Search results for "STING"

Assessing the accuracy of industrial robots through metrology for the enhancement of automated non-destructive testing

2016

This work presents the study of the accuracy of an industrial robot KR5 arc HW, used to perform quality inspections of components with complex shapes. Metrology techniques such as laser tracking and large volume photogrammetry were deployed to quantify both pose and dynamic path accuracies of the robot in accordance with ISO 9283:1998. The overall positioning pose inaccuracy of the robot is found to be almost 1 mm and path inaccuracy at 100% of the robot rated velocity is 4.5 mm. The maximum pose orientation inaccuracy is found to be 14 degrees and the maximum path orientation inaccuracy is 5 degrees. Despite of the significant maximum inaccuracies, uncertainty of a robotic scanning applica…

Fast ultrasonic phased array inspection of complex geometries delivered through robotic manipulators and high speed data acquisition instrumentation

2016

Performance of modern robotic manipulators has enabled research and development of fast automated non-destructive testing (NDT) systems for complex geometries. This paper presents recent outcomes of work aimed at removing the bottleneck due to data acquisition rates, to fully exploit the scanning speed of modern 6-DoF manipulators. State of the art ultrasonic instrumentation has been integrated into a large robot cell to enable fast data acquisition, high scan resolutions and accurate positional encoding. A fibre optic connection between the ultrasonic instrument and the server computer enables data transfer rates up to 1.6GB/s. Multiple data collection methods are compared. Performance of …

Evaluation of Coded Excitations for Autonomous Airborne Ultrasonic Inspection

2019

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are receiving increasing attention for use in Non-Destructive Testing due to their ability to access areas where manual inspection is not practical. Contact-based UAV ultrasonic inspections grant the opportunity to remotely monitor the structural health of an industrial asset with enhanced internal integrity information. Ultrasonic inspection is a Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) method conventionally used in corrosion mapping. Surface contacting ultrasonic transducers provide enhanced structural integrity information. However, due to near-surface aerodynamic effects, angular sensitivity of the ultrasound probe and alignment error during autonomous inspections, …

Strategies of Identification of a Base-Isolated Hospital Building by Coupled Quasi-Static and Snap-Back Tests

2020

In this paper, the description of a series of quasi-static pushing tests and dynamic snap-back tests is proposed, involving the base-isolated emergency building of the Palermo university hospital. The base isolation system is characterized by a set of double-curved friction pendulum isolators placed on the top of the columns of the underground level, characteristics that cannot be found in the experimental studies available in the literature. The aim of the work was to investigate the static and dynamic properties of the building in question and comparing the in-situ results with the characteristics assigned during the design process and to assess the level of agreement. Static lateral push…

The Recent Development of a Sweet-Tasting Brazzein and its Potential Industrial Applications

2016

International audience; Brazzein is a small heat- and pH-stable sweet-tasting protein isolated from the West African plant, Pentadiplandra brazzeana. Brazzein combines a highly sweet potency, a long history of human consumption, and a remarkable stability, giving it great potential as a natural sweetener. Due to the difficulties of obtaining brazzein from its natural source, several efforts have been made to express brazzein using various heterologous expression systems. This chapter describes the biochemical, structural, sensory, and physiological properties of brazzein. We will summarize the current knowledge of the structure-activity relationship of brazzein. The biotechnological product…

Blastocystis sp., an emerging parasite with controversial pathogenicity. Should all human cases be treated?

2018

Effect of various dentin disinfection protocols on the bond strength of resin modified glass ionomer restorative material.

2017

Background Disinfection of dentin surface prior to any restorative therapy is important for the longevity of the treatment rendered. However, these dentin disinfection methods should itself not interfere with the adhesion of the restorative material. Therefore the aim of this study was to determine the effect of various dentin disinfection protocols on the shear bond strength (SBS) of resin modified glass ionomer cement (RMGIC). Material and methods The occlusal surface of 40 extracted premolars were trimmed to obtain a flat dentinal surface and was randomly divided into four groups. CTRL was the control group; NaOCl was 1% sodium hypochlorite disinfection group; CHX was 2% chlorhexidine di…

Development of a sensory tool to assess overall liking for the fatty, salty and sweet sensations

2016

Abstract Understanding the origin of the overconsumption of too high levels of sucrose, sodium chloride and lipids in foods raises the question of the influence of the hedonics for these sensations. To better understand this relationship, a sensory tool that enables measurement of liking towards sweet, salty or fatty sensations is required. This liking towards a sensation has to be understood as an overall attractiveness of the sensation. Instruments already existing were unsatisfactory as including a limited number of foods not representative of the overall sensation. A set of hedonic tests, named PrefSens, was developed to measure an overall liking for fatty, salty or sweet sensations. Ea…

Systemic blockade of ACVR2B ligands prevents chemotherapy-induced muscle wasting by restoring muscle protein synthesis without affecting oxidative ca…

2016

AbstractDoxorubicin is a widely used and effective chemotherapy drug. However, cardiac and skeletal muscle toxicity of doxorubicin limits its use. Inhibiting myostatin/activin signalling can prevent muscle atrophy, but its effects in chemotherapy-induced muscle wasting are unknown. In the present study we investigated the effects of doxorubicin administration alone or combined with activin receptor ligand pathway blockade by soluble activin receptor IIB (sACVR2B-Fc). Doxorubicin administration decreased body mass, muscle size and bone mineral density/content in mice. However, these effects were prevented by sACVR2B-Fc administration. Unlike in many other wasting situations, doxorubicin indu…

Type of chromosome abnormality affects embryo morphology dynamics.

2016

Objective To study the differences in the cleavage time between types of embryo chromosomal abnormalities and elaborate algorithm to exclude aneuploid embryos according to the likelihood to be euploid. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting University affiliated private center. Patient(s) Preimplantational genetic screening patients (n = 112) including cases of advanced maternal age, repeated implantation failure, and recurrent miscarriage. A total of 485 embryos were analyzed. Intervention(s) None. Main Outcome Measure(s) All biopsied embryos were cultured in an incubator with time-lapse technology, cleavage timing from insemination to day 3 and all kinetic parameters that have been de…