Tohoku Techno Arch Co., Ltd. List of Products and Services

In recent years, soft robot that can flexibly transform according to their environment and adapt to various environments has been developed. However, due to its flexible structure, soft robot can be damaged when they come into contact with sharp object, resulting in the loss of functionality such as mobility and deformability. Material such as polymer has been developed to self-repair damaged part. However, it can not repair itself in case of major damage. 　 This invention is able to provide a self-healing mechanism and a soft robot that can self-repair in any environment, regardless of external factor, even in case of major damage. This invention has a curing means consisting of 2 tubes containing 2 different liquids that gel or harden when mixed, which are wrapped around each others in spiral. The soft robot of this invention has this hardening means stretched along the deformed and flexible area. When the soft robot is damaged by contact with sharp object, the 2 tubes are also damaged and each liquid gels or hardens, allowing the robot to repair itself.

• others

Phenyl sulfate(PS) and indoxyl sulfuric(IS) are factor of Diabetic nephropathy(DN). These compounds are produced by the reaction of phenol and indole which are protein metabolites, with tyrosine phenol lyase and tryptophan indole lyase which intestinal bacteria have. Decreasing PS and IS in blood is important for DN treatment.　 　In the present study, certain sesame-derived lignans exhibited TPL and TIL inhibitory activity.

• others

　Instability after landing on the foot is one of the causes of frequent ankle sprains during exercise and falls in the elderly. Therefore, if stability in landing can be evaluated with high accuracy, the effect of treatment or functional recovery training or the effect of the use of exercise aids such as insoles can be properly evaluated.　 　Conventionally, stability has been evaluated by measuring the total trajectory length and trajectory area of the movement trajectory of the center of pressure. However, these parameters fluctuate relatively widely depending on the adjustment of posture by the balance function, the height of jumping, and the body weight. Therefore, the stability in landing may not be evaluated with high accuracy. 　The present invention relates to an algorithm for defining a stability range of dynamic stability for a center of pressure after landing.

• others

High production cost of mold (plate) is a major challenge to promote the use of nanoimprint technology. Replica mold of an expensive original mold is essential for cost reduction. Especially, replica mold that can resist to repeated usage has been expected. The resin replica mold currently in practical use is limited to a few mold transfer and has low repeat durability.　 　This invention is about a resin replica mold that is solid and repeatedly durable. This mold consists of an organic/inorganic hybrid material with inorganic particles dispersed in resin and has a higher indentation modulus than polyimide. Since fluidity is maintained even the inorganic particles mixing ratio is 60 wt%, the product can be easily manufactured by pressing the original plate mold and curing by light irradiation. Moreover, it is to both thermal and optical nanoimprinting because it has both heat resistance and ultraviolet light transmittance.

• others

Currently, a feeding and swallowing function evaluation device is known to evaluate the feeding and swallowing function of someone. If one has impaired semantic memory function, the feeding rate may be decreased even when the eating behavior is normal. However, existing feeding and swallowing function evaluation device does not output information on one’s semantic memory function, making it impossible to recognize the cause of the underestimated feeding rate.　 　This invention is able to provide a feeding and swallowing function evaluation device that can appropriately recognize the cause of one's underestimated feeding rate. This invention has a feeding behavior information acquisition unit, a correct/incorrect information acquisition unit, a feeding behavior evaluation information output unit and a semantic memory evaluation information output unit. In this invention, the evaluation of feeding and swallowing function is performed by a computer which acquires information on the correctness of one's response to a semantic memory task and outputs information on whether the semantic memory function is normal or not. This allows proper recognition of the cause of one's underestimated feeding rate.

• others

Porous body with nano to micro order small pores is expected to be used in many applications. Among materials that make up porous body, silicon carbide has attracted attention because of its high heat resistance temperature and excellent property as a semiconductor material. However, for the application of porous silicon carbide, it is necessary to consider not only the excellent property of silicon carbide, but also the structure of the porous material.　 　This invention is about a porous silicon carbide with porous structure having a wide range of pore sizes from nanoscale to millimeter scale and showing fractal nature, as well as its simple production method. The production method has the process of heating an organosilicon compound in metal vapor (such as Mg vapor) to form a composite of silicon carbide and metal oxide, and the process of eluting metal oxide from the composite. Porous silicon carbide produced by this method is suitable for application that requires a large surface area because of its high porosity.

• others

Although stainless steel is an industrially important iron alloy, its specific strength is inferior to that of other metals because of its large specific gravity. An iron alloy having low specific gravity and high strength is required for the transport equipment.　 　The present invention provides high strength iron alloy having the maximum 0.2% proof stress and the tensile stress more than 1000 MPa while having the specific gravity less than 7.

• others

A requirement for biocompatible Ti alloy for orthopedic implants is to suppress stress shielding, which occurs because of the large difference between Young’s moduli of the prosthetic stem and the cortical bone (10–30 GPa). Meanwhile, conventional autoclave sterilization before implant exhibits the discoloration and heaviest particulate contamination, and some multiple sterilization regimens for metallic materials may pose serious biological concerns. 　The present invention can provide the necessary functions to a Ti implant material without impairing the low Young's modulus of Ti alloy. It possesses high antibacterial properties with a high antibacterial activity value above 2.0 from the antibacterial test (JIS R 1702) and osseointegration fromhydroxyapatite formation on the surface of Ti alloy in simulated body fluid.

• others

Optical linear encoder is used as high accuracy displacement sensor for semiconductor manufacturing equipment and various absolute position detection methods have been implemented. However, complex micro-pattern combinations and detection opticsare necessary. For this purpose, an optical single-axis encoder thatuses white light source and diffraction grating with unequal tickspacing is proposed to detect the absolute position based on the spectrum of the analyzer. However, the rotational motion error of thegrating affects the position detection. 　The present invention is able to provide an optical absolute positionmeasurement device and method with high resolution and accuracyin single or double axis by analyzing the spectrum of a diffractedbunch light. An unequal spaced grating is provided to incident thebunch white light, and the absolute position is detected from the peakwavelengths detected on the optical spectrum of the analyzer.

• others

There is a guideline that concrete structure should not be demolded (removal of the mold) until the initial strength reach at a sufficient level. A simple and accurate strength measurement method is required before demolding in order to shorten the construction time. Conventionally, specimens should be prepared to measure the strength so it is time-consuming and costly. The some pin penetration methods are available, e.g. for shotcrete in tunnels, but they are not easy to introduce because of expensive specialized equipment requirements. 　The strength measurement on BOSS specimen which is extra-constructed on a structure is also known for its high accuracy, but it requires time for separating the specimen from the structure and does not allow the compressive test on-site. Other non-destructive test methods also exist, but there is no method applicable before demolding. 　This invention is about a simple technique for measuring the concrete strength on-site, from the pre-demolding stage, using a pin penetration device. The configuration of the measuring section and equipment enables high accurate measurement with reduced influence of coarse aggregate in a non-destructive manner.

• others

Deep ultraviolet light emitting device (DUV-LED) is fabricated from AlGaN-based nitride semiconductor. The substrate material for the AlGaN-based DUV-LED is required to have high lattice matching with AlGaN, wider band gap than AlGaN and high thermal conductivity. Aluminum nitride (AlN) is attracting attention since it satisfies those conditions.　 　The sublimation method is a conventional method for producing AlN single crystal, but the cost is high because of high temperature requirement, and temperature control is also difficult. 　Using this technology, single-crystal AlN seed crystal can be created at a relatively high speed under low-temperature and easy temperature control conditions.

• others

Today, several mechanisms that can switch between a deformable flexible state and a high rigidity state are known. For example, there is a mechanism to increase rigidity by applying negative pressure to the wire, or a mechanism in which adjacent connecting parts increase the rigidity of the joint area. However, there were various issues such as the rigidity limitation due to the limit of the negative pressure, the difficulty of achieving high rigidity at the extremity due to the length of the wire, or the inability to bend the wire in any direction.　 　This invention solves above issues, and is able to provide a variable stiffness deformable body and mechanism which can bend in any direction at flexible state, increase rigidity at high rigidity state, and make the entire body highly rigid even if it is lengthened. The invention is characterized by a long flexible deformable body, a long bag shaped body, a support mean and a fluid supply / discharge mean. The invention is able to fix the body shape at high rigidity even if the body is bent, twisted in any direction or straightened, by suppling the fluid into the bag interior.

• others

Fat and oil are easily oxidized by heat and light irradiation during the manufacturing process and storage. Since antioxidant measure depends on the oxidation cause, it is important to determine not only the oxidation level but also its cause in order to maintain the vegetable oil quality.　 　Although a method for identifying the oxidation cause through isomer analysis of lipid hydroperoxide by LC-MS/MS has been reported [1], this method is not versatile since it requires complicated operation, and laboratory level facility and equipment. On the other hand, this research has established a method to identify the oxidation cause using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR), which is widely used for nondestructive analysis of food product. So far, NIR has been used to evaluate oil oxidation, such as peroxide value, carbonyl value, and conjugated diene value of vegetable oil, but it has not been applied to determine the oxidation cause. This invention is able to quickly and easily identify the cause for fat and oil oxidation.

• others

Although the Q factors of the 2D oscillator used in gyroscope must be matched in the x and y axial directions, they may differ slightly due to manufacturing error, etc. Thus, Q factor in each x and y axial direction needs to be matched independently. In a oscillator, vibration generates heat flow which affects the Q factor (thermoelastic loss). Therefore, it is possible to adjust the Q factor by adding a heat flow path in the structure or by blocking the heat flow. The 2D oscillator of this invention has a pre-fabricated machinable part to control the heat flow without changing significantly the stiffness, in addition to its basic structure. The Q factors in the 1st and 2nd modes, which are orthogonal to each other, can be controlled independently by cutting this machinable part appropriately.

• others

This invention related to a FM gyro sensor.　 　Conventional FM gyro has technical issue that accuracy is affected by temperature fluctuation. This is because it needs 2 different oscillators, thus, temperature different, manufacturing irregularity exists in between these two oscillators. 　This invention hires single oscillator and different oscillation mode are excited to it. 　By above mentioned method, high independency from temperature effect has been achieved. 　In addition to it, thanks to its unique method, this gyro sensor can be used as magnetic sensor, pressure sensor and so on. 　Various patent has been applied/granted and mature patent portfolio has been developed.

• others

The mechanism that switches between a flexible state, which can be easily deformed when applying external force, and a high stiff state, which can transmit force to the outside when contact is made, has been studied in the past. A gripper that grasps an object using this mechanism has also been proposed. There are a wide variety of grippers, some consisting of a plurality of connecting parts arranged in a row connected to each other with a rotation flexibility, and others consisting of beads arranged in a row through a wire. However, increasing its length results to the loss of friction force, so it is not possible to achieve a high stiff state and to change the shape by itself. 　This invention overcomes these issues, and provides a variable stiffness connecting body that can change its own shape and maintain a high stiff state with a relatively small force. This invention has pulleys on multiple connecting parts that are connected in a row. Each pulley has a string for rotation and is configured to allow switching between fixed and rotational states of the connecting parts. This invention can reduce the force required to keep the connecting body in a fixed and high stiff state, thus allowing to keep grasping the object with a relatively small force.

• others

Liquefaction is a phenomenon where the ground becomes in liquid form and looses suddenly its resistance. It occurs when vibrations from earthquake or construction are applied to soft ground containing lot of sand and having high groundwater level. It causes significant damage to structures located on the ground surface or underground. 　Therefore, the practical application of technology to assess the liquefaction level is required. 　There are conventional methods to assess liquefaction risk using AI, but they all require ground data. However, although those ground data can be collected by boring, method for Swedish weight sounding test or surface wave survey, these operations require huge resources. 　This invention can assess the liquefaction risk level without requiring the work of collecting ground data.

• others

Conventional manganese-silicide-based thermoelectric material MnSix has excellent thermoelectric property and thermal shock resistance. For example, the output factor S2σ (where S is the Seebeck coefficient and σ is the electrical conductivity), which is one of the thermoelectric property, is maximum 2.22 mW/K2m at 500C. 　However, MnSi (manganese monosilicide) is deposited in the layers in MnSix c-axis direction with a period of several tens microns, which causes a decrease of the figure of merit Z (output factor S2σ divided by thermal conductivity κ) of the material. 　This invention limits the MnSi layer deposition and provides a thermoelectric material with an excellent thermoelectric property and its manufacturing method.

• others

Dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) is known as a target of the anticancer drug MTX, and research tools (kits for evaluating protein subcellular localization, etc.) utilizing the binding between Escherichia coli DHFR (eDHFR) and MTX or its analogues have been reported and sold. The inventors developed azoMTX, in which an azo group is introduced into MTX, and found that the binding to eDHFR by light irradiation can be regulated. They also found that the kinetics of eDHFR fusion protein expressed in cells can be manipulated by light using azoMTX derivatives. 【effect】 ・The structure of azoMTX is reversibly changed by light irradiation of a specific wavelength. The cis of azoMTX produced under UV irradiation strongly bound to eDHFR and inhibited its enzymatic activity, while the trans of azoMTX produced under visible light irradiation decreased the binding strength to eDHFR and the enzymatic reaction proceeded. ・The target protein was expressed as a fusion protein with eDHFR, and intracellular kinetics (localization) could be reversibly photomanipulated using an azoMTX derivative.

• others

When unsaturated fatty acid contained in abundance in rice oil and linseed oil, which are expected to have preventive effect against lifestyle-related diseases, is oxidized, it exhibits unpleasant odor and toxicity derived from peroxide and aldehyde. On the other hand, it has been reported that spermine, a polyamine compound, synergistically inhibits oxidation with vitamin E which is widely used as an antioxidant. However, polyamine compound has a characteristic odor and it is relatively expensive, so it is difficult to apply for a general usage. The inventors have found that polyethylenimine (PEI) can be used as an antioxidant with advantage over polyamine compound in term of odor, cost, and oxidation suppression ability. [Effect] 　- Increase oxidation inhibition by vitamin E 　- Synergistic antioxidant effect can be obtained for omega-3 oil, which does not well inhibit oxidation by vitamin E 　- Since PEI is insoluble in oil and highly viscous, it can be used for direct coating on oil storage container to obtain its oxidation supression effect.

• others

This invention realizes a P2P-type cloud storage mechanism based on the secret sharing method. Impossible to identify the saving destination Data is splited and stored in participating nodes. In addition, node-to-node communication is anonymous, making it secure and difficult to identify the storage location. The client doesn’t need to retain metadata Reduce the risk of metadata leak by decentralizing its storage in addition to the secret data itself by using the blockchain. Possible to retrieve data securely Secret data can be retrieved using user name and password. It can detect and eliminate brute force attack on username and password by mutual monitoring and majority voting among P2P nodes.

• others

Actually, the waste heat below 200℃ emitted by electronic device, etc., is difficult to control and therefore, it is not effectively reused. This heat reduces performance and lifespan of electronic device. A heat engine that uses MEMS to control the heat flow has been developed, but it requires a relatively large space to house the drive unit, making it difficult to integrate into small electronic device. 　This invention is able to provide nanosheet and nanosheet manufacturing method. This nanosheet can be easily integrated into small electronic device, etc. which can control heat flow. It has a copper oxide layer with Cu and O bonded in a chain forming a ladder pattern, and its thickness is less than 100 nm. Due to this thinness, the nanosheet can be easily integrated into electronic devices that are becoming smaller, and the thermal conductivity can be controlled easily.

• others

　With the increase of request for device miniaturization and thin crystal film quality improvement, the ion damage on substrate has become a major issue in sputtering. The magnetron sputtering method is widely used but since the plasma is formed directly between the target material and the substrate, “1 it is difficult to avoid ion damage”. This issue is amplified when generating highdensity plasma. In addition, since a single power supply is responsible for both the plasma generation and ion attraction, “2 it is impossible to independently control the ion flux and energy flowing into the target material”. Moreover, since the plasma is confined by the magnetic leakage flux on the target surface, “3 it is difficult to use for ferromagnetic material target”. 　This invention solves above 1/2/3 issues by generating highdensity plasma with helicon discharge and by controlling the plasma shape with a curved magnetic field, etc. This invention could also be considered to be used as a heating mechanism of the target material, or as an uniform & fast film deposition.

• others

Metal and ceramic repel each other when mixing due to their positive surface charge. So since they are dispersed away, the composite can not be formed. The conventional technology uses a binder composed mainly of polyvinyl alcohol to glue metal and ceramic. This is then sintered in order to make a composite powder. 　However, the binder reduces the functionality due to compositional change (specifically, mechanical property deterioration, optical absorbance decrease, etc.) and handling during production is difficult. 　This invention is able to easily make ceramic / metal composite by using carbon nanotube (CNT). Application of various powder to bulk material is expected, such as sintered material and composite material by 3D printer. It is also possible to create a pure composite of metal / CNT, and this technology is expected to improve the antioxidation property of the base metal material.

• others

　Various magnetic sensors such as the Hall sensor, are widely used for the realization of an advanced IoT society. In particular, magnetic sensors based on the tunnel magnetoresistance effect (TMR sensor) discovered at Tohoku University has made dramatic progress in increasing sensitivity, making it possible to detect a weak magnetic field such as bio-magnetic field. 　However, the conventional TMR sensor did not achieve both high sensitivity and accuracy. 　This invention is able to provide a TMR sensor with extremely high linearity output which is necessary to achieve high sensitivity and accuracy, by controlling the higher-order magnetic anisotropy of the used ferromagnetic material.

• others

TMR element showing the tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) effect, has been applied to products such as magnetic sensor, non-volatile memory, etc. The TMR ratio, which represents the variation ratio of element resistance, is one of the element performance indicator and it is an important characteristic that influences the specification of the applied product. TMR element using amorphous FeCoB magnetic alloy and MgO tunnel barrier is currently the main material and can be fabricated by sputtering method which is suitable for mass production. This is an excellent material which becomes FeCo/MgO crystal when B is diffused by heat-treating the element and shows 200-600% TMR ratio. However, heat treatment with B diffusion could be a factor in reducing the functionality of other layers adjacent to FeCo. This invention provides a technology for Co-based magnetic irregular alloy showing TMR ratio comparable to FeCoB by low temperature heat treatment, even without the addition of B.

• others

The present invention relates to a thallium halide radiation detector such as thallium bromide (TlBr) used in a positron tomography imaging diagnostic apparatus (PET), a single-photon radiation computed tomography apparatus (SPECT), and the like, and to PET or SPECT equipped therewith.　 　On the background of PET, a radiation detector using a CdTe crystal is used for a high-performance type detector, but it has a problem that it is a covalent crystal, has a high melting point, and is expensive to fabricate. For example, the price of only a crystal per device is expensive at several hundred million yen. Therefore, thallium halide such as TlBr, which is inexpensive, has attracted attention as an alternative material to CdTe. 　According to the present invention, since conduction ions in thallium halide crystals such as TlBr do not cause polarization phenomena in the detector, an inexpensive thallium halide radiation detector with a long lifetime can be obtained. In addition, the present invention is applicable to general radiation detectors, not limited to PET.

• others

In a factory for example, the end of a wired network is an access point such as a wireless LAN. The connection to the object beyond that point is made by a wireless communication system. Therefore, the wireless IoT communication is important for network connection to object. Wireless IoT communication often uses wireless LAN, Bluetooth, etc., which are unlicensed band, causing interference between systems, resulting in throughput reduction or real-time performance lack.　 　This invention is able to suppress inter-system interference using adjacent same frequency bands and to improve space usage efficiency. This communication circuit is equipped with an access point for wireless communication with a plurality of sensor nodes. 　This invention measures the rotation period and direction of sensor nodes, controls the direction of the beam sent out from each access point, and communicates to sensor nodes available in the communication range. It suppresses inter-system interference using adjacent same frequency bands and improves space usage efficiency.

• others

Scintillators are used for detectors of X-ray, γ-ray, α-ray, β-ray, and neutron. In particular, high-density scintillator crystals have characteristics such as a) high radiation blocking ability, b) high effective atomic number, and c) high density. Although PbWO4 single crystal is widely used in existing high density scintillator materials, new scintillator materials are required for further improvement of detector performance and environmentally friendly lead-free scintillator materials.　 　The present invention makes it possible to provide new materials beyond existing scintillator materials as a result of utilizing the excellent crystal growth technology possessed by the inventors. Generally, high-density scintillator materials are known to have high melting points, but the difficulty of crystal growth overcame to complete the present invention (an example is shown on the right). At present, a large-diameter technology is being developed for mass-production of the crystal.

• others

Nondestructive evaluation (NDE) of cracks, delamination, and kissing bonds is important for safely managing and operating structures and components. Ultrasonic NDE is widely used, and ultrasonic phased array has become one of the primary methods for imaging internal defects. However, there are problems regarding measurement errors of closed defects, such as closed cracks, and discrimination of cracks against other defects and geometric changes.　 With the present invention, it has become possible to provide an imaging apparatus capable of detecting defects represented by closed cracks with high accuracy and high discrimination. Further application of the apparatus can be expected to detect bubbles and lesions contained in tissues. In the present invention, by utilizing the incident-wave-amplitude dependence of the fundamental scattered waves, the closed cracks can be visualized with a higher signal-to-noise ratio than the existing technology.

• others

Toxin adsorbents such as SGLT2 inhibitors and cremedin have been used as pharmacotherapy for kidney disease. Lubiprostone, which is also used as a constipation drug, was shown to be effective as a treatment for chronic kidney disease (CKD). Lubiprostone was also found to suppress the decline in renal function. In an investigator-initiated clinical trial, the inventors conducted an exploratory study to investigate the efficacy and safety of 8 μg/day and 16 μg/day of lubiprostone in reducing renal function in patients with chronic kidney disease, using a placebo control. (The results can be disclosed under individual contracts.)

• others

Cylindrical rock sample (rock core) taken from a well is analyzed for underground resources exploitation. Analysis of rock core can be used to estimate subsurface material and to measure physical property of formation in a simple way at low cost. Moreover, if the orientation of rock core at in-situ status is known, it is expected to estimate information on the formation, such as the direction of crustal stress, the anisotropy of permeability and the direction of subsurface fault.　 　There is a conventional method to orientate rock core by tracing the borehole image taken by logging and matching it with the surface image of the rock core. This method takes a long time and leads to a subjective conclusion since the orientation is determined visually. 　This invention is about a method to orientate rock core by image analysis, which enables orientation in a shorter time with an objective process than conventional method.

• others

Currently, satellite positioning method using signal emitted from satellite is known to determine the location of an object. Construction equipment such as backhoe and dump truck changes its position and posture. For example, a dump truck changes its posture with the angle of his cargo bed change. As a result, construction equipment with such changing position and posture may not be able to continue the position determination process.　 　This invention is able to continue the process of determining one object's position even if this object changes its posture. In determining the position of an object using signal emitted from satellite, the invention determines the position of the object without using signal emitted from invisible satellite that may not be able to receive direct waves when the object's posture changes. This improves the accuracy of position information even when one object's posture changes.

• others

Currently, research and development are being conducted on information processing device that reads information indicated by markers on the image taken by a moving object such as robot, and that controls the moving object. More the complexity of mobile object movement increases, more the information quantity to be read from the markers becomes important. When there are huge information, the information of each marker is read by the information processing device, but the marker number increases as the information increases. As a result, the information processing device is unable to operate the moving object with accuracy.　 　This invention is able to provide marker, information processing device and program that can accurately detect more information from the captured images in which markers are captured, while avoiding the increase of marker number. This invention has 1st marker indicating the 1st information and 2nd marker indicating the 2nd information that are superimposed on the marker, which reflect electromagnetic wave of each wavelength band and indicate the information by different encoding. This allows more information to be detected with accuracy from the captured image, while avoiding the increase of marker number.

• others

Point cloud data obtained from UAV photogrammetry is processed to create orthomosaic image, bird's eye view and 3D model, in order to understand the topography. However, in curvilinear topography such as river, road, waterway and coastline, it is difficult to grasp the whole picture of the curvilinear topography and its surrounding areas because these models are displayed in curvilinear form as they are. 　This technology provides a method and a program that can easily grasp curved topography visually. It has concretely the following features. 　◆Automatic extraction of cross-sections from 3D point cloud 　◆Easy viewing of the entire image by linear arrangement of curved topography 　◆Able to compare topography changes over multiple time period 　◆Obtain elevation of cross-sectional and longitudinal sections of the target topography 　◆Display seasonal changes of the surrounding environment (vegetation, etc.)

• others

　Compared with semi-solid diecast products, the ones produced by conventional diecast methods not only arise rougher surface, but also trend to fail to fill up the end surface with thickness of 0.1mm. So far, semi-solid diecast method cannot be simply applied to conventional apparatus, and thus increased cost turns to be a problem in industry. 　This invention solves such a problem by optimization of proportion of solid phase, sleeve factor, and nucleation temperature for conventional apparatus. Semi-solid slurry can be generated in the sleeves of conventional apparatus, and notably, the thin surface fill-up result shows satisfied roughness and dimensional accuracy. [Substance] patent has been issued.

• others

CeO2-ZrO2 composite oxide with excellent oxygen storage capacity (OSC) has been used as an atmosphere control material for ternary catalysts used to purify exhaust gas from automobiles. Among CeO2-ZrO2 composite oxides, κ phase (cubic pyrochlore like structure) is known to exhibit the highest OSC. However, due to the high temperature required for the synthesis process of κ phase, the specific surface area is significantly reduced and practical application of κ phase is difficult.　 In the present invention, it has become possible to provide an atmosphere-controlling material consisting of an oxide containing κ phase, in which the decrease in the specific surface area is greatly suppressed by the synthesis process at a lower temperature than in the conventional process. The low temperature is realized by adding Fe oxide during the synthesis of the complex oxide. The material by this synthesis process shows a clear XRD pattern assigned to the κ phase and has a specific surface area of 3 m2/g or more. This shows the possibility of practical application of the κ phase, and it can be said that the technology is expected to improve the purification ability of exhaust gas.

• others

In recent years, power generation element that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy, such as vibration, has been attracting attention. For example, piezoelectric and magnetostrictive materials are known to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. However, mechanical energy such as vibration has not been fully used so far. Therefore, there is a need for power generation element that can convert mechanical energy into electrical energy more efficiently.　 　This invention is able to provide a high power generating element and a piezoelectric-magnetostrictive composite to use for this device. This invention laminates a magnetostrictive film and a piezoelectric film and forms a microscopic irregularity at the interface between them. This configuration increases the frequency of contact between the 2 materials at the microscopic interface area, causing electromagnetic physical interaction between magnetostrictive film and piezoelectric film, which improves the power generation element's output characteristics. This allows mechanical energy to convert efficiently into electrical energy.

• others

MR-Linac, which combines MR device that uses magnetic field and radiotherapy device (Linac), has begun to develop as a new treatment device for radiotherapy. On the other hand, since the therapeutic radiation is bent by the magnetic field emitted from the device, it is necessary to create a treatment plan based on the dose distribution in order to take into account magnetic field influence, but existing methods require time-consuming.　 　In general, calculation algorithm such as convolution / superposition is quick (about 1-2 minutes), but it cannot take into account magnetic field influence. On the other hand, high precision algorithm such as the Monte Calro Algorithm can take into account magnetic field influence, but the calculation is slow (about 10 to 20 minutes). 　This invention solves above issue by using deep learning technology to perform dose calculation. Currently, there is no accurate and quick dose calculation algorithm under magnetic field, so this invention is essential for MRI guided radiotherapy.

• others

With the increasing demand for highly efficient energy sources and technological developments in the aerospace sector, materials used in these fields are required to be usable in multi-extreme condition. Among promising materials in the aerospace field, TiB2 is used as a heat-resistant and wear-resistant material due to its high melting point, mechanical strength and high conductivity. However, it is known that the mechanical strength of TiB2 deteriorates due to the oxidation of the material in a high temperature environment, which limits its industrial application.　 　The present invention demonstrates the potential of transition metal boride as a structural material in a high-temperature environment without compromising its inherent properties by adding a twist to the sintering process. This is a result of expanding the potential of transition metal borides as structural members, which are limited to powder and thin film applications due to their poor sinterability.

• others

As a method for recovering valuable metals from spent LIB cathode materials, a wet scouring method is mainly used in which various metals are separated using a back extraction method using an organic solvent after leaching metal components using an acid. However, sulfuric acid and nitric acid, which are used as acids, cause a large environmental load because toxic gases are generated, and hydrogen peroxide, which is used as a reducing agent, has problems such as explosiveness and carcinogenicity. In a system without adding hydrogen peroxide, the recovery rate of metal ions decreases, so that improvement of the process is required.　 　In order to solve the above problems, the inventors focused on a hydrothermal reaction and examined reaction conditions such as the type of acid. As a result, they succeeded in almost completely leaching metals without using strong acids and reducing agents by using organic acids such as citric acid and the amino acid glycine. The effects of continuous operation, shortening of reaction time, and avoiding corrosion of equipment can be expected by the present invention.　　

• others

Hydrogen is attracting attention as a sustainable energy source, but all current hydrogen generation methods, such as water electrolysis or steam reforming of fossil fuel, have an important environmental impact. The "hydrolysis" which generates hydrogen by reacting metallic material with water, is attracting attention as a hydrogen generation method with a small environmental impact. The advantage of the hydrolysis is that it does not generate oxygen but only hydrogen, so the oxygen separation process is not necessary and there is no risk of explosion. 　Hydrogen generating materials consisting of Mg or Mg alloy have been reported as material for hydrolysis, but the phase which does not react with water such as Mg(OH)2 is formed and the reaction stops in the middle of the reaction process. Therefore, most of the previously reported hydrogen generating materials have a small hydrogen generation per unit weight. 　This invention is about the hydrogen generating alloy that does not stop reaction even inside neutral aqueous solution. This alloy generates a large amount of hydrogen per unit weight because it reacts with water until the end without stopping the reaction in the middle. Moreover, the alloy is composed only of Mg and Ca elements, which are present in large quantity on Earth and are not toxic to the ecosystem. There are very few hydrogen generating materials that do not generate heavy metal ions through hydrolysis, and this alloy has potential to use in any location.

• others

CVD and electrochemical method are known to product carbon material such as carbon nanotubes or graphenes. In the CVD process, carbon material is produced at high temperature in order to decompose the precursor molecule that provides the carbon. The hydrothermal electrochemical method can produce carbon material at lower temperature than CVD method. However, the amount of carbon material produced by this method is small.　 　This invention is to enable to produce large amount of carbon material at relatively low temperature. In this production method, carbon material is produced from aqueous solution in which the temperature is 100℃ or higher, the pressure is greater than 1 atm, and soluble carbonaceous precursors by a hydrothermal electrochemical method. The produced carbon material can be composed of at least one of diamond like carbon, carbon nanotube, graphene, diamond. This invention is to enable to produce large amount of carbon material at relatively low temperature.

• others

This invention is about a non-contact & non-destructive inspection method for evaluating the degradation with the age of thermal barrier coating on heat resistant metallic material by using microwave. The formation and growth of thermally grown oxide (TGO) which is formed as a result of aging, is evaluated for ceramic coated element used in gas turbine thermal power generation, and the interfacial strength is indirectly evaluated. YSZ (top coat) is used in ceramic coating for gas turbine element, and MCrAlY alloy layer (bond coat) is inserted between the YSZ and the substrate (Ni-based superalloy) to increase delamination resistance. This element is known to form TGO on the bond coat as the material deteriorates, so the element life evaluation is possible by evaluating TGO.

• others

The applicability of quinone compound for both cathode and anode has been considered, aiming for low cost and safe energy storage material that does not contain rare or toxic element. However, even if quinone compound is supported on a porous material such as activated carbon, the quinone compound leaches out from the porous material, resulting in a short life span (that is to say poor cycle life) as an energy storage material.　 　This invention solves the issue of cycle life. Consequently, we have demonstrated that the energy density of the new power storage device reaches the same level as a lead battery even though it is composed only of organic material.

• others