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This work is the extended version of a paper presented at the conference HMM2021, about the history of mechanical engineering. First, the initial cultural and industrial steps in the robotic field in Japan are introduced, to display the beginning of this interlaced path, before WW2; then, in the context of the aftermaths of the war, some famous anime heroes are presented as ancestors of the coming mecha anime series. The rising research in the field of robotics and more generally the developments of contemporary Japanese automation industry are then drawn, as a technological substrate for mecha conception. In particular, Masahiro Mori studies are taken into consideration to identify an actual robot design pattern to apply to the following comparative description and examination of the different mecha; finally, thanks to this analysis, the common breeding ground whence robotics and mecha (and their reciprocal influences) arise, is outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the COVID 19 pandemic, the importance of global academia-industrial alliances has increased. It is hoped that the alliances will help us to solve the current problems caused by the pandemic. In this paper, we introduce the application of IT tools and communication skills utilized in a special educational project for an academia-industrial collaboration. Some concrete examples from 2020 are provided from the viewpoint of the national alliance project in Japan. A discussion is included that describes the plans available to increase and strengthen the national project in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes an adaptive sliding‐mode control strategy based on trajectory re‐planning for a permanent magnet spherical actuator (PMSA) to address the large overshoot caused by substantial initial error while maintaining tracking precision. The proposed re‐planning technique reconstructs a local trajectory without the preceding knowledge of the desired position in the future, which makes this technique more suitable for reconstructing trajectory given online. First, a re‐planning cool‐down term is added to maximize the capability of controller to improve the precision and speed of tracking. Moreover, a smooth switching technique is also applied to further improve the precision of trajectory tracking and stop redundant re‐planning when the system enters satisfactory state. Finally, the proposed trajectory re‐planning strategy is combined with a robust adaptive sliding‐mode controller (RASC), which effectively reduces friction, delay, and external uncertainty disturbances. The effectiveness of the proposed control design is verified by both simulation and experiment on PMSA, which can provide reference for the further engineering application of multi‐degree‐of‐freedom system. © 2023 Institute of Electrical Engineer of Japan and Wiley Periodicals LLC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Underground pipeline infrastructures, such as water supply and industrial water pipes, were rapidly constructed in Japan during the 1970–1980s economic boom and have been ageing quickly. In general, corrosion of buried metal water pipes depends on the physicochemical properties of the soil around them. Conventionally, when conducting such investigations, the soil is excavated and sampled to analyse these properties in laboratories. As this damages the paved road surface, an alternative method is required. Resistivity is a significant physical property measured when investigating the corrosion risk of underground pipelines. Therefore, if geophysical exploration can facilitate the investigation of soil resistivity from the ground surface, it will play a key role in the renewal planning of water pipes. Traditionally, geophysical methods such as electrical and electromagnetic exploration have been used for measuring subsurface resistivity. Electrical exploration is a robust and noise‐tolerant method; however, it requires electrode installation. Most roads over the pipelines are paved, making conventional electrical exploration using metal electrodes a challenging task. Therefore, the Geological Survey of Japan, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, has developed a very‐low‐frequency band alternating current electrical surveying technique that uses water‐saturated polyvinyl alcohol sponge electrodes. In this technique, electrodes are placed on an asphalt or concrete paved surface and the electrode measures the soil resistivity profile and detects the corrosive soil distribution without damaging the paved surface. Moreover, we improved this equipment to enable vertical electrical survey of numerous points and acquired data for 740 m of the survey line in 1 day at Maborikaigan coast in Yokosuka City. We found that the resistivity values varied with the depths and locations of the buried water pipes. These variations indicated that surveys and evaluations on long survey lines along water pipe burial routes are essential for risk management in water pipelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Ground response mechanism under different geometrical configurations of jacked rectangular pipe was investigated. • Higher jacking force is needed with increasing aspect ratio of the jacked rectangular pipe. • Square shaped cross-section design is conductive for deep and long-distance jacking construction. For rectangular pipe-jacking construction, the primary priorities of smooth construction include minimizing the ground response and designating the appropriate jacking force to achieve the best results in environmental protection and energy conservation. The geometric cross-section design of the jacking rectangular pipe and its engineering performances such as the ground surface displacement, the jacking force consumption, and the stress-bearing state are easy to be ignored in the field construction. In this paper, the ground response characteristics under four kinds of rectangular pipe aspect ratio (H/W) with the same utilization cross-section area were investigated by using the calibrated finite element method (FEM) based on a case study conducted in Japan. The theoretical jacking force of each pipe section design was calculated and compared to provide a reference for long-distance or large-section jacking conditions. The stress-bearing state of each pipe was considered under different buried depths. The results show that the ground surface response decreases while the jacking force increases with increasing the aspect ratios. Thus, a reasonable design of the rectangular pipe section should comprehensively consider the influence of geometric effects on the ground and its stress-bearing state during the jacking construction. The findings of this study provide a practical reference for the safe and economic design of the jacking rectangular pipe and engineering management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to examine the impacts of education for sustainable development subject(s) offered at University A, Japan and University B, Malaysia on the attitude and perception toward environment, social and economic issues of sustainability among the engineering undergraduates of the institutions from different countries. Design/methodology/approach: A questionnaire survey was administered to 108 engineering students at University A, Japan and 117 engineering students at University B, Malaysia to measure their attitudes and perceptions toward sustainability. Findings: The findings suggested that the sustainable development courses offered at University A, Japan, have developed positive attitudes and perceptions on environmental and social sustainability issues. The subjects on sustainable development offered at University B, Malaysia have developed positive attitudes and perceptions on the environmental issues of sustainability. Respondents from both universities, Japan and Malaysia, have not properly developed positive attitudes and perceptions toward economic sustainability issues. The findings also revealed that geographical boundaries have no influence toward the development of the attitude and perception toward sustainability issues. Originality/value: This study provides insight into the attitude and perception toward the three pillars – environment, social and economic – of sustainability among engineering undergraduates from two different institutions of two different countries that apply different pedagogic strategies in education for sustainable development in educating undergraduates on sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This study aims to identify and compare the knowledge and information retrieval needs from past projects and for future work among Italian and Japanese engineers. Engineering work, which is knowledge-intensive, is all the more critical as it both uses and generates knowledge for product and process innovation. Design/methodology/approach – This research uses data collected from engineers in Italy and Japan from an online survey using open-ended questions in their native language. Answers were then translated into English and coded into pre-determined categories; statistical analyses including factor analysis were conducted. Findings – For knowledge to be retrieved from past work, both Italian and Japanese engineers identified mainly experiential and systemic knowledge assets. For knowledge to be captured for future work, both groups picked experiential as well as conceptual knowledge related to the competitive environment of the firm absent from knowledge needs from past work. Finally, this research uncovered almost twice as fewer meta-categories for knowledge needs to be captured for future work compared to knowledge to be retrieved from past projects, as the former are by nature speculative and, therefore, difficult to foresee. Research limitations/implications – The study is limited to the engineering domain and to two countries. Further research should extend the scope beyond these two countries. Practical implications – The study identified information and knowledge needs that could help inform the design of procedures to capture and document engineering work and the development of supporting information systems. Originality/value – This research contributes to an increased understanding of the substance of information and knowledge needs in a knowledge-intensive environment such as engineering work and product/service development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]