Discrete time optimal control of linear time-delay systems

A discrete time optimal control for linear time-delay systems is developed to ensure that all closed-loop eigenvalues will lie inside a circular region centred at (β;, 0) with radius α. It is shown that by suitable manipulations the problem can be reduced to a standard discrete time quadratic regulator problem. An illustrative example is included to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed method.     

Optimal response in siso ripple-free deadbeat systems

The ripple-free deadbeat control problem for SISO plants subjected to arbitrary reference signals is considered. The trade-off between the settling time and the integral square error between the system output and reference signal is investigated. Given a specific order of the controller, it is shown how to design an optimal ripple-free deadbeat controller. An illustrative example is presented to show the feasibility of the proposed algorithm.     

An optimal dynamic output feedback controller for a flexible spacecraft

The design of a low-order dynamic output feedback controller for a flexible spacecraft is carried out using modified linear quadratic Gaussian (LQG) theory. The necessary conditions for optimization are given. The linear equations governing a flexible spacecraft with a central rigid body and two sun-tracking solar panels are presented. The parameters of the Solar Electric Propulsion Spacecraft (SEPS) are selected for analysis and simulation. The optimal gains for the dynamic controller are estimated using an iterative algorithm. The sequential procedure which assures convergence is selected. The initial gains which stabilize the system are chosen on the basis of the principle of a PD controller. A third-order controller for pitch, roll and yaw axes of the 18th-order system, which includes sensor and actuator dynamics, is designed. Numerical simulations carried out to ascertain the performance of the controller show the performance to be satisfactory.     

A multi-input/multi-output optimal PI controller for redundant robots in the presence of flexible disturbances

The two-stage synthesis of a multi-input/multi-output optimal proportional-integral (PI) controller is described for linear, time-invariant systems. In the first stage the PI controller is designed by solving a steady state algebraic Riccati equation. As a result, the optimal cost is expressed in terms of the system's constant output set-points. In the second stage the cost is further reduced by optimally selecting the output set-points to minimize a static quadratic performance index subject to linear algebraic constraints. The design framework is applied to a planar redundant robotic manipulator equipped with four joints and mounted at the tip of a long flexible arm. We then address the problem of self-motion control in the presence of vibratory disturbances.     

髋臼骨关节面形态特征的研究

髋臼骨关节面生物形态特征的研究将有助于通过建立更为精确的髋臼三维模型来分析髋关节的生物力学性能 ,具有重要的临床意义。但在以往的研究中 ,髋臼骨关节面大多被简单认定为一球面。本研究通过三维激光扫描获取髋臼的三维形态数据 -点云数据 ,运用反球工程技术结合优化拟合算法 ,分别用球面和旋转椭球面逐步逼近原始的髋臼骨关节面 ,获得最佳的髋臼骨关节面匹配模型 ,分析比较此二项匹配模型间的匹配误差。对 15例髋骨的统计测量结果表明 ,旋转椭球面的匹配误差显著小于球面的匹配误差 ,其中拟合球半径平均值为 2 4 .37±2 .2 2 mm,拟合旋转椭球面长轴 (髋臼左右方向 )平均值为 2 6 .0 2± 2 .76 mm,短轴 (髋臼前后方向 )平均值为 2 4 .17± 2 .16 mm。该项研究首次对髋臼骨关节面形态作了定量的分析 ,有助于我们对髋臼骨形态的重新认识 ,进而为一系列以其为基础的相关研究及应用提供重要的参考     

The effect of the illumination time when treating port-wine stains

This paper reports the electron microscopy results obtained from two patients who were treated with 5 W of yellow (578 nm) light from a copper vapour laser with an illumination time of 3.6 ms and a 0.3 mm spot diameter. The endpoint of treatment was transient blanching. Following treatment, erythema was observed. There was minimal damage to the epidermis and non-vascular tissue such as the nerve fibres. There was severe damage to the endothelial cells of the ectatic vessels. Twenty-four hours after treatment, platelet activation and collagen were present, indicating that these vessels were no longer viable. Theoretical calculations are used to determine the flow of heat within and away from a 50m diameter vessel. From this, heating of the entire vessel is shown to occur with illumination times of 4 ms, with minimal heating of the non-vascular tissue. Shorter illuminations do not heat the entire vessel, while the use of longer illumination times will cause excessive damage to the surrounding non-vascular tissue. Illumination times close to 4 ms must be regarded as optimal.     

A Review of: “ Handbook of Adaptive Designs in Pharmaceutical and Clinical Development,by A. Pong and S.-C. Chow (Eds.)”

In practice, there exist many disease processes with three ordinal disease classes; for example, in the detection of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) a patient can be classified as healthy (disease-free stage), mild cognitive impairment (early disease stage), or AD (full disease stage). The treatment interventions and effectiveness of such disease processes will depend on the disease stage. Therefore, it is important to develop diagnostic tests with the ability to discriminate between the three disease stages. Measuring the overall ability of diagnostic tests to discriminate between the three classes has been discussed extensively in the literature. However, there has been little proposed on how to select clinically meaningful thresholds for such diagnostic tests, except for a method based on the generalized Youden index by Nakas et al. (2010). In this article, we propose two new criteria for selecting diagnostic thresholds in the three-class setting. The numerical study demonstrated that the proposed methods may provide thresholds with less variability and more balance among the correct classification rates for the three stages. The proposed methods are applied to two real examples: the clinical diagnosis of AD from the Washington University Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and the detection of liver cancer (LC) using protein segments.     

臭茉莉叶总黄酮提取工艺优化及月周期变化研究

目的:采用超声辅助正交试验法优化臭茉莉叶总黄酮的提取工艺,并进一步研究臭茉莉叶中总黄酮1年内每月含量变化趋势,探讨臭茉莉叶最佳采收时间。方法:以提取液中总黄酮含量为指标,选择乙醇浓度(%)、超声时间(min)、料液比、提取温度(℃)等为考察因素,采用正交试验法L9(34)确定臭茉莉叶提取液中总黄酮的最优工艺。结果:臭茉莉叶所含总黄酮最优提取工艺条件:乙醇浓度70%、超声时间60min、料液比1∶25、提取温度50℃。3月份总黄酮/药材量是0.0235mg·g-1为最高。结论:该提取工艺快捷以及操作简便,适用于臭茉莉叶总黄酮的提取。结合总黄酮月周期变化规律,可以确定1年中5月份和7月份为最佳采摘期。     

Assessment of testicular volume: A comparison of fertile and sub-fertile West African men

BackgroundWhile the semen analysis appears to be the cornerstone in the evaluation of testicular function, the testicular volume has long been associated with testicular function. However, racial variations in testicular volume do exist. Neither the critical minimum testicular volume that guarantees adequate function, nor the optimal testicular volume that indicates peak testicular function are also known.ObjectiveTo evaluate the relationship between testicular volume and function using scrotal ultrasound scan in black West African men.Patients and methodsThe study examined 236 subjects over a period of one year. The subjects comprised of 136 patients with diagnosis of male infertility, as well as 100 healthy individuals as control. The relevant clinical history of each patient was extracted from their case notes. All the subjects had their testes examined using a high frequency (7.5 mHz) linear transducer of an ultrasound scanner. The results were expressed as percentages and tests of significance were done using the chi-square and Student's t-test. A P-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsThe mean testicular volume for the sub-fertile patients was 15.32 ml while it was 19.89 ml in the control group. There was a statistically significant difference between the testicular volumes in fertile and infertile men at different age groups, while there was an inverse relationship between testicular volume and severity of oligospermia. This was, however, not directly linear as a mean testicular volume of 18–20 ml was associated with highest semen density. Volumes higher than 20 ml and lower than 18 ml were associated with reduced sperm density. There was also a sharp decline in sperm density when the mean testicular volume reduced from 14 ml to 13 ml. Severe oligospermia (<5 million/ml) was associated with mean testicular volume less than 12 ml.ConclusionTesticular volume on scrotal ultrasound correlates well with severity of oligospermia in men with sub-fertility. While the critical mean testicular volume necessary for adequate spermatogenesis has not been determined, it appears there is an optimal testicular volume of 18–20 ml at which spermatogenesis is at its peak in sub-fertile Nigerian men.