Search

In this letter, a design of multibeam antenna (MBA) with 2-D beam steerable capability is proposed. The proposed MBA is composed of a circular 44 butler matrix (BM) and a 24 patch antenna array. And the 24 patch antenna array consists of four 2-element subarrays uniformly arranged along E-plane. By introducing the switching diodes in the subarray and controlling the switching diodes on and off, elements of the subarray are excited through the paths with different lengths, and the beam of the subarray is steered subsequently in H-plane. The circular 44 BM is designed as the beamforming network to excite the four subarrays uniformly arranged along E-plane and steer the beam in E-plane. The proposed MBA can generate 12 beams by selecting the excitation port and controlling the on-off state of the switching diodes. To validate the performance of the proposed MBA, a prototype is fabricated and measured. By the design, the dimension of the designed MBA has reduced to 2.9 01.3 0. The designed MBA operates at 5.7 GHz, and the results show that beams of the MBA can cover the range of 36 in E-plane and 22 in H-plane, respectively.

This letter presents a broadband 3-D-printed circularly polarized (CP) spherical Luneburg lens (LL) with the linearly polarized feed antenna for the X -band. In order to implement spatially continuous varying effective refractive index (RI), the proposed LL is divided to many unit cells and their effective RI is simulated and calculated by effective medium theory. Since the effective RI of unit cells is anisotropic for two orthogonal linearly polarized (LP) waves, the proposed LL is an LP to CP polarizer realized by properly selecting the radius of the LL. The whole structure is fabricated by low cost 3-D-printing (3DP) technic, which is fed by an LP antenna source rotated to a certain angle with respect to the LL around the normal. The measured results indicate that the voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR), axial ratio, and gain enhancement are lower than 2, less than 2.8 dB, and more than 10 dB at X -band, respectively. The results of measurement agree well with the simulation.

Introduction Circulating intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) levels include full-length (1-84) PTH and long C-PTH fragments, but primarily (7-84) PTH, which have been reported to have antagonistic effects on the bones and kidneys. However, their effects on the cardiovascular system remain unclear. In this study, the relationships between the plasma PTH fragments levels and heart rate variability (HRV) in stage 5 chronic kidney disease (CKD5) patients are explored. Furthermore, the effects of parathyroidectomy (PTX) on the above indices are investigated. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 164 healthy controls and 354 CKD5 patients, including 208 secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) subgroup with PTX, were enrolled. Circulating (7-84) PTH levels were calculated by subtracting plasma (1-84) PTH levels from iPTH levels. The HRV parameters were measured using a 24-hour Holter. Results The baseline levels of plasma iPTH, (1-84) PTH, and (7-84) PTH in the CKD5 patients were 930.40 (160.65, 1792.50) pg/mL, 448.60 (99.62, 850.45) pg/mL, and 468.20 (54.22, 922.55) pg/mL, respectively. In the CKD5 patients, plasma (1-84) PTH levels were independently correlated with the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal R-R intervals (SDNN) and the standard deviation of the five-minute average of the normal R-R intervals (SDANN). With a median follow up time of 6.50 months after PTX in the SHPT patients (n = 30), improved SDNN and SDANN markers were related with decreased (1-84) PTH levels. Furthermore, an improved SDNN was related with decreased (7-84) PTH levels. Conclusions The CKD5 patients’ baseline (1-84) PTH levels were correlated with the SDNN and SDANN. After PTX, an improved SDNN was related with decreased (1-84) PTH and (7-84) PTH levels, while improved SDANN was related with decreased (1-84) PTH levels. No antagonistic effects of (1-84) PTH and (7-84) PTH on HRV were found in the CKD5 patients.

Farfarae Flos is a traditional Chinese medicine that has long been used to treat allergies. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of a petroleum extract of Farfarae Flos (PEFF) in a mouse model of allergic rhinitis (AR) and to explore the underlying molecular mechanisms of action. An animal model of AR was established by sensitization and challenge of BALB/c mice with ovalbumin (OVA). PEFF was administered intranasally and AR nasal symptoms were assessed on a semi-quantitative scale according to the frequencies of nose rubbing and sneezing and the degree of rhinorrhea. The mechanism of action of PEFF was evaluated by histological analysis of nasal mucosa architecture and inflammatory status; ELISA-based quantification of serum OVA-specific IgE, interferon-γ (IFN-γ), and interleukin-4 (IL-4) concentrations; and immunohistochemical and western blot analysis of T-bet and GATA3 protein expression in nasal mucosa and spleen tissues. The results showed intranasal administration of PEFF alleviated AR symptom scores and reduced both the infiltration of inflammatory cells and tissue damage in the nasal mucosa. PEFF significantly decreased serum concentrations of OVA-specific IgE (P

As a kind of natural engineering material with original defects, there are distinctly nonlinear and anisotropic mechanical behaviors for rock materials. Nevertheless, the rock damage mechanics can solve this problem well. However, for the complexity of mechanical property of rock material, the mature and applicable model to describe the rock failure process and the method to determine the maximum damage value have not been established very well. To solve this problem, one new damage evolution model for rock material has been proposed. In this model, the least energy consumption principle proposed to describe the fracture process of materials is used. Using the experimental data of granite sample under uniaxial compression and the results of numerical tests under uniaxial tension and uniaxial compression, this model is verified. Moreover, the results of the new model have been compared with the results of the tests (numerical test and real test) and the traditional damage model. The comparison shows that the new model has the higher accuracy and better reflects for the fracture process of the granite sample. Moreover, the released damage energies of the new model and Mazars model are different, and the released damage energy of the new model is slightly less than that of the Mazars model.

Fatigue driving is one of the main causes of traffic accidents. In recent years, considerable attention has been paid to fatigue detection systems, which is an important solution for preventing fatigue driving. In order to prevent and reduce fatigue driving, a driver fatigue detection system based on computer vision is proposed. In this system, an improved face detection method is used to detect the driver’s face from the image obtained by a charge coupled device (CCD) camera. Then, the feature points of the eyes and mouth are located by an ensemble of regression trees. Next, fatigue characteristic parameters are calculated by the improved percentage of eyelid closure over the pupil over time algorithm. Finally, the state of drivers is evaluated by using a fuzzy neural network. The system can effectively monitor and remind the state of drivers so as to significantly avoid or decrease the occurrence of traffic accidents. The experimental results show that the system is of wonderful real-time performance and accurate recognition rate, so it meets the requirements of practicality in driver fatigue detection greatly.

This letter presents a broadband active Van Atta array system at $X$ -band, which is used for monostatic radar cross section (RCS) modulation and enhancement. The active system mainly consists of two uniform linear arrays (ULAs) and an active four-channel radio frequency (RF) amplifying circuit. By introducing the electrically modulated attenuator (EMA) into the active system, the transmission gain of the proposed four-channel RF amplifying circuit is controlled by a voltage signal from a control circuit and the backscattering field of the system can be sequentially modulated. The system’s performance of RCS modulation and retrodirectivity are validated through measurement over a relative bandwidth of 40% centered at 10 GHz. The modulation range of monostatic RCS is generally more than 20 dB at the $X$ -band. Its 3-dB retrodirective range and maximum equivalent RCS are 70°–120° and 1.4–3.9 dBsm varying from 8 to 12 GHz, respectively.

Artesunate (ART) is the derivative of artemisinin isolated from the traditional Chinese medicine qinghao. Although several studies reported the efficiency of artesunate in the treatment of malaria, inhibiting fibroblasts and collagen synthesis, the association between artesunate and scar formation is unclear. The research was designed to study the significance of artesunate (ART) on the expression of transforming growth factor (TGF-β1) and small mother against decapentaplegic (SMAD3) in rabbit's ear hypertrophic scar model. Twenty-four New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into six groups: control group, matrix group, low-concentration artesunate group (0.48%), medium-concentration artesunate group (0.96%), high-concentration artesunate group (1.92%) and silicone gel group. Punched defects were established on each rabbit’s ear which resulted in a hypertrophic scar. On the 28th day, topical artesunate creams were applied twice a day except on the control group. On the 56th day, scar samples were collected for histopathology and immunoassay. Hematoxylin and eosin staining, Van Gieson staining, immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis were done. Amongst the six groups, findings showed that the medium-concentration artesunate group (0.92%) efficiently decreased hypertrophic scar formation and significantly reduced fibroblasts and collagen synthesis. The results had also shown a decrease in the expression of transforming growth factor (TGF-β1) and declined small signal mother against decapentaplegic (Smad3). The overall study shows efficacy and mechanism of artesunate. It concluded that the medium concentration of artesunate (0.92%) could be an effective therapeutic agent for hypertrophic scars.

With the development of urban rail transit, long-span steel truss cable-stayed bridges have become increasingly favored. Therefore, train-induced bridge-borne vibration and noise are occurring more often. The damping pad floating slab (DPFS) has been widely used as an effective vibration damping track structure; however, there is a lack of research on the vibration mechanism and effects of the DPFS for long-span steel truss cable-stayed bridges. This study focuses on the steel truss cable-stayed bridge in urban rail transit. First, the theoretical model of the train-track-bridge coupling interaction is established in the frequency-domain (the track structure is DPFS, and the interaction of multiple wheels is considered). Using this model, the wheel–rail dynamic force, force transmission rate of the track, and the force transmitted to the bridge are calculated. Then, the vibration prediction model of the long-span steel truss cable-stayed bridge is established using the plate-beam finite element (FE) method and statistical energy method. The force transmitted to the bridge is applied to the vibration prediction model to obtain the vibration transmission characteristics of the typical plate of the bridge. The prediction model is verified by comparing the obtained results with the field test of a long-span steel truss cable-stayed bridge, and the damping mechanism of DPFS track is discussed. Finally, the force transmitted to the bridge is calculated based on the embedded-sleeper (ES) track structure (the ES has no vibration damping facilities). The values of the overall vibration level are calculated from the prediction models using ES and DPFS, and the vibration reduction effect of DPFS is studied by comparison with the ES.

A novel dual-polarized antenna with very low profile using nonuniform metasurface is presented in this letter. The proposed antenna is composed of two dipoles placed crosswise, of which the radiators are formed by four square metal plates. The antenna is designed to work at the lower frequency band (0.69–0.96 GHz) of base station. By adding the metasurface atop the dipole antennas, the overall height of the antenna together with metasurface can be reduced to 0.1 λ0 (wavelength of the center frequency), which is much lower compared to the normal height of a dipole antenna (0.25 λ0). Simulated and measured results show that the height reduction is achieved without degrading the performance of the antenna, making the proposed antenna a competitive candidate for base-station application.

This paper researches the performance of a novel supercritical carbon dioxide (S-CO2) Brayton cycle and organic Rankine cycle (ORC) combined system with a theoretical solar radiation diurnal distribution. The new system supplies all solar energy to a S-CO2 Brayton cycle heater, where heat releasing from the S-CO2 cooler is stored in the thermal storage system which is supplied to the ORC. Therefore, solar energy is kept at a high temperature, while at the same time the thermal storage system temperature is low. This paper builds a simple solar radiation diurnal distribution model. The maximum continuous working time, mass of thermal storage material, and parameter variations of the two cycles are simulated with the solar radiation diurnal distribution model. 10 organic fluids and 5 representative thermal storage materials are compared in this paper, with the mass and volume of these materials being shown. The longer the continuous working time is, the lower the system thermal efficiency is. The maximum continuous working time can reach 19.1 hours if the system provides a constant power output. At the same time, the system efficiency can be kept above 38% for most fluids.

Stratospheric airships are important platforms for near-space enduring cruising capability for several applications. Since energy shortage is one of major limiting factors in stratospheric airship, it is crucial to develop novel methods to reduce the requirement on energy systems. In this article, optimal trajectory of stratospheric airship in gradient wind fields is investigated in order to reduce energy consumption. First, polynomial expressions for wind gradients are assumed, and three-dimensional point mass airship equations of motion are used. Then the variety characters of energy for stratospheric airship are studied, the minimum power output of power system is taken as the optimizing target, and collocation approach is used to convert the trajectory optimization problem into parameters optimization. The characters of stratospheric airship’s cruising in three typical wind field are analyzed, including control and state parameters time histories, power changes for airship system, and so on. This research work shows that the greater the wind gradient, the more favorable to reduce energy consumptions, but the speed of the gradient wind cannot be too high.

Benefit from its capability of learning high-dimensional compact representation from raw data, the auto-encoders are widely used in various tasks of data compression. In particular, for deep image compression, auto-encoders generally take the responsibility of mapping original images to the latent representation to be coded. In this paper, we propose a new framework for deep image compression by devising a loss function for latent optimization, and adopting the differentiable approximation of quantization. In our experiments, both subjective and objective results can confirm the effectiveness of our contributions.

A simple Vivaldi-based omnidirectional antenna for X-band is presented. By placing two Vivaldi antennas in opposite directions, a simple microstrip power divider can excite two antennas simultaneously. In addition, ellipse slot restrains the upward radiated energy and reduces the side lobe. Using different exponential ratios of both sides of tapered radiating slot, metal patch loaded and different sized circle slots guarantee that the direction of maximum radiation is horizontal. The structure of proposed antenna is simple, small and easy to fabricated. The prototype antenna is manufactured and measured. And measured results show good antenna performance and agree well with the simulation.

Prior literature has largely addressed corporate social responsibility (CSR) from outcomes related to organizational themes. However, its importance for achieving consumer-related outcomes is something that has been largely ignored by contemporary researchers. Likewise, how CSR communication through social media can create positive emotions on the part of consumers has to date been under-explored. Hence, the present study aims to fill these gaps by investigating the impact of CSR communication of an organization through social media on consumer loyalty. The study also proposes electronic word of mouth (e-WOM) as a potential mediator between this relationship. The proposed model of the present study was tested in the banking sector of a developing country. The data were collected from a self-administered questionnaire and analyzed through the structural equation modeling technique (SEM). The results of the present study validated that CSR communication of a bank through social media directly and indirectly, through e-WOM, influences consumer loyalty in a positive manner. The results of the present study will be helpful for policymakers to better understand how well-planned CSR communication of an organization on social media can lead towards better consumer-related outcomes such as consumer loyalty and e-WOM.

Patients admitted to hospital with a terminal illness and uncertain recovery often receive inconsistent care and do not have the opportunity to die in their preferred place of death. Previous end-of-life care packages, such as the Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient, have sometimes been badly implemented. The AMBER (Assessment; Management; Best practice; Engagement; Recovery uncertain) care bundle was developed to remedy this. It has not been evaluated in a randomised trial, but a definitive trial would face many hurdles.To optimise the design of and determine the feasibility of a pragmatic, multicentre, cluster randomised controlled trial of the AMBER care bundle compared with best standard care.A feasibility cluster randomised controlled trial including semistructured interviews with patients and relatives, focus groups with health-care professionals, non-participant observations of multidisciplinary team meetings, a standard care survey, heat maps and case note reviews. Retrospective data were collected from the family or close friends of deceased patients via a bereavement survey.Four general medical wards at district general hospitals in England.There were 65 participants (control,The AMBER care bundle is implemented by a nurse facilitator. It includes the development and documentation of a medical plan, consideration of outcomes, resuscitation and escalation status and daily plan revisiting. The AMBER care bundle encourages staff, patients and families to talk openly about their preferences and priorities should the worst happen.Two 'candidate' primary outcomes were selected to be evaluated for a future definitive trial: Integrated Palliative care Outcome Scale patient/family anxiety and communication subscale and 'Data were collected for 65 patients. This trial was not powered to measure clinical effectiveness, but variance and changes observed in the Integrated Palliative care Outcome Scale subscale indicated that this measure would probably detect differences within a definitive trial. It was feasible to collect data on health, social and informal care service use and on quality of life at two time points. The AMBER care bundle was broadly acceptable to all stakeholders and was delivered as planned. The emphasis on 'clinical uncertainty' prompted health-care professional awareness of often-overlooked patients. Reviewing patients' AMBER care bundle status was integrated into routine practice. Refinements included simplifying the inclusion criteria and improving health-care professional communication training. Improvements to trial procedures included extending the time devoted to recruitment and simplifying consent procedures. There was also a recommendation to reduce data collected from patients and relatives to minimise burden.The recruitment rate was lower than anticipated. The inclusion criteria for the trial were difficult to interpret. Information sheets and consent procedures were too detailed and lengthy for the target population. Health-care professionals' enthusiasm and specialty were not considered while picking trial wards. Participant recruitment took place later during hospital admission and the majority of participants were lost to follow-up because they had been discharged. Those who participated may have different characteristics from those who did not.This feasibility trial has demonstrated that an evaluation of the AMBER care bundle among an acutely unwell patient population, although technically possible, is not practical or feasible. The intervention requires optimisation.Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN36040085. National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Portfolio registration number 32682.This project was funded by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment programme and will be published in full inUnwell hospital patients who are approaching the end of their lives and may die at any moment receive inconsistent care and often do not have opportunities to discuss their future care preferences. The AMBER (Assessment; Management; Best practice; Engagement; Recovery uncertain) care bundle was developed to help identify such patients, train health-care professionals to better communicate their concerns with them and their families and, where possible, to realise their preferences for place of care and death. The Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient, previously used across England, was designed to provide the best possible quality of care to those at the end of life. However, an independent review identified that it often was not used appropriately, leading to poor patient outcomes. A number of the criticisms of the Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient, such as reports of quickened deaths from the withdrawal of hydration/nutrition, as well as poor communication with patients and families, may have been identified earlier if it had been thoroughly evaluated. The AMBER care bundle, developed at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital, aims to provide better outcomes for patients with clinically uncertain recovery and their families. It is important that the AMBER care bundle is properly investigated before wider use. A bigger study of the AMBER care bundle would be complex and expensive, so we examined whether or not this would be possible and acceptable to patients cared for in four wards across four hospitals, before deciding whether or not to go ahead with this bigger study. Two wards used the care bundle and two did not. We interviewed participants, their families and staff, and examined participants’ clinical notes. We found that the AMBER care bundle was largely acceptable to patients, relatives and staff, and generally delivered as intended. We successfully collected information from 65 unwell patients at the beginning of the trial and again 3–5 and 10–15 days later. However, a limited number of data were collected at the final time point (10–15 days) due to many participants being discharged from the hospital. Group discussions with staff and interviews with participants and relatives identified important changes required to improve the AMBER care bundle and views on how the trial was conducted. These included simplifying the type of patients who may be appropriate for the AMBER care bundle and improving communication training for staff. Although we identified that a further study was technically possible, it is currently impractical. Future solutions that would require further testing include focusing on clinical need rather than trying to guess how the patient’s condition will develop to identify potential trial participants and using questions completed by the patients as part of their routine care as a source of information. In the meantime, the AMBER care bundle continues to be used in over 40 hospitals in England.

We present a global shutter (GS), digital pixel sensor (DPS) that leverages stacked CMOS image sensor (CIS) technology to meet the ultra-low power, ultra-wide dynamic range (DR) requirements for battery-powered, always-on mobile computer vision (CV) applications. The DPS pixel is partitioned between two silicon layers via pixel-level connections, has an in-pixel ADC, 10-bit SRAM, and 4.6µm pitch. We introduce a triple quantization (3Q) scheme that combines a time-to-saturation (TTS) quantization mode and two linear ADC modes within a single exposure to achieve 127dB intra-scene DR. The sensor has a 512×512 effective resolution and consumes 5.3mW in 3Q operation at 30fps.

Based on the current technical approaches, a microwave power transmission demonstration system has been proposed to simulate the operating mode of MPT for the future Space Solar Power Station (SSPS). Several key technical parts are emphatically considered in the system design, namely high efficiency microwave power amplifier, transmitting antenna array, rectenna array and beam steering control technology. Each module of the microwave power transmission system is designed and optimized in this paper. The operating frequency of the MPT system is 5.8 GHz. The diameters of transmitting antenna and rectenna arrays are about 1.2 m and 2 m respectively, correspondingly the transmission distance is about 55 m. The transmitting microwave power is about 1600 W, the output DC power is expected to be larger than 300 W, and the accuracy of beam control is better than 0.4°. This work can provide technical support for the MPT system demonstration towards SSPS.

Based on constructing planning of Space Solar Power Satellite (SSPS) in China, transmitting antenna aperture is about 200m in megawatt SSPS system with technological development in future. According to the constrained condition of transmitting and receiving antenna, with respect to contradiction beam collection efficiency and construction cost that are both associated with receiving antenna aperture, power density distribution in receiving antenna of different size is analyzed and studied. And high efficiency requirement of rectifier because of power density' distribution difference is emphasized. Simulation results show that reasonable size of receiving antenna in megawatt SSPS system is 5km, while only one type of diode and same rectifier are adopted in whole antenna area. This parameters should be supported systemic optimization for megawatt SSPS. Finally, feasible techniques suit for megawatt SSPS of lower power density is proposed.

Aiming at the problems of large error in manual reading of pointer meter and limited application environment, this paper proposes a pointer-based instrument recognition method based on image processing. Firstly, the acquired instrument image is preprocessed, and the pointer area is extracted by using image processing methods such as edge detection and contour tracking; Secondly, the LSD algorithm is used to extract the straight line segments of the graduated scale, and the center and radius of the dial are determined by fitting the circle at the midpoints of these straight line segments; Thirdly, the central tick mark is used to extract the main tick marks in the tick loop band, and the accuracy of the main tick mark extraction is improved by checking the relationship of the angle difference between adjacent tick marks; Then, the improved Hough transform method is used to detect the pointer line, the KNN algorithm performs character recognition, and the adjacent characters satisfying the preset distance and angle relationship are combined and stored to complete the matching of the main tick marks and values; Finally, a distance method is used to automatically read the pointer meter. The experimental results show that the method can get the meter reading better under different illumination and background conditions, and the error is smaller than the manual reading. The algorithm is stable and reliable.

This paper presents a high-performance termination based on multi-epi method, where an intrinsic layer is used in the top layer epitaxy, and the field limiting rings (FLR) and field plate (FP) are also adopted. The introduction of the surface intrinsic layer can improve the internal electric field and meet the breakdown voltage (BV) requirements of the termination under the condition of a small termination area. As an example, simulation result of a 1200V fast recovery diode (FRD) shows that the BV is up to 1410V under a termination length of 220µm. Compared with traditional FLR and FP structures, the termination length is reduced by 58% and the BV is increased by 19%. The proposed structure can be well applied to existing high voltage power devices.

In order to improve the process window of breakdown voltage (BV), a vertical variable doping (VVD) superjunction MOSFET (SJ-MOS) is proposed. The charge superposition principle is used to analyze the change of electric field (e- field) caused by the gradient doping of pillars. Compared with the uniform doping SJ-MOS, it is shown that the negative doping gradient in P-pillar and the positive doping gradient in N-pillar can make the distribution of e- field more uniform, which is beneficial to the expansion of the BV process window.

The EMI (Electro-Magnetic Interference) noise and capacitance characteristics of the Superjunction MOSFETs (SJ-MOS) with different P/N pillar doping concentration are tested in the switching circuit. It is found that the radiation noise is not just affected by the value of Gate-Drain capacitance (Cgd). According to the simulations and proposed theoretical model, the SJ-MOS with small slope of Cgd ~ Vds curve and larger Cgd at the same time has smaller overshoot voltage (ΔV m ) and current (ΔI m ), and thus has better EMI characteristic in the switching process.

This paper is to propose a systematic evaluation for paint messages among C++/CLI controls, e.g., form, button, and picture box. Specifically, the occurrences of such messages and priorities of their processing are investigated to enhance the design of programming models for graphical user interface (GUI). To demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach, those models are progressively integrated with processing paint messages from various controls, in a graphically-demanding C++/CLI project.

Background Adults increasingly live and die with chronic progressive conditions into advanced age. Many live with multimorbidity and an uncertain illness trajectory with points of marked decline, loss of function and increased risk of end of life. Intermediate care units support mainly older adults in transition between hospital and home to regain function and anticipate and plan for end of life. This study examined the patient characteristics and the factors associated with mortality over 1 year post-admission to an intermediate care unit to inform priorities for care. Methods A national cohort study of adults admitted to intermediate care units in England using linked individual-level Hospital Episode Statistics and death registration data. The main outcome was mortality within 1 year from admission. The cohort was examined as two groups with significant differences in mortality between main diagnosis of a non-cancer condition and cancer. Data analysis used Kaplan-Meier curves to explore mortality differences between the groups and a time-dependant Cox proportional hazards model to determine mortality risk factors. Results The cohort comprised 76,704 adults with median age 81 years (IQR 70–88) admitted to 220 intermediate care units over 1 year in 2016. Overall, 28.0% died within 1 year post-admission. Mortality varied by the main diagnosis of cancer (total n = 3680, 70.8% died) and non-cancer condition (total n = 73,024, 25.8% died). Illness-related factors had the highest adjusted hazard ratios [aHRs]. At 0–28 days post-admission, risks were highest for non-cancer respiratory conditions (pneumonia (aHR 6.17 [95%CI 4.90–7.76]), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (aHR 5.01 [95% CI 3.78–6.62]), dementia (aHR 5.07 [95% CI 3.80–6.77]) and liver disease (aHR 9.75 [95% CI 6.50–14.6]) compared with musculoskeletal disorders. In cancer, lung cancer showed largest risk (aHR 1.20 [95%CI 1.04–1.39]) compared with cancer ‘other’. Risks increased with high multimorbidity for non-cancer (aHR 2.57 [95% CI 2.36–2.79]) and cancer (aHR 2.59 [95% CI 2.13–3.15]) (reference: lowest). Conclusions One in four patients died within 1 year. Indicators for palliative care assessment are respiratory conditions, dementia, liver disease, cancer and rising multimorbidity. The traditional emphasis on rehabilitation and recovery in intermediate care units has changed with an ageing population and the need for greater integration of palliative care.

In photovoltaic power generation, UPS and other applications, DC/AC converters with a low input DC voltage are essentially used. However, this type of converter is commonly put to use the traditional two-level converting topology, which results problems of high harmonic content in the output voltage and large power loss. Therefore, a single stage multilevel converter based on transformer multi-tap voltages control fed by a low DC voltage source (MCMTVC) is proposed in this paper. The converter achieves multi levels by control different transformer tap voltages through the power switches connected to the taps, and the number of output levels can be conveniently expanded through the expansion of the transformer taps. During operation, the power switch branches that each branch is connected in series by at most two power transistors including power diodes take turns to serve power exchange, and the voltage stress upon the power switches active in PWM state is very low. The principle of the converter is described in this paper in the first, and then the corresponding control method is put forward, furthermore the characteristics of the converter are discussed. In final, A 9-level simulation platform with the mentioned topology and control strategy using the MATLAB / Simulink software is established, and then simulation research is carried out, whose results have verified the proposed control strategy and conclusions.

This work proposes the edge computing intelligence power module (EC-IPM) with hardware artificial neural network (ANN) current soft sensor (SS) and controller for parallel connected IGBT current distribution to solve the problem of imbalance current. The proposed EC-IPM evolves the technologies of semiconductor power device physics, active gate control, machine learning and field bus. The full prototype of EC-IPM and related test power system were built on Matlab Simulink platform with the realization of hardware algorithm of ANN current SS and controller. The results show that the power system with different current rating EC-IPMs can distribute the proper current to each EC-IPM full-autonomously to suppress the IGBT current unbalance in each EC-IPM within 6.5%, compared to 96% that without the proposed technology in the same scenario. Moreover, the EC-IPM can also extend the electric energy internet of things (IoT) to power device level, especially for upcoming popularization of 5G communication environment.

As a new generation of power devices, GaN HEMT power devices have the advantages of high operating temperature, high power density and high operating frequency, which can greatly improve the performance of power electronic systems. In order to give full play to the high operating temperature and high-power density characteristics of GaN HEMT power devices, it is necessary to reduce the thermal resistance of the device as much as possible. Due to the device structure and working principle are different from silicon-based devices, the test method of thermal resistance is also different. In this paper, the channel on-resistance (Ron) and the forward voltage drop between gate and source (Vf-gate) are used as temperature-sensitive electrical parameters (TSEPs) to test the thermal characteristics of the GaN HEMT device, and the test methods and principles of thermal resistance of the GaN HEMT device is given by analyzing the different structures. For GaN HEMT devices with junction-gate structure, Ron and Vf-gate can be used as TESP for the thermal resistance test; For GaN HEMT devices without junction-gate structure, Ron can be used as TSEP for the thermal resistance test.

A new algorithm based on SARSA is proposed to avoid the overestimation problem in traditional reinforcement learning. Different from traditional methods to overcome this problem, the new algorithm can alleviate overestimation without significantly increasing the algorithm complexity. At the same time, aiming to problems existing in traditional SARSA, such as the weak ability of active exploration and unsatisfactory convergent results, the structure of Experience Memory Replay(EMR) is creatively modified in this paper. The new algorithm proposed in this paper changes the traditional experience playback structure and creatively adds counterfactual experience, which is called DCER(Dynamic Counterfactual Experience Replay) combining on-policy and off-policy. The exploration performance of the algorithm is increased by adding different experiences to EMR from the actual action when sampling. The algorithm was applied in the Gym Cartpole environment and compared with the traditional algorithm in the same environment, proving that the improved algorithm improved the performance of SARSA. Finally, the feasibility of the algorithm in a multi-agent reinforcement learning environment is analyzed.

In this paper, we propose an end-to-end learned image compression framework for low-rate scenarios. Based on variational autoencoder, our method features a pair of compact-resolution and super-resolution networks, a set of hyper and main codec networks, and a conditional context model. The learning process of this framework is facilitated with integrated non-local attention modules and phase congruency priors. Multiple models are obtained from training with different hyper-parameters, and are jointly used in the image-level model selection process for rate control, which ensures that the bit rate constraint of the CLIC challenge is satisfied. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can achieve an averaged multi-scale structural similarity (MS-SSIM) score of 0.9648 with bit rate consumption of 0.1499 bits per pixel, which outperforms the BPG image coding method significantly.

This letter presents a novel transmission metasurface to achieve orbital angular momentum (OAM) waves at the X -band. The unit cell of the proposed metasurface consists of three dielectric layers and four metallic layers, where the metallic layer is composed of an outer metallic ring and a center quasi-snow patch. A good transmission coefficient of the unit cell is obtained at the operating frequency. Meanwhile, a full 360° phase shift can be achieved by changing the length of the quasi-snow patch. The method of generating OAM waves is studied and analyzed. Based on this method, a metasurface producing a +1-mode OAM wave is designed and simulated. To verify this concept, one prototype is fabricated, assembled, and measured. The measured results agree well with the simulated ones, showing that the +1-mode OAM wave can be generated successfully with a high gain of 14.5 dBi. Moreover, a narrow divergence angle of +/−9° is achieved in the produced OAM wave.

In order to identify the characteristics of the longitudinal heterogeneity of the sea–land transitional facies shale gas reservoir in the upper Yangtze region of North Guizhou, studies on the lithological combination, rock and mineral composition, geochemical parameters and reservoir microanisotropy characteristics of Longtan Formation in the study area are conducted on the basis of core observation, testing of geochemistry and reservoir physical property and well logging interpretation. The studies show that the lithological assemblages of the Longtan Formation are diverse and form an amina interbedding of “sand-mud-coal” with obvious cyclicity characteristics. There is a large longitudinal difference in rock and mineral composition and the average mass fraction of the clay mineral is 39.83%, which is obviously higher than that of the marine shale in North America and South China; the longitudinal heterogeneity of the organic matter abundance is high, with an average of 2.17% in the upper part, and 4.51% in the lower part; in accordance with the results observed with the scanning electron microscope and results calculated through pore fractal, the microscopic pore heterogeneity of the reservoir is high. The comparison and analysis of connecting wells with different scales in the study area show that the control effect of the depositional environment on longitudinal macroscopic heterogeneity of Longtan Formation is obvious, and the longitudinal microscopic heterogeneity is controlled through diagenesis. Meanwhile, studies with main coal mining seam as the seam section division method conclude that the heterogeneity of Coal Seam Sections 4 to 5 and Coal Seam Sections 13 to 15 is significantly smaller than that in other seam sections, and the Coal Seam Sections 4 to 5 and Coal Seam Sections 13 to 15 can be considered as a priority key seam section during development of shale gas.

A focused microwave power transmission (MPT) system with high-efficiency rectifying surface is proposed. This work has two main novel contributions: (i) most of wireless power transmission systems reported so far are non-focused. This study presents the first focused MPT system with circular polarisation; (ii) a novel high-efficiency rectifying surface using sub-wavelength resonant elements is developed. To design a focused transmitting array antenna with high power density at the receiving site and high beam collecting efficiency in the near field, a method based on the optimisation of a partial scattering matrix is employed. A left-handed circularly polarised microwave power rectifying surface consisting of 8 × 8 sub-wavelength resonant elements is designed and the measured conversion efficiency reaches 57.74%. To validate the concept, an experimental system including one focused transmitting array antenna and one 2 × 2 elements rectifying surface is implemented and measured, and the improvement of output direct current (DC) power and radiofrequency (RF)-to-DC conversion efficiency compared with non-focused condition is shown. The highest RF-to-DC efficiency of 66.5% is achieved in the focused mode, compared to that of 34.8% only in the non-focused mode as in traditional systems.

This paper proposes a novel transmitarray antenna which can achieve high gain and\ud produce dual-mode orbital angular momentum (OAM) beams in Ku band. Two back-to-back wideband\ud dual-polarized microstrip antennas are employed as the unit cells, which are connected using metalized\ud via holes. Full 360 o phase ranges can be obtained by varying the length of feeding lines in two\ud orthogonal polarizations. Due to high isolation between the two orthogonal polarizations, dual-mode\ud OAM beams can be formed simultaneously by tuning phase distributions in x- and y-polarizations,\ud respectively. The approach for generating OAM beams is explained. To verify this concept, one\ud prototype carrying 0 and +1 mode OAM beams is designed, fabricated and measured. Experimental\ud results demonstrate that the both 0 and +1 mode OAM beams can be generated successfully, and the\ud measured results agree well with the simulated results. Because of high directivity and focusing effects\ud of transmitarray, the proposed +1 mode OAM beam has stable performance at a long propagation\ud distance. The maximum gain reaches 26 dBi and 20 dBi in 0 and +1 mode OAM beams, respectively.\ud Meanwhile, a narrow divergence angle of +/-5 o is obtained in +1 mode OAM beam. Compared to other\ud OAM antennas reported, main advantages of the proposed antenna include high gain, narrow divergence\ud angle?low cost, planar structure and the capability of producing dual-mode OAM beams.

The diameter of fine steel wire rope (FSWR) is generally a few millimeters. Its magnetic flux leakage (MFL) signal is weak, and the number of magnetic sensors installed for defect detection is limited because of the small diameter. In FSWR production workshops, different kinds of machinery work together, deteriorating the power quality and making the spatial electromagnetic environment complex; the weak MFL is thus interfered with further. It is difficult to carry out online nondestructive testing (NDT) of FSWR in the process of manufacturing. In this paper we present a novel MFL method for FSWR NDT in a strong electromagnetic interference environment. We use a three-dimensional finite element method (FEM) to analyze the MFL signals. A simplified magnetic circuit is presented to excite the FSWR; the circuit comprises two half-sized radial magnetizing ring NdFeB magnets, and because there is no need for a magnetic yoke, the device is simple and light. A single Hall sensor is used to measure the flux leakage field. A stable performance power system is designed for the NDT power supply, which is not only resistant to voltage sags, but also has very low output noise. To enhance the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the MFL defects signal, a signal conditioning and processing circuit are designed to enhance the detectability of signals in MFL data. The novel and small FSWR NDT system realizes on-line testing in an environment of strong electromagnetic interference, and for the experiment with a 1.5-mm-diameter wire rope twisted by 19 wires, the minimum damage of a pit on half of a wire can be identified.

A novel polarization-reconfigurable planar antenna is presented. The antenna consists of an electronically reconfigurable polarizer integrated with a printed slot. By changing the states of the PIN diodes on the polarizer, the linearly polarized (LP) waves radiated by the slot can be converted to either right-hand circularly polarized (RHCP) or left-hand circularly polarized (LHCP) waves. The polarizer contains 16 unit cells arranged as a 4 × 4 array. The antenna radiates RHCP waves if the PIN diodes on the top side of the polarizer are switched ON, while LHCP waves are radiated if the PIN diodes of the bottom side of the polarizer are switched ON instead. The physical mechanisms of the antenna are discussed and the parametric study is carried out by full-wave simulations. To verify the concept, one prototype at 2.5 GHz is designed, fabricated and measured. Good agreement between the measured and simulated results is obtained. The antenna achieves a gain ? 8.5 dBic in both RHCP and LHCP with aperture efficiency of 70%. Advantages of the proposed design include electronicallyreconfigurable polarizations for RHCP or LHCP, low profile, low cost, high isolation between the DC bias circuit and RF signals, high power handling capability and easy extension to large-scale arrays without increasing the complexity of the DC bias circuit. To the best knowledge of the authors, this is the first report of an electronically polarization-reconfigurable circularly polarized antenna with a single-substrate polarizer.