Ritsumeikan University

This research proposes a passively driven perching mechanism designed to land not only on flat surface but also on various shaped objects, such as bar, plate, and spherical object, without the use of additional actuators. The perching mechanism consists of three under actuated fingers, and utilizes two passive drive mechanisms: one for landing without bending the fingers but by pinching, and another for grasping by bending the fingers to land. As a result, a lightweight apparatus capable of landing on various objects without the need for additional CPUs, motors, or batteries for driving and controlling was achieved. The gripping force generated by this mechanism was calculated, and it was found that the gripping force varied depending on the size of the object. Finally, the actual forces exerted by the fingers during landing on objects like safety cones, boards, or pipes were measured and compared with theoretical values

State-of-the-art visual localization methods mostly rely on complex procedures to match local descriptors and 3D point clouds. However, these procedures can incur significant costs in terms of inference, storage, and updates over time. In this study, we propose a direct learning-based approach that utilizes a simple network named D2S to represent complex local descriptors and their scene coordinates. Our method is characterized by its simplicity and cost-effectiveness. It solely leverages a single RGB image for localization during the testing phase and only requires a lightweight model to encode a complex sparse scene. The proposed D2S employs a combination of a simple loss function and graph attention to selectively focus on robust descriptors while disregarding areas such as clouds, trees, and several dynamic objects. This selective attention enables D2S to effectively perform a binary-semantic classification for sparse descriptors. Additionally, we propose a simple outdoor dataset to evaluate the capabilities of visual localization methods in scene-specific generalization and self-updating from unlabeled observations. Our approach outperforms the previous regression-based methods in both indoor and outdoor environments. It demonstrates the ability to generalize beyond training data, including scenarios involving transitions from day to night and adapting to domain shifts.

In this paper, we propose a method for classifying multiple gait patterns including abnormal movements when walking on stairs using micro-Doppler radar. We measured three types of movements while walking down the stairs, including an abnormal movement that mimics falling, and then predicted the classification using CNN based on the spectrogram derived from the STFT. As a result, we confirmed that the classification accuracies were more than 97%.

Introduction To the best of our knowledge, no previous studies have linked the progression of hallux valgus (HV) with plantar pressure distribution. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the progression of HV angle in elite adolescent dancers and evaluate the risk factors associated with foot plantar pressure during demi-pointe movement. Methods For this cohort study, 40 adolescent dancesport dancers (age: 14.5 ± 1.3 years; height: 168.3 ± 8.3 cm; weight: 52.4 ± 8.1 kg) were recruited from a dancesport specialty school. All participants reported no foot or lower limb injuries or symptoms in the past year and were not undergoing any rehabilitation or medication treatment. The HV angle was measured by photography (HVAp). The HVAp survey included baseline and follow-up assessments after 1 year. Foot plantar pressures (kPa) were obtained using the F-Scan measurement system (Tekscan, Tokyo, Japan), and the data were divided into two categories based on the foot location (type 1: hallux, toe, and metatarsophalangeal [MTP] joint area and type 2: medial, middle, and lateral areas). Data were analyzed using the Pearson’s chi-square test and multiple logistic regression. Results The HVAp measurement demonstrated excellent reliability. A significant increase of 2.1° ± 3.5° in the HV angle of elite adolescent dancers was found at the 1-year follow-up assessment relative to that at baseline. There were significant correlations between the HVAp variation values and the hallux (r = − 0.480, P = 0.002), toe (r = − 0.313, P = 0.049), and MTP joint area (r = 0.446, P = 0.004) plantar pressure percentages in the type 1 category and medial area (r = − 0.331, P = 0.037) and middle area (r = 0.386, P = 0.014) pressure percentages in the type 2 category. Based on the multivariate logistic regression analysis, the HVAp variation values were associated with foot plantar pressure in the hallux (odds ratio [OR]: − 0.12, 95% confidence interval [CI]: − 0.191 to − 0.048, P = 0.002) and middle areas (OR: 0.09, 95% CI: 0.019 – 0.161, and P = 0.014) from the two categories, respectively. Conclusion This study demonstrated significant progression of the HV angle in elite adolescent dancers over 1 year, which was significantly associated with increased foot plantar pressure in the middle area and decreased plantar pressure in the hallux area. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring and addressing foot plantar pressure in adolescent dancers.

Personnel connections through the interlocking directorate of members of top management organs such as supervisory boards and managing boards with other enterprises play important roles in obtaining, exchanging, and sharing information on various industrial departments and numerous companies. This chapter considers functions of interlocking directorate of members of top management organs on supervisory board of other enterprise after World War II in relation to roles of interlocking supervisory board member, bank’s intention in cooperative interfirm relationships, and influence of bank on industrial enterprises. Personnel issues of member of supervisory board and problems regarding coordination of interests and conflicts between bank and industrial enterprises and between industrial firms will be examined to clarify mechanism of cooperation between enterprises.

In Germany, industry–bank relationships built through various mechanisms, such as bank credit and securities businesses, shareholdings, and deposited stock systems, and the assignment of directors from banks to corporation boards were established during the shift to monopolistic capitalism in the early twentieth century. During inflation after World War I, studies have clarified that banks’ influence on industrial enterprises in capital financing decreased. Moreover, industrial companies developed their businesses independently from banks because of the tremendous changes resulting from inflation. Can such a change be observed in personnel connections built through interlocking directorates of top management members of large banks on the supervisory boards of other enterprises? This chapter clarifies the actual conditions of the direct and indirect interlocking directorates of the three largest banks, namely Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, and Commerzbank.

In Germany’s large banks, the direct and indirect interlocking directorates of members of the supervisory and managing boards on the supervisory board of other enterprises were developed again with the re-concentration of these large banks dissolved after World War II. However, the 1965 Corporations Law that regulates the number of supervisory board members states that one person might have strongly influenced personnel connection through interlocking directorates on the supervisory board. What were the changes after the enactment of this law? The system of personnel connection established during this period continued to be the basic system of interlocking directorates in postwar Germany for long. Extending the discussions in Chap. 5, this chapter compares the conditions of interlocking directorates of three largest banks’ top management team on the supervisory board of other enterprises in the late 1960s with the conditions before the enforcement of this law. This analysis shows which enterprise was at a central position in personnel connection between bank and enterprise and its industrial sector.

Whereas regional advisory councils already existed in some large banks before World War II, central advisory council was created for banks’ head offices after World War II. Advisory council system composed of bank’s central and regional advisory councils played meaningful roles in supplementing the function of personnel connections through interlocking directorates on top management organs. They had big significance for collecting, exchanging, and sharing of information between banks and industrial enterprises and among industrial enterprises. Building upon discussions regarding conditions of personnel connection between enterprises through advisory council system in previous chapter, this chapter attempts to clarify functions and roles of such personnel connection through analyzing activities of these organizations on the basis of original historical materials of large German banks. Analysis in this chapter has significant meaning for grasping cooperative mechanism of German capitalism.

Conditions of interlocking directorate of large banks’ top management members such as supervisory board and managing board on supervisory board of other enterprises in various industrial sectors were clarified through examinations in the preceding chapters. Structure of personnel connection formed through interlocking directorate between enterprises is an important foundation of exhibition of function of interfirm relationship. Generally, such functions can be observed in exchanging and sharing information and coordination of interests and conflicts between enterprises. This chapter analyzes functions and roles of personnel connections through interlocking members of supervisory boards and managing boards of large banks and industrial enterprises. Functions of direct interlocking directorate will be considered in relation to personnel issues of top management organs of industrial enterprise and bank and roles of interlocking supervisory board members from banks in management of industrial enterprises.

Large business systems established on ties between industries and banks were the cornerstone of German capital accumulation and important for the process of German corporate development. Assignment of bank directors to industrial enterprises and interlocking directorates were two of the most important means of sharing information and coordinating the interests of industries and banks. During inflationary after World War I, numbers of companies in which banks built interlocking directorates and interlocking supervisory boards mandate in other enterprises increased than during the shift to a monopolistic capitalism in the early-twentieth century. How did conditions of interlocking directorates of members of top management organs on the supervisory board of other enterprise change during National Socialism? This chapter clarifies the actual conditions of such personnel connections between a bank and enterprises and between banks.

In Germany, a system of interlocking directorates led by large banks was established on the basis of a deposit stock system that allowed a bank to exercise voting rights at a general meeting under the expansion of the secondary stock market and cooperation between banks after World War II. Such a system formed the basis of the banks’ influence on corporations and exchanging and sharing information, and coordination of interests and conflicts between a bank and industrial enterprises and among corporations. How did the three largest banks that realized reconcentration after deconcentration under the postwar reforms directed by victorious nations build personnel connections with enterprises in various industrial sectors? This chapter analyzes the interlocking directorates of large banks in the late 1950s. During this period, the interlocking directorates were developed in various industries and companies because there was no limit to the number in which one person might have mandates in the supervisory board by law, such as the 1965 Corporations Law. The conditions of a direct interlocking directorate between a bank and enterprises in diverse industries and the indirect interlocking directorate established between banks on the supervisory board of other enterprises are explained through the distribution of industries where interlocking directorates existed, kinds of interlocking mandates of the supervisory board, and holding of plural posts. In this regard, the cases of Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, and Commerzbank are examined.

Members of the supervisory boards of several other enterprises in which supervisory board members of a company have interlocking mandates hold many posts in third-party enterprises. A personnel network is established through interlocking directorates, including second- and third-party enterprises. The possibilities of exchanging information and coordinating interests between industry and banks and among corporations can be enlarged through such a system. Using social network analysis, this chapter examines the personnel networks of three large banks, namely, Deutsche Bank (Deutsche Bank und Disconto-Gesellschaft), Dresdner Bank, and Commerzbank (Commerz- und Privat-Bank AG), through interlocking directorates of members of the supervisory board on the same top management of other companies, including second- and third-party enterprises. This chapter clarifies the characteristics of a network as a whole and the importance of each company in the network by analyzing the key indicators of social network analysis, such as “density” and “centrality.” Furthermore, this chapter examines the clique of interlocking supervisory board members who play a significant role in the network.

In Germany, the bank advisory council system is important for collecting, exchanging, and sharing information, as well as fostering cooperation among enterprises. While central advisory councils were formed for bank headquarters following World War II, regional advisory councils were established in the major districts before the war. Such an organization was an important means of connecting personnel between banks, industrial enterprises, and corporations. The advisory council system played significant roles in supplementing personnel connections through interlocking directorates in top management. This chapter describes the conditions of personnel connections established by regional advisory councils between banks and industrial enterprises and between enterprises in various industrial sectors before World War II. The field and scope of information that advisory council members can obtain from such an organization are determined by their holding condition of mandate on top management, such as the supervisory and managing boards of enterprises. Therefore, this chapter examines the holding conditions under which advisory council members hold top management positions and the composition of each regional advisory council. Personnel connections established through Deutsche Bank’s regional advisory council systems (Deutsche Bank and Disconto-Bank) are examined as an important case study.

Based on examinations of conditions of personnel connection between enterprises through regional advisory council system before World War II in the previous chapter, this chapter considers functions and roles of personnel connection through such organization before the war on the basis of original historical materials of large German bank. It examines the conditions for holding meetings and their members, the contents of each meeting, and personnel issues, such as elections of members of regional advisory councils as an important foundation of the functioning of such an organization. Significance and role of advisory council systems and personnel connections through such an organization will be clarified on the basis of these discussions.

In Germany, industry–bank relationships were founded before World War II. They served as a cooperative system between industries and banks. These relationships acted as means of banks’ influence on industrial enterprises. The system of industry–bank relationships was established in the early twentieth century as the period of the shift to a monopolistic capitalism. In industry–bank relationships, assignment of directors from banks to industrial enterprises and interlocking directorates on supervisory board of other enterprises were important mechanisms for developing interfirm relationships. This chapter analyzes personnel connections through direct and indirect interlocking directorates of members of top management, such as the supervisory and managing board of large banks on the supervisory board of other enterprises.

For a long time in Germany, the bank advisory council system played an important role in collecting, exchanging, and sharing information, as well as facilitating enterprise cooperation. After World War II, a central advisory council was established for bank head offices, whereas regional advisory councils were established in major districts before the war. These councils served as important means of connecting personnel between banks, industrial enterprises, and corporations. The advisory council system supplemented personnel connections through establishing interlocking directorates in top management bodies. This chapter explains how three large banks’ central and regional advisory councils established personnel connections between enterprises after World War II. The analysis considers the membership of such special committees and their mandates in top management organs such as the enterprise’s supervisory and management boards. The cases of Deutsche Bank, Dresdner Bank, and Commerzbank are examined.

This chapter elaborates on the book’s purpose and significance using findings from previous research on related topics. It begins by explaining changes in German interfirm relationships due to globalization and Americanization after the 1990s. Subsequently, building and developing relationships between industry and banks are considered in terms of their historical context, universal banking system, principal forms and fundamental characteristics of personal unions, corporate governance systems, and changes in personnel connections. Based on these examinations, four research topics will be identified: (1) the structure of personnel ties built through interlocking directorates, (2) the functions of such personnel connections, (3) the structure of functions of personnel connections through the bank advisory council system, and (4) the German form of “finance capital” based on the uniting and knitting of monopolistic capitals in industries and banking. Furthermore, the analytical framework used in this book is described from the perspective of industry–bank relationships, including business management issues concerning behavioral mode, mutual relationships among political, industrial, and business economies, accumulation structure of German enterprises, and the methodology of social network analysis.

This chapter expands on the previous chapters’ discussions and clarifies the implications of the analyses presented in this book. The characteristics and significance of changes in personnel connections between industry and banks will be examined in light of the historical conditions in each period analyzed in previous chapters. The special characteristics of interfirm relationships based on personnel relationships in Germany are examined in light of two key issues presented in Chap. 1, namely “corporate control” and “corporate rule.” The German form of Lenin’s “finance capital,” which he proposed as a capital form created by uniting and knitting industrial and banking capital, and its significance are explained. Understanding the role of personnel connection systems and personnel networks established by interlocking directorates clarifies the mechanism for achieving such objectives from the perspectives of industry and banking. This chapter also discusses the significance of personnel connections between a bank and an industrial enterprise in terms of German enterprises’ behavioral mode and accumulation structure.

Based on results in Chap. 8, this chapter considers the personnel networks of the three largest banks, including the second- and third-party companies, after World War II using social network analysis. This chapter also compares the network of each bank. Then, this chapter examines the conditions in the late 1960s, the period after the enactment of the 1965 Corporations Law, which regulated the limitation of the number of mandates one person may have on the supervisory board. The late 1960s were chosen because the basic system of interlocking directorates in postwar Germany was established during this time. This chapter analyzes the “cohesiveness” of the network of each bank and enterprise at a core position in the information flow and media of the network and industrial sector to which such an enterprise belonged. Through these discussions, the characteristics of each bank’s network are clarified.