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This article is a summary of the 10th International Conference on Inverse Problems in Engineering (ICIPE 22), which took place in May 2022 in Francavilla al Mare, Italy. The conference brought together applied mathematicians and engineers from various disciplines to collaborate and discuss the use of inverse analysis tools in fields such as manufacturing, medical imaging, and space applications. The event also honored Professor James V. Beck, who made significant contributions to parameter estimation and inverse heat transfer problems. The conference featured keynote addresses, lectures, and a tribute to Prof. Beck. The article expresses gratitude to the organizers, sponsors, reviewers, and the editor-in-chief of the Heat Transfer Engineering Journal. The 11th ICIPE conference will be held in Brazil in 2024. [Extracted from the article]

Prospective authors are requested to submit new, unpublished manuscripts for inclusion in the upcoming event described in this call for papers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this framework, experimental tests on different battery technologies, BMS and cooling systems are extremely important to extend the battery life and BEV performance (Sehil et al. [[13]]). Electrical machines and magnetic components, high-voltage voltage power converters, and battery storage systems are some basic bricks to build an effective and efficient energy conversion environment. Electrical Machines and Power Converters The electrical power conversion from renewable energy sources plays a crucial role in the development of a sustainable society. Finally, the fil rouge of every contribution in this section is oriented to investigate the power converters, electrical machines, magnetic components, and battery storage systems in actual energy conversion applications for renewable energy sources integration by a modelling approach. [Extracted from the article]

Endo-1,4-β-xylanases belonging to the glycoside hydrolase (GH) 11 family hydrolyze the β-1,4-glycosidic linkages in the xylan backbone to convert polymeric xylan into xylooligosaccharides. GH11 xylanases play an essential role in sugar metabolism and are one of the most widely used enzymes in various industries, such as pulp and paper, food and feed, biorefinery, textile, and pharmaceutical industries. pH is a crucial factor influencing the biochemical properties of GH11 xylanase and its application in bioprocessing. For the optimal pH shifting of GH11 xylanase in industrial applications, various protein engineering studies using directed evolution, rational engineering, and in silico approaches have been adopted. Here, we review the functions, structures, and engineering methods developed for the optimal pH shifting of GH11 xylanases. The various GH11 engineering techniques and key residues involved in pH shifting are discussed based on their crystal and modeled structure. This review provides an overview of recent advancements in the characterization and engineering of GH11 xylanases, providing a guide for future research in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses ways to teach engineering fundamentals with simple materials. Topics discussed include tips and tricks to use paper effectively to teach engineering principles to children, thousands of STEM/STEAM challenges available in books and online and working of Marina Bernasuli, Technology Coordinator at the Browning School, by using engineering with paper projects throughout the 2020-21 school year.

Kirigami, the ancient art of paper cutting, has evolved into a design and fabrication framework to engineer multi‐functional materials and structures at vastly different scales. By slit cutting with carefully designed geometries, desirable mechanical behaviors—such as accurate shape morphing, tunable auxetics, super‐stretchability, buckling, and multistability—can be imparted to otherwise inflexible sheet materials. In addition, the kirigami sheet provides a versatile platform for embedding different electronic and responsive components, opening up avenues for building the next generations of metamaterials, sensors, and soft robotics. These promising potentials of kirigami‐based engineering have inspired vigorous research activities over the past few years, generating many academic publications. Therefore, this review aims to provide insights into the recent advance in this vibrant field. In particular, this paper offers the first comprehensive survey of unique mechanical properties induced by kirigami cutting, their underlying physical principles, and their corresponding applications. The synergies between design methodologies, mechanics modeling, advanced fabrication, and material science will continue to mature this promising discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stimulated Raman Adiabatic Passage (STIRAP) and its variants, such as M-type chainwise-STIRAP, allow for efficiently transferring the populations in a multilevel system and have widely been used to prepare molecules in their rovibrational ground state. However, their transfer efficiencies are generally imperfect. The main obstacle is the presence of losses and the requirement to make the dynamics adiabatic. To this end, in the present paper, a new theoretical method is proposed for the efficient and robust creation and detection of deeply bound molecules in three-level Λ-type and five-level M-type systems via "Invariant-based shortcut-to-adiabaticity." In the regime of large detunings, we first reduce the dynamics of three- and five-level molecular systems to those of effective two- and three-level counterparts. By doing so, the major molecular losses from the excited states can be well suppressed. Consequently, the effective two-level counterpart can be directly compatible with two different "Invariant-based Inverse Engineering" protocols; the results show that both protocols give a comparable performance and have a good experimental feasibility. For the effective three-level counterpart, by considering a relation among the four incident pulses, we show that this model can be further generalized to an effective Λ-type one with the simplest resonant coupling. This generalized model permits us to borrow the "Invariant-based Inverse Engineering" protocol from a standard three-level Λ-type system to a five-level M-type system. Numerical calculations show that the weakly bound molecules can be efficiently transferred to their deeply bound states without strong laser pulses, and the stability against parameter variations is well preserved. Finally, the detection of ultracold deeply bound molecules is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It gives me great pleasure to explore and synthesize the unique and synergistic contributions of 14 articles for this important special issue, as well as to set future directions for the field of engineering education. Given that evidence‐based syntheses help shape key research advances in the medical, psychological, and educational fields, we sought papers that used state‐of‐the‐art methods for systematic reviews and meta‐analyses to explore fundamental topics in engineering education. We received many excellent manuscripts, and eventually accepted 14 for this special issue. They cover a range of topics, including reading and writing in engineering, the use of concept maps for assessment in engineering, and other key topics. Most papers used systematic review methods, while three used scoping reviews and bibliometric methods. However, none used meta‐analysis. Although this is surprising, it presents an opportunity to call for more rigorous experimental and quantitative research on key topics in engineering education. Experimental studies can uncover cause and effect relationships and enable researchers to draw inferences more easily. While I advocate for all traditions of rigorous research, the collection of reviews in this special issue points to a pressing need for more experimental studies in the field of engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper explores the relationship between conceptual engineering and the methodology of the Lvov-Warsaw School. While conceptual engineering is commonly seen as rooted in Rudolf Carnap's works and his method of explication, this paper argues that LWS predates and informs contemporary understanding of this methodology. The paper establishes that LWS not only engaged in but also systematically developed a method of conceptual revision aimed at enhancing clarity, precision, and coherence with specific theoretical frameworks. The analysis shows that LWS's approach to concepts combined both descriptive and normative methodologies to improve and adapt philosophical concepts to better address actual phenomena and certain theoretical or practical needs. This method, described by LWS members as ‘analysis and construction’, parallels contemporary conceptual engineering practices, particularly its so-called ‘narrow’ understanding focused on revising existing concepts rather than on merely introducing new ones. By tracing the historical trajectory of conceptual engineering back to LWS, this paper provides a deeper understanding of its foundational strategies and suggesting that LWS's methodology could serve as a guide for current and future philosophical projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decades, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have increasingly been used in a wide variety of missions that range from surveillance to delivery. Unlike aircraft that always carry goods and passengers from an airport to another, UAVs do not systematically implement the same type of mission. UAVs are indeed multi‐mission during their time in operation, and the systems engineering approaches developed for one mission aircraft must be adapted to the multi‐mission context. Therefore, UAV design requires application of mission engineering upstream systems engineering, either to assess there is a UAV system that may accomplish a new mission, or to specify a new UAV system according to a given mission. To achieve that goal, the authors of the paper support the use of Model‐Based Mission Engineering. A three‐layer architecture ‐ purpose, operation, functions or capabilities ‐ is proposed as a design framework for missions. The Goal‐Oriented Requirements Language (GRL) serves as mission description language. The paper extends GRL to better address mission‐based design of UAVs. It is proposed to distinguish between internal and external resources. A goal detailing mechanism is introduced. A degraded mode evaluation becomes possible. GRL tools make it possible to evaluate how much a UAV system ‐ at least, an operator, a ground station, and a UAV ‐ may satisfy every stakeholder in both nominal and degraded modes. The proposed approach is applied to a high voltage surveillance UAV. The case study enables the introduction of four actors—Authority, Client, UAV and MissionSupervisor—that turn out to be generic and can be reused for other missions and UAV designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Purpose: As a growing number of instructional units have been developed to promote young children's scientific and engineering practices (SEPs), understanding how to evaluate and assess children's SEPs is imperative. However, paper-and-pencil assessments would not be suitable for young children because of their limited reading and writing skills. To explore the assessments for SEPs available for young children aged 3–8 years, this study reviewed assessments of young children's SEPs reported in empirical studies, and analysed the characteristics of these assessments to delineate how young children's SEPs have been measured. Methods: We followed the procedures of a systematic review proposed by Zawacki-Richter et al. (2020). The EBSCOhost database was used to gather empirical studies in education and psychology. A total of 46 articles published from 2003 to 2020 met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed. Findings: The findings indicated that of the eight SEPs suggested by the National Research Council (2012), Analysing and interpreting data was assessed the most, followed by Using mathematics and computational thinking, Constructing explanations and designing solutions, and Planning and carrying out investigations. A majority of assessments were designed for children of 4, 5, and 6 years old and used paper-based visualizations and real objects to present the tasks and items. Additionally, due to the verbal or performance nature of the SEPs, the assessments collected different types of data as evidence to evaluate children's SEPs. Performance-based assessments were the most common, followed by multiple-choice, ranking, and oral responses. Conclusion: The findings of the reviewed assessments revealed a variety of performance expectations of SEPs and suggested that some SEPs are measurable and developmentally appropriate for young children. Also, the availability of assessments is uneven in different types of SEPs, and more assessments for information communication and modelling practices are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Training both pre – and in-service teachers who are capable of planning and enacting engineering design–based science instruction are critical for integrating engineering into K-12 science curricula. Purpose: This study investigates pre-service teachers' efforts to integrate engineering into their lesson plans. Sample: 13 pre-service chemistry teachers, enrolled in a 13-week engineering-infused integrated STEM course, were the participants of the study. Design and Method: Considering the purpose of the study, qualitative design was deemed to be the best fit including qualitative data collected through lesson plans and reflection papers. To assist pre-service teachers' learning, 13-week engineering-infused integrated STEM was started with the information about the engineering profession and how engineers work. Additionally, pre-service teachers engaged in six integrated STEM activities including engineering design cycle. After each activity, the participants were asked to write a reflection paper on what they learned about engineering, the engineering design process, and integrated STEM. Finally, the participants had three chances for analyzing strong and weak integrated STEM lesson plans and planning integrated STEM lesson planning experience with mentors. The pre-and post-course lesson plans (n=26) were analyzed using existing codes from the related literature, which is a deductive coding process. Later, an inductive approach was used to determine the categories of engineering integration into the lesson plans. Four categories (ranging from a complete engineering lesson to a science lesson with no engineering link) were formed. Reflection papers were used to support the findings. Result: The results showed that none of the pre-plans included engineering. However, after participated in a 13-week integrated STEM course, all post-course lesson plans integrated engineering through the use of engineering design processes to some extent. Conclusion: The training with different experiences seems promising for pre-service teachers to learn engineering integration into STEM lesson plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper documents the results of the PIM.3 (Process Improvement Management) working group in INTACS (International Assessor Certification Schema) supported by the VDA‐QMC (Verband der Deutschen Automobilindustrie/German Automotive Association–Quality Management Center). INTACS promotes Automotive SPICE, which is an international standard that allows process capability assessment of projects, which implement systems that integrate mechanics, electronics, and software including optionally cybersecurity, functional safety, and machine learning. The paper outlines that for the first time since more than 20 years, the INTACS and VDA‐QMC included a process like PIM.3 Process Improvement Management in the scope for the assessor training. Before that, the assessments focused on the management, engineering, and support processes of series projects, while the improvement management has not been trained or assessed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractIt is known that skilled immigrants learn to integrate professionally. This paper complexifies this image. By following the experiences of ‘successful’ immigrants working in the engineering profession in Canada, it argues that immigrants engage in not only learning but also knowledge ‘transfer’. Their learning at work often starts as legitimate peripheral participation, and evolves through expansive participation in work activities. Meanwhile, they also ‘transfer’ knowledge and practices, a role that could be amplified given their transnational experiences. Immigrants’ learning and knowledge practices can also be understood as a sociomaterial process of translation, through which they knot together people and objects, while negotating power, position, and positionality at the same time. Through continuous learning and knowledge practices, the paper further highlights that immigrant engineers necessarily articulate themselves into, and to some extent, reticulate the epistemic ‘machineries’ or ‘culture’ of the profession, which is constituted through a nexus of professional associations, societies, institutions, and practice communities that are bounded by professional domains and interests, and lifeworld exigencies. Conceptually, this paper draws on practice-based theories and views continuous learning and knowing as an effect of the sociocultural and sociomaterial organization of professional practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the modeling and design work of the sluice gate project, this paper proposes an automatic generation template of the sluice gate project with customized semantics and project layout scheme, aiming at realizing the rapid assembling of all kinds of components of the sluice gate project. In the construction process, this paper first starts from basic parametric modeling and proposes constraints as the basis of modeling. Subsequently, a template library framework is developed based on the constraints to ensure that the generated templates have a high degree of standardization and consistency. Finally, an efficient and flexible template library is successfully constructed by using the customized classes and functions of Revit API, which provides powerful technical support for the modeling and design work of sluice gate engineering. This achievement helps to promote the informationization and intelligent development of the water conservancy engineering industry, and its versatility and scalability also make it have a wide range of application prospects in other water conservancy engineering fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits Wittgenstein’s heavily criticized claims about the admissibility of inconsistencies in mathematics. It argues from the perspective of mathematics as a tool and combines material from the history and practice of engineering that makes Wittgenstein’s claims about contradiction and inconsistency look much more plausible. Against this background, the paper interprets passages from Wittgenstein, including his exchange with Alan Turing where he highlights that basic laws of thought are at issue and that reflecting on them would be “the most important thing” he has talked about. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of digital twins in bridge engineering is still vague and even confused with the Bridge Information Model (BrIM). Therefore, this study provides a detailed review of 42 papers related to digital twins in bridge engineering, focusing on a proper definition, key features and creation techniques for bridge digital twin (BDT). The paper also compares BDT and BrIM from the perspectives of their elements, features, fidelity, services provided, and degree of development. The applications of BDT at different life cycle stages are identified, and the related technologies are analyzed in detail. The results show that the research clusters of BDT are divided into geometric model generation, finite element model updating, and management and are focused on the operation and maintenance phase while lacking attention in the design and construction phase. Besides, a reference framework of BDT based on the life cycle of bridges is proposed, and directions for future research are suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the list of reviewers focused on recognition of 2017 transactions and magazine paper.

Modelica is a simulation language that is able to model systems from many different fields of scientific and engineering contexts, which can coexist in individual models. Modelica Standard Library is an open‐source library that contains many ready‐to‐use open‐source models built in Modelica language but does not have any code to determine transmission line parameters from its geometry, thus limiting its usability for power system studies. This paper first describes important issues arising when modelling power transmission lines, then presents how they can be solved using Modelica code. Readers of this paper will, therefore, be able to model power lines from the geometry of conductors using any of the existing (some freely available) Modelica‐capable simulation tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The surfaces of engineering components experience severe conditions during service life and may lead to catastrophic failure if proper care is not taken. The coating is one of the best possible ways to enhance surface properties of a part. Tungsten inert gas (TIG) cladding has emerged as a new technique which shows promising results in surface cladding domain. This paper deals with the recent developments in TIG cladding process. The processing parameters associated with the TIG cladding process are discussed. The microstructure, microhardness, wear, and corrosion behavior of the TIG-cladded layers are mentioned and correlated with the processing conditions. Finally, this paper concludes with some suggestions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) education in solving real-world problems is challenging. To tackle this challenge, a project-based learning approach that integrates robots with cost-effective self-made toys to problem-solving was adopted to assist rural primary school students to apply STEM skills. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of the project-based learning approach which includes lecturing and hands-on activities on primary school students' STEM learning outcomes and attitudes. An experiment was conducted with 25 primary school students who voluntarily participated in a STEM summer-camp programme. Students were asked to assemble a paper house equipped with an IoT control module and LED light switches, and write and edit robot scripts to produce a robot-based storytelling narrative using the paper house they made as a context. The results show that the project-based learning approach was an effective approach for cultivating primary school students' STEM knowledge and skills as evidenced from the post-written test. The relationships between the students' STEM learning outcomes and attitudes were also confirmed by a clustering analysis. Students who had higher learning attitudes also achieved higher STEM learning outcomes; the findings are also supported by the feedback from the open-ended questionnaire items. This study suggests that integrating low-cost self-made toys and robots in project-based learning activities is an effective and practical approach to enhance primary school students' learning outcomes and learning attitudes in STEM education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the construction industry worldwide has shown significant interest in Building Information Modeling (BIM). This study aims to analyze the dissemination of knowledge about BIM in construction engineering applications using Main Path Analysis (MPA). The research sample comprises 3,761 papers related to BIM's application in the construction industry, sourced from the ISI Web of Science database. Initially, we investigate trends in paper publications, conduct country and journal analyses, and examine author statistics. Subsequently, we calculate traversal counts along the search path links to reveal the development trajectory of BIM. The trajectory of BIM's evolution in the construction industry can be divided into four stages as identified through the global key-route main path analysis: 1) BIM standardization; 2) Integration of completed building projects using BIM; 3) BIM applications in precast construction projects; and 4) BIM applications in land management. These findings provide a clear understanding of how BIM has been applied and evolved within the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Architectural education shares much in common with engineering, including the use of a culminating capstone experience in the final year. The form of this experience varies, with the research-based thesis and final-year project being most common. This paper explores the literature on traditions of enquiry and the meaning of research in various fields and the evolution of the 'thesis' and 'final year project' approaches over time. It then briefly summarises empirical research conducted on a case study institution struggling to bridge gaps in understandings of these distinct forms of learning and teaching. Throughout, the paper presents a comprehensive set of diagrams to explain various paradigms and positions on research and design education. These diagrams depict processes used in architecture, engineering, and natural sciences to conduct research and generate designs. A new model is proffered to help unify competing conceptions of the final year project and thesis, for the case study institution and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of Digital Twin technology in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) has brought forth a transformative paradigm in engineering practices. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the use of Digital Twin in SMEs and its implementation of advanced digital technologies in an engineering context. The paper highlights key benefits, such as the ability to simulate, analyze, and predict the behavior of products or processes before their physical instantiation. By leveraging advanced modeling and simulation techniques, SMEs can efficiently explore multiple design iterations, identify potential issues, and optimize engineering solutions without costly physical prototyping. Furthermore, the paper discusses integrating other advanced digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI), with Digital Twin to create intelligent and interconnected systems. The implementation of Digital Twin technology in SMEs extends beyond product design to encompass various aspects of the product lifecycle, fostering efficiency, accuracy, and innovation. However, challenges such as data integration, cybersecurity, and skill requirements are addressed. With proper planning and investment, SMEs can unlock the full potential of Digital Twin technology to gain a competitive edge in the dynamic engineering domain. In conclusion, this paper demonstrates that the use of Digital Twin in SMEs and its integration with advanced digital technologies revolutionizes engineering practices. By offering virtual representations of physical assets and processes, Digital Twin enables SMEs to make informed decisions, optimize performance, and drive innovation. As the technology evolves, it becomes an indispensable tool for SMEs seeking to thrive in the ever‐evolving engineering landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The capitalisation on and transfer of technological, engineering and scientific knowledge associated with empirical know-how is an important issue for the sustainability and development of manufacturing. Indeed, certain sectors of industry are facing the increasing ageing of the labour force, recruitment difficulties and high staff turnover, leading to a loss of knowledge and know-how. In a context of numerical and digital transition and the migration of processes to industry 4.0, one of major challenges manufacturers face today is their capacity to build intelligent platforms for acquiring, storing and transferring their know-how and knowledge. It is crucial to create new media and tools for staff training and development capable of capturing knowledge and reusing it to create a project history through expertise and data collection. This paper presents the methodology and guidelines for implementing electronic knowledge books (eK-Books), along with their uses. The eK-Book is a semantic web-based hypertext medium (channel) allowing stakeholders to capitalise on, structure and transfer knowledge by using concept maps, process maps, influence graphs, downloadable documents, web pages and hypermedia knowledge sheets. They are intended for engineers, expert or novice technicians, manufacturers, sector coordinators and plant managers, as well as trainers and learners. They are usable and manageable in all types of environments and with different levels of accessibility. This paper highlights (1) the transfer knowledge capacity of eK-Books and (2) their usability in two agri-food sectors namely (1) the cheese sector with protected designation of origin (PDO) and protected geographical indication (PGI), and (2) the butchery and cold meat sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a summary of a special issue of the journal "Materials" focused on the topic of surface engineering for wear, corrosion, and erosion prevention in metallic and ceramic materials. The special issue includes twelve scientific papers covering various aspects of the operational performance and properties of metallic and ceramic materials. The papers discuss topics such as the effects of peening treatments, corrosion resistance, tribological behavior, and wear improvement through microstructural modification and the deposition of wear-resistant coatings. The special issue received significant interest from authors and readers, leading to the announcement of a second volume on the same topic. The summary acknowledges the need for experimental data in surface engineering to understand the wear and performance of engineering materials. [Extracted from the article]

Conceptual engineering is the enterprise of evaluating and improving our representational devices. But how should we conduct this enterprise? One increasingly popular answer to this question proposes that conceptual engineering should proceed in terms of the functions of our representational devices. In this paper, we argue that the best way of understanding this suggestion is in terms of normative functions, where normative functions of concepts are, roughly, things that they allow us to do that matter normatively (for example, things in virtue of which we have normative reasons to have these concepts). Not only does this introduce a novel view about functions to the literature. This proposal also fits more naturally than the alternatives with conceptual engineering as a normative enterprise, and it allows functions to play all of the explanatory roles assigned to them in the conceptual engineering literature. Our discussion of the explanatory advantages of normative functions also advances the understanding of the ways in which concepts can be authoritative, what this means for conceptual engineering, and highlights the importance of political philosophy for thinking about conceptual engineering in practice. Furthermore, the paper explicates what kind of role considerations about function can and should actually play in conceptual engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

My comments concern the significant errors in the crystallographic part of the commented paper. The diffraction patterns are erroneously analysed. The studied sample contain two phases what can influence on the final results of experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stereolithography 3D printing and digital masks in sequence are used herein to manufacture 3D µPAD in a monolithic layer of paper within 1 s. Multiple experiments were systematically conducted to further understand the fundamentals and limitation of this manufacturing process, and a novel 3D mixer and a fluorescent chemosensor assay used to determine dopamine concentration at high-alkaline pH conditions were successfully demonstrated. Experiment results showed: (1) the 3D mixer is superior than conventional 2D mixer regarding mixing performance and repeatability, (2) dopamine detection and pH indicator can be realized with fewer operation steps and shorter processing time, (3) a truly 3D µPAD, including multilayer microchannels within a monolithic paper substrate, can be created with fewer reagent loss and higher transportation efficiency, (4) a smallest microchannel, 100 µm wide microchannel, can be successfully created on µPAD. These results clearly proved that this proposed 3D µPAD is not only a novel format of µPAD, but it can also simplify the operation steps for an analytical assay while improving the mixing phenomenon via 3D mixer and using minimum sample volume. [Display omitted] • Using SLA 3D printing and multiple digital masks to manufacture monolithic 3D µPAD. • 3D mixer is superior than 2D mixer regarding mixing performance and repeatability. • A truly 3D µPAD can result fewer reagent loss and higher transportation efficiency. • Dopamine detection and pH indicator can be realized with fewer operation steps. • A smallest microchannel, 100 µm wide microchannel, was successfully created. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is often assumed that how we talk about the world matters a great deal. This is one reason why conceptual engineers seek to improve our linguistic practices by advocating novel uses of our words, or by inventing new ones altogether. A core idea shared by conceptual engineers is that by changing our language in this way, we can reap all sorts of cognitive and practical benefits, such as improving our theorizing, combating hermeneutical injustice, or promoting social emancipation. But how do changes at the linguistic level translate into any of these worthwhile benefits? In this paper, we propose the nameability account as a novel answer to this question. More specifically, we argue that what linguistic resources are readily available to us directly affects our cognitive performance on various categorization‐related tasks. Consequently, our performance on such tasks can be improved by making controlled changes to our linguistic resources. We argue that this account supports and extends recent motivations for conceptual engineering, as categorization plays an important role in both theoretical and practical contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The notion of stability margin (SM) plays an important role in control engineering. For multiple‐input multiple‐output (MIMO) systems, the classic SM is no longer applicable. The one‐loop‐at‐a‐time analysis method may lead to unreliable SMs. Although some robust SM analysis methods are popular in MIMO systems, they are model‐based or not easy‐to‐use in engineering sometimes. In this paper, ℒ2$$ {\mathcal{L}}_2 $$ gain margin and ℒ2$$ {\mathcal{L}}_2 $$ time‐delay margin are defined for linear MIMO systems, and a corresponding SM analysis method is proposed by utilizing a loop transformation and the small‐gain theorem. Most importantly, a data‐driven method for measuring the defined SMs is also presented. As a frequency‐domain method, this method can be used to experimentally obtain the SMs of MIMO systems on model‐free occasions. The proposed SM analysis method and measurement method are simple and practical. Two simulation studies and an experimental test are performed to illustrate the effectiveness and practicability of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Delaying an electromagnetic (EM) wave pulse on a thin screen for a significant time before releasing it is highly desired in many applications, such as optical camouflage, information storage, and wave–matter interaction boosting. However, available approaches to achieve this goal either require thick and complex systems or suffer from low efficiencies and a short delay time. This paper proposes an ultra-thin meta-platform that can significantly delay an EM-wave pulse after reflection. Specifically, our meta-platform consists of three meta-surfaces integrated together, of which two are responsible for efficiently coupling incident EM-wave pulse into surface waves (SWs) and vice versa, and the third one supports SWs exhibiting significantly reduced group velocity. We employ theoretical model analyses, full-wave simulations, and microwave experiments to validate the proposed concept. Our experiments demonstrate a 13 ns delay of an EM pulse centered at 12.975 GHz, enabled by a λ/8-thick and 38-λ-long meta-device with an efficiency of 32% (or 70%) with (or without) material loss taken into account. A larger delay time can be enabled by devices with larger sizes considering that the SWs group velocity of our device can be further reduced via dispersion engineering. These findings establish a new road for delaying an EM-wave pulse with ultra-thin screens, which may lead to many promising applications in integration optics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the recent advances on the combination of component mode synthesis and model order reduction for geometrically nonlinear analysis, focusing on fixed-interface substructures and non-intrusive reduced-order models. These approaches offer significant potential for engineering applications by enabling accurate mechanical behavior prediction without detailed geometric and material information. Additionally, they facilitate safe sharing and collaboration between companies, reducing design times and production costs while also offering computational efficiency. However, challenges remain, indicating the need for future improvements in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Steel structures are invariably analyzed and designed excluding the global stiffening effect of the roof cladding. Including this effect historically required complex design methods or deprecated standards. This paper presents a simplified numerical modeling method which allows this stiffening effect to be included. The method is an extension of the already established Component Method but utilizes only elements commonly available in typical design and analysis software. The results of the models were favorably compared to standardized test cases; an average difference of 0.24 mm maximum displacement was found, corresponding to a 3.4% discrepancy. The consistency of these results implies that the proposed model can be considered to be used for scientific and practical purposes when assessing a building's most realistic behavior is necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the rising importance of virtual engineering in an increasingly competitive marketplace, there is a growing need for simplified representations of finite element (FE) modeling for spot joints in lightweight structures without losing accuracy in structural life evaluation. For this purpose, this paper presents a spot weld element with an implicit weld representation and its numerical implementation as a user element for deployment in commercial FE code for reliably computing traction structural stress in a mesh‐insensitive manner. The spot weld element is formulated by degenerating conventional first‐order four‐nodes shell elements by imposing kinematic constraints with respect to a series of virtual nodes placed in the region around a spot weld. The simplicity and effectiveness of the spot weld element have been validated by comparing with the explicit weld representation for computing mesh‐insensitive structural stresses and fatigue life correlation of welded components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the influence of the gate voltage of the power amplifier (PA) on the drain current and efficiency. This study proposes a theory of controlling input non‐linearity to improve the efficiency of PAs. The theoretical efficiency of the inverse Class F PA that controls the input nonlinearity is within the range of 77% to 97%. A new design method for the inverse Class F PA reconstructs the design of the load admittance space into a region instead of a point. To verify the validity of the proposed theory, an inverse Class F PA is designed and fabricated using a commercial 10 W GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT). Results of the measurement show a high drain efficiency (DE) of 78.5%, an output power of 41.6 dBm, and a large signal gain of 12.1 dB at 1.5 GHz. The overall PA's size is controlled at 80*50 mm2$$ \mathrm{m}{\mathrm{m}}^2 $$. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In mineral, environmental, and engineering explorations, we frequently encounter geological bodies with varied sizes, depths, and conductivity contrasts with surround rocks and try to interpret them with single survey data. The conventional three-dimensional (3-D) inversions significantly rely on the size of the grids, which should be smaller than the smallest geological target to achieve a good recovery to anomalous electric conductivity. However, this will create a large amount of unknowns to be solved and cost significant time and memory. In this paper, we present a multi-scale (MS) stochastic inversion scheme based on shearlet transform for airborne electromagnetic (AEM) data. The shearlet possesses the features of multi-direction and multi-scale, allowing it to effectively characterize the underground conductivity distribution in the transformed domain. To address the practical implementation of the method, we use a compressed sensing method in the forward modeling and sensitivity calculation, and employ a preconditioner that accounts for both the sampling rate and gradient noise to achieve a fast stochastic 3-D inversion. By gradually updating the coefficients from the coarse to fine scales, we obtain the multi-scale information on the underground electric conductivity. The synthetic data inversion shows that the proposed MS method can better recover multiple geological bodies with different sizes and depths with less time consumption. Finally, we conduct 3-D inversions of a field dataset acquired from Byneset, Norway. The results show very good agreement with the geological information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adiabatic quantum algorithm always requires that the system is kept in its ground state during the time evolution, but the interaction between the system and its environment often destroys the adiabaticity. In this paper we show that the reservoir engineering, i.e. the squeezing of the environment, can be used to enhance the adiabaticity of the system in the presence of environment noise. We use the non-Markovian quantum state diffusion (QSD) method to solve the system dynamics. Taking the Max-Cut problem as an example, the effects of squeezing strength and squeezing direction on the adiabatic fidelity are investigated. The results show that appropriate squeezing can enhance the fidelity, and this enhancement remains effective as system sizes vary. Moreover, the optimal squeezing direction changes with different temperature and spectrum bandwidth. Our work demonstrate that reservoir engineering is an effective approach to control the dynamics of the system, which can be used to boost the adiabaticity of the quantum algorithm in open systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modeling is often associated with complex and heavy tooling, leading to a negative perception among practitioners. However, alternative paradigms, such as everything-as-code or low-code, are gaining acceptance due to their perceived ease of use. This paper explores the dichotomy between these perceptions through the lens of "modeler experience" (MX). MX includes factors such as user experience, motivation, integration, collaboration and versioning, and language complexity. We examine the relationships between these factors and their impact on different modeling usage scenarios. Our findings highlight the importance of considering MX when understanding how developers interact with modeling tools and the complexities of modeling and associated tooling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optimization techniques play a crucial role in improving the performance of machine learning applications. However, traditional techniques may not be suitable for addressing complex problems that involve numerous parameters requiring adaptation. This paper presents a novel variant of the gradient-based optimizer (GBO) and investigates the effectiveness of integrating the harmony search (HS) algorithm to enhance the GBO algorithm. The HS algorithm offers several advantages, including fast convergence and fewer adjustable parameters. The proposed method, called GBOHS, is evaluated through three experiments. The first experiment focuses on solving global optimization problems, while the second experiment assesses its ability to select the most relevant features using sixteen benchmark feature selection datasets. The final experiment applies the GBOHS method to solve five real engineering problems. The results are compared against those of well-known optimization algorithms using various performance measures, including fitness function value and classification accuracy. The findings demonstrate that the proposed GBOHS method achieves high accuracy and consistently outperforms the compared methods across all the experiments, demonstrating its promising effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]