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The objective of this work was to design and build a fully mechanical knee orthosis. A knee orthosis should both allow control of the angle of flexion of the knee during the stance phase of the gait cycle and leave the joint free during the swing phase. Knee orthoses are normally used to assist the walking of people suffering from muscle weaknesses or gait pathologies in order to avoid excessive knee flexion during the stance phase. The design of the orthosis proposed in the present work is characterized by allowing the knee to be locked at any angle of flexion during the stance phase, and because the orthosis can be unlocked to allow the joint to be released in the swing phase without the action of any external agent, i.e., without requiring external electrical or electronic systems for the control and performance of the orthosis. These characteristics mean that the design can be adapted to the gait of any user. The proposed design consists of a set of three rods, one attached to the user's thigh, another to the calf, and the other to the foot, connected to each other by a self-locking planetary gear train (PGT).

Traffic volume is a parameter used to quantify demand in transportation studies, and it is commonly collected by using on-road (fixed) sensors such as inductive loops, cameras, etc. The installation of fixed sensors to cover all roads is neither practical nor economically feasible; therefore, they are only installed on a subset of links. Cellular phone tracking has been an emerging topic developed and investigated during the last few years to extract traffic information. Cellular systems provide alternative methods to detect phones in motion without the cost and coverage limitations associated with those infrastructure-based solutions. Utilizing existing cellular systems to capture traffic volume has a major advantage compared with other solutions, since it avoids new and expensive hardware installations of sensors, with a large number of cellular phones acting as probes. This paper proposes a set of models for inferring the number of vehicles moving from one cell to another by means of anonymous call data of phones. The models contain, in their functional form, terms related to the users' calling behavior and other characteristics of the phenomenon such as hourly intensity in calls and vehicles. A set of intercell boundaries with different traffic background and characteristics were selected for the field test. The experiment results show that reasonable estimates are achieved by comparison with volume measurements collected by detectors located in the same study area. The motion of phones while being involved in calls can be used as an easily accessible, fast, and low-cost alternative to deriving volume data on intercell boundaries.

Some recent developments in path generation have been based on neural network mechanism databases, which instantaneously provide an approximate solution of the synthesis problem. We describe a way to reduce the design space, ensuring that the neural network always yields a consistent crank-rocker mechanism with optimal transmission angle. Moreover, instead of the usual strategy of using Fourier coefficients, we propose a new method based on wavelet descriptors to represent the shape of the path, where the points do not need to be sampled at a constant time interval. Numerical results demonstrate the superiority of this wavelet-based neural network over the Fourier-based network in finding the optimal mechanism. They also show the accuracy of the proposed approach in providing near optimal crank-rocker mechanism solutions for path generation.

A procedure for the enumeration of the graphs of 1-dof planetary gear trains is presented. The planetary gear trains enumerated have a single input shaft and a single output shaft. These gear trains should satisfy certain functional constraints that avoid the existence of idle links. These constraints are derived. The enumeration of the graphs exploits the resulting particular features of the structure of planetary gear trains by proceeding gradually through different levels of that structure. The procedure includes a check for isomorphism among the resulting graphs. Finally, the graphs of the planetary gear trains having up to 9 links are presented. Those graphs containing embedded structures are identified.

Two procedures are presented for obtaining the analytical expression for the efficiency of any planetary gear train. The first employs the speed and torque equations and the concept of virtual gear teeth ratios. The second is based on an relationship between the gearing power and the speed ratio. This relationship, which is satisfied by any spur gear train, allows one to obtain the efficiency expression in a surprisingly simple manner. Two proofs of that relationship are presented.

Technical and economic investigations of automated highway systems (AHS) are addressed. It has generally been accepted that such systems show potential to alleviate urban traffic congestion, so most of the AHS research has been focused instead on technical design and implementation issues. It is demonstrated that, despite making a number of assumptions that are favorable to AHS, the actual viable implementation opportunities for AHS are scarce, and that most existing congested urban areas can be disqualified on the basis of at least one criterion developed herein. Technical investigations are described, including realistic estimates of AHS capacity, interfacing with the local street system, and storage issues. Discussion then turns to identifying criteria to help establish the types of urban areas that might be likely candidates for AHS technology. These criteria relate to the nature of the surrounding infrastructure and the traffic demands placed on it, as well as the economic realities of AHS implementation. Certain “boutique” locations where AHS might be beneficial are identified, but it is uncertain whether enough benefit could be realized to make AHS palatable to the general public. AHS technology is not dismissed, but the simple analyses contained herein should warn that much more research into these areas is required before fully informed decision making about the future of AHS technologies can be accomplished.