Two elastically coupled nanomechanical resonators driven independently near their resonance frequencies show intricate nonlinear dynamics. The dynamics provide a scheme for realizing a nanomechanical system with tunable frequency and nonlinear properties. For large vibration amplitudes, the system develops spontaneous oscillations of amplitude modulation that also show period-doubling transitio...

In running cars or trains, passengers often feel sleepy. Our study focuses on this physiological phenomenon. If a machine can reproduce this phenomenon, it is feasible to put a person, such as an insomnia patient or an infant, to sleep without any harmful effects. The results of our previous study suggest that low-frequency vibration induces sleep. This report describes a new mechanical bed for...

Rats, using their whiskers, have excellent capabilities in texture discrimination. What is the representation of texture in rat somatosensory cortex? We hypothesize that as rats "whisk" over a surface, the spatial frequency of a grooved or pebbled texture is converted to a temporal frequency of whisker vibration. Surface features such as groove depth or grain size modulate the amplitude of this...

The purpose of this study was to examine the acute effects of different vibration loads (frequency and amplitude) of whole-body vibration (WBV) on flexibility and explosive strength of lower limbs in springboard divers. Eighteen male and female divers, aged 19 ± 2 years, volunteered to perform 3 different WBV protocols in the present study. To assess the vibration effect, flexibility and explos...

A method of foot clearance achievement and frontal plane stability of 3D bipeds is mathematically analyzed. The independency of the robot’s body vibration amplitude from the foot clearance is also proven. The analyzed method takes advantage of the sideways vibration of the body generated by periodically shortening each leg to obtain the required foot clearance. A mathematical model of the biped...

Foundation scour has long been a concern in the offshore wind industry as it poses great threat to safety of turbines (OWTs). However, current understanding this issue is still insufficient. This because many farm factors and their coupling effect on have not fully investigated. Therefore, two phases experimental studies are conducted paper investigate how monopile vibration, water flow, interm...

Large amplitude flexural vibration characteristics of functionally graded material plates under aerodynamic load are investigated here using the finite element approach. Material properties of the plate are assumed to be graded in the thickness direction according to a simple power-law distribution and the effective material properties are evaluated based on the rule of mixture. The formulation...

The hanger reflex is a phenomenon that accompanies illusory force sensation and involuntary head rotation when the head is fastened with a wire hanger. This phenomenon is also observed on the wrist, and is expected to apply when using small and simple haptic feedback devices. However, issues of slow response and the requirement for large actuators still remain. Here, we discuss the discovery of...

The effect of a linear harmonic vibration on heat propagation is investigated in near-critical SF6 under weightlessness conditions in space. Heat was issued from a pointlike source (thermistor), a situation representative of an industrial use of pressurized supercritical fluid storage. Two kinds of vibrations were used, large amplitude (64 mm) at 0.2 Hz and low amplitude (0.8 mm) at 1.6 Hz, wit...