VERTICAL SPINDLE COTTON HARVESTER WITH SYMMETRIC MOVEMENT OF SPINDLE DRUMS

The article deals with the trends in the development of structures, research work on modernization and creation of new vertical spindle cotton harvesting apparatus (CHA). Authors developed new CHA that works as follows: the CHA with a cotton picker moves on the cotton field; the cotton plants getting into the inter-drum slots are processed, that is, the raw cotton be harvested. The CHA are in their original position before picking raw cotton. When a thick cotton plant gets into the inter-drum slot of the front pair of drums, the spindle drums move apart and the inter-drum slot opens, while the connecting rods and the sliders move forward, providing the symmetrical opening of the slot relative to the longitudinal line of the cotton plant row. Further, this thick plant falls into the inter-drum slot of the second pair of drums, while the inter-drum slot of the second drums opens, while the connecting rods and the sliders move along the guides forward, providing the symmetrical opening of the slot relative to the longitudinal line of the cotton plant rows. With such a pairwise symmetric movement of the SD, depending on the thickness of the cotton plant, the force of spindle pressing on the cotton plant from both sides is identical and symmetrical, since the SD move symmetrically to the longitudinal line passing along the cotton plant row.

Participatory Design as the Temporal Flow of Coalescing Participatory Lines

This paper argues that the existing literature on participatory design (PD) tends to focus on frontstage design interactions (workshops, participants, methodologies, techniques, etc.) to facilitate PD ‘here and now’—referred to as the interactional approach. In contrast, the paper proposes to contribute to an evolving literature, referred to as the transformational approach, that takes a more longitudinal line and which attends to both the frontstage and backstage within an extended temporal frame. To do this the paper draws on the work of the social anthropologist Tim Ingold, in particular, his concept of the happening of ongoing life as a bundle of flowing lines. The paper argues that PD becomes possible when ongoing participation is conceived of as a set of corresponding (or coalescing) and conditioning lines of flow—each line with its own history, attentionality, rhythms, tempos and so forth. To illustrate what this reorientation might mean for PD the paper draws on an in-depth action research study of a PD initiative that sought to develop a digital service to address loneliness and social isolation in a rural location in the UK. The paper explores how project members, individual participants, non-governmental organisation, government representatives, evaluators and funders co-responded to each other (or not) as they engaged, or became implicated, in the PD process. The paper concludes with some practical implications of what such an Ingoldian reorientation might mean for the ongoing development of PD as a transformational methodology.

DEVELOPMENT OF A METHOD FOR PREDICTING THE ACCURACY OF SPIROID WHEELS

The article considers the possible errors of the spiroid transmission based on mathematical modeling of the process of shaping the teeth of the spiroid wheel. Typical errors such as tooth profile error, tooth pitch error, tooth thickness error, tooth longitudinal line error are applicable to spiroid wheel tooth errors. Currently, the accuracy standards for spiroid transmissions are not standardized. It is shown that the mandrel of a cylindrical spiroid cutter for processing spiroid wheels has an increased length, which contributes to its greater squeezing from the spiroid wheel during the shaping process. Based on the components of the cutting forces, a graph of the vibrations of the milling cutter mandrel is presented. In the study of precision spiroid wheels on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the formation of the tooth profile of spiroid wheel revealed that the geometric deviations of the lateral surfaces of the teeth of wheels due to the errors of gear cutting tools and technological factors.

Experimental Investigations on Meridional and Circumferential Stresses of Bellows due to Internal Pressure

Bellows Expansion joints are mostly linked with the piping connections of turbines, heat exchangers, process equipment’s etc. Its primary function is to absorb expansion and contraction in pipelines on which it is fixed and fulfill its functioning through peculiar springy shaped convolutions. At design stage, it is very difficult to guess fatigue life cycles due to evolved stresses in convolutions. When it is subjected to purely axial load, stress generation per convolution acting along longitudinal line is same; however the behavior is different under very small angular rotation and axial shift due to misalignments in structural mountings. To understand it, preliminary investigations on axial case is necessary and also to identify the location of various stresses in convoluted section. This work aims to determine the meridional and circumferential stresses on the convoluted shape when it is subjected to an axi-symmetric internal pressure loading. Experimentation is carried out to determine the maximum stresses and verified it with the help of numerical simulation and analytically. 10 convolution bellows is used for the experiments. It is observed that the meridional stresses are highly dominating the circumferential stresses along the same longitudinal line. Meridional membrane stresses and meridional bending stresses due to pressure are evaluated on two different locations, one on perfectly meridional line and another at the top surface of convolution along the same longitudinal line. The stresses found higher on the top surface of convolutions. Meridional membrane and bending stresses due to deflection are higher than the meridional membrane and bending stresses due to pressure. Evaluation of the maximum stresses is very helpful for the designers to develop the fatigue analysis model and exact prediction of the cycle life of the bellows.

Neidiopsis borealis sp. nov., a new diatom species from the mountain Shar Planina, Republic of North Macedonia

The genus Neidiopsis is small comprising eight known taxa distributed in oligotrophic to dystrophic freshwater habitats. During observations of diatoms from alpine intermittent ponds on the Shara Mountain, Republic of North Macedonia, a species of Neidiopsis with high abundance was observed. It is characterized by linear to linear–lanceolate valves with a slightly undulated margin, 25.0–43.5 μm long and 6.0–7.0 μm wide. The raphe is filiform with straight proximal and deflected distal raphe endings to the same side of the valve. Striae are partly biseriate near the axial area and continue as uniseriate circular areolae (ca 40 in 10 μm) towards the valve mantle. Striae on each side of the valve are crossed by a prominent longitudinal line located slightly closer to the valve margin. Ultrastructural features of the type population clearly place this taxon into the genus Neidiopsis and aligned to N. levanderi sensu stricto. A similar documented ecotype population (N. levanderi “calcicola”) sensu Lange-Bertalot (2001) is combined with our population and considered a new species N. borealis sp. nov.

Four new species of the genus Paraustrorhynchus (Rhabdocoela: Kalyptorhynchia: Polycystididae)

Four new species of Paraustrorhynchus (Rhabdocoela: Kalyptorhynchia: Polycystididae) are described: two from Southern China (P. shenda n. sp., P. sinensis n. sp.), one from New Caledonia (P. isoldeae n. sp.), and one from India (P. smeetsae n. sp.). All four species show a typical dark blue dorsal pigmentation pattern, which is unique to the genus. This pigment forms a broad longitudinal line in P. shenda n. sp. and P. sinensis n. sp., shows an additional transverse band at the level of the pharynx in P. smeetsae n. sp. and forms a Y-shaped pattern in P. isoldeae n. sp. The four species can also be distinguished from each other and their congeners by the detailed morphology of the hard parts of the male system, which in all cases consists of an L-shaped (P. shenda n. sp., P. isoldeae n. sp) or slightly-curved (P. smeetsae n. sp., P. sinensis n. sp.) prostate stylet type II and a prostate stylet type III, which consists of three plates: a basal plate from which two longer plates depart, each with a distal serrated rim. A phylogenetic analysis based on 18S and 28S-rDNA data indicates that Paraustrorhynchus is a monophyletic taxon within Polycystidinae, with Alcha evelinae as the sister group.

A new species of short-fingered geckos Stenodactylus (Squamata, Geckonidae) from South Iran with taxonomic notes on validity of the genus Trigonodactylus Hass, 1957

In the present study we provide evidence for the validity of the genus Trigonodactylus Hass, 1957, improve the diagnosis for this genus and describe a new species that belongs to it—Trigonodactylus persicus sp. nov., from the sand dunes in Khuzestan Province, southwestern Iran. The new species is closely related to Trigonodactylus [Stenodactylus] arabicus sensu Hass, and can be distinguished by the following morphological characteristics: small size, maximum SVL 34 mm; SVL/TailL—approximately 1:1; ventral scales roundish, weakly keeled, 54–61 longitudinal rows at midbody and 190–25 along midbody. No enlarged postmentals. Fingers and toes slightly flattened dorso-ventrally. Lateral edge of digits fringed by series of projecting triangular scales. No web between digits. No preanal and femoral pores. Dorsal color pattern formed by thin, dark, irregular vermicular patches and spots. Sometimes these dark dorsal patterns blend with each other and form transverse bands. There is a narrow, dark, longitudinal line between forelimbs and hindlimbs on lateral sides. Dark, well developed ʌ-shaped marking on snout, which continues behind orbit on tympanum region, approaches the upper ear opening and ends on the pectoral arch. Labial scales white, in some cases with grey-brown dots. Dorsal surfaces of limbs and digits with irregular dark bands. Dorsal surface of tail with 8–10 wide, dark brown bands with irregular margins, same size as alternating light bands. Ventral surface of body and limbs white, tail with dark spots that become more distinct posteriorly.

NUMERICAL PREDICTION OF THE EFFECTS OF LONGITUDINAL CRACK-LIKE LAMINATIONS ON THE TENSILE PROPERTIES OF WIRES

Carbon steel wires used for civil engineering applications may contain laminations. In the published literature, lamination was modelled as a separation between two faces with a finite distance. This technique is not suitable for modelling the line-type/crack-like laminations that may be present in the wires. In this paper, the effects of longitudinal line-type laminations on the tensile properties of carbon steel wires were investigated using Finite element (FE) analysis. Laminations were modelled as seams which truly simulate the line-type/crack-like laminations that have been reported to be instrumental to the failure of pre-stressing wires. FE analysis revealed that laminations do not significantly reduce the yield and ultimate loads of the wires. However, laminations cause a significant reduction in the displacement at fracture of the wires and the reduction is proportional to the length of the laminations. Consequently, the presence of laminations reduces the ductility of the wires, which reduces the ability of the wires to withstand overload the wires may experience in service without causing a catastrophic failure of structures where wires provide the required reinforcement.

Transformation of the domain pattern in the development of Fagus silvatica L. cambium

The domain pattern of cambium during the first year of its function in <i>Fagus silvatica</i> L. resembles a checkerboard. The longitudinal line along the leaf trace, its corresponding line on the opposite side of the internode and nodes comprise the domain borders. Starting from the formation of the first annual ring, this checkerboard pattern begins to undergo gradual transformation. A transitional domain pattern appears during the first few years; in each internode, due to the alternate disappearance of Z and S domains, a fragmentary domain of one type and an expanded domain of the opposite type occur in pairs. After further transformations, a regular pattern of transverse bands of domains moving along the stem appear on older stems (over ten years-old). This pattern is commonly found in other studied species of trees.

A new characid fish, Moenkhausia aurantia (Ostariophysi: Characiformes: Characidae), from the upper rio Tocantins basin in Central Brazil

A new characid species, Moenkhausia aurantia, is described from the upper portions of rio Tocantins basin, in the Chapada dos Veadeiros, Goiás State, central Brazil. The new species differs from its congeners by the combination of 3 or 4 scale rows below and 5 or 6 scale rows above the lateral line, 21–25 branched anal-fin rays, 33–35 lateral line scales, 2–4 maxillary teeth, one diffuse humeral spot, and caudal spot continuous to the longitudinal line which extends posteriorly over the middle caudal-fin rays. A key to identify Moenkhausia species describe from the Tocantins-Araguaia basin is provided.