Sanyo (Japan)

In this paper, based on the robust control theory and the back-stepping methods, the new nonlinear robust control method for methanol-fueled generator set (MFGS) excitation system, which can realize the optimal interference attention, is adaptive to the uncertain parameters and can has the optimal control function, is proposer. Simulation results prove the validity and advantage. The experiment results show that the new method can shorten the voltage stabilization time, improve the electrical quality of MFGS, which is important to improve the performance of the power mechanical equipment.

Accurate prediction of drug-target affinity is essential for drug discovery. Currently, numerous deep learning methods have been employed for drug-target affinity prediction. Structure-based molecular methods has proven effectiveness in drug-protein affinity prediction. However, representing 3D molecular structures as topological graphs or sequences inevitably results in the loss of important spatial information. This reduces the model’s capacity to precisely capture molecular conformations, resulting in less accurate predictions of drug-target binding affinity. Representing molecules at an atomic level often fails to consider interactions between functional groups, which limits the model’s capacity to represent molecular substructure and accurately capture binding mechanisms. To address these challenges, this paper proposes the FragmentDTA framework, which directly uses 3D atomic coordinates to represent molecular structures, enabling the invariant graph neural network encoder to efficiently capture the spatial features of ligands and protein pockets for drug-target affinity prediction. FragmentDTA also introduces a novel approach for decomposing and embedding ligand fragments. A series of protein-ligand binding affinity prediction experiments on the PDBbind and BindingMOAD datasets is conducted to evaluate the proposed approach’s performance. The proposed approach achieves higher accuracy compared to several classical protein-ligand binding affinity prediction algorithms.

Frictional conditions at the workpiece–die interface are critical in metal forming, as significant plastic deformation generates heat that affects lubricant performance. Understanding lubricant behavior, especially its influence on friction under elevated temperatures, is essential for optimizing forming processes and meeting ecological demands. While the conventional ring compression test evaluates friction through inner diameter changes, it becomes unreliable when friction is transient. In this study, a warm ring compression test incorporating an in situ measurement system is proposed to evaluate the transient frictional behavior of lubricants under temperature rise due to plastic deformation. Results show that at T = 50 °C and 150 °C, the friction coefficient increases notably with the compression ratio, whereas at T = 100 °C, it remains relatively stable. This stability is likely due to the optimal performance of the chlorinated base lubricant at 100 °C, where boundary lubrication is most effective. At T = 50 °C, the additive activation is insufficient, and at T = 150 °C, thermal degradation may reduce its effectiveness. Finite element simulations using the transient friction coefficient reproduce the deformed ring cross-section with high accuracy, while those using constant friction values show less agreement.

PurposeThe role of intestinal flora in carcinogenesis and chemotherapy efficacy has been increasingly studied; however, comparisons between oral and intestinal flora remain limited. Given the oral microbiome’s role in systemic inflammation and immune modulation, it may significantly influence cancer progression and response to immunotherapy. This study aimed to identify the microbial changes in urothelial carcinoma (UC) by analyzing oral saliva and stool samples from healthy individuals and UC patients. We also examined the association between microbial composition and immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) response.MethodsA total of 20 healthy individuals and 38 patients with UC were analyzed. Among them, 27 patients with UC underwent ICI treatment. Oral saliva and stool samples were analyzed for 16S rRNA sequences to assess bacterial composition. Operational taxonomic units were generated, and phylogenetic analysis was performed using the Illumina BaseSpace.ResultsPatients with UC showed higher Veillonellaceae and Prevotellaceae levels in saliva and stool, with lower levels of these bacteria associated with more prolonged overall survival and progression-free survival, particularly Veillonellaceae in stool. A higher neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio correlated with increased levels of these bacteria.ConclusionVeillonellaceae and Prevotellaceae are potential microbial biomarkers of survival outcomes and ICI efficacy in patients with UC. Non-invasive oral microbial sampling may facilitate personalized cancer treatment strategies.

Abstract Noncontact acoustic inspection method using airborne sound waves and laser Doppler vibrometer (LDV) has been studied to detect internal defects in structures due to aging. To improve the inspection efficiency, fundamental experiments were conducted on movement measurement using a cart equipped with a sound source and LDV. The experimental results confirmed that the LDV resonated when the excitation sound pressure was increased to improve the signal-to-noise ratio. Therefore, an attempt was made to reduce the effects of LDV resonance by subtraction processing using vibration waveforms measured in the healthy part first. Next, a study was conducted on further improvements to defect detection performance by combining several noise reduction processes. As a result, it was revealed that even with movement measurements, defect with a diameter of 300 mm and a depth of 100 mm can be detected at average travel speed of 0.26 m s−1.

災害発生後, 地すべりや斜面崩壊の調査は, リモートセンシングによって行われるようになった。近年では航空機によるレーザ計測を行うことで, 過去の計測データとの差分を解析し変動を抽出して地表面変動を明らかにした研究が行われている。特に, 表層崩壊が明瞭に発生しない並進地すべりにおいては, この手法を活用することで今後の活動の予察や被害想定を行うことも可能になる。そこで, 本研究は, 能登半島地震における新第三紀堆積岩分布域である八太郎峠西方で発生した深層並進地すべりを対象として, 変動ベクトル解析を用いて変動特性を解明した。具体的には, 第一に地すべり領域全体の変動特性の把握, 第二に, 局所的な変動特性を有するブロック区分を行った。この結果, 変動を示すブロックは3つに区分することができ, 中央ブロックで最大となる平均変動ベクトル量4.6m, 0.6度の回転量が認められ, 北側で沈下, 南側で隆起する特性を把握できた。

We compared the results of Legionella pneumophila detection in cooling tower water samples using Legiolert and the conventional plate culture method. Both 1 mL and 10 mL volumes of cooling tower water samples were analyzed using Legiolert. The concordance rate of the Legiolert-1 mL test and the plate culture method was 86.7%. The Legiolert-10 mL test and the plate culture method showed 85.0% concordance. Legiolert would be effective for hygiene control in cooling towers because it can easily detect viable L. pneumophila in cooling tower water and produces results comparable to the conventional plate culture method.

In the JIS standard case-hardening steel, spheroidizing annealing can improve cold forgeability but inevitably results in uneven distribution of carbides (a mixture of lamellar carbides and spherical carbides, and uneven carbides distribution). This degrades cold forgeability and promotes grain coarsening during carburizing. To address this problem, new SA methods combined with suitable chemical compositions are required to achieve a uniform distribution of carbides in a hypoeutectoid steel.