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The winter storm of late 2022 caused difficulties for many US-based airlines, but none more so than Southwest Airlines. Like other airlines, Southwest canceled flights in the early stages of the storm. Their attempted recoveries failed due to procedural and technology issues. The airline was unable to cope with the magnitude of canceled flights, aircraft and crews in the wrong places, disrupted passenger plans, and luggage separated from its owners. Over the next several days, Southwest canceled tens of thousands of flights, called in thousands of additional staff to support manual operations, and flew a reduced schedule for a time before returning to normal operations. The case provides numerous scenarios for you to analyze and research, to strengthen your understanding of the underlying concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anisotropic specular appearances are ubiquitous in the environment: brushed stainless steel pans, kettles, elevator walls, fur, or scratched plastics. Real‐time rendering of these materials with image‐based lighting is challenging due to the complex shape of the bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF). We propose an anisotropic specular image‐based lighting method that can serve as a drop‐in replacement for the standard bent normal technique [Rev11]. Our method yields more realistic results with a 50% increase in computation time of the previous technique, using the same high dynamic range (HDR) preintegrated environment image. We use several environment samples positioned along the major axis of the specular microfacet BRDF. We derive an analytic formula to determine the two closest and two farthest points from the reflected direction on an approximation of the BRDF confidence region boundary. The two farthest points define the BRDF major axis, while the two closest points are used to approximate the BRDF width. The environment level of detail is derived from the BRDF width and the distance between the samples. We extensively compare our method with the bent normal technique and the ground truth using the GGX specular BRDF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boron, essential for plant growth, necessitates precise regulation due to its potential toxicity. This regulation is achieved by borate transporters (BORs), which are homologous to the SLC4 family. The Arabidopsis thaliana Bor1 (AtBor1) transporter from clade I undergoes slow regulation through degradation and translational suppression, but its potential for fast regulation via direct activity modulation was unclear. Here, we combine cryo-electron microscopy, mutagenesis, and functional characterization to study AtBor1, revealing high-resolution structures of the dimer in one inactive and three active states. Our findings show that AtBor1 is regulated by two distinct mechanisms: an autoinhibitory domain at the carboxyl terminus obstructs the substrate pathway via conserved salt bridges, and phosphorylation of Thr410 allows interaction with a positively charged pocket at the cytosolic face, essential for borate transport. These results elucidate the molecular basis of AtBor1's activity regulation and highlight its role in fast boron level regulation in plants. Boron is essential for plant growth, and its transport is tightly regulated. Here, the authors present structures of the borate transporter AtBor1 in both inactive and active states, revealing how its C-terminal domain mediates autoinhibition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Background Objective Methods Results Conclusion Aesthetic neuromodulator injections of the upper face are frequently performed to temporarily block muscular actions of the periorbital muscles to ultimately reduce skin rhytids. However, the adverse event rate in the literature for toxin‐induced blepharoptosis ranges from 0.51% to 5.4%.To identify access pathways by which injected neuromodulator product can travel from extra‐ to intra‐orbital and therefore affect the levator palpebrae superioris muscle.Nine non‐embalmed human body donors were investigated in this study with a mean age at death of 72.8 (16.1) years. The 18 supraorbital regions were injected in 28 times (14 for supratrochlear and 14 for supraorbital) with 0.5 cc, whereas eight cases (four for supratrochlear and four supraorbital) were injected with 0.1 cc of colored product. Anatomic dissections were conducted to identify structures stained by the injected color.The results of this injection‐ and dissection‐based study revealed that both the supratrochlear and the supraorbital neurovascular bundles are access pathways for injected neuromodulator products to reach the intra‐orbital space and affect the levator palpebrea superioris muscle. Out of 36 conducted injection passes, seven (19.44%) resulted in affection of the sole elevator of the eyelid of which 100% occurred only at an injection volume of 0.5 cc and not at 0.1 cc.Clinically, the results indicate that a low injection volume, a superficial injection for the supraorbital location, and angling the needle tip away from the supratrochlear foramen (toward the contralateral temple) when targeting the corrugator supercilii muscles, can increase the safety profile of an aesthetic toxin glabellar treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The systematic approach specifies how the product design processes should be approached systematically and specifically aims to make the most appropriate conceptual design before the objective design. In line with this goal, the systematic approach explains step by step how the conceptual design process should be done. One of these steps is the evaluation of solution variations. The basis of this step; The suitability of the desired conditions, the weighting and point system according to this suitability, and the determination of the result numerically constitute. Unlike other methods, the VDI (Verein Deutscher Ingenieure) 2225 method provides a more understandable and transparent comparison of options by showing technical competence and cost status in a single diagram, S-Diagram. In this study, the step of evaluating and selecting all the options in the conceptual design before the objective design process with the VDI 2225 method was examined in detail. The elevator was used as an example. Elevators consist of two parts traction and hydraulic. Traction elevators are divided into gearless and gearbox, and hydraulic elevators are divided into direct acting and indirect acting. These elevator types have different advantages and disadvantages compared to each other. For this reason, 3 different situations were determined, and the performances of the elevators were tried to be evaluated more objectively in the study. Situations: Elevators used in residences, high-speed elevators used in business centres and freight elevators that lift heavy loads were selected. All the results are shown on one S-Diagram. In this way, both situations were compared and the differences between them were revealed. As a result, the economic and technical performance of each elevator in each case was determined using the VDI 2225 method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The safety of coated steel belts (CSBs) is crucial for reliable elevator operation, as they are critical components in elevator systems. Magnetic flux leakage (MFL) testing is the preferred non-destructive method for evaluating CSBs due to its high sensitivity. Previous studies overlooked tensile stress's impact on in-service MFL testing of CSBs, potentially resulting in inaccurate defect assessments. This research aims to investigate the impact of tensile stress on the MFL signal of CSBs by developing a theoretical model, conducting finite element simulations, and performing experimental verification. In this paper, the rectangular edge defects are considered as the primary defect type in CSBs, and the applied stress on the CSBs varies from 30 MPa to 160 MPa. Under the above conditions, a linear relationship between MFL signal of CSBs and stress is established based on the simplified Jiles-Atherton model and magnetic dipole model suitable for CSBs. The finite element simulation and experiments further indicate that the MFL signal of CSBs increases linearly with the increasing tensile stress. The primary contributions of this study are establishing an MFL model suitable for CSBs and uncovering the linear relationship between the MFL signal of CSBs and tensile stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the angle of the mouth, spoke‐like muscle bundles converge at the "modiolus," which is believed to appear in utero. The aim of this study was to investigate the growth of the modiolus histologically. We studied frontal histological sections of the face from 12 midterm and six near‐term fetuses. At midterm, a convergence of the levator anguli oris (LAOM) and depressor anguli oris (DAOM) was frequently present, and another convergence of the LAOM with the platysma (PM) or orbicularis oris (OOM) was also often evident. At near‐term, muscle fiber merging or interdigitation was classified into nine combinations, five of which were frequently seen: LAOM‐PM, LAOM‐DAOM, zygomaticus major (ZMM)‐orbicularis oris (OOM), buccinator (BM)‐LAOM, and BM‐PM. These combinations existed at slightly different depths and/or sites, thus allowing the angle of the mouth to receive multiple muscles. Notably, tissues interposed between the muscle fibers were limited to a thin epimysium at each crossing or interdigitation. Therefore, the LAOM, DAOM, OOM, BM, and PM appear to form a basic configuration at birth, but the development and growth were much delayed than the classical description. The modiolus is not a specific fibromuscular structure but simply represents a cluster of muscle convergence sites. Even at meeting between an elevator and depressor, a specific fibrous structure seems unlikely to connect the epimysium for the muscle convergence. Instead, the central nervous system appears to regulate the activity of related muscles to minimize tension or friction stress at the meeting site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As urbanization and population growth continue, cities concentrate an increasing amount of people, energy, and economy. Multi-story buildings enable densification, requiring vertical transport for access to upper floors. This is crucial for people with disabilities, who may face barriers in the built environment. Elevators are essential for accessibility, allowing everyone, including people with disabilities, to comfortably access multi-story buildings. However, barriers to inclusivity remain, often subtle and hard to define. This paper highlights one such example, focusing on elevator use by individuals with varying degrees of hearing loss. Currently, they cannot establish one-to-one communication with the outside world if trapped in an elevator. Under EN standards, this issue stems from alarm system requirements that lack effective alternatives to voice communication. Based on this evidence, the research was carried out in two steps, with the aim of understanding the needs of deaf individuals when using elevators by directly involving them in the study. First, a questionnaire conducted in Italy collected information regarding the safety and usability of elevators. Second, a test campaign involving both deaf and normal-hearing participants was carried out to quantify the severity of the issue and evaluate potential solutions to address the identified challenges. The conclusions indicate that current alarm systems in elevators are inadequate for individuals with hearing impairments, and effective alternatives must be implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coal content in the gangue of coal preparation plants cannot be detected online, especially in the jigging sorting process. There is a large time lag in manual testing. An approach based on the YOLACT segmentation network and binocular vision was proposed. First, the YOLACT segmentation network was used to identify coal and gangue. At the same time, the coal and gangue particle regions are segmented from the background of the bucket elevator. A binocular matching method based on deep learning was proposed to obtain better disparity maps and establish better volume models of coal and gangue particles. A stereo-matching global fusion network model was also presented by improving the Pyramid Stereo Matching Network. Finally, the coal and gangue volume parameters were combined with their respective empirical densities to predict the coal content in gangue of the bucket. When the load in the bucket elevator is small, the average prediction error of coal content in gangue is 9.19%. When the load is large i.e. the coal and gangue are stacked in multiple layers, it is not appropriate to calculate the coal content in gangue due to serious particle coverage. Therefore, a fuzzy alarm strategy was proposed based on actual needs. The situation of coal content in gangue was divided into three levels: normal, warning, and alarm. It meets the alarm requirements for coal content in gangue in most industrial plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A neural network adaptive integral terminal sliding mode control method with input saturation is proposed for the horizontal vibration problem of high‐speed elevator car systems caused by uncertainties such as guideway excitation and shaft piston wind change. First, considering the input saturation problem existing in the elevator control actuator, a class of smooth functions is introduced to approximate the nonlinearity of switching saturation, and an eight‐degree‐of‐freedom asymmetric anti‐saturation nonlinear system model of the high‐speed elevator car is established; second, in order to solve the singularity problem existing in the terminal sliding‐mode control, a nonlinear term is introduced into the sliding‐mode design, and a neural network is utilized for the fitting of the complex unknown function, and the design of the an adaptive integral terminal sliding mode controller (AITSMC), which enables the state variables of the system to achieve finite time convergence and proves the stability of the system by using Lyapunov theory; finally, under the action of two typical guide excitations, the proposed controller is compared with the passive control and adaptive control (AC), and the results show that, after adopting the proposed control method, the vibration acceleration eigenvalue is reduced by more than 60%, which effectively suppresses the horizontal vibration of the car system and verifies the effectiveness of the proposed controller. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uptake of nucleobases and ascorbate is an essential process in all living organisms mediated by SLC23 transport proteins. These transmembrane carriers operate via the elevator alternating-access mechanism, and are composed of two rigid domains whose relative motion drives transport. The lack of large conformational changes within these domains suggests that the interdomain-linkers act as flexible tethers. Here, we show that interdomain-linkers are not mere tethers, but have a key regulatory role in dictating the conformational space of the transporter and defining the rotation axis of the mobile transport domain. By resolving a wide inward-open conformation of the SLC23 elevator transporter UraA and combining biochemical studies using a synthetic nanobody as conformational probe with hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry, we demonstrate that interdomain-linkers control the function of transport proteins by influencing substrate affinity and transport rate. These findings open the possibility to allosterically modulate the activity of elevator proteins by targeting their linkers. Elevator transporters, like SLC23 proteins, transport solutes by a mechanism involving a reorientation of two rigid domains. Here, the authors show that linkers connecting these domains control the carrier's conformational space and thus its function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To be able to carry out a high-quality analysis of the operation and design of elevator systems with a driving pulley, it is necessary to determine the size of the losses that occur in the drive mechanism and elevator guide rails. The paper defines an experimental procedure for determining the losses and the efficiency coefficient of elevator facilities depending on the relative load of the cabin in operational conditions. The experiment was carried out on a passenger elevator with a rated load of 320 kg and a lifting height of 28 m. An analysis of the resistance, i.e., the source of power losses in vertical lifting devices, was performed, the most significant of which occur and are especially pronounced in worm gear reducers and on the guiding system of the cabin and counterweight, where the type of guiding elements also has an influence. A particular problem is expressed due to the changing state of the contact surfaces (between the guide rails and the guide shoes) during exploitation and the eccentric loading of the cabin. Also, the paper analysed the obtained measurement results to determine the dependence of the efficiency coefficient of the facility concerning the relative load of the cabin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study concerns the position tracking control of the hybrid-powered barrel elevator (HPBE) with dual-channel model uncertainty and output constraints. To realize an outstanding control performance, a dual-extended-state-observer-based command filtered adaptive prescribed performance control (DESO-CFAPPC) strategy is presented based on the dynamic model considering various nonlinearities and model uncertainties. The conjunction of the PPC and barrier Lyapunov function in the DESO-CFAPPC not only prevents violation of output constraints of the barrel, but also prevents the complex calculation caused by the logarithmic ETF in the traditional PPC. The adaptive laws are constructed to estimate uncertain parameters. The DESO further estimates the unknown velocity, mismatched and matched model uncertainties. The obtained estimates are incorporated into the control law to enhance the tracking performance. The stability and convergence of the DESO-CFAPPC are theoretically proved and comparative experimental results indicate the effectiveness of the proposed strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The new pedestrian footbridge at Luxembourg Train Station is an integral component of the revamped platform canopies. Its unique undulating wave design, symbolic of motion, is mirrored in the canopies' roofs, creating asynchronous waves between platforms. As the footbridge aligns with the wave, it gracefully encompasses the translucent tube of the new structure. An integrated staircase fits beneath this architectural wave, with an elevator opposite for easy platform access. This translucent prism stands in stark contrast to the sweeping curves of the roofs and the footbridge itself. Prioritizing user comfort and safety, a translucent design was chosen, eliminating blind spots. The 100‐meter footbridge is constructed with an orthotropic steel deck, offering substantial spans with minimal height. The roof's central section serves to reduce sun exposure and conceal electrical wiring. The assembly process involved crane work during railway track closures over consecutive weekends, using a CC3800 crane with a maximum capacity of 650 tons [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work is devoted to the definition of solutions for skyscraper office buildings in Warsaw against the background of the latest global technology of vertical communication systems. For this purpose, the paper presents the examples of research by design of four high-rise buildings in Warsaw, which indicate the adopted methodology of developing optimal solutions in the field of elevator service as well as the results of research and finally selected systems. The aim of the research was to achieve the initial criteria for the system’s operation. The research was carried out by iterating and varianting various configurations of the system and checking it as the basis for building core solutions. Solutions that met the defined criteria were optimal in terms of building efficiency and rental flexibility. Empirical research and its results are presented against the background of world achievements. The results indicate that both the research methodology and the systems used follow the contemporary development of the latest globally present solutions.

In jigging sorting, products are elevated by bucket elevators and transported via a shared belt. The product weight of each jig cannot be detected. The output of each product is the key parameter to calculate the jigging separation efficiency and measure the separation effect. At the same time, the bucket elevator overload will cause accidents, resulting in deformation and rupture of the bucket. To solve this problem, an intelligent monitoring scheme of bucket elevators based on binocular vision and deep learning was proposed. The YOLACT algorithm was utilized for coal and gangue image segmentation. Aiming at the problem of multi-layer accumulation of materials in the bucket elevator, a Global Filter Network (GFNet) based on the Pyramid Stereo Matching Network was used for more accurate stereo matching, and statistical filtering was used to denoise the generated 3D point cloud. The volume prediction model was established by integral. The Bootstrap method was used to obtain the best empirical density of coal and gangue. Finally, the volume parameters and density parameters were multiplied to get the mass of coal and gangue. The experimental results showed that the GFNet algorithm can obtain clear 3D point clouds. The average error of the volume calculation model based on these 3D point clouds was 4.19%. In the single-machine test of the coal preparation plant, the proposed system realized the real-time detection of the mass of materials carried by the bucket elevator. Compared with the electronic belt scale, the average error was 10.55%, which meets the industrial demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, IoT has been combined with artificial intelligence (AI) technology to develop into intelligent IoT (Artificial Intelligence of Things, AIoT) and can provide smart services to all industries. Generally, buildings with 30 or more floors are classified as high-rise apartments. There are high-rise apartments in many countries with small land areas and high population densities around the world, such as Hong Kong, Singapore, and Korea. Korea has many high-rise apartments and buildings with 30 or more floors, and residents there inevitably use elevators to move between floors. Because it is a high-rise apartment, it takes time for EVs to move, and a contactless method is needed when using EVs, especially due to COVID-19. In this study, we proposed a smart elevator system using AI that allows residents of high-rise apartments to conveniently shorten waiting and use times and use elevators without contact during rush hours due to the impact of COVID-19. The proposed system uses AI facial recognition to shorten EV waiting time and moving time and has a contactless floor selection function. As a result of the proposed system, it was confirmed that residents' EV waiting time and travel time were shortened compared to existing EV systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collecting data such vibration signal or others from elevators is crucial for a regular maintenance or emergency repair in industry. However, traditional methods for data transmission through compression and decompression process usually require large input data arrays to be assigned. Therefore, a long computational time is unavoidable so that it may affect system performance efficiency significantly. Therefore, an elevator vibration and loading data collection system was developed using simple compression encoding mechanism. First, in Data Acquisition Unit, the signal-acquiring microprocessor is used for data acquisition through Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) bus. Second, in Data Storage Unit, the collected data from the signal-acquiring microprocessor is compressed and transmitted to the signal-processing microprocessor. Third, in Monitor Unit, the elevator analysis tool is developed to analyze the vibration data, which can be viewed directly from APP. Experimental results demonstrated that the restored data are consistent with the results measured from the standard instrument. The proposed hexadecimal compression process can make the data transmission mechanism simple, but two times faster than that using traditional way without compression. Consequently, the demanded memory capacity for signal transmission can be therefore reduced considerably. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To explore the effect of the gas-solid coupling of a counterweight-car instantaneous intersection (CCII) on horizontal vibration in the real service environment of a super high-speed elevator, a three-dimensional gas-solid coupling numerical model for the CCII of super high-speed elevator was constructed. By using the dynamic layering grid technology, the transient law of "shear" aerodynamic load of the CCII of super high-speed elevator was analyzed by numerical simulation. And the effect of "shear" transient aerodynamic load on the horizontal vibration response of the car under the different opposite intersection speeds (v = 7 m/s, 10 m/s, 13 m/s, 16 m/s, 19 m/s, 22 m/s) was studied. Taking the 7 m/s speed condition as the real elevator object, the effectiveness of the three-dimensional calculation model of instantaneous intersection gas-solid coupling horizontal vibration was verified by experiments. The results showed that a huge transient "shear" lateral aerodynamic lift was generated in the process of the CCII, and the transient lateral aerodynamic lift difference was positively correlated with the running speed by cubic polynomial. In addition, with the significant increase of running speed, the typical digital characteristics of the car's horizontal vibration acceleration and the relative increase of the vibration dose (VDV) for the gas-solid coupling of the CCII were 38.242%-234.129% and 23.567%-227.193%, respectively and the low-frequency maximum vibration amplitude increases significantly. This paper provides an effective analysis method for the gas-solid coupling horizontal vibration of super high-speed elevator counterweight-car instantaneous intersection, and provides a theoretical basis for the design of an accurate active vibration reduction control strategy for a super high-speed elevator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In nature, gliding birds frequently execute intricate flight maneuvers such as aerial somersaults, perched landings, and swift descents, enabling them to navigate obstacles or hunt prey. It is evident that birds rely on different wing–tail configurations to accomplish a wide range of aerial maneuvers. For traditional fixed‐wing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), pitch control primarily comes from the tail's elevators, while adjusting flight lift and drag involves deploying wing flaps. Although these designs ensure reliable flight, they compromise the drones' maneuverability to maintain longitudinal stability. Therefore, the study introduces a biomimetic morphing wing UAV, and presents a pitch control strategy that simultaneously engages morphing wings, ailerons, and tail elevators. The pull‐up maneuver tests indicate that the proposed control method results in a pitch rate that is approximately 2.5 times greater than when using only the elevator control. A closed‐loop control system for the drone is also established. The closed‐loop flight experiment, which tracks a 45° pitch angle, demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed coupled control method in adjusting the flight attitude. In addition, during cruising, the UAV employs three configurations, straight wing, forward‐swept wing, and back‐swept wing, to cater to different mission objectives and augment its flight capabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The seismic resilience of cities plays a crucial role in achieving the United Nations Sustainability Development Goal. However, despite the occurrence of elevator passenger entrapment in numerous earthquakes, there is a notable lack of studies addressing this sophisticated issue. This study aims to bridge this gap by proposing a novel urban risk assessment model designed to evaluate city‐scale earthquake‐induced elevator passenger entrapment. The model integrates big data and physics‐based approaches. A novel mapping method was developed to estimate city‐scale elevator traffic level based on population heatmap data and deep learning. A process‐based parallel computing scheme was designed to accelerate the assessment. The applicability was demonstrated based on a real‐world urban area comprising 619 buildings. The findings reveal that as the time of the earthquake varies, the risk exhibits significant fluctuations. Additionally, this study highlights that a simplistic correspondence between seismic intensity and passenger entrapment risk can lead to erroneous estimations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the grammaticalization patterns of evidentiality from a cross-linguistic perspective with a focus on Lhasa Tibetan. It documents the history of the evidential morphemes 'dug, -song, -bzhag, and =ze from Old Literary Tibetan to modern spoken Lhasa Tibetan. Our analyses show that these morphemes started grammaticalizing before encoding evidentiality. We argue that, through pragmatic strengthening, evidentiality tends to infiltrate forms which have already grammaticalized to express other semantic domains. These patterns of grammaticalization are confirmed by diachronic and reconstructed data from genetically unrelated languages. Evidentiality thus tends to be a 'grammaticalization passenger' (i.e., a conventionalized meaning which used to be merely implied from the recurrent contexts of a grammaticalized form) rather than a 'grammaticalization target' (i.e., a functional domain which triggers grammaticalization). This may explain why evidentiality is less often grammaticalized than other notions, such as time or modality, in the world's languages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the high-speed elevator is running, the air in the hoistway is rapidly compressed and released to form the piston effect. Especially when the car and counterweight intersect, the piston effect makes the aerodynamic force of the car and counterweight change sharply, affecting the stability of elevator operation. In this study, a three-dimensional car counterweight intersection model is constructed, and a multi-region dynamic layered method is proposed to calculate the aerodynamic flow field in the whole moving process, the changes of aerodynamic drag force and aerodynamic lateral force of the car and the counterweight under different length ratio, blockage ratio and spacing are analyzed and simulated, and the influence of structural changes in the hoistway on the aerodynamic flow field is studied. Furthermore, the accuracy of the numerical results is verified by the real elevator test. Finally, the results show that when the car intersects the counterweight in the hoistway, the interaction between the car and the counterweight is enhanced, and the drag force coefficient and lateral force coefficient of the car suddenly change, and return to the normal state after the intersection, with the decrease of length ratio and spacing and the increase of blockage ratio, the sudden change degree of drag force also increases, and the sudden change of lateral force of the car is mainly affected by the car counterweight spacing, and increases with the decrease of spacing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Space elevators are a promising technology for future space transportation. The primary component of a space elevator is a tether deployed from a geostationary orbit towards the Earth and into deep space. Payloads can be transported using a climber moving along the tether. However, obtaining a deeper comprehension of the precise dynamics of a space elevator is challenging. The tether could have various deformations such as elongation, bending, and torsion owing to its flexible nature and the low level of vibration damping in space. Therefore, understanding those effects on the tether is essential for the design concept of a space elevator. Reproducing the behavior of space tether systems on the ground is challenging, which is primarily due to the scale of the system and the difficulty of accurately replicating a space environment. Thus, high-fidelity numerical analysis methods are required to analyze the dynamic response of space elevators precisely. Previously proposed analysis models of space tether systems with climbers have focused on elongation, bending, and rigid body motion of the tether, and the effect of torsional deformation has been neglected. However, a tether can be twisted easily owing to its low torsional stiffness. This study established high-fidelity numerical simulation models for space elevators considering large deformations including the torsion of a tether. This study developed a flexible multibody model with a moving climber using the absolute nodal coordinate formulation with 14 degrees of freedom. Further, the gravitational perturbation caused by the non-sphericity of the Earth was considered. Using the constructed model, the motion and deformation of nonequatorial space elevators caused by the climber motion and the disturbance in the space environment were investigated. The obtained results indicate that gravitational perturbation can induce torsional deformation, particularly at higher anchor latitudes. • Nonlinear finite element method for numerical simulation model for noneuqatorial space elevators. • Elongation, bending, torsion, and rigid body rotation of a tether considered. • Flexible multibody model with moving climber that considered torsional deformation. • Gravitational perturbation caused by the non-sphericity of the Earth considered. • Model used to investigate motion and deformation of nonequatorial space elevators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-nasoalveolar molding (PNAM) was developed to reduce the severity of the initial cleft alveolar and nasal deformity. The nasoalveolar moulding appliance (NAM) consists of an intraoral moulding plate with nasal stents to mould the alveolar ridge and nasal cartilage concurrently. Use of the NAM technique also reduces surgical columella reconstruction and the resultant scar tissue in bilateral cleft lip and palate. The nasoalveolar moulding technique has been shown to significantly improve the surgical outcome of the primary repair in cleft lip and palate patients compared to other techniques of presurgical orthopaedics. But the adaptability of nasal stent with support from NAM plate is cumbersome for many cleft patients due to its bulkiness, interfere with feeding and difficult for parents to manage at home. The Modified Indigenous Nasal Elevator (MINE) is a novel innovation for nasal correction for cleft lip and palate patients. This innovative design, non-invasive, precision, fewer visits, cost effective and adaptability make it a valuable tool to help surgeons to achieve optimal correction in lip repair surgeries in cleft lip & palate patients. MINE's innovative design allows for customization based on the patient's specific nasal anatomy. This adaptable feature ensures optimal fit and function for each patient, maximizing the surgical outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in fire accidents caused by indoor charging of electric bicycles has raised concerns among people. Monitoring EBs in elevators is challenging, and the current object detection method is a variant of YOLOv5, which faces problems with calculating the load and detection rate. To address this issue, this paper presents an improved lightweight method based on YOLOv5s to detect EBs in elevators. This method introduces the MobileNetV2 module to achieve the lightweight performance of the model. By introducing the CBAM attention mechanism and the Bidirectional Feature Pyramid Network (BiFPN) into the YOLOv5s neck network, the detection precision is improved. In order to better verify that the model can be deployed at the edge of an elevator, this article deploys it using the Raspberry Pi 4B embedded development board and connects it to a buzzer for application verification. The experimental results demonstrate that the model parameters of EBs are reduced by 58.4%, the computational complexity is reduced by 50.6%, the detection precision reaches 95.9%, and real-time detection of electric vehicles in elevators is achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Urban populations across the globe are ageing and much debate has centred on what constitutes an ‘age-friendly’ city. Historic environments, for example, often present physical challenges, such as steps and uneven surfaces – while today these are designed out. Smooth level surfaces, automatic doors and elevators to change level, require little exertion. However, has the fact that in order to keep our bodies healthy into older age, a level of physical exertion in our day to day lives is required, been overlooked? Can activity be designed back into environments without undoing the benefits of accessibility and causing harm to others? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The elevator industry is constantly expanding creating an increased demand for the integration of high technological tools to increase elevator efficiency and safety. Towards this direction, Additive Manufacturing (AM), and especially metal AM, is one of the technologies that could offer numerous competitive advantages in the production of industrial parts, such as integration of complex geometry, high manufacturability of high-strength metal alloys, etc. In this context, the present study has 3D designed, 3D printing manufactured, and evaluated novel bioinspired structures for elevator safety gear friction pads with the aim of enhancing their dynamic friction performance and eliminating the undesired behavior properties observed in conventional pads. Four different friction pads with embedded bioinspired surface lattice structures were formed on the template of the friction surface of the conventional pads and 3D printed by the Selective Laser Melting (SLM) process utilizing tool steel H13 powder as feedstock material. Each safety gear friction pad underwent tribological tests to evaluate its dynamic coefficient of friction (CoF). The results indicated that pads with a high contact surface area, such as those with car-tire-like and extended honeycomb structures, exhibit high CoF of 0.549 and 0.459, respectively. Based on the acquired CoFs, Finite Element Models (FEM) were developed to access the performance of braking pads under realistic operation conditions, highlighting the lower stress concentration for the aforementioned designs. The 3D-printed safety gear friction pads were assembled in an existing emergency progressive safety gear system of KLEEMANN Group, providing sufficient functionality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Distributed Elevator Fault Diagnosis System (DEFDS) is developed to tackle frequent malfunctions stemming from the widespread distribution and aging of elevator systems. Due to the complexity of elevator fault data and the subtlety of fault characteristics, traditional methods such as visual inspections and basic operational tests fall short in detecting early signs of mechanical wear and electrical issues. These conventional techniques often fail to recognize subtle fault characteristics, necessitating more advanced diagnostic tools. In response, this paper introduces a Principal Component Analysis–Long Short-Term Memory (PCA-LSTM) method for fault diagnosis. The distributed system decentralizes the fault diagnosis process to individual elevator units, utilizing PCA's feature selection capabilities in high-dimensional spaces to extract and reduce the dimensionality of fault features. Subsequently, the LSTM model is employed for fault prediction. Elevator models within the system exchange data to refine and optimize a global prediction model. The efficacy of this approach is substantiated through empirical validation with actual data, achieving an accuracy rate of 90% and thereby confirming the method's effectiveness in facilitating distributed elevator fault diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cases of respiratory disease transmission in enclosed elevators have been reported frequently. In the post-pandemic era, in order to mitigate the spread of respiratory diseases in moving elevators, a multi-objective genetic optimization method based on a response surface model is used to optimize the elevator ventilation. The ventilation parameters were optimized for three objectives: reducing carbon dioxide concentration, maintaining human thermal comfort, and achieving energy conservation. First, a response surface model is established using the computational fluid dynamics method and the Kriging model to correlate the design variables (air supply velocity in x, y, and z directions and air supply temperature) with the output function (CO2 concentration, average temperature, and average velocity). Subsequently, the Pareto optimal solution set of ventilation parameters was obtained by employing a multi-objective genetic algorithm. Finally, the optimal air supply velocity, angle, and temperature were obtained for both peak periods of elevator traffic (13 passengers) and other situations (4 passengers) when the elevator is moving up and down, which satisfy the objectives of health, comfort, and energy conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase in elevator usage, more and more elevator real-time monitoring equipment is being applied to the operation of elevators. Traditional elevator monitoring equipment adopts a multi-sensor decentralized installation and layout, and the monitoring accuracy is low, which directly affects the effective alarm of the monitoring system; however, existing online monitoring systems cannot quickly alarm for faults. Aiming to solve the above problems, an elevator online monitoring system based on narrow-band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) is designed. The system is highly integrated with an STM32 main control chip, a six-axis acceleration gyroscope sensor, and an air pressure sensor to realize the edge calculation of the monitoring system. At the same time, this paper eliminates the temperature drift of the pressure sensor by using a temperature compensation algorithm and inputs the extracted characteristic parameters into the BP neural network for training to eliminate the zero drift so as to obtain the real-time height data of the elevator. The six-axis acceleration gyroscope sensor is used to calculate the posture so as to avoid the problem that a three-axis acceleration sensor or a three-axis gyroscope sensor alone cannot obtain accurate posture data. In order to further improve the monitoring accuracy, the peak-to-peak value of the signal is calculated by using a 95% confidence interval algorithm to reduce the suppression of the high-frequency components of the signal by noise and ensure that the signal has a large signal-to-noise ratio so that the obtained elevator car posture and vibration operation data are more accurate. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, elevator group control systems containing multiple elevators are used in high-rise buildings, where elevator groups are centrally dispatched according to a set dispatching plan to provide vertical transportation services for the passengers. However, if these elevators work independently, once passengers send out a call signal, multiple elevators will respond to the same request at the same time, and the elevator group will repeatedly go back and forth, which seriously affects the system operation efficiency and also increases energy consumption, so it is a key issue to solve the dispatching problem in the elevator group control system. Elevator group control scheduling is an NP-hard problem with explosive combination characteristics. In this paper, a multi-objective model is formulated based on the criteria of average passenger travel time, average waiting time and system energy consumption for the scheduling problem. Then the particle swarm optimization algorithm is proposed to solve the scheduling problem. Finally, the performance of the proposed algorithm is compared with the genetic algorithm-based elevator group control scheduling, the simulation results show that the proposed algorithm with fast convergence while the waiting time of passengers is significantly decreased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aiming at the poor transient convergence and real-time performance of the horizontal vibration state variables of the high-speed elevator car system, and the low control accuracy and stability, this paper proposes an adaptive control strategy to ensure the transient response of the elevator car system. First, a prescribed preset transient performance function is introduced into the controller design to control the variation range of the state variables and ensure the steady transient performance of the elevator car; Second, representing the information of observation error/control error through algebraic operations, designing an adaptive law based on e-correction, estimating unknown parameters in the elevator car system, and achieving online parameter updates; Then, using neural networks to learn and compensate for unknown dynamics in the elevator car system, and solving the online estimation problem of neural network weights through adaptive laws, so that the tracking error and weight estimation error converge to a tight set near zero; Finally, using MATLAB/SIMULINK to compare and analyze the four control algorithms of passive control, PID control, adaptive control based on gradient descent method and transient response adaptive control proposed in this paper under two different rail excitations: Random excitation and pulse excitation. The simulation results show that the adaptive control strategy proposed in this paper effectively suppresses the horizontal vibration of the elevator car, makes the state variables have faster convergence speed and smaller convergence error, and ensures the stable and transient performance of the elevator car system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The details of the interaction of human thermal plume and breathing activities are simulated in the current study of an unsteady turbulent flow field in an elevator cabin. Air velocity and temperature distributions of the circulation flow pattern (i.e., the macroenvironment), the breathing-scale microenvironment's characteristics, and the thermal plume's fate are analyzed. The current study is aimed at showing how respiratory activities such as breathing and human thermal plumes affect the flow field and respiratory contaminants dispersion pattern in a nonventilated enclosed environment (the elevator cabin). The results from three cases, i.e., breathing thermal manikins, nonbreathing thermal manikins, and isothermal breathing manikins, are contrasted to unveil better the effects of human thermal plume and breathing on the flow field, including the velocity distribution, dispersion pattern of the exhaled contaminant, the human body's heat transfer coefficient, and the large-scale flow pattern. Results reveal that breathing inhalation increases the upward velocity of the thermal plume on the one hand, which directly affects the microenvironment and indirectly impacts the macroenvironment due to the more vigorous reflected thermal plume. On the other hand, the upward thermal plume reduces the penetration length of the exhaled jet. Breathing activities create ring vortices that connect the microenvironment and the macroenvironment. The circulation flow features a downward flow in the cabin's center, affecting the vortex strength and contaminant dispersion pattern. Overall, the human thermal plume and human breathing make comparable contributions to the resulting elevator-cabin flow characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-cost photovoltaic-powered elevators (PVPEs) have gained ever-increasing attention in the last few years for their advantages in terms of renewable energy and low maintenance costs after installation. In this paper, four highstep-up DC-DC converters for low-voltage sources such as solar photovoltaic, fuel cells, and battery banks are proposed. Their performances are evaluated in terms of optimal capability and high reliability. Among the four proposed architectures, the bootstrap converter is selected for its ability to restrict losses and other redundant parameters. The proposed converter drives the inverter-driven switched reluctance motor (SRM) assembly through a directly coupled method, which eliminates the need for battery banks while aiding in cost reduction. The prototype model is implemented, and results are validated, showing promising performance and thus being very efficacious for application to low-cost PVPEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The New Dunedin Hospital (NDH) is New Zealand's largest health infrastructure build. Here we describe the use of a simple simulation-based hospital design exercise to inform the appropriate lift car size for critical care intrahospital transfers in the NDH. The intensive care unit (ICU) user group tested a series of entries and exits of simulated complex patient transfers in mocked-up lift cars of three different dimensions. Time taken to enter and exit the lift were recorded, reflecting the relative difficulty of transfer. Qualitative assessments were made of ease and perceived safety of transfer. These simulations demonstrated that recommended standard patient lift cars, often proposed for critical care transfers, could not physically accommodate all complex ICU transfers. A size of 1800 mm wide (W) × 3000 mm deep (D) had the physical capacity to permit all simulated ICU transfers, but with staff and patient risk. As lift car size increased to 2200 mm W × 3300 mm D, the simulation demonstrated reduced transfer times, smoother entry and exit, improved access to the head end of the bed, and reduced risk of disconnection or dislodgement of lines and airway support. The resultant clinical recommendations for the dimensions of a critical care lift car surpass current international health architecture guidelines and may help to inform future updates. The NDH project benefited from an objective assessment of risk, in language familiar to clinicians and healthcare architects. The outcome was an upsizing of the two ICU-capable lifts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the ultra-high-speed elevator car-counterweight system runs opposite each other, significant piston effects are caused, seriously affecting the elevator operation's stability. In order to explore the aerodynamic characteristics of the whole operation process of a car-counterweight system under multi-parameters, this study first establishes a three-dimensional transient model of the car-counterweight system and a multi-region dynamic layering numerical simulation method based on this model is proposed. Then, the actual elevator experiment validates the correctness of the model and the method. Finally, the influence rules of key parameters on the car's aerodynamic characteristics and ventilation effect are analyzed, and the car's aerodynamic characteristics at intersection time are analyzed emphatically. The results show that with the increase in the blocking ratio, the pressure drag and viscous drag have similar change trends at each stage, but the influence of pressure drag is more significant. The air displacement ratio increases by 34.1%, 75.8%, and 117.3%, respectively. With the increase in the hoistway height, the air displacement ratio decreases by 0.9%, 2.4%, and 2.9%, respectively. The spacing significantly affects the car's aerodynamic characteristics at the intersection time. The drag peak increases by 6.8%, 13.6%, and 20.5% and the lift peak by 21.2%, 47.8%, and 82.5%, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the non-streamlined blunt body shape of the elevator car, intense aerodynamic loads and noise are generated in the annular space when the elevator operates at high speed in a narrow hoistway. This article uses large-eddy simulation and Curle acoustic theory to establish a numerical model of the wellbore flow field under different guiding shapes of the elevator car. First, the mechanism of action between the flow guide shape, vortex characteristics, and aerodynamic load was studied, and the influence of operating speed on aerodynamic load under different flow guide shapes was analyzed. Second, the distribution and spectral characteristics of noise in the annular space under different flow guide shapes were studied from the near field and far field scales. Finally, it can be concluded that increasing the guide surface can significantly reduce the pressure difference between the upper and lower parts of the car, weakening the separation of the tail airflow. The number of guide surfaces, installation position, and vertex offset significantly impact drag and lateral force, with the optimal reduction of 34.65% and 57.6%, respectively. The maximum sound source intensity of near-field noise is mainly concentrated at the arc transition in the upper part of the annular space, and the frequency is mainly concentrated in the range of 500–1000 Hz. The sound pressure level is linearly related to the logarithm of the longitudinal distance, and the noise attenuation speed becomes faster with the increase in the number of guiding surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While certain musical genres and songs are widely popular, there is still large variability in the music that individuals find rewarding or emotional, even among those with a similar musical enculturation. Interestingly, there is one Western genre that is intended to attract minimal attention and evoke a mild emotional response: elevator music. In a series of behavioral experiments, we show that elevator music consistently elicits low pleasure and surprise. Participants reported elevator music as being less pleasurable than music from popular genres, even when participants did not regularly listen to the comparison genre. Participants reported elevator music to be familiar even when they had not explicitly heard the presented song before. Computational and behavioral measures of surprisal showed that elevator music was less surprising, and thus more predictable, than other well‐known genres. Elevator music covers of popular songs were rated as less pleasurable, surprising, and arousing than their original counterparts. Finally, we used elevator music as a control for self‐selected rewarding songs in a proof‐of‐concept physiological (electrodermal activity and piloerection) experiment. Our results suggest that elevator music elicits low emotional responses consistently across Western music listeners, making it a unique control stimulus for studying musical novelty, pleasure, and surprise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Derived new coupling-free analytical speed function (CASF) for in-plane libration-free transportation. • Proposed hierarchical sliding mode control for out-of-plane libration based on CASF. • Proved asymptotic stability of proposed control strategy by Lyapunov framework. This study presents an original analysis of out-of-plane libration dynamics and its control in partial space elevator cargo transportation. A comprehensive three-dimensional dynamic model of the partial space elevator has been derived to examine the effects of out-of-plane libration. To ensure a stable in-plane configuration, a coupling-free analytical speed function is developed that cancels out the coupling effects stemming from out-of-plane libration. A novel approach is developed to introduce a thrust control strategy for the elimination of out-of-plane libration using a virtual dynamic-based hierarchical sliding mode control law. By employing a new combined channel implementation mode, it is demonstrated that in and out-of-plane libration can be controlled with a single thruster, resulting in reduced fuel consumption. The stability of the proposed control strategy is proven within the Lyapunov framework. Numerical simulations validate the effectiveness of the control strategy and highlight its significance. Results show that out-of-plane libration increases the magnitude of in-plane libration, while climber movement amplifies out-of-plane libration. The control strategy successfully eliminates out-of-plane libration using limited control input, ensuring stable cargo transportation in the partial space elevator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most commercial elevators for buildings exceeding four stories use a cable-driven traction system. Typically, a single traction machine operates by hoisting the main cable on a traction sheave, thus vertically transporting the elevator car through rotational motion of the sheave. This research introduces a groundbreaking advancement aimed at elevating loading capacity to an unprecedented 50 tons—the highest known in the world. The innovation involves the development of a twin traction system, wherein two traction machines collaborate to lift the elevator. This novel elevator system has demonstrated remarkable capabilities, showcasing the ability to transport up to 300 passengers in a single trip. The installation of this high-capacity elevator system has yielded substantial improvements in construction work efficiency and safety protocols, particularly in scenarios where cranes are traditionally used. The newly developed elevator could lift 50 tons of equipment 60 times a day, whereas the crane was limited to 8 times. The positive impact on labor is also noteworthy, with increased safety and health considerations, especially in adverse weather conditions. By eliminating the need for manual stair climbing, the well-being of the workforce is prioritized. Furthermore, the heightened productivity resulting from a significant reduction in wait times for conventional elevators is a key outcome of this transformative technology. This research not only unveils a groundbreaking twin traction system but also highlights its multifaceted features in enhancing efficiency, safety, and overall productivity in various industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A seamless performance of elevators is necessary for building owners (BOs) as it promotes end-user satisfaction, thus, they form some expectations from elevator maintenance contractors (EMCs). Coherence between the expectations of BOs and perceptions of EMCs promotes BOs satisfaction and facilitates the end users. This research aims to compare the opinions of the BOs with EMCs. Using the premise of expectation confirmation theory, the expectations of BOs from EMCs were determined by conducting a content analysis of 'Requests for proposals (RFPs) '. Afterwards, statistical analysis was conducted on questionnaire survey to determine the perceptions of EMCs regarding these expectations. Main expectations of BO include prompt response to callbacks, adequate equipment performance, effective execution of assigned duties and responsibilities, and attaining the specified performance thresholds. Questionnaire analysis revealed that apart from callbacks, the remaining three expectations were wholeheartedly received by the EMCs. Besides, several duties signifying these expectations were not considered essential by the EMCs. This research contributes to the literature by identifying the expectations of BOs and the perceptions regarding the same from EMCs perspective. Hence, BOs can emphasize more on those expectations in the RFPs and EMCs can align their maintenance strategies with BOs expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper concentrates on the elevator passenger detection task, a pivotal element for subsequent elevator passenger tracking and behavior recognition, crucial for ensuring passenger safety. To enhance the accuracy of detecting passenger positions inside elevators, we improved the YOLOv8 network and proposed the SC-YOLOv8 elevator passenger detection network with soft-pooling and attention mechanisms. The main improvements in this paper encompass the following aspects: Firstly, we transformed the convolution module (ConvModule) of the YOLOv8 backbone network by introducing spatial and channel reconstruction convolution (SCConv). This improvement aims to reduce spatial and channel redundancy in the feature extraction process of the backbone network, thereby improving the overall efficiency and performance of the detection network. Secondly, we propose a dual-branch SPP-Fast module by incorporating a soft-pooling branch into the YOLOv8 network's SPP-Fast module. This dual-branch SPP-Fast module can preserve essential information while reducing the impact of noise. Finally, we propose a soft-pooling and multi-scale convolution CBAM module to further enhance the network's performance. This module enhances the network's focus on key regions, allowing for more targeted feature extraction, thereby further improving the accuracy of object detection. Additionally, the attention module enhances the network's robustness in handling complex backgrounds. We conducted experiments on an elevator passenger dataset. The results show that the precision, recall, and mAP of our improved YOLOv8 network are 94.32%, 91.17%, and 92.95%, respectively, all surpassing those of the original YOLOv8 network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the existence of several studies about the scapula's position and motion, in shoulder pain conditions, there are still conflicting findings regarding scapular adaptations and reduced research about the scapula's role during functional tasks. The present study aimed to compare scapular-related kinematic and electromyographic outcomes during different shoulder movements (with and without load) and the drinking task, between symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects. Forty subjects (divided into two groups) participated in this cross-sectional observational study. Scapulothoracic motion, scapulohumeral rhythm, and movement quality (considering trunk compensation, time-to-peak acceleration, and smoothness), as well as the relative surface electromyographic activity and muscle ratio considering the trapezius, serratus anterior, and levator scapulae (LS), were assessed. The symptomatic group presented the following: (1) changes in scapular upward rotation (p = 0.008) and winging (p = 0.026 and p = 0.005) during backward transport and drink phases; (2) increased muscle activity level of the middle trapezius (MT) in all tasks (p < 0.0001 to p = 0.039), of LS during shoulder elevation with load (p = 0.007), and of LS and LT during most of the drinking task phases (p = 0.007 to p = 0.043 and p < 0.0001 to p = 0.014, respectively); (3) a decreased serratus anterior lower portion activity level (SAlow) during shoulder lowering with load (p = 0.030) and drink phase (p = 0.047); and (4) an increased muscular ratio between scapular abductors/adductors (p = 0.005 to p = 0.036) and elevators/depressors (p = 0.008 to p = 0.028). Compared to asymptomatic subjects, subjects with chronic shoulder pain presented scapular upward rotation and winging adaptations; increased activity levels of MT, LT, and LS; decreased activity levels of SAlow; and increased scapular muscle ratios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study focuses on the grain-product subcomplex within the Republic of Kazakhstan, aiming to dissect and address the prevalent issues plaguing this sector. It identifies several challenges, including technological deficiencies, inefficiencies, and increased production risks. There was a notable decrease in fixed capital investment in the agricultural sector in 2023, suggesting a shift in investment strategies or priorities, particularly with a significant reduction in food production investments. Agricultural exports in 2023, while showing a decrease compared to 2022, still represent a substantial economic activity. The capacity and utilization of grain storage facilities indicate a robust infrastructure capable of supporting the nation’s grain production, with a considerable portion of storage capacity currently utilized and a significant amount of grain released in 2023. Furthermore, the research delves into cross-border rail transport of crops, with Uzbekistan emerging as a regional leader in exports. This analysis, along with the examination of export activities and grain storage capacities, emphasizes the role of innovation and technological advancements in enhancing the agroindustrial sector’s efficiency and competitiveness. Optimization methods for modeling transport processes in agribusiness, such as digital technologies and intermodal transport, are proposed to address existing shortcomings. The study’s findings are distinguished by their complex approach to addressing the problems within the grain-product subcomplex. This approach, highlighting the practical application under local conditions, makes the results uniquely tailored to Kazakhstan’s context, offering a pathway towards improved agricultural practices and sectoral growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The elevator door system plays a crucial role in ensuring elevator safety. Fault prediction is an invaluable tool for accident prevention. By analyzing the sound signals generated during operation, such as component wear and tear, the fault of the system can be accurately determined. This study proposes a GNN-LSTM-BDANN deep learning model to account for variations in elevator operating environments and sound signal acquisition methods. The proposed model utilizes the historical sound data from other elevators to predict the remaining useful life (RUL) of the target elevator door system. Firstly, the opening and closing sounds of other elevators is collected, followed by the extraction of relevant sound signal characteristics including A-weighted sound pressure level, loudness, sharpness, and roughness. These features are then transformed into graph data with geometric structure representation. Subsequently, the Graph Neural Networks (GNN) and long short-term memory networks (LSTM) are employed to extract deeper features from the data. Finally, transfer learning based on the improved Bhattacharyya Distance domain adversarial neural network (BDANN) is utilized to transfer knowledge learned from historical sound data of other elevators to predict RUL for the target elevator door system effectively. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can successfully predict potential failure timeframes for different elevator door systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]