1. A method of determining skin anisotropy of a subject, said method comprising measuring rates of propagation of mechanical energy between a mechanical energy generator and a mechanical energy detector along a plurality of directions of an expanse of skin wherein each of said directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 10\xb0 in separation relative at least one other of said directions and at least two of said directions are from about 30\xb0 to about 180\xb0 in separation relative to each other.
2. A method of claim 1, wherein at least two of said directions are at least about 90\xb0 in separation relative to each other.
3. A method of claim 1, wherein each of said directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 5\xb0 in separation relative to least one other of said directions.
4. A method of claim 2, wherein each of said directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 5\xb0 in separation relative to least one other of said directions.
5. A method of claim 1 wherein the rate of propagation along one of said directions is at least about 3 times the first rate of propagation along one of the other directions.
6. A method of claim 1, wherein a distance between said mechanical energy generator and said mechanical energy detector is from about 0.5 mm and about 5 mm.
7. A method of claim 1, wherein said mechanical energy generator and said mechanical energy detector are transducers.
8. A method of claim 1 wherein the expanse of skin has a location selected from a group consisting of the upper inner arm, the jaw, the upper inner thigh, the abdomen, and the neck.
9. A method of claim 1 wherein the expanse of skin is located on the upper inner arm.
10. A method of claim 1 wherein said mechanical energy comprises an elastic shear wave.
11. A method of claim 1 wherein said mechanical energy has a frequency from about 0.5 kHz to about 30 kHz.
12. A method of claim 1, said method further comprising determining a skin anisotropy parameter based on said measured rates and comparing said skin anisotropy parameter to a standard skin anisotropy parameter that is associated with skin age.
13. A method of determining the efficacy of a skin treatment said comprising the steps of:
(i) measuring a first set of rates of propagation of mechanical energy along a plurality of first directions of an expanse of skin wherein each of said first directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 10\xb0 in separation relative at least one other of said first directions and at least two of said first directions are from about 30\xb0 to about 180\xb0 in separation relative to each other;
(ii) administering a treatment to said expanse of skin; and
(iii) measuring a second set of rates of propagation of mechanical energy along a plurality of second directions of an expanse of skin wherein each of said second directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 10\xb0 in separation relative at least one other of said second directions and at least two of said second directions are from about 30\xb0 to about 180\xb0 in separation relative to each other; and
(iv) comparing said first set and said second set.
14. A method of claim 13 wherein said treatment comprises applying a topical composition to the expanse of skin.
15. A method of claim 13 wherein said treatment comprises applying a device to the expanse of skin.
16. A method of claim 13, wherein at least two of said directions are at least about 90\xb0 in separation relative to each other.
17. A method of claim 13, wherein each of said directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 5\xb0 in separation relative to least one other of said directions.
18. A method of claim 16, wherein each of said directions are from about 0\xb0 to about 5\xb0 in separation relative to least one other of said directions.
19. A method of promoting a product, said method comprising promoting the use of said product for reducing the appearance of the age of a user’s skin wherein the efficacy of said product was determined using the method of claim 13.
20. A method of claim 16, wherein said product is a composition for topical application to the skin.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1-6. (canceled)
7. A control device for a drive device including a first and a second actuators, a driven body that is driven by the actuators, and a power transmission mechanism that transmits the driving forces of the actuators to the driven body such that the driven body is driven by an amount equivalent to the total of the drive amounts of the actuators, the control device comprising:
a first multiplier that outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying a generated total drive command value by a first gain G1, as a first drive command value;
a second multiplier that outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the total drive command value by a second gain G2, as a second drive command value;
a first controller that controls the first actuator on the basis of the first drive command value;
a second controller that controls the second actuator on the basis of the second drive command value;
a gain calculator that calculates the gains G1 and G2;
a first drive amount detector that detects the drive amount of the first actuator and outputs a value Ef1 indicating the detection value to the gain calculator;
a second drive amount detector that detects the drive amount of the second actuator and outputs a value Ef2 indicating the detection value to the gain calculator; and
a total drive amount detector that detects the drive amount of the driven body and outputs a value Ef indicating the detection value to the gain calculator,
wherein the gain calculator calculates the first gain G1 according to a first gain calculation formula using Ef1 and Ef as variables and calculates the second gain G2 according to a second gain calculation formula using Ef2 and Ef as variables,
the first and second gain calculation formulae are set such that the first and the second gains G1 and G2 become \xbd regardless of the values of the variables while the drive device is normal,
Ef changes within a range from zero to an upper limit value Lmax,
the gain calculator brings the first gain G1 close to (Ef1\u2212Lmax2)(Ef\u2212Lmax) and brings the second gain G2 close to (Ef2\u2212Lmax2)(Ef\u2212Lmax) in the case where Ef1, Ef2, or Ef approaches zero.
8. The control device according to claim 7,
wherein the first and second gain calculation formulae are:
G1=G1A+G1B and
G2=G2A+G2B, respectively, and
G1A, G1B and G2A, G2B in the formulae are determined by
G
1
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A
=
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f
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1
E
f
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1
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max
\xd7
G
1
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AA
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2
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A
=
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f
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max
\xd7
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2
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AA
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1
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B
=
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max
)
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2
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B
=
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f
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max
)
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2
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1
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=
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f
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max
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2
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=
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f
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2
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f
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2
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max
\xd7
G
2
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AA
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1
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B
=
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G
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2
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B
=
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f
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f
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2
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max
)
\xd7
G
2
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BB
Expression
\ue89e
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1
where Ef1max denotes a maximum value that the drive amount of the first actuator can take in the case where the first and the second actuators are normally operating, and Ef2max denotes a maximum value that the drive amount of the second actuator can take in the case where the first and the second actuators are normally operating, and G1AA, G1BB and G2AA, G2BB are determined by
G
1
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AA
=
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f
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1
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=
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f
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1
–
L
max
2
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f
–
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max
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2
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BB
=
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f
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–
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max
2
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f
–
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max
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=
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=
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–
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max
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max
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2
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=
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–
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max
2
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f
–
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max
Expression
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2
where Lmax is ideally equal to the sum of Ef1max and Ef2max.
9. The control device according to claim 7, comprising:
a first state determiner that determines whether or not the first actuator is normally operating; and
a second state determiner that determines whether or not the second actuator is normally operating,
wherein the first multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the first gain G1 calculated by the gain calculator by a total drive command value, as a first drive command value, and the second multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the second gain G2 calculated by the gain calculator by the total drive command value, as a second drive command value in the case where the first and second state determiners have determined that the first and the second actuators, respectively, are normally operating,
the second multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the second gain G2 whose value is 1 by the total drive command value, as the second drive command value in the case where the first state determiner has determined that the first actuator is not operating, and
the first multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the first gain G1 whose value is 1 by the total drive command value, as the first drive command value in the case where the second state determiner has determined that the second actuator is not operating.
10. The control device according to claim 8, comprising:
a first state determiner that determines whether or not the first actuator is normally operating; and
a second state determiner that determines whether or not the second actuator is normally operating,
wherein the first multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the first gain G1 calculated by the gain calculator by a total drive command value, as a first drive command value, and the second multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the second gain G2 calculated by the gain calculator by the total drive command value, as a second drive command value in the case where the first and second state determiners have determined that the first and the second actuators, respectively, are normally operating,
the second multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the second gain G2 whose value is 1 by the total drive command value, as the second drive command value in the case where the first state determiner has determined that the first actuator is not operating, and
the first multiplier outputs a value, which is obtained by multiplying the first gain G1 whose value is 1 by the total drive command value, as the first drive command value in the case where the second state determiner has determined that the second actuator is not operating.
11. The control device according to claim 9,
wherein the first state determiner determines, on the basis of Ef1 and Ef, whether or not the first actuator is normally operating and
the second state determiner determines, on the basis of Ef2 and Ef, whether or not the second actuator is normally operating.
12. The control device according to claim 10,
wherein the first state determiner determines, on the basis of Ef1 and Ef, whether or not the first actuator is normally operating and
the second state determiner determines, on the basis of Ef2 and Ef, whether or not the second actuator is normally operating.
13. The control device according to claim 7,
wherein the total drive command value is a difference between Ef and a position command value Ep in a range from zero to a maximum value, and the difference is input as the total drive command value to the first and second multipliers, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector, and
a signal value switcher that sets a signal value to be input to the first and second multipliers as the total drive command value to the difference between Ep and 2Ef1 or the difference between Ep and 2Ef2 and fixes the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and the second multipliers to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
14. The control device according to claim 8,
wherein the total drive command value is a difference between Ef and a position command value Ep in a range from zero to a maximum value, and the difference is input as the total drive command value to the first and second multipliers, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector, and
a signal value switcher that sets a signal value to be input to the first and second multipliers as the total drive command value to the difference between Ep and 2Ef1 or the difference between Ep and 2Ef2 and fixes the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and the second multipliers to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
15. The control device according to claim 9,
wherein the total drive command value is a difference between Ef and a position command value Ep in a range from zero to a maximum value, and the difference is input as the total drive command value to the first and second multipliers, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector, and
a signal value switcher that sets a signal value to be input to the first and second multipliers as the total drive command value to the difference between Ep and 2Ef1 or the difference between Ep and 2Ef2 and fixes the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and the second multipliers to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
16. The control device according to claim 10,
wherein the total drive command value is a difference between Ef and a position command value Ep in a range from zero to a maximum value, and the difference is input as the total drive command value to the first and second multipliers, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector, and
a signal value switcher that sets a signal value to be input to the first and second multipliers as the total drive command value to the difference between Ep and 2Ef1 or the difference between Ep and 2Ef2 and fixes the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and the second multipliers to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
17. The control device according to claim 11,
wherein the total drive command value is a difference between Ef and a position command value Ep in a range from zero to a maximum value, and the difference is input as the total drive command value to the first and second multipliers, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector, and
a signal value switcher that sets a signal value to be input to the first and second multipliers as the total drive command value to the difference between Ep and 2Ef1 or the difference between Ep and 2Ef2 and fixes the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and the second multipliers to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
18. The control device according to claim 12,
wherein the total drive command value is a difference between Ef and a position command value Ep in a range from zero to a maximum value, and the difference is input as the total drive command value to the first and second multipliers, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector, and
a signal value switcher that sets a signal value to be input to the first and second multipliers as the total drive command value to the difference between Ep and 2Ef1 or the difference between Ep and 2Ef2 and fixes the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and the second multipliers to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
19. The control device according to claim 7,
wherein the total drive command value indicates a position command value Ep in the range from zero to a maximum value, and the control device comprises:
a first subtractor that receives a first drive command value output by the first multiplier and Ef1 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the first controller;
a second subtractor that receives a second drive command value output by the second multiplier and Ef2 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the second controller;
the first controller controls the first actuator according to the difference between the first drive command value and Ef1, while the second controller controls the second actuator according to the difference between the second drive command value and Ef2, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector,
wherein the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and second multipliers are fixed to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
20. The control device according to claim 8,
wherein the total drive command value indicates a position command value Ep in the range from zero to a maximum value, and the control device comprises:
a first subtractor that receives a first drive command value output by the first multiplier and Ef1 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the first controller;
a second subtractor that receives a second drive command value output by the second multiplier and Ef2 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the second controller;
the first controller controls the first actuator according to the difference between the first drive command value and Ef1, while the second controller controls the second actuator according to the difference between the second drive command value and Ef2, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector,
wherein the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and second multipliers are fixed to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
21. The control device according to claim 9,
wherein the total drive command value indicates a position command value Ep in the range from zero to a maximum value, and the control device comprises:
a first subtractor that receives a first drive command value output by the first multiplier and Ef1 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the first controller;
a second subtractor that receives a second drive command value output by the second multiplier and Ef2 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the second controller;
the first controller controls the first actuator according to the difference between the first drive command value and Ef1, while the second controller controls the second actuator according to the difference between the second drive command value and Ef2, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector,
wherein the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and second multipliers are fixed to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
22. The control device according to claim 10,
wherein the total drive command value indicates a position command value Ep in the range from zero to a maximum value, and the control device comprises:
a first subtractor that receives a first drive command value output by the first multiplier and Ef1 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the first controller;
a second subtractor that receives a second drive command value output by the second multiplier and Ef2 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the second controller;
the first controller controls the first actuator according to the difference between the first drive command value and Ef1, while the second controller controls the second actuator according to the difference between the second drive command value and Ef2, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector,
wherein the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and second multipliers are fixed to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
23. The control device according to claim 11,
wherein the total drive command value indicates a position command value Ep in the range from zero to a maximum value, and the control device comprises:
a first subtractor that receives a first drive command value output by the first multiplier and Ef1 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the first controller;
a second subtractor that receives a second drive command value output by the second multiplier and Ef2 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the second controller;
the first controller controls the first actuator according to the difference between the first drive command value and Ef1, while the second controller controls the second actuator according to the difference between the second drive command value and Ef2, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector,
wherein the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and second multipliers are fixed to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.
24. The control device according to claim 12,
wherein the total drive command value indicates a position command value Ep in the range from zero to a maximum value, and the control device comprises:
a first subtractor that receives a first drive command value output by the first multiplier and Ef1 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the first controller;
a second subtractor that receives a second drive command value output by the second multiplier and Ef2 and outputs a difference between the two received signal values to the second controller;
the first controller controls the first actuator according to the difference between the first drive command value and Ef1, while the second controller controls the second actuator according to the difference between the second drive command value and Ef2, and the control device further comprises:
a failure detector that detects a failure of the total drive amount detector,
wherein the first and second gains G1 and G2 to be input to the first and second multipliers are fixed to \xbd in the case where the failure detector has detected a failure of the total drive amount detector.