			Home About us Contact

Simple Shape (simple + shape)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Life Sciences	50%

Selected Abstracts

Reliability-based preform shape design in forging

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING, Issue 11 2005
Jalaja Repalle
Abstract A reliability-based optimization method is developed for preform shape design in forging. Forging is a plastic deformation process that transforms a simple shape of workpiece into a predetermined complex shape through a number of intermediate shapes by the application of compressive forces. Traditionally, these intermediate shapes are designed in a deterministic manufacturing domain. In reality, there exist various uncertainties in the forging environment, such as variations in process conditions, billet/die temperatures, and material properties. Randomness in these parameters could lead to variations in product quality and often induce heavy manufacturing losses. In this research, a robust preform design methodology is developed in which various randomnesses in parameters are quantified and incorporated through reliability analysis and uncertainty quantification techniques. The stochastic response surface approach is used to reduce computation time by establishing a relationship between the process performance and shape and random parameters. Finally, reliability-based optimization is utilized for preform shape design of an engine component to improve the product quality and robustness. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Plasticity of death rates in stationary phase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

AGING CELL, Issue 1 2009
Nadège Minois
Summary For the species that have been most carefully studied, mortality rises with age and then plateaus or declines at advanced ages, except for yeast. Remarkably, mortality for yeast can rise, fall and rise again. In the present study we investigated (i) if this complicated shape could be modulated by environmental conditions by measuring mortality with different food media and temperature; (ii) if it is triggered by biological heterogeneity by measuring mortality in stationary phase in populations fractionated into subpopulations of young, virgin cells, and replicatively older, non-virgin cells. We also discussed the results of a staining method to measure viability instead of measuring the number of cells able to exit stationary phase and form a colony. We showed that different shapes of age-specific death rates were observed and that their appearance depended on the environmental conditions. Furthermore, biological heterogeneity explained the shapes of mortality with homogeneous populations of young, virgin cells exhibiting a simple shape of mortality in conditions under which more heterogeneous populations of older cells or unfractionated populations displayed complicated death rates. Finally, the staining method suggested that cells lost the capacity to exit stationary phase and to divide long before they died in stationary phase. These results explain a phenomenon that was puzzling because it appeared to reflect a radical departure from mortality patterns observed for other species. [source]

Process Cost Comparison for Conventional and Near-Net-Shape Cermet Fabrication,

ADVANCED ENGINEERING MATERIALS, Issue 3 2010
Yuhong Xiong
Tungsten carbide,cobalt (WC,Co) is a widely used cermet that is generally fabricated into bulk parts via conventional powder metallurgy (P/M) methods. Because this material (and other cermets) is very hard and wear resistant, diamond grinding is generally required to fabricate complex parts. As an alternative, studies have shown the Laser Engineering Net Shaping (LENS) process to be a technically feasible method, allowing for fabrication of near-net-shape parts. The economic trade-offs, however, have not been previously characterized. In this work, technical cost modeling (TCM) is applied to compare the costs of fabricating WC,Co parts with the P/M process to those of the LENS process. Cost drivers are identified and sensitivity analysis is conducted. Results reveal that the uncertainty in functional unit has a significant effect on relative process costs, and the cost is sensitive to order size only if less than ten parts are produced. It is concluded that the LENS process is economically preferable if part size is small or part shape is complex. The P/M process is more suitable to produce large parts in simple shapes. [source]

Oval in males and triangular in females?

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 4 2010
A quantitative evaluation of sexual dimorphism in the human obturator foramen
Abstract Among the numerous pelvic traits presenting sex differences, the obturator foramen is classically described as being oval in males and triangular in females. However, no demonstrations or detailed studies seem available in the literature. The purpose of this work was to study quantitatively this trait using Fourier analysis, because this methodological approach is particularly well adapted for discrimination between different simple shapes. Using this approach, an outline can be characterized by a series of harmonics (1 to n), each defined by two Fourier descriptors: amplitude (Cn), describing the relative importance of the harmonic contribution to the original shape, and phase (,n), representing the orientation of the harmonic contribution. The material consisted of 104 three-dimensional CT reconstructions of adult pelves (52 males and 52 females). After size normalization, the outlines of the 104 left obturator foramens were studied. Significant differences were demonstrated with, in total, 84.6% of individuals presenting a correct inferred sex. The most discriminating descriptors were the phase of the second harmonic (C2), related to the oval (or elliptic) aspect and thus the elongation of the shape, and the amplitude of the third harmonic (,3), describing the triangularity of the shape. Because the trend for an outline to be more or less oval or triangular is difficult to visually assess and because there is an infinite number of transitional shapes, only a precise quantitative approach such as Fourier analysis allows for unambiguous characterization and statistical analysis. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]