Toyota

About: Toyota is a company organization based out in Safenwil, Switzerland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Internal combustion engine & Exhaust gas. The organization has 40032 authors who have published 55003 publications receiving 735317 citations. The organization is also known as: Toyota Motor Corporation & Toyota Jidosha KK.

A method for dynamic simulation of rigid and flexible fibers in a flow field

Abstract: A method is proposed for simulating the dynamic behavior of rigid and flexible fibers in a flow field. The fiber is regarded as made up of spheres that are lined up and bonded to each neighbor. Each pair of bonded spheres can stretch, bend, and twist, by changing bond distance, bond angle, and torsion angle between spheres, respectively. The strength of bonding, or flexibility of the fiber model, is defined by three parameters of stretching, bending, and twisting constants. By altering these parameters, the property of the fiber model can be changed to be rigid to flexible. The motion of the fiber model in a flow field is determined by solving the translational and rotational equations for individual spheres under the hydrodynamic force and torque exerting on. This method was applied to simulate rotational motions with and without bending deformation of the fiber in a simple shear flow under the conditions of infinitely dilute system, no hydrodynamic interaction and low Reynolds number of a particle. For the rigid fiber, the computed period of rotation and the computed distribution of orientation angle agree with those calculated by Jeffery’s equation with an equivalent ellipsoidal aspect ratio. For the flexible fiber, the period of rotation decreases rapidly with the growth of bending deformation of the fiber and rotation orbits deviate from a circular one of the rigid fiber. These tendencies are similar to experimental ones described by Forgacs and Mason. These results show that the proposed method using bonded spheres’ model can reproduce the dynamic behavior of rigid and flexible fibers in a flow field successfully.

Energy transfer systems and methods for mobile vehicles

Abstract: An energy transfer system comprises a transmitter array, an energy transfer controller, a receiver array, a charging module. The transmitter array is embedded in a roadway and the energy transfer controller is coupled to the transmitter array. The receiver array and the charging module are part of a mobile vehicle. The transmitter array and the receiver array each include a plurality of coils. The energy transfer controller estimates a likely trajectory of the mobile vehicle and energizes individual coils of the transmitter array using this position estimate. The energy transfer controller varies the resonant circuit component values of the transmitter during the transfer cycle such as resonant coupling capacitance values. The charging module also varies the resonant circuit component values of the coils in the receiver array to match the transfer array for transfer of energy from the transmitter array to the receiver array. The present invention also includes a method for energy transfer.

Moving object with fuel cells incorporated therein and method of controlling the same

Abstract: In a hybrid vehicle with fuel cells and an engine mounted thereon as energy output sources, a technique is employed that adequately changes a working energy output source according to a driving state of the hybrid vehicle. The hybrid vehicle has the engine and a motor, both enabling power to be output to an axle. The hybrid vehicle also has fuel cells as a main electric power supply for driving the motor. The technique changes the working energy output source between the fuel cells and the engine, in order to reduce the output of the fuel cells with consumption of a fuel for the fuel cells. With a decrease in remaining quantity of the fuel, the technique narrows a specific driving range, in which the motor is used as the power source. The technique also causes the engine to drive the motor as a generator and charges a battery not with electric power of the fuel cells but with electric power generated by the motor. This arrangement effectively prevents the fuel for the fuel cells from being excessively consumed in one driving mode. The fuel cells can thus be used preferentially in a specific driving state of the hybrid vehicle where the fuel cells have a high efficiency.

Ad hoc peer-to-peer network architecture for vehicle safety communications

Abstract: This article addresses the design of an architecture for ad hoc peer-to-peer networking of neighboring vehicles to help achieve near-instantaneous communication for safety applications such as collision avoidance warnings. We propose a local peer group (LPG) architecture to organize neighboring vehicles that have frequently changing neighbors and have no inherent relationships with one another. We study two architectural alternatives for LPG in this article, and consider areas of improvement for ad hoc vehicle networking protocols to support safety communications including multihop throughput, connection setup time, and configuration.

Molecularly Designed, Nitrogen-Functionalized Graphene Quantum Dots for Optoelectronic Devices.

Abstract: Nitrogen-functionalized graphene quantum dots (NGQDs) with tailorable optical properties are prepared by a versatile technique, which allows the highest occupied molecular orbital/lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy levels and energy gaps to be continuously varied. The integration of NGQD layers into the structures significantly improves the performance of optoelectronic devices.