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In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that space weather disturbances can be triggered by transient upstream mesoscale structures (TUMS), independently of the occurrence of large-scale solar wind (SW) structures, such as interplanetary coronal mass ejections and stream interaction regions. Different types of magnetospheric pulsations, transient perturbations of the geomagnetic field and auroral structures are often observed during times when SW monitors indicate quiet conditions, and have been found to be associated to TUMS. In this mini-review we describe the space weather phenomena that have been associated with four of the largest-scale and the most energetic TUMS, namely, hot flow anomalies, foreshock bubbles, travelling foreshocks and foreshock compressional boundaries. The space weather phenomena associated with TUMS tend to be more localized and less intense compared to geomagnetic storms. However, the quiet time space weather may occur more often since, especially during solar minima, quiet SW periods prevail over the perturbed times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presented the optimization parameter of a bidirectional soft actuator and evaluated the properties of the actuator. The systematic simulation was conducted to investigate the effect of the top wedged angle (the angle for the wedged shape of the actuator structure) of the chamber on the bending extent of the actuator when it is deflated. We also investigated the width of the actuator and the material combinations of the two layers with the relation to the deformation performance. A mathematical model was also built to reveal the deformation of the actuator as a function of the geometrical parameters of the inner chambers and the material properties. We quantitatively measured the bending radius and the actuation time of the actuator both in air and under water. Digital particle image velocimetry experiments were conducted under water to observe the flow patterns around the actuator. We found that the top wedged angle has a significant effect on the outward bending of the actuator when it is deflated, and 15° was found to be optimal for bending into a larger gripping space. The result shows that the actuator can deform much easier with a bigger width. Utilizing a soft gripper that was built by mounting four actuators to a three-dimensional-printed rigid support, we found that the prototype can grip objects of different sizes, shapes, and material stiffness in amphibious environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, with two-dimensional hybrid simulations, we study the generation mechanism of filamentary structures downstream of a quasi-parallel shock. The results show that in the downstream both the amplitude of magnetic field and number density exhibit obvious filamentary structures, and the magnetic field and number density are anticorrelated. Detailed analyses find that these downstream compressive waves propagate almost perpendicular to the magnetic field, and the dominant wave number is around the inverse of the ion kinetic scale. Their parallel and perpendicular components roughly satisfy (where and represent the parallel and in-plane perpendicular components of magnetic field, is the wave number in the perpendicular direction, and ρi in the ion gyroradius), and their Alfvén ratio also roughly agrees with the analytical relation (where RAi and β indicate the Alfvén ratio and plasma beta, respectively), while the corresponding cross helicity and compressibility show good agreement with previous theoretical calculations. All of these properties are consistent with those of kinetic slow waves (KSWs). Therefore, we conclude that the filamentary structures downstream of a quasi-parallel shock are produced by the excitation of KSWs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, two-dimensional hybrid simulations are performed to investigate ion dynamics at a rippled quasi-parallel shock. The results show that the ripples around the shock front are inherent structures of a quasi-parallel shock, and the re-formation of the shock is not synchronous along the surface of the shock front. By following the trajectories of the upstream ions, we find that these ions behave differently when they interact with the shock front at different positions along the shock surface. The upstream particles are transmitted more easily through the upper part of a ripple, and the corresponding bulk velocity downstream is larger, where a high-speed jet is formed. In the lower part of the ripple, the upstream particles tend to be reflected by the shock. Ions reflected by the shock may suffer multiple-stage acceleration when moving along the shock surface or trapped between the upstream waves and the shock front. Finally, these ions may escape further upstream or move downstream; therefore, superthermal ions can be found both upstream and downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To analyze the influence of high‐speed jets (HSJs) on the position of the magnetopause during long‐term radial interplanetary magnetic fields (IMFs), we report three events of magnetopause expansions and indentions by HSJs observed by Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms. In these events, the upstream solar wind condition is stable and the IMF direction is quasi‐radial, characterized by the cone angle less than 30°. Actually, such upstream conditions are rare, especially when the HSJ is observed near the magnetopause crossing time. The actual positions of the magnetopause in these three cases are further away from Earth than that shown by the empirical models. A local indention in the magnetopause caused by HSJ is inferred by the inward movement of the magnetopause from the compression of HSJ. It is the first time to report the simultaneous magnetopause expansion under radial IMF and magnetopause indention caused by HSJ. Plain Language Summary: High‐speed jets (HSJs) are localized high dynamic pressure pulses observed in the magnetosheath. It is generated downstream of the bow shock and moves toward the magnetopause. Typically, strong HSJs will reach the magnetopause, compress the surrounding plasma, and produce local indentions. Meanwhile, the radial interplanetary magnetic fields (IMFs) are more favorable for the generation and propagation of the HSJ. However, radial IMF conditions also lead to an outward movement of the magnetopause compared to the empirical model. Therefore, based on these two opposing physical processes of the magnetopause, we selected three cases of HSJ under long‐term radial IMFs to analyze their influence on the position of the magnetopause. The result shows that under the long‐term quasi‐radial IMF conditions, the dayside magnetopause expands, compared to its shown by the empirical model. Then, the subsequent HSJ compress the plasma and locally move the expanded magnetopause inward. It is the first time to report the simultaneous magnetopause expansion under radial IMF and indention caused by HSJ. Key Points: Magnetopause crossings from Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms under prolonged radial interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) are investigatedSimultaneous magnetopause expansion under prolonged radial IMF and magnetopause indention caused by high‐speed jet are reported [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The superthermal ions at a quasi-parallel collisionless shock are considered to be generated during the reformation of the shock. Recently, hybrid simulations of a quasi-parallel shock have shown that during the reformation of a quasi-parallel shock the large-amplitude upstream low-frequency waves can trap the reflected ions at the shock front when they try to move upstream, and then these reflected ions can be accelerated several times to become superthermal ions. In this paper, with the Cluster observations of a quasi-parallel shock event, the relevance between the large-amplitude upstream low-frequency waves and the superthermal ions (about several keV) have been studied. The observations clearly show that the differential energy flux of superthermal ions in the upstream region is modulated by the upstream low-frequency waves, and the maxima of the differential energy flux are usually located between the peaks of these waves (including the shock front and the peak of the upstream wave just in front of the shock front). These superthermal ions are considered to originate from the reflected ions at the shock front, and the modulation is caused due to the trapping of the reflected ions between the upstream waves or the upstream waves and the shock front when these reflected ions try to travel upstream. It verifies the results from hybrid simulations, where the upstream waves play an important role in the generation of superthermal ions in a quasi-parallel shock. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments of generation of quasi-perpendicular collisionless shocks driven by laser plasma were performed at the Shenguang-II laser facility with intense lasers. Here, using a 1D particle-in-cell simulation code including protons, carbon ions, and electrons, we investigate the experimental shock formation via the interaction between the laser-ablated piston and ambient plasma magnetized by a large pre-existing magnetic field and the associated ion dynamics in more detail. Simulation results show that, given enough time and space, ambient protons and carbon ions can be reflected at the piston–ambient interface successively, which leads to the formation of corresponding shocks before the piston and interface. Electric fields associated with the initial interaction known as Larmor coupling and the shocks may accelerate ambient protons, carbon ions reflected at the interface or shocks, and piston ones transmitted to the ambient region before shock formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hitherto, automated grasping with robotic grippers requires adjusting the posture and force of the fingers based on the size, geometry, stiffness, and pose of the objects. To provide a simpler but efficient grasping methodology, a soft enveloping gripper is presented and investigated how its morphological adaptability improves the grasping ability by comparing its performance with fingered grippers. Results show that this enveloping gripper can omnidirectionally envelop objects via active–passive interaction, which allows the gripper to 100% grasp the object located at different positions within range and keep their orientations. However, the grasping success rate and orientation error of the fingered grippers highly depend on the relative position and angle of the objects to the grippers, as well as the number of fingers. The dynamic vibration and decay time of the enveloping gripper when grasping a 500 g weight are, both, approximately one‐sixth of those of the two‐fingered gripper when grasping a 12.37 g cube. This enveloping gripper can automatically grasp objects (including deformable ones) lying in different poses without posture estimation and force control with a simple vision‐based automatic grasping method. The enveloping grasping method may open an avenue for simple, low cost yet powerful automatic grasping applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Force and strain sensors made of soft materials enable robots to interact intelligently with their surroundings. Capacitive sensing is widely adopted thanks to its low power consumption, fast response, and facile fabrication. Capacitive sensors are, however, susceptible to electromagnetic interference and proximity effects and thus require electrical shielding. Shielding has not been previously implemented in soft capacitive sensors due to the parasitic capacitance between the shield and sensing electrodes, which changes when the sensor is deformed. We address this crucial challenge by patterning the central sensing elastomer layer to control its compressibility. One design uses an ultrasoft silicone foam, and the other includes microchannels filled with liquid metal and air. The force resolution is sub-mN both in normal and shear directions, yet the sensor withstands large forces (>20 N), demonstrating a wide dynamic range. Performance is unaffected by nearby high DC and AC electric fields and even electric sparks. Capacitive soft force sensors require electrical shielding from electromagnetic interference, but this shielding can mess with the effectiveness of the sensing electrodes. Here, Aksoy et al. solve this problem by patterning the central sensing elastomer layer to control its compressibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metallic materials have been widely used as orthopedic implants in clinics for their good mechanical, physical, and chemical properties, but their slow osseointegration rate is still one of the main issues causing implantation failure. Grain refinement has recently attracted wide attention for its effective improvement of cell–material interaction for biometals. In this review, the surface and bulk grain refinement mode and the influence of grain size reduction of various metallic materials including titanium, stainless steel, magnesium, zirconium, tantalum, and their alloys as well as NiTi shape memory alloys on the cell responses is summarized in detail. It is hoped that this review could help biomaterials-related researchers to understand the grain refinement of metallic materials in a timely manner, thus boosting the development of biomedical metals for clinical use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advance of smart material science, robotics is evolving from rigid robots to soft robots. Compared to rigid robots, soft robots can safely interact with the environment, easily navigate in unstructured fields, and be minimized to operate in narrow spaces, owning to the new actuation and sensing technologies developed by the smart materials. In the review, different actuation and sensing technologies based on different smart materials are analyzed and summarized. According to the driving or feedback signals, actuators are categorized into electrically responsive actuators, thermally responsive actuators, magnetically responsive actuators, and photoresponsive actuators; sensors are categorized into resistive sensors, capacitive sensors, magnetic sensors, and optical waveguide sensors. After introducing the principle and several robotic prototypes of some typical materials in each category of the actuators and sensors. The advantages and disadvantages of the actuators and sensors are compared based on the categories, and their potential applications in robotics are also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study low-frequency waves upstream of quasi-parallel shocks by using two-dimensional (2D) hybrid simulations. Simulation results show that reflected particles can backstream and form a superthermal particle component in plasmas in an area just before the shock front. The component interacts with the incident particles and can result in quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular fast magnetosonic waves with comparable wave amplitudes, and they have right-hand and linear polarization, respectively. Further upstream, after being scattered by these upstream waves, the backstreaming particles develop a shell-like velocity distribution so that similar waves can be driven by the free energy from this newly formed distribution, and in this area the quasi-perpendicular waves are dominant over the quasi-parallel ones. Linear theory confirms the generation of these two types of upstream waves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A key challenge in robotics is to create efficient methods for grasping objects with diverse shapes, sizes, poses, and properties. Grasping with hand-like end effectors often requires careful selection of hand orientation and finger placement. Here, we present a fingerless soft gripper capable of efficiently generating multiple grasping modes. It is based on a soft, cylindrical accordion structure containing coupled, parallel fluidic channels, which are controlled via pressure supplied from a single fluidic port. Inflation opens the gripper orifice for enveloping an object, while deflation allows it to produce grasping forces. The interior is patterned with a gecko-like skin that increases friction, enabling the gripper to lift objects weighing up to 20 N. Our design ensures that fragile objects, such as eggs, can be safely handled, by virtue of a wall buckling mechanism. In reverse, the gripper can be deflated to reach into an opening or orifice then inflated to grasp objects with handles or cavities. The gripper may also integrate a lip that enables it to form a seal and, upon inflating, to generate suction for lifting objects with flat surfaces. In this article, we describe the design and fabrication of this device and present an analytical model of its behavior when operated from a single fluidic port. In experiments, we demonstrate its ability to grasp diverse objects, and show that its performance is well described by our model. Our findings show how a fingerless soft gripper can efficiently perform a variety of grasping operations. Such devices could improve the ability of robotic systems to meet applications in areas of great economic and societal importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collisionless shocks can be nonstationary with periodic reformation shown in many simulation results, but direct observations are still tenuous and difficult to conclusively interpret. In this study, using Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) observations, we report direct observational evidence of Earth's oblique bow shock reformation driven by the foreshock Ultralow‐Frequency (ULF) waves. When the four MMS spacecraft were in a string‐of‐pearls formation roughly along the bow shock normal, they observed that when each period of foreshock ULF waves encountered the bow shock, a new shock ramp formed. Meanwhile, in the magnetosheath, the old bow shock's remnants were observed periodically convecting downstream. We propose that the reformation mechanism of the oblique bow shock is the variation of the upstream conditions by the periodic ULF waves as they encounter the bow shock. We also examine the nature of reflected ions during the reformation process. Key Points: MMS in a string‐of‐pearls formation observed oblique bow shock reformation induced by foreshock ULF wavesWe propose the reformation mechanism is the periodic modification of the bow shock upstream conditions by the ULF wavesThe bow shock reformation generated ULF perturbations in the magnetosheath and modulated reflected ions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collecting in shallow water (water depth: ~30 m) is an emerging field that requires robotics for replacing human divers. Soft robots have several promising features (e.g., safe interaction with the environments, lightweight, etc.) for performing such tasks. In this article, we developed an underwater robotic system with a three-degree-of-freedom (3-DoF) soft manipulator for spatial delicate grasping in shallow water. First, we present the design and fabrication of the soft manipulator with an opposite-bending-and-stretching structure (OBSS). Then, we proposed a simple and efficient kinematics method for controlling the spatial location and trajectory of the soft manipulator's end effector. The inverse kinematics of the OBSS manipulator can be solved efficiently (computation time: 8.2 ms). According to this inverse kinematics method, we demonstrated that the OBSS soft manipulator could track complex two-dimensional and three-dimensional trajectories, including star, helix, etc. Further, we performed real-time closed-loop pick-and-place experiments of the manipulator with binocular and on-hand cameras in a lab aquarium. Hydrodynamic experiments showed that the OBSS soft manipulator produced little force (less than 0.459 N) and torque (less than 0.228 N·m), which suggested its low-inertia feature during the underwater operation. Finally, we demonstrated that the underwater robotic system with the OBSS soft manipulator successfully collected seafood animals at the bottom of the natural oceanic environment. The robot successfully collected eight sea echini and one sea cucumber within 20 minutes at a water depth of around 10 m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mirror-mode structures widely exist in various space plasma environments. Here, we investigate a train of mirror-mode structures in the terrestrial plasma sheet on 11 August 2017 based on the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission. We find that bipolar current densities exist in the cross section of two hole-like mirror-mode structures, referred to as magnetic dips. The bipolar current density in the magnetic dip with a size of ∼2.2 ρi (the ion gyro radius) is mainly contributed by variations of the electron velocity, which is mainly formed by the magnetic gradient–curvature drift. For another magnetic dip with a size of ∼6.6 ρi , the bipolar current density is mainly caused by an ion bipolar velocity, which can be explained by the collective behaviors of the ion drift motions. The current density inside the mirror dip contributes to the maintenance of the hole-like structure's stable. Our observations suggest that the electrons and ions play different roles in the formation of currents in magnetic dips with different sizes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conventional rigid electronic systems use a number of metallization layers to route all necessary connections to and from isolated surface mount devices using well-established printed circuit board technology. In contrast, present solutions to prepare stretchable electronic systems are typically confined to a single stretchable metallization layer. Crossovers and vertical interconnect accesses remain challenging; consequently, no reliable stretchable printed circuit board (SPCB) method has established. This article reports an industry compatible SPCB manufacturing method that enables multilayer crossovers and vertical interconnect accesses to interconnect isolated devices within an elastomeric matrix. As a demonstration, a stretchable (260%) active matrix with integrated electronic and optoelectronic surface mount devices is shown that can deform reversibly into various 3D shapes including hemispherical, conical or pyramid. To realize multilayer stretchable printed circuit boards (SPCBs), advancements in industrially-viable materials and processing methods are required. Here, the authors report multilayer SPCBs with electrical wiring capable of interconnecting isolated devices in different layers within an elastomeric matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For soft grippers to be applied in atypical industrial environments, they must conform to an object's exterior shape and momentarily change their stiffness. However, many of the existing grippers have limitations with respect to these functions: they grasp an object with only a single curvature and a fixed stiffness. Consequently, those constraints limit the stability of grasping and the applications. This paper introduces a new multicurvature, variable-stiffness soft gripper. Inspired by the human phalanx and combining the phalanx structure and particle jamming, this work guarantees the required grasping functions. Unlike the existing soft pneumatic grippers with one curvature and one stiffness, this work tries to divide the pressurized actuating region into three parts to generate multiple curvatures for a gripper finger, enabling the gripper to increase its degrees of freedom. Furthermore, to prevent stiffness loss at an unpressurized segment, this work combines divided actuation and the variable-stiffness capability, which guarantee successful grasping actions. In summary, this gripper generates multiple grasping curvatures with the proper stiffness, enhancing its dexterity. This work introduces the new soft gripper's design, analytical modeling, and fabrication method and verifies the analytic model by comparing it with FEM simulations and experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]