====================================================================== 　　                 ENGINEERING NEWS IN BRIEF                          E-Mail Newsletter                                No. 10              Issued by the Asian TOP Panel, October 2002.            The Chinese Mechanical Engineering Society (CMES)            The Institution of Engineers, Indonesia (PII)            The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers (JSME)            The Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers (KSME) ====================================================================== About the Asian TOP Panel (ATOP)     On August 29, 2001, presidents of four engineering societies gathered in Japan to pave the way for stepped-up collaboration. They are Chinese Mechanical Engineering Society, Institution of Engineers Indonesia, Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, and Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers.     They agreed to establish the Asian TOP Panel (ATOP), which is a voluntary body and open to any Asian engineering society and institution. At the first meeting, they decided to issue monthly E-mail newsletter which you are reading now. It will carry short technical news of Asian countries, and be distributed to all individual members of the ATOP societies and institutions.     ATOP will meet every two years. The next meeting will be held in Korea in 2003. ====================================================================== [Contents] (1) China-Japan Friendly Talk (Source: CMES). (2) Chinese Manufacturing Slowed by Skilled Worker Shortage     (Source:CMES). (3) Robots in Greater Demand in China (Source: CMES). (4) A DNA-BioFilm and its Electron Conductivity (Source: JSME). (5) Realization of SF World: Development of Neuron Signal Activated     Computer System (Source: JSME). (6) Recent trends in fiber optic sensors (Source: JSME). (7) The development of RF MEMS relay (Source: JSME). (8) CNC tool grinding technique supports high precision and production     of metal cutting (Source: JSME). ====================================================================== (1) China-Japan Friendly Talk (Source: CMES).     Honorary President of CMES, Mr. Lu Yansun met with Mr. Tsutomu MANO, President Monthly "Materials Flow", RYUKEN Co. Ltd. FA & LOGISTICS information Center on September 9, 2002 in Beijing. They had a friendly talk about the cooperation in holding conference, publishing and exhibition etc ====================================================================== (2) Chinese Manufacturing Slowed by Skilled Worker Shortage     (Source:CMES).     China's lack of skilled workers is hampering its development as one of the world's manufacturing giants, China's first International Machinery Manufacturing Exposition has heard.     Zeng Xiangquan, dean of the School of Labor Relations and Human Resources under the Beijing-based People's University said the number of qualified technical workers had failed to keep pace with manufacturing growth since China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). The latest statistics from the Ministry of Labor and Social Security indicate that just 3.5 percent of China's 70 million technical workers are classed as advanced-skills workers, compared to about 40 percent in most developed countries.     The data also show that China urgently needs 600,000 numerical controlling machine operators.     The lack of qualified workers had a negative impact on production, with only 70 percent of Chinese products evaluated as up to standard, and substandard products causing losses of 200 million yuan (25 million US dollars) each year. ====================================================================== (3) Robots in Greater Demand in China (Source: CMES).     China is expected to need more than 100,000 robots by 2015 with the growing level of its industrial automation, according to sources with an on-going international machine manufacturing fair.     They will mainly be used in the production of automobiles, engineering machinery, electric machines and electronic products. Robot production line will eventually replace single robotic machines.     Since China began making robots in 1972, the number of producers has grown to more than 200, but most of the robots in use was imported. Currently there are 3,500 robots in operation in China, about 80 percent are imported from 40 countries including Japan, the United States and Russia.     China's big demand for industrial robots has attracted a growing number of foreign producers. A Chinese company has begun joint research and development with a Russian partner. ====================================================================== (4) A DNA-BioFilm and its Electron Conductivity (Source: JSME).     Prof. Yoshio Okahata of Tokyo Institute of Technology developed the technique for DNA-BioFilm production on commercial basis.     DNA has been known as a biopolymer controlling heredity, which has phosphoric anions in backbones, stacked base pairs, and double helical structures. These structural properties are very attractive for utilizing DNA as functional biomaterials. Okahata was recently reported to have developed a DNA-lipid complex, in which cationic lipids bind electrostatically to DNA's phosphoric anions. Although a natural DNA is a water-soluble polymer, the DNA-lipid complex is soluble in organic solvents and cast as a transparent physically stable film. When the film is stretched in one direction, DNA strands aligned uniformly along the stretching direction. The aligned-DNA film was fixed on a comb-type electrode and showed an ohmic electric current (10-3 S cm-1) along DNA strands in the film, but a very small current across the strands (10-6 S cm-1).  Since the length of DNA strands (30,000 bp) is ca. 10 micron and can across two electrodes (5 micron distance), the current through one DNA molecule can be observed. It is concluded from AC and DC measurements and those temperature dependencies that it is the electron conduction but not ion conduction through a DNA strand.     For details, contact: yokahata@bio.titech.ac.jp ====================================================================== (5) Realization of SF World: Development of Neuron Signal Activated     Computer System (Source: JSME).      Fumio NOGATA, Gifu University      Hidenori OHNISHI, Technos Japan, Co. Ltd.     Development of the technologies for the thought transference and the operation of computer and electric appliances such as air conditioner, television, radio, room light, and etc., by means of just having what we want to do in mind is one of our dreams. If we could achieve these technologies, people would get the ultimate computer interface; the machine acting as an extension of the human nerve system itself, a neuron signal activated computer system for interactive recognition. Also the disabled people suffering from ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gherig's disease), Parkinson's disease, injury of cervical vertebra, myotonic dystrophy, cerebral paralysis, and brainstem infarction can get a miracle tool that allows the direct neural communication with family, nurse, and medical doctor.     The machine we have developed employs beta waves (typically from 14 to 30 hertz with an alert state of mind and near 50 hertz with intense mental activity) and activates a computer system with thought-recognition software. Beta waves appear naturally, or by short training we can create them through heightening our mental activities such as concentration of consciousness, invocation, and excitement. That device has been originally manufactured in the world by Technos Japan, Co. Ltd., which is named Mind Control Operating System (MCTOS). The device has aided over five hundred peoples in the world including patients paralyzed heavily with ALS disease and has provided them with chances to communicate more easily with others. Using the device through beta-wave switch, a patient published a book entitled "Inochi No Kotoba (words of the life)" describing his hope and thoughts with Haiku.     For further information, visit the site of http://www.technosj.co.jp/ ====================================================================== (6) Recent trends in fiber optic sensors (Source: JSME).      Akiyoshi SHIMADA, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation     The development of fiber optic sensors began in the 1980's and they became commercially available in the >1990's. Compared with conventional strain gages, they offer such advantages as (1) immunity to electromagnetic interference, (2) long life, (3) ease of calibration after installation, (4) non-flammability, and (5) the ability to be embedded in structures. There have been many attempts to assess the integrity of civil, aerospace, and space structures. This topic will introduce three types of fiber optic sensor with which I am concerned. (a) Distributed fiber sensor     The Brillouin optical time domain reflectometer（BOTDR）is a kind of distributed strain sensor with an accuracy of +-0.004% and with a spatial resolution of 1 m. The cost of the latest model has been reduced by about 50% compared with the previous model and its performance has been improved. (b) Fiber Bragg grating sensor     The fiber Bragg grating sensor can measure local strain in the same way as conventional strain gages. A recent product performs measurements with a sampling frequency of 100 kHz. (c) New type sensor     The University of Tokyo has been developing a new type of fiber optic sensor that can measure strain rate with a sampling frequency of a few Hz to a few MHz. This sensor has a new shape and achieves high sensitivity and directivity, which makes possible to measure elastic or ultrasonic waves. ====================================================================== (7) The development of RF MEMS relay (Source: JSME).      Mitsuru FUJII, Omron Corp.     Various MEMS (MicroElectroMechanical System) devices for wireless and optical communications are developed, such as RF switches, variable capacitors, optical switches and tunable filters, which are the candidates for the key components of the broadband communications. The MEMS technology is micro fabrication to form 3D-structures in silicon wafers based on the semiconductor process. Therefore, the MEMS devices are different from ICs at the point that MEMS devices have ultra miniature mechanical parts, such as actuators. We have developed a MEMS relay for high frequency applications utilizing single crystal silicon, which has less residual stress after processes, as an electrostatic driven actuator with wafer level package. The relays have superior RF characteristics compared with IC switches and ultra small size different from the conventional mechanical relays. The dimensions including the package are the width of 1.8mm, the length of 1.8mm and the height of 1mm. The MEMS relay is applicable up to 20GHz with the low insertion loss less than 1.3dB and the high isolation more than 19dB. The relay is hermetically sealed with a glass cap to protect the micro actuator from not only damages in sawing or assembly, but also contaminations influential to reliabilities. The integration of the relay contacts will be a future work. ====================================================================== (8) CNC tool grinding technique supports high precision and production     of metal cutting (Source: JSME).  　　Shigeru Inoue, Makino Seiki Co., Ltd.     High- speed and high-performance machining center are being used increasingly to streamline manufacturing operations and improve productivity. Obtaining maximum efficiency from these machines through going tool management by using CNC tool and cutter grinder. Cutting tool with HSK tooling holder which should be mounted into the high-speed milling spindle must be reground on the workhead of CNC tool and cutter grinder. This feature avoids the effects of a tool holder or a collet that can cause dynamic deflection or vibration during high-speed operation. Moreover, exceptionally tool mounting error of a holder with collet improves the tool accuracy of geometry and size. For high-speed machining (FF machining by MAKINO MILLING MACHINE CO., LTD.), smooth, highly accurate surface finishes are obtained even when machining with different tools being re-ground with holder. ====================================================================== Editor: Yukio YAMADA, International Affairs Committee Published by The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers Shinanomachi-Rengakan Bldg, Shinanomachi 35, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0016, Japan FAX : 81-3-5360-3508 All Rights Reserved, Copyright C 2002 The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers URL:http//www.jsme.or.jp/English/

 

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