Living matters transmit signals via ions, while machines transmit signals via electrons. Ions and electrons couple at the life-machine interfaces. Such a coupling has long been developed for applications in electrophysiology, neural stimulation, and neural recording. Central to merging life and machine is the transduction between ions and electrons. Here an approach to noncontact transduction between ions and electrons using a time-varying magnetic field is described. The magnetic field induces an electric field in an ionic conductor, driving ions to move. This ionomagnetic induction is studied through a combination of experiment, theory, and calculation. The ionomagnetic induction enables ionotronic transformer, noncontact power transmission, and noncontact motion detection. It is hoped that this work will guide the development of bioelectronics, ionotronic devices, and life-machine interface.

This paper proposed a new method for topology optimization using combination of Digital Annealer (DA) and Genetic Algorithm (GA), eliminating the need for manual formulation based on expert knowledge. The proposed method was successful in optimizing the shape of the magnetic shield, as the quick search of DA on the approximate model and the global search of GA combined enhanced optimization performance.

The high-pressure hydrogen storage tank used in vehicles is in a high-pressure state for a long time, so the inner surface of its aluminum liner is prone to corrosion, cracks, and other defects, leading to the failure of the hydrogen cylinder. Due to the small volume and narrow mouth of hydrogen storage bottles used in vehicles, it poses significant engineering difficulties for traditional detection methods. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a fast scanning system suitable for the hydrogen cylinders. In this paper, an array eddy current scanning system for detecting surface defects on the aluminum inner liner of hydrogen cylinders is designed. The comprehensive scanning of the aluminum inner liner is completed with the scanning system.

Reducing the power consumption of electromagnetic actuators even by 0.1% is significant in lowering environmental impact. When the actuator’s plunger is attracted to a fixed iron core, the magnetic properties of the iron core greatly influence of the plunger’s electromagnetic force due to the small air gap of the magnetic path. Thus, understanding and utilizing the magnetic properties of the iron core is critical. The manufacturing process deteriorates the magnetic properties, hence their behavior under stress has been studied. However, the effect of the bending process, frequently used in iron cores manufacturing, on magnetic properties has not been studied well. This paper clarifies the influence of magnetic properties of the bent part in an electromagnetic actuator. The magnetic properties of the bent part are estimated from a flat and a bent ring core. The magnetic permeability of the bent part decreases by one-third, leading to a 2.5% decrease in the electromagnetic force of the actuator as shown in our analysis.