only the Search task required participants to monitor their partner’s communicative intent before responding to joint attention bids. We found that gaze following was significantly slower in the Search task than the NoSearch task. However, the same effect on response times was not observed when participants completed non-social control versions of the Search and NoSearch tasks, in which the avatar’s gaze was replaced by arrow cues. These data demonstrate that the intention monitoring processes involved in differentiating communicative and non-communicative gaze shifts during the Search task had a measurable influence on subsequent joint attention behaviour. The empirical and methodological implications of these findings for the fields of autism and social neuroscience will be discussed.

The Impact of the Perceived Purpose of Electronic Performance Monitoring on an Array of Attitudinal Variables

Science.gov (United States)

Wells, Deborah L.; Moorman, Robert H.; Werner, Jon M.

2007-01-01

As a form of performance monitoring, electronic performance monitoring (EPM) offers the opportunity for unobtrusive and continuous performance data gathering. These strengths can also make EPM stressful and threatening. Many features of performance evaluation systems, including the organizational purposes for which they are used, can affect…

Joint Laxity in Preschool Children Born Preterm.

Science.gov (United States)

Romeo, Domenico M; Velli, Chiara; Lucibello, Simona; Ferrantini, Gloria; Leo, Giuseppina; Brogna, Claudia; Cota, Francesco; Ricci, Daniela; Gallini, Francesca; Romagnoli, Costantino; Vento, Giovanni; Mercuri, Eugenio

2018-06-01

To evaluate the prevalence of joint laxity in children born preterm assessed in the first 2 years, the relationship between joint laxity and motor performance at preschool age, and possible changes over time in a subgroup of children followed longitudinally. The revised scale of Beighton Score was used to evaluate joint laxity in a population of 132 preschool children born preterm between 24 and 32 weeks of gestational age. All were assessed for joint laxity between 12 and 24 months of age. Children also performed the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition between the age of 3 years and 6 months and 4 years; the age at onset of independent walking also was recorded. The total Beighton Score ranged between 0 and 8. Twenty percent of the cohort showed joint laxity. No differences related to sex or gestational age were observed. Children born preterm with joint laxity achieved later independent walking and achieved lower scores on Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition than those without joint laxity. In 76 children born preterm, an assessment for joint laxity was repeated once between 25 and 36 months and again after >36 months. No statistically significant difference was observed between the 3 assessments. The Beighton Score can be used to assess generalized joint laxity in children born preterm. As the presence of joint laxity influenced motor competences, the possibility to early identify these infants in the first 2 years is of interest to benefit from early intervention and potentially improve gross motor skills and coordination. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Generalised joint hypermobility and knee joint hypermobility: prevalence, knee joint symptoms and health-related quality of life in a Danish adult population.

Science.gov (United States)

Junge, Tina; Henriksen, Peter; Hansen, Sebrina; Østengaard, Lasse; Golightly, Yvonne M; Juul-Kristensen, Birgit

2017-10-27

Several biomechanical factors, such as knee joint hypermobility (KJH), are suggested to play a role in the etiology of knee joint symptoms and knee osteoarthritis. Nevertheless, the prevalence or consequences of KJH solely or included in the classification of generalized joint hypermobility (GJHk) is unknown for a general population. Therefore, the objectives were to report the prevalence of self-reported GJHk and KJH, as well as the association of these conditions to knee joint symptoms, severity and duration of symptoms, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in a Danish adult population. This study is a cross-sectional population-based survey of 2056 Danish adults. Respondents received online questionnaires of GJHk and KJH, knee joint symptoms, the severity and duration of these, as well as HRQoL. Total response rate was 49% (n = 1006). The prevalence of self-reported GJHk and KJH was 13% and 23%, mostly representing women. More than half of the respondents with GJHk and KJH had knee joint symptoms. The odds for reporting knee joint symptoms, severity of knee joint symptoms and duration of knee joint symptoms were twice as high for respondents with GJHk and KJH. Respondents with GJHk and KJH reported lower HRQoL. GJHk and KJH were frequently reported in the Danish adult population, mostly in women. Respondents with GJHk and KJH were two times more likely to report knee joint-related symptoms such as pain, reduced performance of usual activity and lower HRQoL. The impact of these conditions on HRQoL is comparable with knee osteoarthritis. © 2017 Asia Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

An accelerated exposure and testing apparatus for building joint sealants.

Science.gov (United States)

White, C C; Hunston, D L; Tan, K T; Hettenhouser, J; Garver, J D

2013-09-01

The design, fabrication, and implementation of a computer-controlled exposure and testing apparatus for building joint sealants are described in this paper. This apparatus is unique in its ability to independently control and monitor temperature, relative humidity, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and mechanical deformation. Each of these environmental factors can be controlled precisely over a wide range of conditions during periods of a month or more. Moreover, as controlled mechanical deformations can be generated, in situ mechanical characterization tests can be performed without removing specimens from the chamber. Temperature and humidity were controlled during our experiments via a precision temperature regulator and proportional mixing of dry and moisture-saturated air; while highly uniform UV radiation was attained by attaching the chamber to an integrating sphere-based radiation source. A computer-controlled stepper motor and a transmission system were used to provide precise movement control. The reliability and effectiveness of the apparatus were demonstrated on a model sealant material. The results clearly show that this apparatus provides an excellent platform to study the long-term durability of building joint sealants.

Preclosure monitoring and performance confirmation at Yucca Mountain: Applicability of geophysical, geohydrological, and geochemical methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsang, C.F.

1989-06-01

The present paper presents considerations on studies that would be required for preclosure monitoring and performance confirmation of a nuclear waste geologic repository in an unsaturated zone. The critical parameters that should be monitored are reviewed and two scales of measurement relevant to monitoring activities, room scale and repository scale, are taken as a framework for investigation. A number of monitoring methods based on geophysics, geohydrology, and geochemistry are briefly summarized for their potential usefulness for preclosure monitoring and performance confirmation of the geologic repository. Particular emphasis is given to measurement of the spatial distribution of parameters in contrast to single-point measurements of quantities. 12 refs., 1 fig., 1 tab

Shoe collar height effect on athletic performance, ankle joint kinematics and kinetics during unanticipated maximum-effort side-cutting performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Lam, Gilbert Wing Kai; Park, Eun Jung; Lee, Ki-Kwang; Cheung, Jason Tak-Man

2015-01-01

Side-step cutting manoeuvres comprise the coordination between planting and non-planting legs. Increased shoe collar height is expected to influence ankle biomechanics of both legs and possibly respective cutting performance. This study examined the shoe collar height effect on kinematics and kinetics of planting and non-planting legs during an unanticipated side-step cutting. Fifteen university basketball players performed maximum-effort side-step cutting to the left 45° direction or a straight ahead run in response to a random light signal. Seven successful cutting trials were collected for each condition. Athletic performance, ground reaction force, ankle kinematics and kinetics of both legs were analysed using paired t-tests. Results indicated that high-collar shoes resulted in less ankle inversion and external rotation during initial contact for the planting leg. The high-collar shoes also exhibited a smaller ankle range of motion in the sagittal and transverse planes for both legs, respectively. However, no collar effect was found for ankle moments and performance indicators including cutting performance time, ground contact time, propulsion ground reaction forces and impulses. These findings indicated that high-collar shoes altered ankle positioning and restricted ankle joint freedom movements in both legs, while no negative effect was found for athletic cutting performance.

Health and usage monitoring system for the small aircraft composite structure

Science.gov (United States)

Růžička, Milan; Dvořák, Milan; Schmidová, Nikola; Šašek, Ladislav; Štěpánek, Martin

2017-07-01

This paper is focused on the design of the health and usage monitoring system (HUMS) of the composite ultra-light aircrafts. A multichannel measuring system was developed and installed for recording of the long-term operational measurements of the UL airplane. Many fiber Bragg grating sensors were implemented into the composite aircraft structure, mainly in the glue joints. More than ten other analog functions and signals of the aircraft is monitored and can be correlated together. Changing of the FBG sensors responses in monitored places and their correlations, comparing with the calibration and recalibration procedures during a monitored life may indicate damage (eg. in bonded joints) and complements the HUMS system.

Soft tissue artifact compensation in knee kinematics by multi-body optimization: Performance of subject-specific knee joint models.

Science.gov (United States)

Clément, Julien; Dumas, Raphaël; Hagemeister, Nicola; de Guise, Jaques A

2015-11-05

Soft tissue artifact (STA) distort marker-based knee kinematics measures and make them difficult to use in clinical practice. None of the current methods designed to compensate for STA is suitable, but multi-body optimization (MBO) has demonstrated encouraging results and can be improved. The goal of this study was to develop and validate the performance of knee joint models, with anatomical and subject-specific kinematic constraints, used in MBO to reduce STA errors. Twenty subjects were recruited: 10 healthy and 10 osteoarthritis (OA) subjects. Subject-specific knee joint models were evaluated by comparing dynamic knee kinematics recorded by a motion capture system (KneeKG™) and optimized with MBO to quasi-static knee kinematics measured by a low-dose, upright, biplanar radiographic imaging system (EOS(®)). Errors due to STA ranged from 1.6° to 22.4° for knee rotations and from 0.8 mm to 14.9 mm for knee displacements in healthy and OA subjects. Subject-specific knee joint models were most effective in compensating for STA in terms of abduction-adduction, inter-external rotation and antero-posterior displacement. Root mean square errors with subject-specific knee joint models ranged from 2.2±1.2° to 6.0±3.9° for knee rotations and from 2.4±1.1 mm to 4.3±2.4 mm for knee displacements in healthy and OA subjects, respectively. Our study shows that MBO can be improved with subject-specific knee joint models, and that the quality of the motion capture calibration is critical. Future investigations should focus on more refined knee joint models to reproduce specific OA knee geometry and physiology. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bone structure of the temporo-mandibular joint in the individuals aged 18-25.

Science.gov (United States)

Parafiniuk, M; Gutsch-Trepka, A; Trepka, S; Sycz, K; Wolski, S; Parafiniuk, W

1998-01-01

Osteohistometric studies were performed in 15 female and 15 male cadavers aged 18-25. Condyloid process and right and left acetabulum of the temporo-mandibular joint have been studied. Density has been investigated using monitor screen linked with microscope (magnification 80x). Density in the spongy part of the condyloid process was 26.67-26.77%; in the subchondrial layer--72.13-72.72%, and in the acetabular wall 75.03-75.91%. Microscopic structure of the bones of the temporo-mandibular joint revealed no differences when compared with images of compact and cancellous bone shown in the histology textbooks. Sex and the side of the body had no influence on microscopic image and proportional bone density. Isles of chondrocytes in the trabeculae of the spongy structure of the condyloid process were found in 4 cases and isles of the condensed bone resembling the compact pattern in 7 cases.

Joint design of QC-LDPC codes for coded cooperation system with joint iterative decoding

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Shunwai; Yang, Fengfan; Tang, Lei; Ejaz, Saqib; Luo, Lin; Maharaj, B. T.

2016-03-01

In this paper, we investigate joint design of quasi-cyclic low-density-parity-check (QC-LDPC) codes for coded cooperation system with joint iterative decoding in the destination. First, QC-LDPC codes based on the base matrix and exponent matrix are introduced, and then we describe two types of girth-4 cycles in QC-LDPC codes employed by the source and relay. In the equivalent parity-check matrix corresponding to the jointly designed QC-LDPC codes employed by the source and relay, all girth-4 cycles including both type I and type II are cancelled. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulations show that the jointly designed QC-LDPC coded cooperation well combines cooperation gain and channel coding gain, and outperforms the coded non-cooperation under the same conditions. Furthermore, the bit error rate performance of the coded cooperation employing jointly designed QC-LDPC codes is better than those of random LDPC codes and separately designed QC-LDPC codes over AWGN channels.

MR arthrography of the ankle joint

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trattnig, S.; Rand, T.; Breitenseher, M.; Ba-Ssalamah, A.; Schick, S.; Imhof, H.

1999-01-01

Due to its superior soft tissue contrast conventional MRI is the imaging method of choice in the evaluation of ankle joint disorders. Conventional MR imaging can accurately demonstrate normal or acutely injured ligaments; however, in subacute and chronic injury joint fluid necessary for delineation of injured ligaments is absent and MR arthrography should be performed. MR arthrography uses the intraarticular injection of contrast material to distend the joint, yielding improved discrimination of intraarticular structures. This joint distension with MR arthrography is also helpful in the staging of osteochondritis dissecans, since in cases of unstable lesions tracking of contrast material into the interface can be more easily demonstrated. Finally, high contrast and joint distension by MR arthrography improves the detection of intraarticular loose bodies, which often require surgery. MR artrography, although invasive, may provide additional information in various ankle joint disorders. (orig.) [de

Research on Joint Parameter Inversion for an Integrated Underground Displacement 3D Measuring Sensor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nanying Shentu

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Underground displacement monitoring is a key means to monitor and evaluate geological disasters and geotechnical projects. There exist few practical instruments able to monitor subsurface horizontal and vertical displacements simultaneously due to monitoring invisibility and complexity. A novel underground displacement 3D measuring sensor had been proposed in our previous studies, and great efforts have been taken in the basic theoretical research of underground displacement sensing and measuring characteristics by virtue of modeling, simulation and experiments. This paper presents an innovative underground displacement joint inversion method by mixing a specific forward modeling approach with an approximate optimization inversion procedure. It can realize a joint inversion of underground horizontal displacement and vertical displacement for the proposed 3D sensor. Comparative studies have been conducted between the measured and inversed parameters of underground horizontal and vertical displacements under a variety of experimental and inverse conditions. The results showed that when experimentally measured horizontal displacements and vertical displacements are both varied within 0 ~ 30 mm, horizontal displacement and vertical displacement inversion discrepancies are generally less than 3 mm and 1 mm, respectively, under three kinds of simulated underground displacement monitoring circumstances. This implies that our proposed underground displacement joint inversion method is robust and efficient to predict the measuring values of underground horizontal and vertical displacements for the proposed sensor.

High-cycle fatigue properties of small-bore socket-welded pipe joint

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maekawa, Akira; Noda, Michiyasu; Suzuki, Michiaki

2009-01-01

Piping and equipment in nuclear power plants are structures including many welded joints. Reliability of welded joints is one of high-priority issues to improve the safety of nuclear power plants. However, occurrence of fatigue failures in small-bore socket-welded pipe joints by high-cycle vibrations is still reported. In this study, fatigue experiments on a socket-welded joint of austenitic stainless steel pipe was conducted under excitation conditions similar to those in actual plants to investigate vibration characteristics and fatigue strength. It was found that the natural frequency of pipe with socket-welded joint gradually decreased as fatigue damage developed, according to the Miner rule for fatigue life evaluation. The results indicate that the fatigue life of the welded pipe joint could be estimated by monitoring the decreasing ratio of the natural frequency of the pipe. The evaluation of decreasing ratio of the natural frequency in addition to fatigue damage evaluation by the Miner rule could enhance the accuracy of fatigue life evaluation. (author)

Revision for prosthetic joint infection following hip arthroplasty: Evidence from the National Joint Registry.

Science.gov (United States)

Lenguerrand, E; Whitehouse, M R; Beswick, A D; Jones, S A; Porter, M L; Blom, A W

2017-06-01

We used the National Joint Registry for England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man (NJR) to investigate the risk of revision due to prosthetic joint infection (PJI) for patients undergoing primary and revision hip arthroplasty, the changes in risk over time, and the overall burden created by PJI. We analysed revision total hip arthroplasties (THAs) performed due to a diagnosis of PJI and the linked index procedures recorded in the NJR between 2003 and 2014. The cohort analysed consisted of 623 253 index primary hip arthroplasties, 63 222 index revision hip arthroplasties and 7585 revision THAs performed due to a diagnosis of PJI. The prevalence, cumulative incidence functions and the burden of PJI (total procedures) were calculated. Overall linear trends were investigated with log-linear regression. We demonstrated a prevalence of revision THA due to prosthetic joint infection of 0.4/100 procedures following primary and 1.6/100 procedures following revision hip arthroplasty. The prevalence of revision due to PJI in the three months following primary hip arthroplasty has risen 2.3-fold (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.3 to 4.1) between 2005 and 2013, and 3.0-fold (95% CI 1.1 to 8.5) following revision hip arthroplasty. Over 1000 procedures are performed annually as a consequence of hip PJI, an increase of 2.6-fold between 2005 and 2013. Although the risk of revision due to PJI following hip arthroplasty is low, it is rising and, coupled with the established and further predicted increased incidence of both primary and revision hip arthroplasty, this represents a growing and substantial treatment burden. Cite this article : E. Lenguerrand, M. R. Whitehouse, A. D. Beswick, S. A. Jones, M. L. Porter, A. W. Blom. Revision for prosthetic joint infection following hip arthroplasty: Evidence from the National Joint Registry. Bone Joint Res 2017;6:391-398. DOI: 10.1302/2046-3758.66.BJR-2017-0003.R1. © 2017 Lenguerrand et al.

MRI monitoring of autologous hyaline cartilage grafts in the knee joint: a follow-up study over 12 months; MRT-Monitoring autologer Chondrozytentransplantate im Kniegelenk: Eine Verlaufsstudie ueber 12 Monate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mueller-Horvat, C.; Schick, F.; Claussen, C.D.; Groenewaeller, E. [Abt. fuer Radiologische Diagnostik, Eberhard-Karls-Univ. Tuebingen (Germany)

2004-12-01

Purpose: To evaluate the suitability of different MR sequences for monitoring the stage of maturation of hyaline cartilage grafts in the knee joint and the early detection of complications like hypertrophy. In addition, it was analyzed whether indirect MR arthrography can indicate debonding of the graft. Materials and Methods: MRI examinations were performed in 19 patients, aged 17-43 years, with autologous transplantation of a hyaline cartilage tissue graft after knee trauma. Examination dates were prior to transplantation to localize the defect, and 6 weeks, 3, 6 and 12 months after transplantation to control morphology and maturation of the autologous graft. Standard T2- and protondensity-weighted turbo spin echo (TSE) sequences and T1-weighted spin echo (SE) sequences were used, as well as gradient echo (GRE) sequences with and without magnetization transfer (MT) prepulses. In some cases, indirect MR arthrography was performed. Results: Cartilage defect and the hyaline cartilage graft could be detected in all 19 patients. Hypertrophy of the graft could be found early in 3 patients and debonding in 1 patient. For depicting the graft a short time after surgery. T2-weighted TSE-sequences showed the best results. Six and 12 months after transplantation, spoiled 3D-GRE-sequences like FLASH3D (fast low angle shot) showed reduced artifacts due to magnetic residues from the surgery. Difference images from GRE-sequences with and without MT pulse provided high contrast between cartilage and surrounding tissue. The quantification of the MT effect showed an assimilation of the graft to the original cartilage within 12 months. Indirect MR arthrography showed subchondral contrast medium even 12 months after transplantation in 3 patients. (orig.)

Auditory N1 reveals planning and monitoring processes during music performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Mathias, Brian; Gehring, William J; Palmer, Caroline

2017-02-01

The current study investigated the relationship between planning processes and feedback monitoring during music performance, a complex task in which performers prepare upcoming events while monitoring their sensory outcomes. Theories of action planning in auditory-motor production tasks propose that the planning of future events co-occurs with the perception of auditory feedback. This study investigated the neural correlates of planning and feedback monitoring by manipulating the contents of auditory feedback during music performance. Pianists memorized and performed melodies at a cued tempo in a synchronization-continuation task while the EEG was recorded. During performance, auditory feedback associated with single melody tones was occasionally substituted with tones corresponding to future (next), present (current), or past (previous) melody tones. Only future-oriented altered feedback disrupted behavior: Future-oriented feedback caused pianists to slow down on the subsequent tone more than past-oriented feedback, and amplitudes of the auditory N1 potential elicited by the tone immediately following the altered feedback were larger for future-oriented than for past-oriented or noncontextual (unrelated) altered feedback; larger N1 amplitudes were associated with greater slowing following altered feedback in the future condition only. Feedback-related negativities were elicited in all altered feedback conditions. In sum, behavioral and neural evidence suggests that future-oriented feedback disrupts performance more than past-oriented feedback, consistent with planning theories that posit similarity-based interference between feedback and planning contents. Neural sensory processing of auditory feedback, reflected in the N1 ERP, may serve as a marker for temporal disruption caused by altered auditory feedback in auditory-motor production tasks. © 2016 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

Harmonizing electricity markets with physics : real time performance monitoring using grid-3PTM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Budhraja, V.S.

2003-01-01

The Electric Power Group, LLC provides management and strategic consulting services for the electric power industry, with special emphasis on industry restructuring, competitive electricity markets, grid operations and reliability, power technologies, venture investments and start-ups. The Consortium for Electric Reliability Technology Solutions involves national laboratories, universities, and industry partners in researching, developing, and commercializing electric reliability technology solutions to protect and enhance the reliability of the American electric power system under the emerging competitive electricity market structure. Physics differentiate electric markets from other markets: there is real-time balancing, no storage, interconnected network, and power flows governed by physics. Some issues affecting both grid reliability and market issues are difficult to separate, such as security and congestion management, voltage management, reserves, frequency volatility, and others. The author examined the following investment challenges facing the electricity market: grid solutions, market solutions, and technology solutions. The real time performance monitoring and prediction platform, grid-3P was described and applications discussed, such as ACE-frequency monitoring, performance monitoring for automatic generation control (AGC) and frequency response, voltage/VAR monitoring, stability monitoring using phasor technology, and market monitoring. figs

MRI of the hip joint; MRT des Hueftgelenks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Czerny, C.; Noebauer-Huhmann, I.M.; Imhof, H. [Universitaetsklinik fuer Radiodiagnostik, Medizinische Univ. Wien (Austria)

2005-12-01

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is performed to diagnose many pathologic conditions affecting the hip joint. Either conventional MRI (without contrast enhancement of the joint cavity) or MR arthrography is used to detect and most accurately differentiate hip joint pathologies. Conventional MRI is performed in cases of bone marrow edema, necrosis, arthrosis and especially the so-called ''activated arthrosis'', as well as in inflammatory and tumorous entities. MR arthography, which has only recently become available for use, is excellently suited for diagnosing lesions of the acetabular labrum, cartilage lesions, and free articular bodies. This article provides an overview about MRI characteristics and their accuracy of hip joint diseases and the impact on the therapeutic procedure. (orig.)

The performance of the CDF luminosity monitor

CERN Document Server

Acosta, D; Konigsberg, J; Korytov, A; Mitselmakher, G; Necula, V; Nomerotski, A; Pronko, A; Sukhanov, A; Safonov, A; Tsybychev, D; Wang, S M; Wong, M

2002-01-01

We describe the initial performance of the detector used for the luminosity measurement in the CDF experiment in Run II at the Tevatron. The detector consists of low-mass gaseous Cherenkov counters with high light yield (approx 100 photoelectrons) and monitors the process of inelastic pp-bar scattering. It allows for several methods of precise luminosity measurements at peak instantaneous luminosities of 2x10 sup 3 sup 2 cm sup - sup 2 s sup - sup 1 , corresponding to an average of six pp-bar interactions per bunch crossing.

HwPMI: An Extensible Performance Monitoring Infrastructure for Improving Hardware Design and Productivity on FPGAs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew G. Schmidt

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Designing hardware cores for FPGAs can quickly become a complicated task, difficult even for experienced engineers. With the addition of more sophisticated development tools and maturing high-level language-to-gates techniques, designs can be rapidly assembled; however, when the design is evaluated on the FPGA, the performance may not be what was expected. Therefore, an engineer may need to augment the design to include performance monitors to better understand the bottlenecks in the system or to aid in the debugging of the design. Unfortunately, identifying what to monitor and adding the infrastructure to retrieve the monitored data can be a challenging and time-consuming task. Our work alleviates this effort. We present the Hardware Performance Monitoring Infrastructure (HwPMI, which includes a collection of software tools and hardware cores that can be used to profile the current design, recommend and insert performance monitors directly into the HDL or netlist, and retrieve the monitored data with minimal invasiveness to the design. Three applications are used to demonstrate and evaluate HwPMI’s capabilities. The results are highly encouraging as the infrastructure adds numerous capabilities while requiring minimal effort by the designer and low resource overhead to the existing design.

Technical aspects of the joint JET-ISX-B beryllium limiter experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Edmonds, P.H.; Dietz, K.J.; Mioduszewski, P.K.; Watson, R.D.; Emerson, L.C.; Gabbard, W.A.; Goodall, D.; Simpkins, J.E.; Yarber, J.L.

1984-01-01

An experiment has been performed on the Impurity Study Experiment (ISX-B) tokamak to test beryllium as a limiter material. Beryllium is an attractive candidate for a limiter and has been proposed for use in the Joint European Torus (JET) experiment. A temperature-controlled, segmented, beryllium top-rail limiter was located inside the plasma radius described by the existing titanium limiters. An extended set of diagnostics was added for measurement of scrapeoff and limiter parameters. These included visible and infrared monitoring systems, probes, and surface analysis experiments. Tokamak experiments included parameter surveys of both ohmically heated and neutral-beam-heated plasmas and an extended fluence test of the limiter

Impact Of Using Joint Productive Activity Approach On Second Language Learners’ Performance In Reading Comprehension At The Basic Education Level In Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

HANNA ONYI YUSUF

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This study investigated the impact of using joint productive activity on the performance of second language learners in reading comprehension at the basic education level in Nigeria. A sample of forty (40 Junior Secondary II students from Kaduna North and South were used for the study. The study was quasi experimental. Government Junior Secondary School Doka was used as the experimental group while Government Junior Secondary School Makera was used as the control group. Both groups were assessed after six weeks of teaching using two reading comprehension tests. T-test was used to test the hypothesis raised in the study. The findings revealed significant differences in the performance of students taught reading comprehension using joint productive activity. Based on the findings teachers are encouraged to use joint productive activities in teaching reading comprehension. This is a positive deviation from the traditional practice in Nigeria where a teacher is regarded as the sole custodian of knowledge and students are empty tabula rasa who should be passive during class teaching. Teachers need to exploit this new approach by designing teaching comprehension activities that will require second language learners’ collaboration and active participation in accomplishing tasks jointly in class with the teacher.

10^{7}-A load-current B-dot monitor: Simulations, design, and performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. V. Rose

2010-04-01

Full Text Available A B-dot monitor that measures the current 6 cm from the axis of dynamic loads fielded on 10^{7}-A multiterawatt pulsed-power accelerators has been developed. The monitor improves upon the multimegampere load-current gauge described in Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 11, 100401 (2008PRABFM1098-440210.1103/PhysRevSTAB.11.100401. The design of the improved monitor was developed using three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations that model vacuum electron flow in the transmission line near the monitor. The simulations include important geometric features of the B-dot probe and model the deposition of electron energy within the probe. The simulations show that the improved design reduces by as much as a factor of 5 the electron energy deposition to the interior of the monitor. Data taken on accelerator shots demonstrate that the improved monitor works as well as the original monitor on shots with low-impedance loads, and delivers superior performance on higher-impedance-load shots.

Altitude control performance improvement via preview controller for unmanned airplane for radiation monitoring system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sato, Masayuki; Muraoka, Koji; Hozumi, Koki; Sanada, Yukihisa; Yamada, Tsutomu; Torii, Tatsuo

2017-01-01

This paper is concerned with the design problem of preview altitude controller for Unmanned Airplane for Radiation Monitoring System (UARMS) to improve its control performance. UARMS has been developed for radiation monitoring around Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant which spread radiation contaminant due to the huge tsunamis caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake. The monitoring area contains flat as well as mountain areas. The basic flight controller has been confirmed to have satisfactory performance with respect to altitude holding; however, the control performance for variable altitude commands is not sufficient for practical use in mountain areas. We therefore design preview altitude controller with only proportional gains by considering the practicality and the strong requirement of safety for UARMS. Control performance of the designed preview controller was evaluated by flight tests conducted around Fukushima Sky Park. (author)

A lossless multichannel bio-signal compression based on low-complexity joint coding scheme for portable medical devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Dong-Sun; Kwon, Jin-San

2014-09-18

Research on real-time health systems have received great attention during recent years and the needs of high-quality personal multichannel medical signal compression for personal medical product applications are increasing. The international MPEG-4 audio lossless coding (ALS) standard supports a joint channel-coding scheme for improving compression performance of multichannel signals and it is very efficient compression method for multi-channel biosignals. However, the computational complexity of such a multichannel coding scheme is significantly greater than that of other lossless audio encoders. In this paper, we present a multichannel hardware encoder based on a low-complexity joint-coding technique and shared multiplier scheme for portable devices. A joint-coding decision method and a reference channel selection scheme are modified for a low-complexity joint coder. The proposed joint coding decision method determines the optimized joint-coding operation based on the relationship between the cross correlation of residual signals and the compression ratio. The reference channel selection is designed to select a channel for the entropy coding of the joint coding. The hardware encoder operates at a 40 MHz clock frequency and supports two-channel parallel encoding for the multichannel monitoring system. Experimental results show that the compression ratio increases by 0.06%, whereas the computational complexity decreases by 20.72% compared to the MPEG-4 ALS reference software encoder. In addition, the compression ratio increases by about 11.92%, compared to the single channel based bio-signal lossless data compressor.

A compact CCD-monitored atomic force microscope with optical vision and improved performances.

Science.gov (United States)

Mingyue, Liu; Haijun, Zhang; Dongxian, Zhang

2013-09-01

A novel CCD-monitored atomic force microscope (AFM) with optical vision and improved performances has been developed. Compact optical paths are specifically devised for both tip-sample microscopic monitoring and cantilever's deflection detecting with minimized volume and optimal light-amplifying ratio. The ingeniously designed AFM probe with such optical paths enables quick and safe tip-sample approaching, convenient and effective tip-sample positioning, and high quality image scanning. An image stitching method is also developed to build a wider-range AFM image under monitoring. Experiments show that this AFM system can offer real-time optical vision for tip-sample monitoring with wide visual field and/or high lateral optical resolution by simply switching the objective; meanwhile, it has the elegant performances of nanometer resolution, high stability, and high scan speed. Furthermore, it is capable of conducting wider-range image measurement while keeping nanometer resolution. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Performance Test of Core Protection and Monitoring Algorithm with DLL for SMART Simulator Implementation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koo, Bonseung; Hwang, Daehyun; Kim, Keungkoo

2014-01-01

A multi-purpose best-estimate simulator for SMART is being established, which is intended to be used as a tool to evaluate the impacts of design changes on the safety performance, and to improve and/or optimize the operating procedure of SMART. In keeping with these intentions, a real-time model of the digital core protection and monitoring systems was developed and the real-time performance of the models was verified for various simulation scenarios. In this paper, a performance test of the core protection and monitoring algorithm with a DLL file for the SMART simulator implementation was performed. A DLL file of the simulator application code was made and several real-time evaluation tests were conducted for the steady-state and transient conditions with simulated system variables. A performance test of the core protection and monitoring algorithms for the SMART simulator was performed. A DLL file of the simulator version code was made and several real-time evaluation tests were conducted for various scenarios with a DLL file and simulated system variables. The results of all test cases showed good agreement with the reference results and some features caused by algorithm change were properly reflected to the DLL results. Therefore, it was concluded that the SCOPS S SIM and SCOMS S SIM algorithms and calculational capabilities are appropriate for the core protection and monitoring program in the SMART simulator

Augmented Reality-Guided Lumbar Facet Joint Injections.

Science.gov (United States)

Agten, Christoph A; Dennler, Cyrill; Rosskopf, Andrea B; Jaberg, Laurenz; Pfirrmann, Christian W A; Farshad, Mazda

2018-05-08

The aim of this study was to assess feasibility and accuracy of augmented reality-guided lumbar facet joint injections. A spine phantom completely embedded in hardened opaque agar with 3 ring markers was built. A 3-dimensional model of the phantom was uploaded to an augmented reality headset (Microsoft HoloLens). Two radiologists independently performed 20 augmented reality-guided and 20 computed tomography (CT)-guided facet joint injections each: for each augmented reality-guided injection, the hologram was manually aligned with the phantom container using the ring markers. The radiologists targeted the virtual facet joint and tried to place the needle tip in the holographic joint space. Computed tomography was performed after each needle placement to document final needle tip position. Time needed from grabbing the needle to final needle placement was measured for each simulated injection. An independent radiologist rated images of all needle placements in a randomized order blinded to modality (augmented reality vs CT) and performer as perfect, acceptable, incorrect, or unsafe. Accuracy and time to place needles were compared between augmented reality-guided and CT-guided facet joint injections. In total, 39/40 (97.5%) of augmented reality-guided needle placements were either perfect or acceptable compared with 40/40 (100%) CT-guided needle placements (P = 0.5). One augmented reality-guided injection missed the facet joint space by 2 mm. No unsafe needle placements occurred. Time to final needle placement was substantially faster with augmented reality guidance (mean 14 ± 6 seconds vs 39 ± 15 seconds, P Augmented reality-guided facet joint injections are feasible and accurate without potentially harmful needle placement in an experimental setting.

The relationship between joint mobility and motor performance in children with and without the diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jelsma, Dorothee; Geuze, Reint; Klerks, M.; Niemeijer, Anuschka; Smits-Engelsman, B.C.M.

2013-01-01

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine whether joint mobility is associated with motor performance in children referred for Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD-group) in contrast to a randomly selected group of children between 3-16 years of age (Random-Group). Methods: 36

99mTc-HDP SPECT-CT Aids Localization of Joint Injections in Degenerative Joint Disease of the Foot and Ankle.

Science.gov (United States)

Parthipun, Arum; Moser, Joanna; Mok, Wing; Paramithas, Anton; Hamilton, Paul; Sott, Andrea Helene

2015-08-01

Pain relating to degenerative joint disease within the foot and ankle can be difficult to localize with clinical examination alone due to the complex anatomy of the joints. The aim of this study was to determine whether single-photon emission computed tomography combined with conventional computed tomography (SPECT-CT) could be used to localize the site of degenerative joint disease for intra-articular injection and thereby improve the clinical success of the procedure. A prospective study was performed involving 203 patients who had undergone triple-phase (99m)Tc-hydroxymethylene diphosphonate bone scans with SPECT-CT of the foot and ankle for degenerative joint disease. Fifty-two patients went on to have joint injections for degenerative joint disease, with clinical follow-up. Correlation with the clinical diagnosis and the outcome of intra-articular injections with 0.5% bupivacaine and 80 mg of Depo-Medrone was performed. A successful outcome was determined by an improvement in the visual analog pain score of at least 50%. In 19 (37%) patients, the site of degenerative joint disease determined by SPECT-CT differed from the initial clinical assessment and resulted in a change in management. Overall, 46 (88%) patients showed an improvement in symptoms. The study demonstrated a high clinical success rate for SPECT-CT-guided joint injections. The technique was useful in localizing degenerative joint disease of the ankle, hindfoot, and midfoot as an adjunct to clinical examination. Level IV, case series. © The Author(s) 2015.

Characteristics of welded joints of nuclear reactor interest

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1978-01-01

The main propose of this work, was the determination of the optical conditions for obtaining welded joints of stainless steel, the quality control of joints obtained by destructive and non-destructive essays, as well as, the first specific essays of fluence and fatigue of the base metals employed. All tests performed in the base metals are very important from the joint of view that the comparison between results obtained with base metals and welded joints allows a the evaluation of the efficiency of the welded joints. (author) [pt

Input data requirements for performance modelling and monitoring of photovoltaic plants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gavriluta, Anamaria Florina; Spataru, Sergiu; Sera, Dezso

2018-01-01

This work investigates the input data requirements in the context of performance modeling of thin-film photovoltaic (PV) systems. The analysis focuses on the PVWatts performance model, well suited for on-line performance monitoring of PV strings, due to its low number of parameters and high......, modelling the performance of the PV modules at high irradiances requires a dataset of only a few hundred samples in order to obtain a power estimation accuracy of ~1-2\\%....

Joint inversion of geophysical data for site characterization and restoration monitoring. FY97 annual progress report for EMSP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berge, P.A.; Berryman, J.G.; Bonner, B.P.; Roberts, J.J.; Wildenschild

1997-01-01

'The purpose of this project is to develop a computer code for joint in-version of seismic and electrical data, to improve underground imaging for site characterization and remediation monitoring. The computer code developed in this project will invert geophysical data to obtain direct estimates of porosity and saturation underground, rather than inverting for seismic velocity and electrical resistivity or other geophysical properties. This is intended to be a significant improvement in the state-of-the-art of under-ground imaging, since interpretation of data collected at a contaminated site would become much less subjective. The schedule of this project is as follows: In the first year, investigators perform laboratory measurements of elastic and electrical properties of sand-clay mixtures containing various fluids. Investigators also develop methods of relating measurable geophysical properties to porosity and saturation by using rock physics theories, geostatistical, and empirical techniques together with available laboratory measurements. In the second year, investigators finish any necessary laboratory measurements and apply the methods developed in the first year to invert available borehole log data to predict measured properties of cores and sediments from a borehole. Investigators refine the inversion code in the third year and carry out a field experiment to collect seismic and electrical data. Investigators then use the inversion code to invert the field data to produce estimates of porosity and saturation in the field area where the data were collected. This report describes progress made in the first year of this three-year project.'

Dissimilar joining of galvanized high-strength steel to aluminum alloy in a zero-gap lap joint configuration by two-pass laser welding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma, Junjie; Harooni, Masoud; Carlson, Blair; Kovacevic, Radovan

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Defect-free two-pass laser partially penetrated lap joint of galvanized steel to aluminum was achieved. • The thickness of the Al-rich intermetallic compounds could be controlled by optimal parameters. • The dynamic behavior of the molten pool and keyhole were monitored by a high speed charge-coupled device camera. • The presence of zinc in the intermetallic compounds could improve the strength of the lap joints. - Abstract: A welding procedure based on using two-pass laser scans is introduced for dissimilar joining of overlapped galvanized high-strength dual-phase (DP) steel DP590 to aluminum alloy (AA) 6061 sheets. The first pass is based on a defocused laser spot that scans across the top of the two overlapped sheets and heats the zinc coating at the faying surface to be melted and partially vaporized, while the second pass is executed with a focused laser spot in order to perform the welding. Completely defect-free galvanized steel to aluminum lap joints were obtained by using this two-pass laser welding procedure. An on-line machine vision system was applied to monitor the keyhole dynamics during the laser welding process. An energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) was carried out to determine the atomic percent of zinc, aluminum, and iron in the galvanized steel to aluminum lap joints. Mechanical testing and micro-hardness test were conducted to evaluate the mechanical properties of the galvanized steel to aluminum lap joints. The experimental results showed that the lap joint of galvanized steel to aluminum obtained by the two-pass laser welding approach had a higher failure value than those joints obtained when the zinc at the faying surface was mechanically removed under the same welding speed and laser power

Effects of individual strengthening exercises for the stabilization muscles on the nutation torque of the sacroiliac joint in a sedentary worker with nonspecific sacroiliac joint pain.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoo, Won-Gyu

2015-01-01

[Purpose] We investigated the effects of individual strengthening exercises for the stabilization muscles on the nutation torque of the sacroiliac joint in a sedentary worker with nonspecific sacroiliac joint pain. [Subject] A 36-year-old female complained of pain in the sacroiliac joints. [Methods] The subject performed individual strengthening exercises for the stabilization muscles for nutation torque of the sacroiliac joint for 3 weeks. Pain-provocation tests and visual analog scale (VAS) scores were evaluated before and after the exercises. [Results] After performing the individual strengthening exercises for the erector spinae, rectus abdominis, and biceps femoris muscles for 3 weeks, the subject displayed no pain in the pain provocation tests, and the VAS score was 2/10. [Conclusion] The individual strengthening exercises for the stabilization muscles of the sacroiliac joint performed in the present study appear to be effective for sedentary workers with sacroiliac joint pain.

Performance of zeolite scavenge column in Xe monitoring system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Qian; Wang Hongxia; Li Wei; Bian Zhishang

2010-01-01

In order to improve the performance of zeolite scavenge column, its ability of removal of humidity and carbon dioxide was studied by both static and dynamic approaches. The experimental results show that various factors, including the column length and diameter, the mass of zeolite, the content of water in air, the temperature rise during adsorption, and the activation effectiveness all effect the performance of zeolite column in scavenging humanity and carbon dioxide. Based on these results and previous experience, an optimized design of the zeolite column is made for use in xenon monitoring system. (authors)

Optimal Performance Monitoring of Hybrid Mid-Infrared Wavelength MIMO Free Space Optical and RF Wireless Networks in Fading Channels

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, Barnet Michael

gamma-gamma optical channel and radio fading channels in determining the joint hybrid channel outage capacity provides the best performance estimate under any given set of operating conditions. It is shown that, unlike traditional physical layer performance monitoring techniques, the objective function based upon the outage capacity of the hybrid channel at any combination of OSNR and SIR, is able to predict channel degradation and failure well in advance of the actual outage. An outage in the information-theoretic definition occurs when the offered load exceeds the outage capacity under the current conditions of OSNR and SIR. The optical channel is operated at the "long" mid-infrared wavelength of 10000 nm. which provides improved resistance to scattering compared to shorter wavelengths such as 1550 nm.

Evaluation of the performance of diagnosis monitors in use in Salvador city: pilot study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garcia, Igor; Geambastiani, Paulo; Ferreira, Mario; Macedo, Eric; Navarro, Marcus; Navarro, Valeria; Pereira, Lara; Jesus, Evandro de; Leite, Handerson Jorge Dourado

2016-01-01

Radiologically, the image quality is the accuracy of the representation of the patient's anatomy. Considering the importance of the performance of the monitors to the overall effectiveness of a practice of diagnostic imaging, the objective of this study is to evaluate the performance of diagnostic monitors in use, using the method described in the report 03 of the AAPA and Spanish protocol, using calibrated instrumentation traceable to NIST and to RBC. The results of the monitors evaluated to date show 100% compliance for geometric distortion tests and internal reflection and 0% compliance to the dependence of luminance test. (author)

Innervation of the Anterior Sacroiliac Joint.

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, Marcus; Ng, Garrett; Mashriqi, Faizullah; Iwanaga, Joe; Alonso, Fernando; Tubbs, Kevin; Loukas, Marios; Oskouian, Rod J; Tubbs, R Shane

2017-11-01

Sacroiliac joint pain can be disabling and recalcitrant to medical therapy. The innervation of this joint is poorly understood, especially its anterior aspect. Therefore, the present cadaveric study was performed to better elucidate this anatomy. Twenty-four cadaveric sides underwent dissection of the anterior sacroiliac joint, with special attention given to any branches from regional nerves to this joint. No femoral, obturator, or lumbosacral trunk branches destined to the anterior sacroiliac joint were identified in the 24 sides. In 20 sides, one or two small branches (less than 0.5 mm in diameter) were found to arise from the L4 ventral ramus (10%), the L5 ventral ramus (80%), or simultaneously from both the L4 and L5 ventral rami (10%). The length of the branches ranged from 5 to 31 mm (mean, 14 mm). All these branches arose from the posterior part of the nerves and traveled to the anterior surface of the sacroiliac joint. No statistical significance was found between sides or sexes. An improved knowledge of the innervation of the anterior sacroiliac joint might decrease suffering in patients with chronic sacroiliac joint pain. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Performance Assessment Monitoring Plan for the Hanford Site Low-Level Burial Grounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2006-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy Order 435.1, Radioactive Waste Management, requires a disposal authorization statement authorizing operation (or continued operation) for low-level waste disposal facilities. In fulfillment of these requirements, a disposal authorization statement was issued on October 25, 1999, authorizing the Hanford Site to transfer, receive, possess, and dispose of low-level radioactive waste at the 200 East Area burial grounds and the 200 West Area burial grounds. One of the conditions is that monitoring plans for the 200 East Area and 200 West Area low-level burial grounds be written and approved by the Richland Operations Office. As a result of a record of decision for the Hanford Site Solid Waste Program and acceptance of the Hanford Site Solid Waste Environmental Impact Statement, the use of the low-level burial ground (LLBG) as a disposal facility for low-level and mixed low-level wastes has been restricted to lined trenches and the Navy reactor-compartment trench only. Hence, as of July 2004, only the two lined trenches in burial ground 218-W-5 (trenches 31 and 34, see Appendix A) and the Navy reactor-compartment trench in burial ground 218 E 12B (trench 94) are allowed to receive waste. When the two lined trenches are filled, the LLBG will cease to operate except for reactor compartment disposal at trench 94. Remaining operational lifetime of the LLBG is dependent on waste volume disposal rates. Existing programs for air sampling and analyses and subsidence monitoring are currently adequate for performance assessment at the LLBG. The waste disposal authorization for the Hanford Site is based (in part) on the post-closure performance assessments for the LLBG. In order to maintain a useful link between operational monitoring (e.g., Resource Conservation and Recovery Act [RCRA], Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and State Waste Discharge Permits), constituents, monitoring frequencies, and boundaries require

The impact of joint ventures on U.S. hospitals.

Science.gov (United States)

Harrison, Jeffrey P

2006-01-01

This quantitative research study assesses the organizational characteristics, market factors, and profitability of US hospitals that operate joint ventures with other health care organizations. Data was obtained from the 2001 American Hospital Association annual survey, the Area Resource File, and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services Minimum Data Set. These data files provide essential information on individual acute care hospitals, the communities they serve, and the level of financial performance. Descriptive statistics were evaluated and a logistic regression model was utilized to examine hospitals operating joint ventures. The study found hospitals that operate joint ventures are located in communities with more elderly patients, lower unemployment, and lower HMO penetration. From an operating performance perspective, hospitals that operate joint ventures have a higher occupancy rate, a higher average length of stay, more clinical services, lower long-term debt, and a greater number of managed care contracts. The results also appear to indicate that joint ventures have a positive financial impact on US hospitals. The study has managerial implications supporting the use of joint ventures to improve hospital performance and policy implications on resource allocation.

Hybrid monitoring scheme for end-to-end performance enhancement of multicast-based real-time media

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Ju-Won; Kim, JongWon

2004-10-01

As real-time media applications based on IP multicast networks spread widely, end-to-end QoS (quality of service) provisioning for these applications have become very important. To guarantee the end-to-end QoS of multi-party media applications, it is essential to monitor the time-varying status of both network metrics (i.e., delay, jitter and loss) and system metrics (i.e., CPU and memory utilization). In this paper, targeting the multicast-enabled AG (Access Grid) a next-generation group collaboration tool based on multi-party media services, the applicability of hybrid monitoring scheme that combines active and passive monitoring is investigated. The active monitoring measures network-layer metrics (i.e., network condition) with probe packets while the passive monitoring checks both application-layer metrics (i.e., user traffic condition by analyzing RTCP packets) and system metrics. By comparing these hybrid results, we attempt to pinpoint the causes of performance degradation and explore corresponding reactions to improve the end-to-end performance. The experimental results show that the proposed hybrid monitoring can provide useful information to coordinate the performance improvement of multi-party real-time media applications.

Coupled Viscous Fluid Flow and Joint Deformation Analysis for Grout Injection in a Rock Joint

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Hyung-Mok; Lee, Jong-Won; Yazdani, Mahmoud; Tohidi, Elham; Nejati, Hamid Reza; Park, Eui-Seob

2018-02-01

Fluid flow modeling is a major area of interest within the field of rock mechanics. The main objective of this study is to gain insight into the performance of grout injection inside jointed rock masses by numerical modeling of grout flow through a single rock joint. Grout flow has been widely simulated using non-Newtonian Bingham fluid characterized by two main parameters of dynamic viscosity and shear yield strength both of which are time dependent. The increasing value of these properties with injection time will apparently affect the parameters representing the grouting performance including grout penetration length and volumetric injection rate. In addition, through hydromechanical coupling a mutual influence between the injection pressure from the one side and the joint opening/closing behavior and the aperture profile variation on the other side is anticipated. This is capable of producing a considerable impact on grout spread within the rock joints. In this study based on the Bingham fluid model, a series of numerical analysis has been conducted using UDEC to simulate the flow of viscous grout in a single rock joint with smooth parallel surfaces. In these analyses, the time-dependent evolution of the grout fluid properties and the hydromechanical coupling have been considered to investigate their impact on grouting performance. In order to verify the validity of these simulations, the results of analyses including the grout penetration length and the injection flow rate were compared with a well-known analytical solution which is available for the simple case of constant grout properties and non-coupled hydraulic analysis. The comparison demonstrated that the grout penetration length can be overestimated when the time-dependent hardening of grout material is not considered. Moreover, due to the HM coupling, it was shown that the joint opening induced by injection pressure may have a considerable increasing impression on the values of penetration length and

Performance of automated multiplex PCR using sonication fluid for diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infection: a prospective cohort.

Science.gov (United States)

Renz, Nora; Feihl, Susanne; Cabric, Sabrina; Trampuz, Andrej

2017-12-01

Sonication of explanted prostheses improved the microbiological diagnosis of periprosthetic joint infections (PJI). We evaluated the performance of automated multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using sonication fluid for the microbiological diagnosis of PJI. In a prospective cohort using uniform definition criteria for PJI, explanted joint prostheses were investigated by sonication and the resulting sonication fluid was analyzed by culture and multiplex PCR. McNemar's Chi-squared test was used to compare the performance of diagnostic tests. Among 111 patients, PJI was diagnosed in 78 (70%) and aseptic failure in 33 (30%). For the diagnosis of PJI, the sensitivity and specificity of periprosthetic tissue culture was 51 and 100%, of sonication fluid culture 58 and 100%, and of sonication fluid PCR 51 and 94%, respectively. Among 70 microorganisms, periprosthetic tissue culture grew 52 (74%), sonication fluid culture grew 50 (71%) and sonication fluid PCR detected 37 pathogens (53%). If only organisms are considered, for which primers are included in the test panel, PCR detected 37 of 58 pathogens (64%). The sonication fluid PCR missed 19 pathogens (predominantly oral streptococci and anaerobes), whereas 7 additional microorganisms were detected only by PCR (including Cutibacterium spp. and coagulase-negative staphylococci). The performance of multiplex PCR using sonication fluid is comparable to culture of periprosthetic tissue or sonication fluid. The advantages of PCR are short processing time (PCR, especially of low-virulent organisms.

Cooperative joint precoding in a downlink cellular system with shared relay: Design and performance evaluation

KAUST Repository

Kwon, JaeWoo; Park, Kihong; Ko, Youngchai; Yang, Hongchuan

2012-01-01

In this paper, we investigate a relay enhanced cellular system, where a relay station is located in the overlap area served by two base stations. We propose cooperative joint precoding schemes for the downlink transmission of such relay enhanced cellular system to maximize the system capacity while minimizing the interference at both the relay station and the mobile stations. We formulate the optimization problems to maximize the system capacity and design the multiuser precoding vectors at each base station and the relay station. We quantify the ergodic rate performance of the proposed multiuser precoding schemes through statistical analysis. The extensively derived ergodic expressions will facilitate the accurate performance evaluation of the proposed transmission schemes. Numerical results show that the proposed schemes can effectively cancel the interference and improve the sum rate and the outage performance for cell edge users. © 2002-2012 IEEE.

Cooperative joint precoding in a downlink cellular system with shared relay: Design and performance evaluation

KAUST Repository

Kwon, JaeWoo

2012-10-01

In this paper, we investigate a relay enhanced cellular system, where a relay station is located in the overlap area served by two base stations. We propose cooperative joint precoding schemes for the downlink transmission of such relay enhanced cellular system to maximize the system capacity while minimizing the interference at both the relay station and the mobile stations. We formulate the optimization problems to maximize the system capacity and design the multiuser precoding vectors at each base station and the relay station. We quantify the ergodic rate performance of the proposed multiuser precoding schemes through statistical analysis. The extensively derived ergodic expressions will facilitate the accurate performance evaluation of the proposed transmission schemes. Numerical results show that the proposed schemes can effectively cancel the interference and improve the sum rate and the outage performance for cell edge users. © 2002-2012 IEEE.

Estimation of ground reaction forces and joint moments on the basis on plantar pressure insoles and wearable sensors for joint angle measurement.

Science.gov (United States)

Ostaszewski, Michal; Pauk, Jolanta

2018-05-16

Gait analysis is a useful tool medical staff use to support clinical decision making. There is still an urgent need to develop low-cost and unobtrusive mobile health monitoring systems. The goal of this study was twofold. Firstly, a wearable sensor system composed of plantar pressure insoles and wearable sensors for joint angle measurement was developed. Secondly, the accuracy of the system in the measurement of ground reaction forces and joint moments was examined. The measurements included joint angles and plantar pressure distribution. To validate the wearable sensor system and examine the effectiveness of the proposed method for gait analysis, an experimental study on ten volunteer subjects was conducted. The accuracy of measurement of ground reaction forces and joint moments was validated against the results obtained from a reference motion capture system. Ground reaction forces and joint moments measured by the wearable sensor system showed a root mean square error of 1% for min. GRF and 27.3% for knee extension moment. The correlation coefficient was over 0.9, in comparison with the stationary motion capture system. The study suggests that the wearable sensor system could be recommended both for research and clinical applications outside a typical gait laboratory.

Interactions of Team Mental Models and Monitoring Behaviors Predict Team Performance in Simulated Anesthesia Inductions

Science.gov (United States)

Burtscher, Michael J.; Kolbe, Michaela; Wacker, Johannes; Manser, Tanja

2011-01-01

In the present study, we investigated how two team mental model properties (similarity vs. accuracy) and two forms of monitoring behavior (team vs. systems) interacted to predict team performance in anesthesia. In particular, we were interested in whether the relationship between monitoring behavior and team performance was moderated by team…

Monitoring student attendance, participation, and performance improvement: an instrument and forms.

Science.gov (United States)

Kosta, Joanne

2012-01-01

When students receive consistent and fair feedback about their behavior, program liability decreases. To help students to have a clearer understanding of minimum program standards and the consequences of substandard performance, the author developed attendance and participation monitoring and performance improvement instruments. The author discusses the tools that address absenteeism, tardiness, unprofessional, and unsafe clinical behaviors among students.

Daily-life tele-monitoring of motor performance in stroke survivors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veltink, Petrus H.; van Meulen, Fokke; van Beijnum, Bernhard J.F.; Klaassen, Bart; Hermens, Hermanus J.; Droog, Adriaan; Weusthof, Marcel H.H.; Lorussi, F.; Tognetti, A.; Reenalda, J.; Reenalda, Jasper; Nikamp, C.D.M.; Nikamp-Simons, Corien Diana Maria; Baten, Christian T.M.; Buurke, Jaap; Held, J.; Luft, A.; Luinge, H.; De Toma, G.; Mancuso, C.; Paradiso, R.; Aminian, Kamiar

2014-01-01

The objective of the EU project INTERACTION is to develop an unobtrusive and modular sensing system for objective monitoring of daily-life motor performance of stroke survivors. This will enable clinical professionals to advise their patients about their continued daily-life activity profile and

Elbow joint fatigue and bench-press training.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yen-Po; Chou, You-Li; Chen, Feng-Chun; Wang, Rong-Tyai; Huang, Ming-Jer; Chou, Paul Pei-Hsi

2014-01-01

Bench-press exercises are among the most common form of training exercise for the upper extremity because they yield a notable improvement in both muscle strength and muscle endurance. The literature contains various investigations into the effects of different bench-press positions on the degree of muscle activation. However, the effects of fatigue on the muscular performance and kinetics of the elbow joint are not understood fully. To investigate the effects of fatigue on the kinetics and myodynamic performance of the elbow joint in bench-press training. Controlled laboratory study. Motion research laboratory. A total of 18 physically healthy male students (age = 19.6 ± 0.8 years, height = 168.7 ± 5.5 cm, mass = 69.6 ± 8.6 kg) participated in the investigation. All participants were right-hand dominant, and none had a history of upper extremity injuries or disorders. Participants performed bench-press training until fatigued. Maximal possible number of repetitions, cycle time, myodynamic decline rate, elbow-joint force, and elbow-joint moment. We observed a difference in cycle time in the initial (2.1 ± 0.42 seconds) and fatigue (2.58 ± 0.46 seconds) stages of the bench-press exercise (P = .04). As the participants fatigued, we observed an increase in the medial-lateral force (P = .03) and internal-external moment (P ≤ .04) acting on the elbow joint. Moreover, a reduction in the elbow muscle strength was observed in the elbow extension-flexion (P ≤ .003) and forearm supination-pronation (P ≤ .001) conditions. The results suggest that performing bench-press exercises to the point of fatigue increases elbow-joint loading and may further increase the risk of injury. Therefore, when clinicians design bench-press exercise regimens for general athletic training, muscle strengthening, or physical rehabilitation, they should control carefully the maximal number of repetitions.

Septic arthritis of the sacroiliac joint

Science.gov (United States)

Sebastian, Agata; Błach, Katarzyna; Silicki, Jurand; Wiland, Piotr

2018-01-01

Septic arthritis is an inflammation of a joint caused directly by various microorganisms. It is often characterized by many unspecific symptoms. Bacteria is the most often etiological factor. We present a case report of a 76-years old woman with a unilateral septic arthritis of the sacroiliac joint. Bacterial sacroiliitis should be taken into account in patients with sacroiliitis and fever onset. Proper diagnosis can be very often difficult and delayed but fast implementation of antibiotic therapy is extremely important in the treatment process. Diagnostic imaging is crucial to the diagnosis and monitoring of septic arthritis. Magnetic resonance imaging is the most relevant tool for the detection of sacroiliitis, allowing the institution of therapeutic strategies to impede the progression of the disease. PMID:29686444

An analysis of a joint shear model for jointed media with orthogonal joint sets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koteras, J.R.

1991-10-01

This report describes a joint shear model used in conjunction with a computational model for jointed media with orthogonal joint sets. The joint shear model allows nonlinear behavior for both joint sets. Because nonlinear behavior is allowed for both joint sets, a great many cases must be considered to fully describe the joint shear behavior of the jointed medium. An extensive set of equations is required to describe the joint shear stress and slip displacements that can occur for all the various cases. This report examines possible methods for simplifying this set of equations so that the model can be implemented efficiently form a computational standpoint. The shear model must be examined carefully to obtain a computationally efficient implementation that does not lead to numerical problems. The application to fractures in rock is discussed. 5 refs., 4 figs

The effect of monitor raster latency on VEPs, ERPs and Brain-Computer Interface performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Nagel, Sebastian; Dreher, Werner; Rosenstiel, Wolfgang; Spüler, Martin

2018-02-01

Visual neuroscience experiments and Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) control often require strict timings in a millisecond scale. As most experiments are performed using a personal computer (PC), the latencies that are introduced by the setup should be taken into account and be corrected. As a standard computer monitor uses a rastering to update each line of the image sequentially, this causes a monitor raster latency which depends on the position, on the monitor and the refresh rate. We technically measured the raster latencies of different monitors and present the effects on visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and event-related potentials (ERPs). Additionally we present a method for correcting the monitor raster latency and analyzed the performance difference of a code-modulated VEP BCI speller by correcting the latency. There are currently no other methods validating the effects of monitor raster latency on VEPs and ERPs. The timings of VEPs and ERPs are directly affected by the raster latency. Furthermore, correcting the raster latency resulted in a significant reduction of the target prediction error from 7.98% to 4.61% and also in a more reliable classification of targets by significantly increasing the distance between the most probable and the second most probable target by 18.23%. The monitor raster latency affects the timings of VEPs and ERPs, and correcting resulted in a significant error reduction of 42.23%. It is recommend to correct the raster latency for an increased BCI performance and methodical correctness. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Lower limb joint work and joint work contribution during downhill and uphill walking at different inclinations.

Science.gov (United States)

Alexander, Nathalie; Strutzenberger, Gerda; Ameshofer, Lisa Maria; Schwameder, Hermann

2017-08-16

Work performance and individual joint contribution to total work are important information for creating training protocols, but were not assessed so far for sloped walking. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyze lower limb joint work and joint contribution of the hip, knee and ankle to total lower limb work during sloped walking in a healthy population. Eighteen male participants (27.0±4.7yrs, 1.80±0.05m, 74.5±8.2kg) walked on an instrumented ramp at inclination angles of 0°, ±6°, ±12° and ±18° at 1.1m/s. Kinematic and kinetic data were captured using a motion-capture system (Vicon) and two force plates (AMTI). Joint power curves, joint work (positive, negative, absolute) and each joint's contribution to total lower limb work were analyzed throughout the stance phase using an ANOVA with repeated measures. With increasing inclination positive joint work increased for the ankle and hip joint and in total during uphill walking. Negative joint work increased for each joint and in total work during downhill walking. Absolute work was increased during both uphill (all joints) and downhill (ankle & knee) walking. Knee joint contribution to total negative and absolute work increased during downhill walking while hip and ankle contributions decreased. This study identified, that, when switching from level to a 6° and from 6° to a 12° inclination the gain of individual joint work is more pronounced compared to switching from 12° to an 18° inclination. The results might be used for training recommendations and specific training intervention with respect to sloped walking. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Degenerative joint disease on MRI and physical activity: a clinical study of the knee joint in 320 patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bachmann, G.F.; Rauber, K.; Damian, M.S.; Rau, W.S.; Basad, E.

1999-01-01

We examined 320 patients with MRI and arthroscopy after an acute trauma to evaluate MRI in diagnosis of degenerative joint disease of the knee in relation to sports activity and clinical data. Lesions of cartilage and menisci on MRI were registered by two radiologists in consensus without knowledge of arthroscopy. Arthroscopy demonstrated grade-1 to grade-4 lesions of cartilage on 729 of 1920 joint surfaces of 320 knees, and MRI diagnosed 14 % of grade-1, 32 % of grade-2, 94 % of grade-3, and 100 % of grade-4 lesions. Arthroscopy explored 1280 meniscal areas and showed degenerations in 10 %, tears in 11.4 %, and complex lesions in 9.2 %. Magnetic resonance imaging was in agreement with arthroscopy in 81 % showing more degenerations but less tears of menisci than arthroscopy. Using a global system for grading the total damage of the knee joint into none, mild, moderate, or severe changes, agreement between arthroscopy and MRI was found in 82 %. Magnetic resonance imaging and arthroscopy showed coherently that degree of degenerative joint changes was significantly correlated to patient age or previous knee trauma. Patients over 40 years had moderate to severe changes on MRI in 45 % and patients under 30 years in only 22 %. Knee joints with a history of trauma without complete structural or functional reconstitution showed marked changes on MRI in 57 %, whereas stable joints without such alterations had degenerative changes in only 26 %. There was no correlation of degenerative disease to gender, weight, type, frequency, and intensity of sports activity. Therefore, MRI is an effective non-invasive imaging method for exact localization and quantification of chronic joint changes of cartilage and menisci that recommends MRI for monitoring in sports medicine. (orig.) (orig.)

Increasing the Performance and Reliability of Power Boiler by Monitoring Thermal and Strength Parameters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sobota Tomasz

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents a method for determination of thermo-flow parameters for steam boilers. This method allows to perform the calculations of the boiler furnace chamber and heat flow rates absorbed by superheater stages. These parameters are important for monitoring the performance of the power unit. Knowledge of these parameters allows determining the degree of the furnace chamber slagging. The calculation can be performed in online mode and use to monitoring of steam boiler. The presented method allows to the operation of steam boiler with high efficiency.

Fiscal Year 2005 Integrated Monitoring Plan for the Hanford Groundwater Performance Assessment Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rieger, JoAnne T.; Hartman, Mary J.

2005-01-01

Groundwater is monitored in hundreds of wells at the Hanford Site to fulfill a variety of requirements. Separate monitoring plans are prepared for various purposes, but sampling is coordinated and data are shared among users. DOE manages these activities through the Hanford Groundwater Performance Assessment Project, which is the responsibility of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The groundwater project integrates monitoring for various objectives into a single sampling schedule to avoid redundancy of effort and to improve efficiency of sample collection.This report documents the purposes and objectives of groundwater monitoring at the DOE Hanford Site in southeastern Washington State

Velocities and joint angles during double backward stretched salto performed with stable landing and in combination with tempo salto

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J Sadowski

2009-07-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study was to compare the values of velocity an joint angles obtained during performance of double salto backward stretched with a stable landing and its combination with salto tempo. Seven top level acrobats (track jumpers participated in study. Mean values of body height, mass and age had a value of: 170 cm ± 4.0 cm, 72.4 kg ± 3.6 kg, 20.4±1.7 years, respectively. The studies were conducted on a standard acrobatic path (type PTS 2000. Two digital video cameras (240 Hz and APAS 2000 (Ariel Dynamics Inc. were used during studies. Markers were placed in ankle, knee, hip, arm, elbow and wrist joints. All marker positions were tracked and reconstructed using the APAS system. Two sequences with the following elements were analysed: round-off - double salto backward stretched (A and round-off - double salto backward stretched - tempo salto (B. The highest differences between the key components describing performance of presented exercises exist for joint angles during launching and landing position, and resultant velocities during touchdown. In version A the athlete created prerequisites for “gliding” double salto backward stretched by means of the body segments motions, whereas in version B he executes faster motions of the body segments accentuating his actions upon backward rotation of the body. During the final phase of double salto backward stretched in combination with tempo salto the athlete performed courbette “under himself” (almost straight feet are placed in front of vertical line, pushes directly back and in 0,1 s executes stable arm swing upward-backward to tempo salto.

Monitoring the Long-Term Performance of Engineered Containment Systems: Role of Ecological Processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Traynham, B.; Clarke, J.H.; Burger, J.; Waugh, J.

2009-01-01

Engineered covers have been widely used to minimize water infiltration into landfills used by U. S. Department of Energy (DOE) for the disposal of radioactive and hazardous chemical waste. The degradation of engineered covers over time is a complex process that is influenced by site specific characteristics, the structure and dynamics of the indigenous plant community, and the interplay of physical and biological factors at contaminated sites. It is necessary to develop a rigorous method to evaluate long-term performance of covers and other engineered barriers with quantification of risk and uncertainty. Because many of the contaminants of concern are long-lived, this methodology must consider changes in the environmental setting (e.g., precipitation, temperature) and cover components for long time periods (>100 years). Current monitoring approaches focus solely on hydrologic properties of the cover system. Additionally, cover design guidelines, such as those from RCRA, are not performance based and do not consider long-term site-specific influences such as climate, vegetation, and soils. Fundamental ecological processes such as succession are not even factored into current models, yet they directly affect the integrity of landfill covers through biointrusion, erosion, and water balance. Therefore, it is useful to identify ecological parameters and processes most important to performance for prioritization of site characterization and long-term monitoring activities. This investigation into the role of ecological monitoring of isolation containment systems utilizes the software platform GoldSim to identify important parameters and processes for performance verification and monitoring. (authors)

Interdependence of torque, joint angle, angular velocity and muscle action during human multi-joint leg extension.

Science.gov (United States)

Hahn, Daniel; Herzog, Walter; Schwirtz, Ansgar

2014-08-01

Force and torque production of human muscles depends upon their lengths and contraction velocity. However, these factors are widely assumed to be independent of each other and the few studies that dealt with interactions of torque, angle and angular velocity are based on isolated single-joint movements. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine force/torque-angle and force/torque-angular velocity properties for multi-joint leg extensions. Human leg extension was investigated (n = 18) on a motor-driven leg press dynamometer while measuring external reaction forces at the feet. Extensor torque in the knee joint was calculated using inverse dynamics. Isometric contractions were performed at eight joint angle configurations of the lower limb corresponding to increments of 10° at the knee from 30 to 100° of knee flexion. Concentric and eccentric contractions were performed over the same range of motion at mean angular velocities of the knee from 30 to 240° s(-1). For contractions of increasing velocity, optimum knee angle shifted from 52 ± 7 to 64 ± 4° knee flexion. Furthermore, the curvature of the concentric force/torque-angular velocity relations varied with joint angles and maximum angular velocities increased from 866 ± 79 to 1,238 ± 132° s(-1) for 90-50° knee flexion. Normalised eccentric forces/torques ranged from 0.85 ± 0.12 to 1.32 ± 0.16 of their isometric reference, only showing significant increases above isometric and an effect of angular velocity for joint angles greater than optimum knee angle. The findings reveal that force/torque production during multi-joint leg extension depends on the combined effects of angle and angular velocity. This finding should be accounted for in modelling and optimisation of human movement.

Comparison of 3MP medical-grade to 1MP office grade LCD monitors in mammographic diagnostic and perceptual performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ong, Aaron; Tan, Shu.; Gledhill, Samuel; Hennessy, Oliver; Lui, Belinda; Lee, Alan; Lemish, Wayne; Styles, Colin; Pun, Emma; Padmanabhan, Meenakshi; Pitman, Alexander G.; Tauro, Paul; Waugh, Paul

2011-01-01

Full text: Picture archiving and communication systems images designed to be viewed on high-resolution medical-grade monitors are routinely viewed on office-grade monitors on the wards or at home. This study aimed to determine whether a statistically significant difference in diagnostic (cancer detection) and perceptual (microcalcification detection) performance exists between 3MP grade and 1MP office-grade monitors. 3MP Dome medical-grade liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors (Planar, Beaverton, OR, USA) were compared to 1MP Dell office-grade LCD monitors (Dell Inc, Round Rock, TX, USA). Eight radiologists (reader experi ence 8-30 years) read the same set of 100 mammograms (23/100 with proven cancers and 52/100 with microcalcifications) presented in random order on three occasions separated by two time intervals of 12 weeks. Reads 1 and 3 utilised 3MP monitors and formed the baseline read. Read 2 utilised 1MP monitors and constituted the experimental read. Reading conditions were standardised. Readers were aware of which monitors they were using. Mul tivariate logistic regression analysis (to account for reader variability and monitor impact) was performed to assess for statistical significance. At a = 5%, confidence intervals analysis comparing the measured parameters between 1MP to 3MP monitors demonstrated no statistically significant difference in diagnostic and perceptual performance for the reader group. In cancer detection (the diagnostic task), reader accuracy remained high irrespective of monitor type. Regression analysis comparing performance with 1MP against 3MP monitors found P values of 0.693 and 0.324 for diagnostic and perceptual performance, respectively. There were no statistically and clinically significant differences between 3MP and 1MP monitors in mammographic diagnostic and perceptual performance. Comparable performance may be due to compensatory behav iour by readers.

Knee joint mobilization reduces secondary mechanical hyperalgesia induced by capsaicin injection into the ankle joint.

Science.gov (United States)

Sluka, K A; Wright, A

2001-01-01

Joint mobilization is a treatment approach commonly used by physical therapists for the management of a variety of painful conditions. However, the clinical effectiveness when compared to placebo and the neurophysiological mechanism of action are not known. The purpose of this study was to establish that application of a manual therapy technique will produce antihyperalgesia in an animal model of joint inflammation and that the antihyperalgesia produced by joint mobilization depends on the time of treatment application. Capsaicin (0.2%, 50 microl) was injected into the lateral aspect of the left ankle joint and mechanical withdrawal threshold assessed before and after capsaicin injection in Sprague-Dawley rats. Joint mobilization of the ipsilateral knee joint was performed 2 h after capsaicin injection for a total of 3 min, 9 min or 15 min under halothane anaesthesia. Control groups included animals that received halothane for the same time as the group that received joint mobilization and those whose limbs were held for the same duration as the mobilization (no halothane). Capsaicin resulted in a decreased mechanical withdrawal threshold by 2 h after injection that was maintained through 4 h. Both 9 and 15 min of mobilization, but not 3 min of mobilization, increased the withdrawal threshold to mechanical stimuli to baseline values when compared with control groups. The antihyperalgesic effect of joint mobilization lasted 30 min. Thus, joint mobilization (9 or 15 min duration) produces a significant reversal of secondary mechanical hyperalgesia induced by intra-articular injection of capsaicin. Copyright 2001 European Federation of Chapters of the International Association for the Study of Pain.

On-line Monitoring System Based on Principle of Electro-acoustic Monitoring for Transformer Partial Discharge

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guang Ya LIU

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Partial discharge inside a transformer is mainly responsible for the insulation aging and damage of the transformer. However, partial discharge is usually accompanied by external signals like sound, light and electrical signals and detectable physical phenomena such as characteristical gas and dielectric loss. Therefore, it is of great significance to monitor online the external signals and phenomena formed during partial discharge of the transformer when the transformer diagnoses faults. This paper gives a comprehensive overview of the electro-acoustic joint monitoring principles and its monitoring systems and the judgment skills concerned, on the basis of which the monitoring system is designed.

Quantifying the tibiofemoral joint space using x-ray tomosynthesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalinosky, Benjamin; Sabol, John M; Piacsek, Kelly; Heckel, Beth; Gilat Schmidt, Taly

2011-12-01

Digital x-ray tomosynthesis (DTS) has the potential to provide 3D information about the knee joint in a load-bearing posture, which may improve diagnosis and monitoring of knee osteoarthritis compared with projection radiography, the current standard of care. Manually quantifying and visualizing the joint space width (JSW) from 3D tomosynthesis datasets may be challenging. This work developed a semiautomated algorithm for quantifying the 3D tibiofemoral JSW from reconstructed DTS images. The algorithm was validated through anthropomorphic phantom experiments and applied to three clinical datasets. A user-selected volume of interest within the reconstructed DTS volume was enhanced with 1D multiscale gradient kernels. The edge-enhanced volumes were divided by polarity into tibial and femoral edge maps and combined across kernel scales. A 2D connected components algorithm was performed to determine candidate tibial and femoral edges. A 2D joint space width map (JSW) was constructed to represent the 3D tibiofemoral joint space. To quantify the algorithm accuracy, an adjustable knee phantom was constructed, and eleven posterior-anterior (PA) and lateral DTS scans were acquired with the medial minimum JSW of the phantom set to 0-5 mm in 0.5 mm increments (VolumeRad™, GE Healthcare, Chalfont St. Giles, United Kingdom). The accuracy of the algorithm was quantified by comparing the minimum JSW in a region of interest in the medial compartment of the JSW map to the measured phantom setting for each trial. In addition, the algorithm was applied to DTS scans of a static knee phantom and the JSW map compared to values estimated from a manually segmented computed tomography (CT) dataset. The algorithm was also applied to three clinical DTS datasets of osteoarthritic patients. The algorithm segmented the JSW and generated a JSW map for all phantom and clinical datasets. For the adjustable phantom, the estimated minimum JSW values were plotted against the measured values for all

Visual metaphors on anaesthesia monitors do not improve anaesthetists' performance in the operating theatre

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Amsterdam, K.; Cnossen, F.; Ballast, A.; Struys, M. M. R. F.

Background. Previous research using a metaphorical anaesthesia monitor, where dimensions of rectangles proportionally represent 30 patient variable values, showed improved performance in diagnosing adverse events compared with the standard monitor. Steady-state values were represented by a frame

Statistical analysis of RHIC beam position monitors performance

Science.gov (United States)

Calaga, R.; Tomás, R.

2004-04-01

A detailed statistical analysis of beam position monitors (BPM) performance at RHIC is a critical factor in improving regular operations and future runs. Robust identification of malfunctioning BPMs plays an important role in any orbit or turn-by-turn analysis. Singular value decomposition and Fourier transform methods, which have evolved as powerful numerical techniques in signal processing, will aid in such identification from BPM data. This is the first attempt at RHIC to use a large set of data to statistically enhance the capability of these two techniques and determine BPM performance. A comparison from run 2003 data shows striking agreement between the two methods and hence can be used to improve BPM functioning at RHIC and possibly other accelerators.

Statistical analysis of RHIC beam position monitors performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Calaga

2004-04-01

Full Text Available A detailed statistical analysis of beam position monitors (BPM performance at RHIC is a critical factor in improving regular operations and future runs. Robust identification of malfunctioning BPMs plays an important role in any orbit or turn-by-turn analysis. Singular value decomposition and Fourier transform methods, which have evolved as powerful numerical techniques in signal processing, will aid in such identification from BPM data. This is the first attempt at RHIC to use a large set of data to statistically enhance the capability of these two techniques and determine BPM performance. A comparison from run 2003 data shows striking agreement between the two methods and hence can be used to improve BPM functioning at RHIC and possibly other accelerators.

A Meta-Analysis of Self-Monitoring on Reading Performance of K-12 Students

Science.gov (United States)

Guzman, Guadalupe; Goldberg, Taryn S.; Swanson, H. Lee

2018-01-01

The published single-case design (SCD) research (N = 19 articles) on self-monitoring and reading performance was synthesized. The following inclusion criteria were used: (a) the study must have been peer-reviewed, (b) implemented an intervention targeting student self-monitoring of reading skills, (c) included data on at least 1 reading outcome,…

Temporomandibular joint examination reviewed

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Guarda Nardini

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ it’s a joint closely related to the skull base, the spine, and the jaws; all these anatomical structures must be taken in consideration when evaluating pain involving the tmj. In order to detect patients affected by pathology or dysfunctions of the tmj, physical examination is of great value in orienting the diagnosis. Inspection must consider the symmetry of the body, the dental status and the type of occlusion. Palpation is a way to assess contractiont involving the muscles of the masticatory system and of the neck. Auscultation, based on articular noise provides means to determine whether we are dealing with degeneration of the joint or a dislocation of the intrarticular disc. In order to confirm the diagnosis obtained with the clinical evaluation, it’s useful to perform imaging techniques as opt, tomography and TC of the tmj and electromyokineosiography – index of the mandibular functionality and of the muscles status. MRI and dynamic MRI are among the non invasive exams which give the greatest amount of information, regarding the disc position and the joint degeneration. Arthroscopy is an invasive technique that allows early diagnosis of degeneration and is helpful to reveal early inflammatory processes of the joint.

Methodological problems of sacroiliac joint scintigraphy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schoerner, W.; Haubold, U.

1981-01-01

Bone scintigraphy of the sacroiliac joints and the lumbar spine was performed in 35 patients with ankylosing spondylitis and 30 control subjects. The scans were evaluated by qualitative and quantitative assessment. The sacroiliac/sacrum ratio (index ISG/sacrum), the sacroiliac/lumbar spine ratio (index ISG/LWS), and the left sacroiliac joint/right sacroiliac joint ratio (index li. ISG/re. ISG) were calculated. The visual interpretation of colour scans proved to be unreliable. The index ISG/sacrum was more sensitive than the index ISG/LWS. The index li. ISG/re. ISG was helpful as an additional criterion. When digital sacroiliac joint scintigraphy is well standardized it can be considered as a useful technique in early diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis. (orig.) [de

M rate at TE. Monitoring at TeV energies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dorner, Daniela [Universitaet Wuerzburg (Germany); Bretz, Thomas [RWTH Aachen (Germany); Gonzalez, Magdalena; Alfaro, Ruben [Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (Mexico); Tovmassian, Gagik [Instituto de Astronomia Sede Ensenada (Mexico)

2016-07-01

A dedicated long-term monitoring programm at TeV energies has been started by the FACT project about four years ago. Being limited to one site, gaps due to the rotation of the Earth remain in the measured light curves. This makes it difficult to study typical variability time scales of few hours to one day. To allow for systematic studies of continuous observations over up to 12 hours, a second telescope is being installed at a site in about six hours distance in longitude. For the M rate at TE (Monitoring at TeV energies) telescope, a mount from a previous experiment is being refurbished and will be equipped with a new camera. Using silicon based photo sensors like in FACT, an excellent and stable performance will be achieved. M rate at TE is a joint project of German and Mexican universities which aims at extending the blazar monitoring to so far unexplored time ranges. In the presentation, the status of this emerging project is reported.

Evaluation of Activity Recognition Algorithms for Employee Performance Monitoring

OpenAIRE

Mehreen Mumtaz; Hafiz Adnan Habib

2012-01-01

Successful Human Resource Management plays a key role in success of any organization. Traditionally, human resource managers rely on various information technology solutions such as Payroll and Work Time Systems incorporating RFID and biometric technologies. This research evaluates activity recognition algorithms for employee performance monitoring. An activity recognition algorithm has been implemented that categorized the activity of employee into following in to classes: job activities and...

Cancer risk among patients with finger and hand joint and temporo-mandibular joint prostheses in Denmark.

Science.gov (United States)

Fryzek, J P; Mellemkjaer, L; McLaughlin, J K; Blot, W J; Olsen, J H

1999-05-31

The use of artificial joint implants has risen greatly over the past years. However, few investigations of the cancer risk associated with implants have been performed. We investigated cancer risk in patients with finger and hand joint and temporo-mandibular (TMJ) joint implants. A nationwide cohort in Denmark of patients with finger and hand joint prostheses (n = 858) or TMJ implants (n = 389) was followed from January 1, 1977, to December 31, 1995, to evaluate any potential cancer risks subsequent to receiving these implants. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) for all cancers were 1.0 (95% CI = 0.8-1.2) for the finger and hand joint cohort and 1.1 (95% CI = 0.8-1.7) for the TMJ cohort. A significant risk for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was found in the finger and hand joint cohort (SIR = 3.8, 95% CI = 1.5-7.8). When the finger and hand joint cohort was stratified by diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis, the excess risk was seen only in the group with rheumatoid arthritis. This is consistent with past studies, which have found an association between rheumatoid arthritis and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Our results provide evidence that the cancer risk for patients with finger and hand joint prostheses and TMJ implants is similar to that for the general population.

The effect of subject measurement error on joint kinematics in the conventional gait model: Insights from the open-source pyCGM tool using high performance computing methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwartz, Mathew; Dixon, Philippe C

2018-01-01

The conventional gait model (CGM) is a widely used biomechanical model which has been validated over many years. The CGM relies on retro-reflective markers placed along anatomical landmarks, a static calibration pose, and subject measurements as inputs for joint angle calculations. While past literature has shown the possible errors caused by improper marker placement, studies on the effects of inaccurate subject measurements are lacking. Moreover, as many laboratories rely on the commercial version of the CGM, released as the Plug-in Gait (Vicon Motion Systems Ltd, Oxford, UK), integrating improvements into the CGM code is not easily accomplished. This paper introduces a Python implementation for the CGM, referred to as pyCGM, which is an open-source, easily modifiable, cross platform, and high performance computational implementation. The aims of pyCGM are to (1) reproduce joint kinematic outputs from the Vicon CGM and (2) be implemented in a parallel approach to allow integration on a high performance computer. The aims of this paper are to (1) demonstrate that pyCGM can systematically and efficiently examine the effect of subject measurements on joint angles and (2) be updated to include new calculation methods suggested in the literature. The results show that the calculated joint angles from pyCGM agree with Vicon CGM outputs, with a maximum lower body joint angle difference of less than 10-5 degrees. Through the hierarchical system, the ankle joint is the most vulnerable to subject measurement error. Leg length has the greatest effect on all joints as a percentage of measurement error. When compared to the errors previously found through inter-laboratory measurements, the impact of subject measurements is minimal, and researchers should rather focus on marker placement. Finally, we showed that code modifications can be performed to include improved hip, knee, and ankle joint centre estimations suggested in the existing literature. The pyCGM code is provided

Alterations in neuromuscular function in girls with generalized joint hypermobility

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Bente Rona; Melcher, Jesper Sandfeld; Melcher, Pia Grethe Sandfeld

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: Generalized Joint Hypermobility (GJH) is associated with increased risk of musculoskeletal joint pain. We investigated neuromuscular performance and muscle activation strategy. METHODS: Girls with GJH and non-GJH (NGJH) performed isometric knee flexions (90°,110°,130°), and extensions...

Application of monitoring, diagnosis, and prognosis in thermal performance analysis for nuclear power plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Hyeong Min; Heo, Gyun Young [Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Na, Man Gyun [Chosun University, Gwangju (Korea, Republic of)

2014-12-15

As condition-based maintenance (CBM) has risen as a new trend, there has been an active movement to apply information technology for effective implementation of CBM in power plants. This motivation is widespread in operations and maintenance, including monitoring, diagnosis, prognosis, and decision-making on asset management. Thermal efficiency analysis in nuclear power plants (NPPs) is a longstanding concern being updated with new methodologies in an advanced IT environment. It is also a prominent way to differentiate competitiveness in terms of operations and maintenance costs. Although thermal performance tests implemented using industrial codes and standards can provide officially trustworthy results, they are essentially resource-consuming and maybe even a hind-sighted technique rather than a foresighted one, considering their periodicity. Therefore, if more accurate performance monitoring can be achieved using advanced data analysis techniques, we can expect more optimized operations and maintenance. This paper proposes a framework and describes associated methodologies for in-situ thermal performance analysis, which differs from conventional performance monitoring. The methodologies are effective for monitoring, diagnosis, and prognosis in pursuit of CBM. Our enabling techniques cover the intelligent removal of random and systematic errors, deviation detection between a best condition and a currently measured condition, degradation diagnosis using a structured knowledge base, and prognosis for decision-making about maintenance tasks. We also discuss how our new methods can be incorporated with existing performance tests. We provide guidance and directions for developers and end-users interested in in-situ thermal performance management, particularly in NPPs with large steam turbines.

Application of monitoring, diagnosis, and prognosis in thermal performance analysis for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Hyeong Min; Heo, Gyun Young; Na, Man Gyun

2014-01-01

As condition-based maintenance (CBM) has risen as a new trend, there has been an active movement to apply information technology for effective implementation of CBM in power plants. This motivation is widespread in operations and maintenance, including monitoring, diagnosis, prognosis, and decision-making on asset management. Thermal efficiency analysis in nuclear power plants (NPPs) is a longstanding concern being updated with new methodologies in an advanced IT environment. It is also a prominent way to differentiate competitiveness in terms of operations and maintenance costs. Although thermal performance tests implemented using industrial codes and standards can provide officially trustworthy results, they are essentially resource-consuming and maybe even a hind-sighted technique rather than a foresighted one, considering their periodicity. Therefore, if more accurate performance monitoring can be achieved using advanced data analysis techniques, we can expect more optimized operations and maintenance. This paper proposes a framework and describes associated methodologies for in-situ thermal performance analysis, which differs from conventional performance monitoring. The methodologies are effective for monitoring, diagnosis, and prognosis in pursuit of CBM. Our enabling techniques cover the intelligent removal of random and systematic errors, deviation detection between a best condition and a currently measured condition, degradation diagnosis using a structured knowledge base, and prognosis for decision-making about maintenance tasks. We also discuss how our new methods can be incorporated with existing performance tests. We provide guidance and directions for developers and end-users interested in in-situ thermal performance management, particularly in NPPs with large steam turbines.

The Effect of Monitoring Committees on the Relationship between Board Structure and Firm Performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aymen Ammari

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of board structure on the performance of French firms in the presence of several monitoring committees. We studied 80 publicly listed French firms spanning from 2001 to 2013. We concluded that large board size has a negative effect on market performance. While large board size in combination with the existence of at least three committees enhances accounting performance and does not have any impact on market performance, the existence of a board dominated by independent directors with the presence of at least three committees seems to have only a negative impact on accounting performance. Our findings indicate that monitoring committees are beneficial for shareholders only for corporations with a large board size.

Understanding the Impact of Expertise in Joint and Solo-Improvisation.

Science.gov (United States)

Issartel, Johann; Gueugnon, Mathieu; Marin, Ludovic

2017-01-01

Joint-improvisation is not only an open-ended creative action that two or more people perform together in the context of an artistic performance (e.g., theatre, music or dance). Joint-improvisation also takes place in daily life activities when humans take part in collective performance such as toddlers at play or adults engaged in a conversation. In the context of this article, joint-improvisation has been looked at from a social motor coordination perspective. In the literature, the nature of the social motor coordination characteristics of joint-improvisation for either the creative aspect or daily life features of this motor performance remains unclear. Additionally, both solo-improvisation and joint-improvisation need to be studied conjointly to establish the influence of the social element of improvisation in the emergence of multi-agent motor coordination. In order to better understand those two types of improvisation, we compared three level of expertise - novice, intermediate and professional in dance improvisation to identify movement characteristics for each of the groups. Pairs of the same level were asked to improvise together. Each individual was also asked to perform an improvisation on his/her own. We found that each of the three groups present specific movement organization with movement complexity increasing with the level of expertise. Experts performed shorter movement duration in conjunction with an increase range of movement. The direct comparison of individual and paired Conditions highlighted that the joint-improvisation reduced the complexity of the movement organization and those for all three levels while maintaining the differences between the groups. This direct comparison amongst those three distinct groups provides an original insight onto the nature of movement patterns in joint-improvisation situation. Overall, it reveals the role of both individual and collective properties in the emergence of social coordination.

Understanding the Impact of Expertise in Joint and Solo-Improvisation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johann Issartel

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Joint-improvisation is not only an open-ended creative action that two or more people perform together in the context of an artistic performance (e.g., theatre, music or dance. Joint-improvisation also takes place in daily life activities when humans take part in collective performance such as toddlers at play or adults engaged in a conversation. In the context of this article, joint-improvisation has been looked at from a social motor coordination perspective. In the literature, the nature of the social motor coordination characteristics of joint-improvisation for either the creative aspect or daily life features of this motor performance remains unclear. Additionally, both solo-improvisation and joint-improvisation need to be studied conjointly to establish the influence of the social element of improvisation in the emergence of multi-agent motor coordination. In order to better understand those two types of improvisation, we compared three level of expertise – novice, intermediate and professional in dance improvisation to identify movement characteristics for each of the groups. Pairs of the same level were asked to improvise together. Each individual was also asked to perform an improvisation on his/her own. We found that each of the three groups present specific movement organization with movement complexity increasing with the level of expertise. Experts performed shorter movement duration in conjunction with an increase range of movement. The direct comparison of individual and paired Conditions highlighted that the joint-improvisation reduced the complexity of the movement organization and those for all three levels while maintaining the differences between the groups. This direct comparison amongst those three distinct groups provides an original insight onto the nature of movement patterns in joint-improvisation situation. Overall, it reveals the role of both individual and collective properties in the emergence of social

Joint action coordination in 2½- and 3-year old children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marlene eMeyer

2010-12-01

Full Text Available When acting jointly with others, adults can be as proficient as when acting individually. However how young children coordinate their actions with another person and how their action coordination develops during early childhood is not well understood. By means of a sequential button-pressing game, which could be played jointly or individually, the action coordination of 2½- and 3-year-old children was examined. Performance accuracy and variability of response timing were taken as indicators of coordination ability. Results showed substantial improvement in joint action coordination between the age of 2½- and 3, but both age groups performed equally well when acting individually. Interestingly, 3-year-olds performed equally well in the joint and the individual condition, whereas 2½-year-olds did not yet show this adult-like pattern as indicated by less accurate performance in the joint action. The findings suggest that in contrast to 3-year-olds, 2½-year-olds still have difficulties in establishing well-coordinated joint action with an adult partner. Possible underlying cognitive abilities such as action planning and action control are discussed.

Watertrak, a computerized liquid waste treatment system status and performance monitoring program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vance, J.N.; Tafazzoli, M.M.

1984-01-01

Because of continuing problems in the radwaste system operations of a large number of plants currently operating, there is an increasing need to provide greater quantities of radwaste system information to plant operators and managers. Current and more complete information is required to enhance the operation and performance of the radwaste treatment systems, to assess the current system status, to plan for changing plant conditions and to diagnose actual or impending problems. The information needs include: real-time system status monitoring, equipment performance monitoring, report generation for operators and plant management, and training information. The nature and quantity of information required makes this program well-suited for a computer-aided engineering application

MR diagnosis of temporomandibular joint. A study of joint effusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaneda, Takashi; Yamashiro, Mitsuaki; Ozawa, Kaoru; Suzuki, Hiromi; Okada, Hiroyuki; Yamamoto, Hirotsugu

1998-01-01

The purposes of this study were to evaluate the relationship between correlation of MR joint effusion of the temporomandibular joint and disk position, to evaluate the relationship between joint effusion and aging, and to assess the frequency of MR joint effusion of bilateral temporomandibular joints. The temporomandibular joints of 192 patients with clinical symptoms of temporomandibular joint disorders were imaged bilaterally using high field, surface-coil MR imaging. Oblique sagittal and coronal proton density-weighted and T2-weighted images were obtained. Imaging findings of joint effusion were correlated with disk position, aging, and bilateral temporomandibular joints. MR showed effusion in 4% of the joints with normal superior disk position, 36% of the joints with disk displacement with reduction, and 45% of the joints with disk displacement without reduction. There were significant differences in the incidence of joint effusion between normal disk position and anterior disk displacement with or without reduction. Younger patients less than 40 years were significant higher the incidence of joint effusion than those of older patients. A significant association was seen between joint effusion and aging. MR showed effusion in 17% of the unilateral temporomandibular joint, 24% of the bilateral temporomandibular joints. There was no significant difference between unilateral and bilateral case. These results indicated that joint effusion using MR imaging was associated with varied temporomandibular joint pathologic states. (author)

The CEA JOSEFA test facility for sub-size conductors and joints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Decool, P.; Libeyre, P.; Van Houtte, D.; Ciazynski, D.; Zani, L.; Serries, J.P.; Cloez, H.; Bej, S.

2003-01-01

The JOSEFA (Joint Sub-size Experiment FAcility) experimental test facility, installed at CEA/Cadarache is devoted to perform tests at cryogenic temperature on sub-size superconducting conductor and joint samples under parallel or transverse magnetic field. This facility was built in 1993 to investigate the performances of joints of cable-in-conduit conductors at sub-size level and further upgraded in the framework of European tasks. The samples of hairpin type using sub-size ITER conductors are cooled by a circulation of supercritical helium in a temperature range from 5 to 15 K and tested at a maximum current up to 10 kA. Two different helium bath cooled magnets allow to apply DC or AC transverse magnetic field up to 3.5 T or longitudinal magnetic field up to 7.5 T. A sliding system with a 240 mm stroke on the sample cryostat allows to test separately in the same sample either the conductor or the joint performances. The paper reports on how, through the conductor and joint development tasks, the facility performances were successfully increased and tested. The ITER TFMC joints using Nb3Sn conductors were first developed on this facility. The last developments, performed on ITER PF NbTi conductors and joints proved this facility to be a versatile and useful tool for superconducting magnet developments and showed the interest of possible upgrading to finalize conductor design. (author)

Monitoring Instrument Performance in Regional Broadband Seismic Network Using Ambient Seismic Noise

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, F.; Lyu, S.; Lin, J.

2017-12-01

In the past ten years, the number of seismic stations has increased significantly, and regional seismic networks with advanced technology have been gradually developed all over the world. The resulting broadband data help to improve the seismological research. It is important to monitor the performance of broadband instruments in a new network in a long period of time to ensure the accuracy of seismic records. Here, we propose a method that uses ambient noise data in the period range 5-25 s to monitor instrument performance and check data quality in situ. The method is based on an analysis of amplitude and phase index parameters calculated from pairwise cross-correlations of three stations, which provides multiple references for reliable error estimates. Index parameters calculated daily during a two-year observation period are evaluated to identify stations with instrument response errors in near real time. During data processing, initial instrument responses are used in place of available instrument responses to simulate instrument response errors, which are then used to verify our results. We also examine feasibility of the tailing noise using data from stations selected from USArray in different locations and analyze the possible instrumental errors resulting in time-shifts used to verify the method. Additionally, we show an application that effects of instrument response errors that experience pole-zeros variations on monitoring temporal variations in crustal properties appear statistically significant velocity perturbation larger than the standard deviation. The results indicate that monitoring seismic instrument performance helps eliminate data pollution before analysis begins.

Sacroiliac Joint Fusion: One Year Clinical and Radiographic Results Following Minimally Invasive Sacroiliac Joint Fusion Surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Kube, Richard A; Muir, Jeffrey M

2016-01-01

Recalcitrant sacroiliac joint pain responds well to minimally-invasive surgical (MIS) techniques, although long-term radiographic and fusion data are limited. To evaluate the one-year clinical results from a cohort of patients with chronic sacroiliac (SI) joint pain unresponsive to conservative therapies who have undergone minimally invasive SI joint fusion. SI joint fusion was performed between May 2011 and January 2014. Outcomes included radiographic assessment of fusion status, leg and back pain severity via visual analog scale (VAS), disability via Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and complication rate. Outcomes were measured at baseline and at follow-up appointments 6 months and 12 months post-procedure. Twenty minimally invasive SI joint fusion procedures were performed on 18 patients (mean age: 47.2 (14.2), mean BMI: 29.4 (5.3), 56% female). At 12 months, the overall fusion rate was 88%. Back and leg pain improved from 81.7 to 44.1 points (p<0.001) and from 63.6 to 27.7 points (p=0.001), respectively. Disability scores improved from 61.0 to 40.5 (p=0.009). Despite a cohort containing patients with multiple comorbidities and work-related injuries, eight patients (50%) achieved the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) in back pain at 12 months, with 9 (69%) patients realizing this improvement in leg pain and 8 (57%) realizing the MCID in ODI scores at 12 months. No major complications were reported. Minimally invasive SI joint surgery is a safe and effective procedure, with a high fusion rate, a satisfactory safety profile and significant improvements in pain severity and disability reported through 12 months post-procedure.

Total ankle joint replacement.

Science.gov (United States)

2016-02-01

Ankle arthritis results in a stiff and painful ankle and can be a major cause of disability. For people with end-stage ankle arthritis, arthrodesis (ankle fusion) is effective at reducing pain in the shorter term, but results in a fixed joint, and over time the loss of mobility places stress on other joints in the foot that may lead to arthritis, pain and dysfunction. Another option is to perform a total ankle joint replacement, with the aim of giving the patient a mobile and pain-free ankle. In this article we review the efficacy of this procedure, including how it compares to ankle arthrodesis, and consider the indications and complications. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Customizing Extensor Reconstruction in Vascularized Toe Joint Transfers to Finger Proximal Interphalangeal Joints: A Strategic Approach for Correcting Extensor Lag.

Science.gov (United States)

Loh, Charles Yuen Yung; Hsu, Chung-Chen; Lin, Cheng-Hung; Chen, Shih-Heng; Lien, Shwu-Huei; Lin, Chih-Hung; Wei, Fu-Chan; Lin, Yu-Te

2017-04-01

Vascularized toe proximal interphalangeal joint transfer allows the restoration of damaged joints. However, extensor lag and poor arc of motion have been reported. The authors present their outcomes of treatment according to a novel reconstructive algorithm that addresses extensor lag and allows for consistent results postoperatively. Vascularized toe joint transfers were performed in a consecutive series of 26 digits in 25 patients. The average age was 30.5 years, with 14 right and 12 left hands. Reconstructed digits included eight index, 10 middle, and eight ring fingers. Simultaneous extensor reconstructions were performed and eight were centralization of lateral bands, five were direct extensor digitorum longus-to-extensor digitorum communis repairs, and 13 were central slip reconstructions. The average length of follow-up was 16.7 months. The average extension lag was 17.9 degrees. The arc of motion was 57.7 degrees (81.7 percent functional use of pretransfer toe proximal interphalangeal joint arc of motion). There was no significant difference in the reconstructed proximal interphalangeal joint arc of motion for the handedness (p = 0.23), recipient digits (p = 0.37), or surgical experience in vascularized toe joint transfer (p = 0.25). The outcomes of different techniques of extensor mechanism reconstruction were similar in terms of extensor lag, arc of motion, and reconstructed finger arc of motion compared with the pretransfer toe proximal interphalangeal joint arc of motion. With this treatment algorithm, consistent outcomes can be produced with minimal extensor lag and maximum use of potential toe proximal interphalangeal joint arc of motion. Therapeutic, IV.

Strengthening of defected beam–column joints using CFRP

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed H. Mahmoud

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an experimental study for the structural performance of reinforced concrete (RC exterior beam–column joints rehabilitated using carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP. The present experimental program consists of testing 10 half-scale specimens divided into three groups covering three possible defects in addition to an adequately detailed control specimen. The considered defects include the absence of the transverse reinforcement within the joint core, insufficient bond length for the beam main reinforcement and inadequate spliced implanted column on the joint. Three different strengthening schemes were used to rehabilitate the defected beam–column joints including externally bonded CFRP strips and sheets in addition to near surface mounted (NSM CFRP strips. The failure criteria including ultimate capacity, mode of failure, initial stiffness, ductility and the developed ultimate strain in the reinforcing steel and CFRP were considered and compared for each group for the control and the CFRP-strengthened specimens. The test results showed that the proposed CFRP strengthening configurations represented the best choice for strengthening the first two defects from the viewpoint of the studied failure criteria. On the other hand, the results of the third group showed that strengthening the joint using NSM strip technique enabled the specimen to outperform the structural performance of the control specimen while strengthening the joints using externally bonded CFRP strips and sheets failed to restore the strengthened joints capacity.

Strengthening of defected beam-column joints using CFRP.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahmoud, Mohamed H; Afefy, Hamdy M; Kassem, Nesreen M; Fawzy, Tarek M

2014-01-01

This paper presents an experimental study for the structural performance of reinforced concrete (RC) exterior beam-column joints rehabilitated using carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP). The present experimental program consists of testing 10 half-scale specimens divided into three groups covering three possible defects in addition to an adequately detailed control specimen. The considered defects include the absence of the transverse reinforcement within the joint core, insufficient bond length for the beam main reinforcement and inadequate spliced implanted column on the joint. Three different strengthening schemes were used to rehabilitate the defected beam-column joints including externally bonded CFRP strips and sheets in addition to near surface mounted (NSM) CFRP strips. The failure criteria including ultimate capacity, mode of failure, initial stiffness, ductility and the developed ultimate strain in the reinforcing steel and CFRP were considered and compared for each group for the control and the CFRP-strengthened specimens. The test results showed that the proposed CFRP strengthening configurations represented the best choice for strengthening the first two defects from the viewpoint of the studied failure criteria. On the other hand, the results of the third group showed that strengthening the joint using NSM strip technique enabled the specimen to outperform the structural performance of the control specimen while strengthening the joints using externally bonded CFRP strips and sheets failed to restore the strengthened joints capacity.

Indicators to monitor NPP safety performance. Working material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

Numerical indicators to monitor safety status and overall safety performance of nuclear power plants (NPPs) are used by operators and some regulators worldwide. During the last few years, the IAEA, through Technical Committee Meetings and Consultants' Meetings has worked on this area. This report presents a framework for nuclear power plant safety performance indicators that was developed during two consultant meetings held at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna in December 1995 and November 1996. Annex 2 on risk based indicators was prepared during a consultants' meeting held in Vienna in July 1996. An additional outcome from these activities, was the recommendation that the IAEA conduce pilot exercises at several nuclear power plants that might be interested to participate, in order to test the validity of the concept and its usefulness. 6 figs

Investigating General Chemistry Students' Metacognitive Monitoring of Their Exam Performance by Measuring Postdiction Accuracies over Time

Science.gov (United States)

Hawker, Morgan J.; Dysleski, Lisa; Rickey, Dawn

2016-01-01

Metacognitive monitoring of one's own understanding plays a key role in learning. An aspect of metacognitive monitoring can be measured by comparing a student's prediction or postdiction of performance (a judgment made before or after completing the relevant task) with the student's actual performance. In this study, we investigated students'…

Monitoring control applications at CERN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernard, F.; Gonzalez, M.; Milcent, H.; Petrova, L.B.; Varela, F.

2012-01-01

The Industrial Controls and Engineering (EN-ICE) group of the Engineering Department at CERN has produced, and is responsible for the operation of around 60 applications, which control critical processes in the domains of cryogenics, quench protection systems, power interlocks for the Large Hadron Collider and other subsystems of the accelerator complex. These applications require 24/7 operation and a quick reaction to problems. For this reason the EN-ICE group is presently developing the Monitoring Operation of controls Networks (MOON) tool to detect, anticipate and inform of possible anomalies in the integrity of the applications. The tool builds on top of Simatic WinCC Open Architecture (WinCC OA) SCADA and makes usage of the Joint Controls Project (JCOP) and the Unified Industrial Control System (UNICOS) Frameworks developed at CERN. The tool provides centralized monitoring and software management of the different elements integrating the control systems like Windows and Linux servers, PLCs, applications, etc. Although the primary aim of the monitoring tool is to assist the members of the EN-ICE Standby Service, the tool may offer different levels of detail, which also enables experts to diagnose and troubleshoot problems. In this paper, the scope, functionality and architecture of the tool are presented and some initial results on its performance are summarized. (authors)

Evaluation of traction stirrup distraction technique to increase the joint space of the shoulder joint in the dog: A cadaveric study.

Science.gov (United States)

Devesa, V; Rovesti, G L; Urrutia, P G; Sanroman, F; Rodriguez-Quiros, J

2015-06-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate technical feasibility and efficacy of a joint distraction technique by traction stirrup to facilitate shoulder arthroscopy and assess potential soft tissue damage. Twenty shoulders were evaluated radiographically before distraction. Distraction was applied with loads from 40 N up to 200 N, in 40 N increments, and the joint space was recorded at each step by radiographic images. The effects of joint flexion and intra-articular air injection at maximum load were evaluated. Radiographic evaluation was performed after distraction to evaluate ensuing joint laxity. Joint distraction by traction stirrup technique produces a significant increase in the joint space; an increase in joint laxity could not be inferred by standard and stress radiographs. However, further clinical studies are required to evaluate potential neurovascular complications. A wider joint space may be useful to facilitate arthroscopy, reducing the likelihood for iatrogenic damage to intra-articular structures. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Monitoring Performance of a combined water recycling system

OpenAIRE

Castleton, H.F.; Hathway, E.A.; Murphy, E.; Beck, S.B.M.

2014-01-01

Global water demand is expected to outstrip supply dramatically by 2030, making water recycling an important tool for future water security. A large combined grey water and rainwater recycling system has been monitored in response to an identified knowledge gap of the in-use performance of such systems. The water saving efficiency of the system was calculated at −8ṡ5% in 2011 and –10% in 2012 compared to the predicted 36%. This was due to a lower quantity of grey water and rainwater being col...

Finnish remote environmental monitoring field demonstration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toivonen, H.; Leppaenen, A.; Ylaetalo, S.; Lehtinen, J.; Hokkinen, J.; Tarvainen, M.; Crawford, T.; Glidewell, D.; Smartt, H.; Torres, J.

1997-10-01

Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK), Helsinki, Finland and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), working under the Finnish Support Program to IAEA Safeguards and the United States Department of Energy (DOE) funded International Remote Monitoring Program (Task FIN E 935), have undertaken a joint effort to demonstrate the use of remote monitoring for environmental air sampling and safeguards applications. The results of the task will be used by the IAEA to identify the feasibility, cost-effectiveness, reliability, advantages, and problems associated with remote environmental monitoring. An essential prerequisite for a reliable remote air sampling system is the protection of samples against tampering. Means must be developed to guarantee that the sampling itself has been performed as designed and the original samples are not substituted with samples produced with other equipment at another site. One such method is to label the samples with an unequivocal tag. In addition, the inspection personnel must have the capability to remotely monitor and access the automated environmental air sampling system through the use of various sensors and video imagery equipment. A unique aspect to this project is the network integration of remote monitoring equipment with a STUK radiation monitoring system. This integration will allow inspectors to remotely view air sampler radiation data and sensor/image data through separate software applications on the same review station. A sensor network and video system will be integrated with the SNL developed Modular Integrated Monitoring System (MIMS) to provide a comprehensive remote monitoring approach for safeguards purposes. This field trial system is being implemented through a multiphase approach for use by STUK, SNL, and for possible future use by the IAEA

An Overview of Surface Finishes and Their Role in Printed Circuit Board Solderability and Solder Joint Performance

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vianco, P.T.

1998-10-15

A overview has been presented on the topic of alternative surface finishes for package I/Os and circuit board features. Aspects of processability and solder joint reliability were described for the following coatings: baseline hot-dipped, plated, and plated-and-fused 100Sn and Sn-Pb coatings; Ni/Au; Pd, Ni/Pd, and Ni/Pd/Au finishes; and the recently marketed immersion Ag coatings. The Ni/Au coatings appear to provide the all-around best option in terms of solderability protection and wire bondability. Nickel/Pal ftishes offer a slightly reduced level of performance in these areas that is most likely due to variable Pd surface conditions. It is necessmy to minimize dissolved Au or Pd contents in the solder material to prevent solder joint embrittlement. Ancillary aspects that included thickness measurement techniques; the importance of finish compatibility with conformal coatings and conductive adhesives; and the need for alternative finishes for the processing of non-Pb bearing solders were discussed.

JEM-X: Joint European X-ray monitor

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lund, Niels; Westergaard, Niels Jørgen Stenfeldt; Budtz-Jørgensen, Carl

1998-01-01

JEM-X is the X-ray monitor for INTEGRAL. It is being built by a large European consortium led by the Danish Space Research Institute. It consists of two identical, independent coded mask X-ray telescopes with an energy span from 3 keV to 60 keV. Each system has a microstrip gas detector and a mask...... with a 25% transparent hexagonal uniformly redundant pattern based on a bi-quadratic residue set situated 3.4 m above the detector. The fully illuminated field-of-view is circular and 4.8 degrees across. The mechanical properties and source detection sensitivities are reviewed....

Transarticular invasion of bone tumours across the sacroiliac joint

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chhaya, S.; White, L.M.; Kandel, R.; Wunder, J.S.; Ferguson, P.; Agur, A.

2005-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pattern of tumour spread across the SI articulation, correlating with cadaveric anatomic observations, in order to better understand the local spread of tumour and to assist in the assessment of local staging. Twenty-four consecutive patients (14 male, 10 female; age range 22-89 years, mean 52 years) with primary bone tumours of the iliac bone or sacrum abutting the SI joint, in whom surgical resection of the SI joint was performed, were studied following institutional ethics approval. In all patients, preoperative magnetic resonance (MR) imaging studies of the pelvis and SI joint were reviewed for imaging evidence of transarticular extension across the SI joint. Gross pathologic and histologic assessment of possible transarticular SI joint tumour extension was performed in all patients. Nine cadaveric pelvic specimens without pelvic neoplastic disease (4 male, 5 female; age range 20-84 years, mean 59 years, median 58 years) were anatomically dissected and the articular anatomy of the SI joint examined macroscopically. Twelve of the twenty-four patients demonstrated imaging and histological evidence of transarticular SI joint invasion. Eight tumours infiltrated only the interosseous ligamentous aspect of the SI joint. In the remaining four cases, extensive tumour infiltrated both the cartilaginous and ligamentous aspects of the joint. No case showed tumour involvement isolated to the cartilaginous aspect of the joint. Among the cadaveric specimens studied, degenerative changes were found involving the majority of cases (6/9), with cartilage thinning and fibrillation and antero-superior marginal osteophytes seen involving the cartilaginous portion of the SI joint articulation. Four of the nine specimens demonstrated central ossification bridging the iliac and sacral aspects of the ligamentous (interosseous) SI joint. (orig.)

Transarticular invasion of bone tumours across the sacroiliac joint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chhaya, S. [University of Toronto, Department of Medical Imaging, Mount Sinai Hospital and the University Health Network, Toronto (Canada); University of Texas Health Science Centre, Department of Radiology, San Antonio, TX (United States); White, L.M. [University of Toronto, Department of Medical Imaging, Mount Sinai Hospital and the University Health Network, Toronto (Canada); Kandel, R. [University of Toronto, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto (Canada); Wunder, J.S.; Ferguson, P. [Univeristy of Toronto, University Musculoskeletal Oncology Unit, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto (Canada); Agur, A. [University of Toronto, Division of Anatomy, Department of Surgery, Toronto (Canada)

2005-12-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pattern of tumour spread across the SI articulation, correlating with cadaveric anatomic observations, in order to better understand the local spread of tumour and to assist in the assessment of local staging. Twenty-four consecutive patients (14 male, 10 female; age range 22-89 years, mean 52 years) with primary bone tumours of the iliac bone or sacrum abutting the SI joint, in whom surgical resection of the SI joint was performed, were studied following institutional ethics approval. In all patients, preoperative magnetic resonance (MR) imaging studies of the pelvis and SI joint were reviewed for imaging evidence of transarticular extension across the SI joint. Gross pathologic and histologic assessment of possible transarticular SI joint tumour extension was performed in all patients. Nine cadaveric pelvic specimens without pelvic neoplastic disease (4 male, 5 female; age range 20-84 years, mean 59 years, median 58 years) were anatomically dissected and the articular anatomy of the SI joint examined macroscopically. Twelve of the twenty-four patients demonstrated imaging and histological evidence of transarticular SI joint invasion. Eight tumours infiltrated only the interosseous ligamentous aspect of the SI joint. In the remaining four cases, extensive tumour infiltrated both the cartilaginous and ligamentous aspects of the joint. No case showed tumour involvement isolated to the cartilaginous aspect of the joint. Among the cadaveric specimens studied, degenerative changes were found involving the majority of cases (6/9), with cartilage thinning and fibrillation and antero-superior marginal osteophytes seen involving the cartilaginous portion of the SI joint articulation. Four of the nine specimens demonstrated central ossification bridging the iliac and sacral aspects of the ligamentous (interosseous) SI joint. (orig.)

Monitoring endemic livestock diseases using laboratory diagnostic data: A simulation study to evaluate the performance of univariate process monitoring control algorithms.

Science.gov (United States)

Lopes Antunes, Ana Carolina; Dórea, Fernanda; Halasa, Tariq; Toft, Nils

2016-05-01

Surveillance systems are critical for accurate, timely monitoring and effective disease control. In this study, we investigated the performance of univariate process monitoring control algorithms in detecting changes in seroprevalence for endemic diseases. We also assessed the effect of sample size (number of sentinel herds tested in the surveillance system) on the performance of the algorithms. Three univariate process monitoring control algorithms were compared: Shewart p Chart(1) (PSHEW), Cumulative Sum(2) (CUSUM) and Exponentially Weighted Moving Average(3) (EWMA). Increases in seroprevalence were simulated from 0.10 to 0.15 and 0.20 over 4, 8, 24, 52 and 104 weeks. Each epidemic scenario was run with 2000 iterations. The cumulative sensitivity(4) (CumSe) and timeliness were used to evaluate the algorithms' performance with a 1% false alarm rate. Using these performance evaluation criteria, it was possible to assess the accuracy and timeliness of the surveillance system working in real-time. The results showed that EWMA and PSHEW had higher CumSe (when compared with the CUSUM) from week 1 until the end of the period for all simulated scenarios. Changes in seroprevalence from 0.10 to 0.20 were more easily detected (higher CumSe) than changes from 0.10 to 0.15 for all three algorithms. Similar results were found with EWMA and PSHEW, based on the median time to detection. Changes in the seroprevalence were detected later with CUSUM, compared to EWMA and PSHEW for the different scenarios. Increasing the sample size 10 fold halved the time to detection (CumSe=1), whereas increasing the sample size 100 fold reduced the time to detection by a factor of 6. This study investigated the performance of three univariate process monitoring control algorithms in monitoring endemic diseases. It was shown that automated systems based on these detection methods identified changes in seroprevalence at different times. Increasing the number of tested herds would lead to faster

Neutron irradiation test of copper alloy/stainless steel joint materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Hirokazu; Kawamura, Hiroshi

2006-01-01

As a study about the joint technology of copper alloy and stainless steel for utilization as cooling piping in International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), Al 2 O 3 -dispersed strengthened copper or CuCrZr was jointed to stainless steel by three kinds of joint methods (casting joint, brazing joint and friction welding method) for the evaluation of the neutron irradiation effect on joints. A neutron irradiation test was performed to three types of joints and each copper alloy. The average value of fast neutron fluence in this irradiation test was about 2 x 10 24 n/m 2 (E>1 MeV), and the irradiation temperature was about 130degC. As post-irradiation examinations, tensile tests, hardness tests and observation of fracture surface after the tensile tests were performed. All type joints changed to be brittle by the neutron irradiation effect like each copper alloy material, and no particular neutron irradiation effect due to the effect of joint process was observed. On the casting and friction welding, hardness of copper alloy near the joint boundary changed to be lower than that of each copper alloy by the effect of joint procedure. However, tensile strength of joints was almost the same as that of each copper alloy before/after neutron irradiation. On the other hand, tensile strength of joints by brazing changed to be much lower than CuAl-25 base material by the effect of joint process before/after neutron irradiation. Results in this study showed that the friction welding method and the casting would be able to apply to the joint method of piping in ITER. This report is based on the final report of the ITER Engineering Design Activities (EDA). (author)

Microstructure and mechanical performance of autogenously fibre laser beam welded Ti-6242 butt joints

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kashaev, Nikolai, E-mail: nikolai.kashaev@hzg.de; Pugachev, Dmitry; Ventzke, Volker; Fomin, Fedor; Burkhardt, Irmela; Enz, Josephin; Riekehr, Stefan

2017-05-10

This work deals with the effects of laser beam power, focus position and advance speed on the geometry, microstructure and mechanical properties such as the tensile strength and microhardness of autogenously fibre laser beam welded Ti-6Al-2Sn-4Zr-2Mo (denoted as Ti-6242) butt joints used for high temperature applications. The Ti-6242 sheet employed here is characterized by a globular (α+β) microstructure. Laser beam welded butt joints consisted of a martensitic fusion zone, inhomogeneous heat affected zones and equiaxed base materials. The microhardness increased from 330 HV 0.3 in base material to 430 HV 0.3 in fusion zone due to the martensitic transformation. Butt joints showed the base material level of strength in tensile test. The local increase in microhardness provided a shielding effect that protected the Ti-6242 butt joint against mechanical damage during the static tensile load test. The predicted critical total underfill depth that does not reduce the tensile strength of the weld was determined to be 25% of the specimen thickness. - Highlights: • Autogenous fibre LBW of Ti-6242 was successfully achieved. • Butt joints showed low levels of porosity and an appropriate seam geometry. • Base material level of strength achieved for tensile strength. • Predicted critical underfill depth is 25% of the specimen thickness.

Joint Coordination and Muscle Activities of Ballet Dancers During Tiptoe Standing.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanabe, Hiroko; Fujii, Keisuke; Kouzaki, Motoki

2017-01-01

We aimed to investigate joint coordination of lower limbs in dancers during tiptoe standing and the relationship between joint coordination and muscle coactivation. Seven female ballet dancers performed tiptoe standing with six leg positions (fi e classical dance positions and one modern dance position) for 10 s. The kinematic data of the metatarsophalangeal (MP), ankle, knee, and hip joints was collected, and surface electromyography (EMG) of over 13 lower limb muscles was conducted. Principal component analysis was performed to determine joint coordination. MP-ankle and ankle-knee had in-phase coordination, whereas knee-hip showed anti-phase coordination in the sagittal plane. In addition, most EMG-EMG coherence around the MP and ankle joints was significant up to 50 Hz when these two joints swayed with in-phase. This suggests that different joint coordination patterns are associated with neural processing related to different muscle coactivation patterns. In conclusion, ballet dancers showed in-phase coordination from the MP to knee joints, which was associated with muscle coactivation to a higher frequency domain (up to 50 Hz) in comparison with anti-phase coordination.

The Paradox of Authentic Selves and Chameleons: Self-monitoring, Perceived Job Autonomy and Contextual Performance

OpenAIRE

Giuseppe. Soda; Lorenzo. Bizzi

2011-01-01

We investigate how self-monitoring combines with the degree of perceived job autonomy to affect contextual performance. We explore both a mediation model, built on theories on individual differences in the perception of job characteristics, and a moderation model, built on theories of the interaction between personality and perceived job situation. Empirical evidence suggests that self-monitoring and perceived job autonomy significantly predict contextual performance. In addition, an inter...

Movement monitoring device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ichikawa, Takashi; Yoneda, Yasuaki; Hanatsumi, Masaharu.

1997-01-01

The present invention provides a device suitable to accurate recognition for the moving state of reactor core fuels as an object to be monitored in a nuclear power plant. Namely, the device of the present invention prepares each of scheduled paths for the movement of the object to be monitored and executed moving paths along with the movement based on the information of the movement obtained from scheduled information for the movement of the reactor core fuels as a object to be monitored and the actual movement of the object to be monitored. The results of the preparation are outputted. As an output mode, (1) the results of preparation for each of the paths for movement and the results of the monitoring obtained by monitoring the state of the object to be monitored are jointed and outputted, (2) images showing each of the paths for the movement are formed, and the formed images are displayed on a screen, and (3) each of the moving paths is prepared as an image, and the image is displayed together with the image of the regions before and after the movement of the object to be monitored. In addition, obtained images of each of the paths for the movement and the monitored images obtained by monitoring the state of the object to be monitored are joined and displayed. (I.S.)

Gait analysis of adults with generalised joint hypermobility

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simonsen, Erik B; Tegner, Heidi; Alkjær, Tine

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: The majority of adults with Generalised Joint Hypermobility experience symptoms such as pain and joint instability, which is likely to influence their gait pattern. Accordingly, the purpose of the present project was to perform a biomechanical gait analysis on a group of patients...

Big Data solution for CTBT monitoring: CEA-IDC joint global cross correlation project

Science.gov (United States)

Bobrov, Dmitry; Bell, Randy; Brachet, Nicolas; Gaillard, Pierre; Kitov, Ivan; Rozhkov, Mikhail

2014-05-01

Waveform cross-correlation when applied to historical datasets of seismic records provides dramatic improvements in detection, location, and magnitude estimation of natural and manmade seismic events. With correlation techniques, the amplitude threshold of signal detection can be reduced globally by a factor of 2 to 3 relative to currently standard beamforming and STA/LTA detector. The gain in sensitivity corresponds to a body wave magnitude reduction by 0.3 to 0.4 units and doubles the number of events meeting high quality requirements (e.g. detected by three and more seismic stations of the International Monitoring System (IMS). This gain is crucial for seismic monitoring under the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. The International Data Centre (IDC) dataset includes more than 450,000 seismic events, tens of millions of raw detections and continuous seismic data from the primary IMS stations since 2000. This high-quality dataset is a natural candidate for an extensive cross correlation study and the basis of further enhancements in monitoring capabilities. Without this historical dataset recorded by the permanent IMS Seismic Network any improvements would not be feasible. However, due to the mismatch between the volume of data and the performance of the standard Information Technology infrastructure, it becomes impossible to process all the data within tolerable elapsed time. To tackle this problem known as "BigData", the CEA/DASE is part of the French project "DataScale". One objective is to reanalyze 10 years of waveform data from the IMS network with the cross-correlation technique thanks to a dedicated High Performance Computer (HPC) infrastructure operated by the Centre de Calcul Recherche et Technologie (CCRT) at the CEA of Bruyères-le-Châtel. Within 2 years we are planning to enhance detection and phase association algorithms (also using machine learning and automatic classification) and process about 30 terabytes of data provided by the IDC to

Indicators to monitor NPP operational safety performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomez-Cobo, Ana

2002-01-01

Since December 1995 the IAEA activities on safety performance indicators focused on the elaboration of a framework for the establishment of an operational safety performance indicator programme. The development of this framework began with the consideration of the concept of NPP operational safety performance and the identification of operational safety attributes. For each operational safety attribute, overall indicators, envisioned as providing an overall evaluation of relevant aspects of safety performance, were established. Associated with each overall indicator is a level of strategic indicators intended to provide a bridge from overall to specific indicators. Finally each strategic indicator was supported by a set of specific indicators, which represent quantifiable measures of performance. The programme development was enhanced by pilot plant studies, conducted over a 15 month period from January 1998 to March 1999. The result of all this work is compiled in the IAEA-TECDOC-1141, to be published shortly. This paper presents a summary of this IAEA TECDOC. It describes the operational safety performance indicator framework proposed and discusses the results of and lessons learned from the pilot studies. Despite the efforts described, it is clear that additional research is still necessary in areas such as plant-specific adaptation of proposed frameworks in order to suit individual data collection systems and plant characteristics, indicator selection, indicator definition, goal setting, action thresholds, analysis of trends, indicator display systems, analysis of overall safety performance (i.e., aggregation or combination of indicators), safety culture indicators, qualitative indicators, and use of additional indicators to address issues such as industrial safety attitude and performance, staff welfare, and environmental compliance. This is the rationale for a new IAEA Coordinated Research Project on 'Development and application of indicators to monitor NPP

A Subspace Approach to the Structural Decomposition and Identification of Ankle Joint Dynamic Stiffness.

Science.gov (United States)

Jalaleddini, Kian; Tehrani, Ehsan Sobhani; Kearney, Robert E

2017-06-01

The purpose of this paper is to present a structural decomposition subspace (SDSS) method for decomposition of the joint torque to intrinsic, reflexive, and voluntary torques and identification of joint dynamic stiffness. First, it formulates a novel state-space representation for the joint dynamic stiffness modeled by a parallel-cascade structure with a concise parameter set that provides a direct link between the state-space representation matrices and the parallel-cascade parameters. Second, it presents a subspace method for the identification of the new state-space model that involves two steps: 1) the decomposition of the intrinsic and reflex pathways and 2) the identification of an impulse response model of the intrinsic pathway and a Hammerstein model of the reflex pathway. Extensive simulation studies demonstrate that SDSS has significant performance advantages over some other methods. Thus, SDSS was more robust under high noise conditions, converging where others failed; it was more accurate, giving estimates with lower bias and random errors. The method also worked well in practice and yielded high-quality estimates of intrinsic and reflex stiffnesses when applied to experimental data at three muscle activation levels. The simulation and experimental results demonstrate that SDSS accurately decomposes the intrinsic and reflex torques and provides accurate estimates of physiologically meaningful parameters. SDSS will be a valuable tool for studying joint stiffness under functionally important conditions. It has important clinical implications for the diagnosis, assessment, objective quantification, and monitoring of neuromuscular diseases that change the muscle tone.

Joint involvement in patients affected by systemic lupus erythematosus: application of the swollen to tender joint count ratio

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Cipriano

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Joint involvement is a common manifestation in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE. According to the SLE disease activity index 2000 (SLEDAI-2K, joint involvement is present in case of ≥2 joints with pain and signs of inflammation. However this definition could fail to catch all the various features of joint involvement. Alternatively the Swollen to Tender joint Ratio (STR could be used. This new index, which was originally proposed for rheumatoid arthritis (RA patients, is based on the count of 28 swollen and tender joints. Our study is, therefore, aimed to assess joint involvement in a SLE cohort using the STR. SLE patients with joint symptoms (≥1 tender joint were enrolled over a period of one month. Disease activity was assessed by SLEDAI-2K. We performed the swollen and tender joint count (0-28 and calculated the STR. Depending on the STR, SLE patients were grouped into three categories of disease activity: low (STR1.0. We also calculated the disease activity score based on a 28-joint count and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (DAS28-ESR. We enrolled 100 SLE patients [F/M 95/5, mean±standard deviation (SD age 46.3±10.6 years, mean±SD disease duration 147.1±103.8 months]. The median of tender and swollen joints was 4 (IQR 7 and 1 (IQR 2.5, respectively. The median STR value was 0.03 (IQR 0.6. According to the STR, disease activity was low in 70 patients, moderate in 23 and high in 7. A significant correlation was identified between STR values and DAS28 (r=0.33, p=0.001. The present study suggests a correlation between STR and DAS28, allowing an easier and faster assessment of joint involvement with the former index.

Performance Assessment Monitoring Plan for the Hanford Site Low-Level Waste Burial Grounds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

SONNICHSEN, J.C.

2000-01-01

As directed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Richland Operations Office (DOE-RL), Fluor Hanford, Inc. will implement the requirements of DOE Order 435.1, Radioactive Waste Management, as the requirements relate to the continued operation of the low-level waste disposal facilities on the Hanford Site. DOE Order 435.1 requires a disposal authorization statement authorizing operation (or continued operation) of a low-level waste disposal facility. The objective of this Order is to ensure that all DOE radioactive waste is managed in a manner that protects the environment and personnel and public health and safety. The manual (DOE Order 435.1 Manual) implementing the Order states that a disposal authorization statement shall be issued based on a review of the facility's performance assessment and composite analysis or appropriate Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980 documentation. The disposal authorization shall specify the limits and conditions on construction, design, operations, and closure of the low-level waste facility. Failure to obtain a disposal authorization statement shall result in shutdown of an operational disposal facility. In fulfillment of the requirements of DOE Order 435.1, a disposal authorization statement was issued on October 25, 1999, authorizing the Hanford Site to transfer, receive, possess, and dispose of low-level radioactive waste at the 200 East Area and the 200 West Area Low-Level Burial Grounds. The disposal authorization statement constitutes approval of the performance assessment and composite analysis, authorizes operation of the facility, and includes conditions that the disposal facility must meet. One of the conditions is that monitoring plans for the 200 East Area and 200 West Area Low-Level Burial Grounds be written and approved by the DOE-RL. The monitoring plan is to be updated and implemented within 1 year following issuance of the disposal authorization statement to

Guidance on the implementation of a risk based safety performance monitoring system for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sewell, R.T.; Kuritzky, A.S.; Khatib-Rahbar, M.

1997-05-01

The principal objective of the present study is to review and evaluate existing Performance Indicator (PI) monitoring programs, and to develop and demonstrate an overall PSA-based methodology and framework for the monitoring and use of risk-based PIs and SIs (Safety Indicator), that would enable: Identification of trends and patterns in safety performance at a specific plant and a population of plants; Assessment of the significance of the trends and patterns; Identification of precursors of accident sequences and safety reductions; Identification of the most critical functional areas of concern, especially as they relate to a defense-in-depth safety philosophy; Comparison of safety performance trends at a plant with those at comparable plants; Incorporation of the PIs and SIs into a risk- and performance-based decision process. To support the overall project objective, it is important that information needs and data collection procedures are clearly outlined. Of key significance in this regard is the premise that a performance monitoring system should not be burdened by an excessive number of low-level PIs that may have only a peripheral relationship to safety. Other supporting objectives of the study include: To identify and discuss other issues pertaining to the practical implementation of a safety performance monitoring system (outlining the databases and algorithms needed); and to demonstrate implementation of the preliminary guidance for monitoring and use of the selected set of PIs and SIs, within the proposed framework, via application to the operating history of a NPP having a PSA and readily available event data

Integrated System for Performance Monitoring of ATLAS TDAQ Network

CERN Document Server

Savu, D; The ATLAS collaboration; Martin, B; Sjoen, R; Batraneanu, S; Stancu, S

2010-01-01

The ATLAS TDAQ Network consists of three separate networks spanning four levels of the experimental building. Over 200 edge switches and 5 multi-blade chassis routers are used to interconnect 2000 processors, adding up to more than 7000 high speed interfaces. In order to substantially speed-up ad-hoc and post mortem analysis, a scalable, yet flexible, integrated system for monitoring both network statistics and environmental conditions, processor parameters and data taking characteristics was required. For successful up-to-the-minute monitoring, information from many SNMP compliant devices, independent databases and custom APIs was gathered, stored and displayed in an optimal way. Easy navigation and compact aggregation of multiple data sources were the main requirements; characteristics not found in any of the tested products, either open-source or commercial. This paper describes how performance, scalability and display issues were addressed and what challenges the project faced during development and deplo...

Performance monitoring in lung cancer patients pre- and post-chemotherapy using fine-grained electrophysiological measures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Simó

Full Text Available No previous event-related potentials (ERPs study has explored the error-related negativity (ERN - an ERP component indexing performance monitoring - associated to cancer and chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment in a lung cancer population. The aim of this study was to examine differences in performance monitoring in a small-cell lung cancer group (SCLC, C+ 1-month following chemotherapy and two control groups: a non-small cell lung cancer patient group (NSCLC, C− prior to chemotherapy and a healthy control group (HC.Seventeen SCLC (C+ underwent a neuropsychological assessment and an ERP study using a flanker and a stop-signal paradigm. This group was compared to fifteen age-, gender- and education-matched NSCLC (C− and eighteen HC.Between 20 and 30% of patients in both lung cancer groups (C+ and C− met criteria for cognitive impairment. Concerning ERPs, lung cancer patients showed lower overall hit rate and a severe ERN amplitude reduction compared to HC.Lung cancer patients exhibited an abnormal pattern of performance monitoring thus suggesting that chemotherapy and especially cancer itself, may contribute to cognitive deterioration. ERN appeared as an objective laboratory tool sensitive to cognitive dysfunction in cancer population. Keywords: Event-related potentials-ERP, Error-related negativity (ERN, Performance monitoring, Lung cancer, Cognitive impairment, Chemobrain