Hyperspectral imaging is a non-destructive optical analysis technique that can for instance be used to obtain information from cultural heritage objects unavailable with conventional colour or multi-spectral photography. This technique can be used to distinguish and recognize materials, to enhance the visibility of faint or obscured features, to detect signs of degradation and study the effect of environmental conditions on the object. We describe the basic concept, working principles, construction and performance of a laboratory instrument specifically developed for the analysis of historical documents. The instrument measures calibrated spectral reflectance images at 70 wavelengths ranging from 365 to 1100 nm (near-ultraviolet, visible and near-infrared). By using a wavelength tunable narrow-bandwidth light-source, the light energy used to illuminate the measured object is minimal, so that any light-induced degradation can be excluded. Basic analysis of the hyperspectral data includes a qualitative comparison of the spectral images and the extraction of quantitative data such as mean spectral reflectance curves and statistical information from user-defined regions-of-interest. More sophisticated mathematical feature extraction and classification techniques can be used to map areas on the document, where different types of ink had been applied or where one ink shows various degrees of degradation. The developed quantitative hyperspectral imager is currently in use by the Nationaal Archief (National Archives of The Netherlands) to study degradation effects of artificial samples and original documents, exposed in their permanent exhibition area or stored in their deposit rooms.
Camera observations of the full penetration keyhole laser welding process show that the keyhole shape is elongated under certain welding conditions. Under these unfavourable circumstances, the welding process is susceptible to holes in the weld bead. Existing models of the pressure balance at the keyhole wall cannot explain this keyhole elongation. In this paper a new model is presented, accounting for the doubly curved shape of the keyhole wall. In this model, the surface tension pressure has one term that tends to close the keyhole and another term that tries to open it. Model calculations show that when the keyhole diameter is of the same order as the sheet thickness, the latter part can become dominant, causing the keyhole to elongate. Experiments on thin aluminium (AA5182) and mild steel (DC04) sheets verify these model calculations. As the keyhole radius depends on the radius of the focused laser spot, it was found for both materials that the ratio of the spot radius and the sheet thickness must be above a critical value to prevent keyhole elongation. These critical radii are 0.25 for AA5182 and 0.4 for DC04, respectively. Furthermore, differences in appearance of the weld bead between the circular and the elongated keyhole welds could be explained by this model.
Stroke survivors may benefit from robotic assistance for relearning of functional movements. Current assistive devices are either passive, limited to only two dimensions or very powerful. However, for reach training, weight compensation and a little assistance with limited power is sufficient. We designed and evaluated a novel three-dimensional robotic manipulator, which is able to support the arm weight and assist functional reaching movements. Key points of the design are a damper-based drive train, giving an inherently safe system and its compact and lightweight design. The system is force actuated with a bandwidth of up to 2.3 Hz, which is sufficient for functional arm movements. Maximal assistive forces are 15 N for the up/down and forward/backward directions and 10 N for the left/right direction. Force tracking errors are smaller than 1.5 N for all axes and the total weight of the robot is 25 kg. Furthermore, the device has shown its benefit for increasing reaching distance in a single-case study with a stroke subject. The newly developed system has the technical ability to assist the arm during movement, which is a prerequisite for successful training of stroke survivors. Therapeutic effects of the applied assistance need to be further evaluated. However, with its inherent safety and ease of use, this newly developed system even has the potential for home-based therapeutic training after stroke.
Laser welding has a large potential for the production of tailor welded blanks in the automotive industry, due to the low heat input and deep penetration. However, due to the small laser spot and melt pool, laser-based welding processes in general have a low tolerance for seam gaps. In this paper, five laserbased welding techniques are compared for their gap bridging capabilities: single-spot laser welding, twinspot laser welding, single-spot laser welding with cold wire feeding, twin-spot laser welding with cold wire feeding and laser/GMA hybrid welding. Welding experiments were performed on 1.1-and 2.1-mm-thick AA5182 aluminium sheets. The resulting welds were evaluated using visual inspection, cross sectional analysis with optical microscopy, tensile tests and Erichsen Cupping tests. The results show that the use of a filler wire is indispensable to increase the gap tolerance. A proper alignment of this wire with the laser spot(s) is crucial. With the single spot laser welding with cold wire feeding, a gap up to 0.6 mm could be bridged as opposed to a maximum allowable gap width of 0.2 mm for single-spot laser welding without filler wire. For 2.1-mm-thick sheets, the laser/GMA hybrid welding
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