Geometry Optimization of a Metallic Flexor for Flat Wipers

Huang Ting Chuan,Tsai Jian Wei,Liao Kuo Chi 한국자동차공학회 2021 International journal of automotive technology Vol.22 No.3

In recent years, flat wipers are gradually adopted in the industry of transportation due to the rather simple structure than the standard wiper. A procedure is developed to evaluate the appropriateness of the geometry of a metallic flexor, one of major components of the flat wiper, in this study. The flexor is compressed against a level surface and the corresponding pressure distribution under the flexor is measured by using piezoelectric sensors. Several geometry parameters built in a three-dimensional flexor model are investigated to appraise their influences on the corresponding pressure distribution. A process automation software linked to a computer-aided drawing and a finite element analysis commercial packages are utilized, based on the self-defined performance index, to pursue parameter arrangements proper for the pressure distribution. The present procedures are next applied to a curved windshield glass to evaluate optimized flexor geometries at various locations. Appropriate flexors for the windshield glass are then determined and practically sampled. Dynamic wiping simulations of the integrated flat wiper on the windshield glass are furthermore carried out and the pressure distributions over the sweep range are estimated. Wiping capabilities of the wiper are experimentally observed and compared with the associated numerical results.

The Papaya Tolerant to Papaya Ringspot Virus Had Less Ultrastructural Damages

Wei-Chen Tang,Loong-Sheng Chang,Tzong-Shyan Lin,Ling-Long Kuo-Huang,Ting-Hsuan Hung 한국원예학회 2006 한국원예학회 기타간행물 Vol.- No.-

Can Elderly Patients with Severe Mitral Regurgitation Benefit from Trans-catheter Mitral Valve Repair?

Ching-Wei Lee,Shih-Hsien Sung,Wei-Ming Huang,Yi-Lin Tsai,Hsiang-Yao Chen,Chiao-Po Hsu,Chun-Che Shih,Kuo-Piao Chung 대한심장학회 2019 Korean Circulation Journal Vol.49 No.6

Background and ObjectivesAge is a traditional risk factor for open-heart surgery. The efficacy and safety of transcatheter edge-to-edge mitral valve repair, using MitraClip (Abbott Vascular), has been demonstrated in patients with severe mitral regurgitation (MR). Since octogenarians or older patients are usually deferred to receive open-heart surgery, the main interest of this study is to elucidate the procedural safety and long-term clinical impact of MitraClip in elderly patients. MethodsPatients with symptomatic severe MR were evaluated by the heart team. For those with high or prohibitive surgical risks, transcatheter mitral valve repair was performed in hybrid operation room. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), blood tests, and six-minute walk test (6MWT) were performed before, 1-month, 6-months, and 1 year after index procedure. ResultsA total of 46 consecutive patients receiving MitraClip procedure were enrolled. Nineteen patients (84.2±4.0 years) were over 80-year-old and 27 (73.4±11.1 years) were younger than 80. Compare to baseline, the significant reduction in MR severity was achieved after the procedure and sustained. All the patients benefited from significant improvement in New York Heart Association functional class. The 6-minute walk test (6MWT) increased from 259±114 to 319±92 meters (p=0.03) at 1 year. The overall 1-year survival rate was 80% in the elderly and 88% in those <80 years, p=0.590. Baseline 6MWT was a predictor for all-cause mortality (odds ratio, 0.99; 95% confidence interval, 0.982–0.999; p=0.026) after the MitraClip procedure. ConclusionsTrans-catheter edge-to-edge mitral valve repairs are safe and have positive clinical impact in subjects with severe MR, even in advanced age.

Antipsychotic Medication in Schizophrenic Patients is Associated with Higher Risks of Developing Bone Fractures and Refractures

Ching-Min Kuo,Wei-Jen Liao,Chun-Che Huang,Tsuo-Hung Lan,Ching-Heng Lin,Shun-Ping Wang,Cheng-Hung Lee,Ping-Wing Lui 대한정신약물학회 2020 CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY AND NEUROSCIENCE Vol.18 No.4

Objective: The relationship of antipsychotics and the risk of refracture in treated patients is unclear. The aim of this study is to evaluate the association between prolonged antipsychotic and the incidences of bone fractures and refractures in schizophrenia. Methods: This is a retrospective nested case-control study using Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database recorded from 2000 to 2005, with cases followed up to end of 2011. Total of 7,842 schizophrenic patients, 3,955 had developed bone fractures were compared with 3,887 control subjects matched in age, sex, and index date. Antipsychotic drug exposure was classified based on the drug type and medication duration. Conditional logistic regression analyses were performed. Odds ratio (OR) and confidence interval (CI) were calculated. Results: We found (after adjustments) higher risks of developing fractures under continued use of typical (OR = 1.70; 95% CI, 1.51−1.91) or atypical antipsychotics (OR = 1.43; 95% CI, 1.28−1.60) were found. Additionally, continued use typical (OR = 1.84; 95% CI, 1.35−2.50) or atypical antipsychotics (OR = 1.44; 95% CI, 1.06−1.95) was positively associated with refracture risks. Moreover, refractures were associated with continuous use of chlorpromazine (one typical antipsychotics, OR = 2.45; 95% CI, 1.14−5.25), and risperidone (OR = 1.48; 95% CI, 1.01−2.16) or zotepine (OR = 2.15; 95% CI, 1.06−4.36) (two atypical antipsychotics). Conclusion: Higher risks of bone fracture and refracture were found in schizophrenia under prolonged medication with typical or atypical antipsychotics. We therefore recommend that clinicians should pay more attention on bone density monitoring for patients using long-term antipsychotics.

Ginsenoside Rg3 ameliorates allergic airway infl ammation and oxidative stress in mice

Wen-Chung Huang,Tse-Hung Huang,Kuo-Wei Yeh,Ya-Ling Chen,Szu-Chuan Shen,Chian-Jiun Liou 고려인삼학회 2021 Journal of Ginseng Research Vol.45 No.6

Background: Ginsenoside Rg3, isolated from Panax ginseng, has anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor activities. It is known to reduce inflammation in acute lung injury in mice, and to reduce the expression ofinflammatory cytokines and COX-2 in human asthmatic airway epithelium. In this study, we attemptedto determine whether ginsenoside Rg3 inhibits airway inflammation, oxidative stress, and airwayhyperresponsiveness (AHR) in the lungs of asthmatic mice. We also investigated its effects on oxidativestress and the inflammatory response in tracheal epithelial cells. Methods: Asthma symptoms were induced in female BALB/c mice sensitized with ovalbumin (OVA). Micewere divided into five groups: normal controls, OVA-induced asthmatic controls, and asthmatic micetreated with ginsenoside Rg3 or prednisolone by intraperitoneal injection. Inflammatory BEAS-2B cells(human tracheal epithelial cells) treated with ginsenoside Rg3 to investigate its effects on inflammatorycytokines and oxidative responses. Results: Ginsenoside Rg3 treatment significantly reduced eosinophil infiltration, oxidative responses,airway inflammation, and AHR in the lungs of asthmatic mice. Ginsenoside Rg3 reduced Th2 cytokineand chemokine levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluids and lung. Inflammatory BEAS-2B cells treated withginsenoside Rg3 reduced the eotaxin and pro-inflammatory cytokine expressions, and monocyteadherence to BEAS-2B cells was significantly reduced as a result of decreased ICAM-1 expression. Furthermore, ginsenoside Rg3 reduced the expression of reactive oxygen species in inflammatory BEAS-2B cells. Conclusion: Ginsenoside Rg3 is a potential immunomodulator that can ameliorate pathological featuresof asthma by decreasing oxidative stress and inflammation

Local Structure Distortion in LiCu₂O₂ Single Crystal at Low Temperature

Tzu-Wen Huang,Kuo-Wei Yeh,Kuan-Li Yu,Yen-Fa Liao,Maw-Kuen Wu 한국자기학회 2008 한국자기학회 학술연구발표회 논문개요집 Vol.- No.-

A Methodology to Build a Groutability Formula via a Heuristic Algorithm

Chien-Lin Huang,Jen-Chen Fan,Kuo-Wei Liao,Tsung-Hsun Lien 대한토목학회 2013 KSCE JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING Vol.17 No.1

The goal of this study is to provide a methodology to develop a groutability (N) formula of sandy silt soils using microfine cement grouts in a permeation grouting. Because the Fines Content (FC) of the sandy silt soils studied is relatively high, and the size of the grouts used is significantly smaller than the Portland cement, the existing empirical formulas cannot deliver a promising prediction of N. Support Vector Machines (SVMs) is an alternative tool used to predict N. However, SVMs do not provide an explicit formula,which creates an obstacle for practical engineers. Thus, a heuristic algorithm (the Tabu search, TS) was used to build the prediction formula. A total of 240 in-situ data samples were analyzed to ensure the accuracy of the proposed formula. The format of the existing empirical formula was adopted in the proposed TS-based formula. Four parameters were considered in our TS models: the effective soil particle size (D10), the soil particle size (D15), the water-to-cement ratio (w/c) and the FC. The prediction accuracy of the TSbased formula was approximately 94.17%, indicating that the proposed formula is a suitable tool. Because the proposed formula has a similar format to that of formulas that are typically used, the proposed approach can be implemented readily in practical engineering settings. Note that the proposed formula was only verified by the collected data samples, the suitability of applying the built formula to other conditions needs more investigation.

Application of Data Quality Indicator of Carbon Footprint and Water Footprint

Tsai Chi Kuo,Miao-Ling Huang,Chia Wei Hsu,Chiuhsiang Joe Lin,Chih-Chun Hsieh,Chih-Hsing Chu 한국정밀공학회 2015 International Journal of Precision Engineering and Vol.2 No.1

To mitigate the impact of global warming on the environment, many governments, non-profit organizations, and enterprises have formulated relevant standards to assist enterprises in promoting carbon management, and to encourage the design and popularization of low-carbon products. These standards include: PAS 2050, ISO/TS 14067 and so on. Under these initiatives, enterprises try to disclose the carbon and water footprints of the products based on the life cycle. Some enterprises argue and debate that there exists uncertainty of the footprints calculation since the data collection is not systematically. To solve this problem, in this research, the calculation of carbon footprint and water footprint are evaluated with the data quality indicator (DQI) management system. The collected data is evaluated based on the footprint calculation methods. Also the pedigree matrix is constructed as an aide to solve the data uncertainty that included reliability, completeness, times, geography, and technologies differences. Through the DQI, the carbon footprint and water footprint are not only calculated simultaneously, but also correctly. The results could be the reference for products’ environmental improvement.

East Asian GRB Follow-up Network (EAFON)

Y. Urata,K.Y. Huang,W.H. Ip,P.H. Kuo,Y.S Lee,Y. Qiu,J. Wei,J. Deng,W. Zheng,M. Zhai,M. Tashiro,K. Abe,K. Onda,T. Tamagawa,K. Ioka,M. Kuwahara,F. Usui 한국천문학회 2006 天文學會報 Vol.31 No.1

Causal Relations between Exposome and Stroke: A Mendelian Randomization Study

Hong-Qi Li,Yi-Wei Feng,Yu-Xiang Yang,Xin-Yi Leng,Prof Can Zhang,Shi-Dong Chen,Kevin Kuo,Shu-Yi Huang,Xue-Qing Zhang,Yi Dong,Xiang Han,Xin Cheng,Mei Cui,Lan Tan,Qiang Dong,Jin-Tai Yu 대한뇌졸중학회 2022 Journal of stroke Vol.24 No.2

Background and Purpose To explore the causal relationships of elements of the exposome with ischemic stroke and its subtypes at the omics level and to provide evidence for stroke prevention. Methods We conducted a Mendelian randomization study between exposure and any ischemic stroke (AIS) and its subtypes (large-artery atherosclerotic disease [LAD], cardioembolic stroke [CE], and small vessel disease [SVD]). The exposure dataset was the UK Biobank involving 361,194 subjects, and the outcome dataset was the MEGASTROKE consortium including 52,000 participants. Results We found that higher blood pressure (BP) (systolic BP: odds ratio [OR], 1.02; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01 to 1.04; diastolic BP: OR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1.05; pulse pressure: OR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.00 to 1.06), atrial fibrillation (OR, 1.18; 95% CI, 1.13 to 1.25), and diabetes (OR, 1.13; 95% CI, 1.07 to 1.18) were significantly associated with ischemic stroke. Importantly, higher education (OR, 0.69; 95% CI, 0.60 to 0.79) decreased the risk of ischemic stroke. Higher systolic BP (OR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.10), pulse pressure (OR, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.14), diabetes (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.13 to 1.45), and coronary artery disease (OR, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.25 to 2.00) could cause LAD. Atrial fibrillation could cause CE (OR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.71 to 2.11). For SVD, higher systolic BP (OR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.00 to 1.07), diastolic BP (OR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1.12), and diabetes (OR, 1.22; 95% CI, 1.10 to 1.36) were causal factors. Conclusions The study revealed elements of the exposome causally linked to ischemic stroke and its subtypes, including conventional causal risk factors and novel protective factors such as higher education.