The connecting homomorphism for \(K\)-theory of generalized free products (Q711662)

In the paper the author considers a category \(\mathcal C\) with cofibrations and two subcategories of weak equivalences, \(v{\mathcal C} \subset w{\mathcal C} .\) Let \({\mathcal C}^{w}\) denote the subcategory with cofibrations of \({\mathcal C}\) which consists of the objects \(A\) of \({\mathcal C}\) such that the map \(* \rightarrow A\) is in \(w{\mathcal C}.\) In the category \({\mathcal C}^{w}\) we have also two notions of weak equivalences \(v{\mathcal C}^{w}={\mathcal C}^{w} \cap v{\mathcal C}\) and \(w{\mathcal C}^{w}={\mathcal C}^{w} \cap w{\mathcal C}.\) The author assumes also certain technical conditions concerning mapping cylinders. These conditions follow the approach in \textit{F. Waldhausen} [Lect. Notes Math. 1126, 318--419 (1985; Zbl 0579.18006)]. The \(n\)-th algebraic \(K\)-theory group \(K_{n}({\mathcal C};w)\) of \({\mathcal C}\) with respect to the weak equivalences \({\mathcal C}^{w}\)\, is defined in terms of Waldhausen's \(S\)-construction as \({\pi}_{n}{\Omega}|wS_{\bullet}{\mathcal C}|.\) Under the assumptions made by the author one has the following exact sequence: \[ \begin{tikzcd} {}\rar & K_n(\mathcal C ; v) \rar & K_n(\mathcal C ; w) \rar["\delta_{\#}"] & K_{n-1}(\mathcal C^w ; v) \rar & K_{n-1}(\mathcal C ; v) \rar & {} \end{tikzcd} \] The author relates the connecting homomorphism \({\delta}_{\#}\) to a functor. The situations of this type arise once one considers certain free product diagrams in the category of rings. This happens when one studies applications of the Seifert-van Kampen theorem where all fundamental group homomorphisms are injective.