scholarly journals A Novel Complete-Surface-Finding Algorithm for Online Surface Scanning with Limited View Sensors

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (22) ◽  
pp. 7692
Author(s):  
Alastair Poole ◽  
Mark Sutcliffe ◽  
Gareth Pierce ◽  
Anthony Gachagan
Keyword(s):  
Path Planning ◽  
Target Surface ◽  
Robot Assisted ◽  
Destructive Testing ◽  
Single Pass ◽  
Hazardous Environments ◽  
Complex Shapes ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

Robotised Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) has revolutionised the field, increasing the speed of repetitive scanning procedures and ability to reach hazardous environments. Application of robot-assisted NDT within specific industries such as remanufacturing and Aersopace, in which parts are regularly moulded and susceptible to non-critical deformation has however presented drawbacks. In these cases, digital models for robotic path planning are not always available or accurate. Cutting edge methods to counter the limited flexibility of robots require an initial pre-scan using camera-based systems in order to build a CAD model for path planning. This paper has sought to create a novel algorithm that enables robot-assisted ultrasonic testing of unknown surfaces within a single pass. Key to the impact of this article is the enabled autonomous profiling with sensors whose aperture is several orders of magnitude smaller than the target surface, for surfaces of any scale. Potential applications of the algorithm presented include autonomous drone and crawler inspections of large, complex, unknown environments in addition to situations where traditional metrological profiling equipment is not practical, such as in confined spaces. In simulation, the proposed algorithm has completely mapped significantly curved and complex shapes by utilising only local information, outputting a traditional raster pattern when curvature is present only in a single direction. In practical demonstrations, both curved and non-simple surfaces were fully mapped with no required operator intervention. The core limitations of the algorithm in practical cases is the effective range of the applied sensor, and as a stand-alone method it lacks the required knowledge of the environment to prevent collisions. However, since the approach has met success in fully scanning non-obstructive but still significantly complex surfaces, the objectives of this paper have been met. Future work will focus on low-accuracy environmental sensing capabilities to tackle the challenges faced. The method has been designed to allow single-pass scans for Conformable Wedge Probe UT scanning, but may be applied to any surface scans in the case the sensor aperture is significantly smaller than the part.

Generation of “Biking Schedules” for Bicycle Travel Analysis

2018 ◽  
Vol 2672 (36) ◽  
pp. 83-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amr Mohamed ◽  
Alexander Y. Bigazzi
Keyword(s):  
Data Sets ◽  
Calibration Data ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Construction Methods ◽  
Potential Applications ◽  
Road Grade ◽  
Calibration Data Set ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Travel Analysis

With an increasing focus on bicycling as a mode of urban transportation, there is a pressing need for improved tools for bicycle travel analysis and modeling. This paper introduces “biking schedules” to represent archetypal urban cycling dynamics, analogous to driving schedules used in vehicle emissions analysis. Three different methods of constructing biking schedules with both speed and road grade attributes are developed from the driving schedule literature. The methods are applied and compared using a demonstration data set of 55 h of 1-Hz on-road GPS data from three cyclists. Biking schedules are evaluated based on their ability to represent the speed dynamics, power output, and breathing rates of a calibration data set and then validated for different riders. The impact of using coarser 3, 5, and 10 s GPS logging intervals on the accuracy of the schedules is also evaluated. Results indicate that the best biking schedule construction method depends on the volume and resolution of the calibration data set. Overall, the biking schedules successfully represent most of the assessed characteristics of cycling dynamics in the calibration data set (speed, acceleration, grade, power, and breathing) within 5%. Future work will examine the precision of biking schedules constructed from larger data sets in more diverse cycling conditions and explore additional refinements to the construction methods. This research is considered a first step toward adopting biking schedules in bicycle travel analysis and modeling, and potential applications are discussed.

The Impact of BRICS in Reconstructing the International Order

2020 ◽  
pp. 87
Author(s):  
Tareq Mohammed Dhannoon AL Taie
Keyword(s):  
International System ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Active Role ◽  
International Order ◽  
First Century ◽  
International Affairs ◽  
Strategic Action ◽  
Brics Countries ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

The BRICS countries have a historical aspiration for global leadership, especially Russia and China, and other countries trying to have a position in the pyramid of international powers in the twenty-first century, especially Brazil, India and South Africa, they worked to unify their efforts, in order to achieve integration in the strategic action, activate its role in International affairs, ending American domination , and restructuring an international system that have an active role in its interactions.       The research hypothesis is based on the idea that the BRICS group, despite the nature of its economic composition and its long-term goals, but its political influence as a bloc, is greater than the proportion of its economic influence in restructuring the new international order. The BRICS group has the capabilities to reshape the international order, but disputes among some of its members represent a challenge to its future work. Its goals will not be achieved without teamwork. Third world countries, especially those that reject unipolarism, have regarded one of the pillars supporting multi-polarity, aiming of giving them freedom of movement in international relations. The ultimate goal of the BRICS is a political nature, as economic mechanisms are used to achieve political goals.

Relay Selection-aware Non-orthogonal Multiple Access Networks: Direct and Relaying Mode

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 348-354
Author(s):  
Dinh-Thuan Do ◽  
Minh-Sang V. Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Relay Selection ◽  
Multiple Access ◽  
Decode And Forward ◽  
Selection Scheme ◽  
Fixed Power ◽  
Transmission Quality ◽  
Improved Performance ◽  
Outage Probabilities ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

Objective: In this paper, Decode-and-Forward (DF) mode is deployed in the Relay Selection (RS) scheme to provide better performance in cooperative downlink Non-orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) networks. In particular, evaluation regarding the impact of the number of multiple relays on outage performance is presented. Methods: As main parameter affecting cooperative NOMA performance, we consider the scenario of the fixed power allocations and the varying number of relays. In addition, the expressions of outage probabilities are the main metric to examine separated NOMA users. By matching related results between simulation and analytical methods, the exactness of derived formula can be verified. Results: The intuitive main results show that in such cooperative NOMA networks, the higher the number of relays equipped, the better the system performance can be achieved. Conclusion: DF mode is confirmed as a reasonable selection scheme to improve the transmission quality in NOMA. In future work, we will introduce new relay selections to achieve improved performance.

scholarly journals Effects of pre-emptive pregabalin and multimodal anesthesia on postoperative opioid requirements in patients undergoing robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy

BMC Urology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Sisa ◽  
S. Huoponen ◽  
O. Ettala ◽  
H. Antila ◽  
T. I. Saari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Postoperative Nausea And Vomiting ◽  
Multimodal Analgesia ◽  
Opioid Consumption ◽  
Anesthesia Induction ◽  
Anesthesia Care ◽  
Post Anesthesia Care Unit ◽  
Robot Assisted ◽  
Ctrl Group ◽  
Laparoscopic Prostatectomy ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Previous findings indicate that pre-emptive pregabalin as part of multimodal anesthesia reduces opioid requirements compared to conventional anesthesia in patients undergoing robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP). However, recent studies show contradictory evidence suggesting that pregabalin does not reduce postoperative pain or opioid consumption after surgeries. We conducted a register-based analysis on RALP patients treated over a 5-year period to evaluate postoperative opioid consumption between two multimodal anesthesia protocols. Methods We retrospectively evaluated patients undergoing RALP between years 2015 and 2019. Patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists status 1–3, age between 30 and 80 years and treated with standard multimodal anesthesia were included in the study. Pregabalin (PG) group received 150 mg of oral pregabalin as premedication before anesthesia induction, while the control (CTRL) group was treated conventionally. Postoperative opioid requirements were calculated as intravenous morphine equivalent doses for both groups. The impact of pregabalin on postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV), and length of stay (LOS) was evaluated. Results We included 245 patients in the PG group and 103 in the CTRL group. Median (IQR) opioid consumption over 24 postoperative hours was 15 (8–24) and 17 (8–25) mg in PG and CTRL groups (p = 0.44). We found no difference in postoperative opioid requirement between the two groups in post anesthesia care unit, or within 12 h postoperatively (p = 0.16; p = 0.09). The length of post anesthesia care unit stay was same in each group and there was no difference in PONV Similarly, median postoperative LOS was 31 h in both groups. Conclusion Patients undergoing RALP and receiving multimodal analgesia do not need significant amount of opioids postoperatively and can be discharged soon after the procedure. Pre-emptive administration of oral pregabalin does not reduce postoperative opioid consumption, PONV or LOS in these patients.

scholarly journals Robot-Assisted Autism Therapy (RAAT). Criteria and Types of Experiments Using Anthropomorphic and Zoomorphic Robots. Review of the Research

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (11) ◽  
pp. 3720
Author(s):  
Barbara Szymona ◽  
Marcin Maciejewski ◽  
Robert Karpiński ◽  
Kamil Jonak ◽  
Elżbieta Radzikowska-Büchner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Schema ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
The Body ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Robot Assisted ◽  
Social Contacts ◽  
Joint Activities ◽  
Autism Therapy ◽  
Real Person ◽  
Future Work

Supporting the development of a child with autism is a multi-profile therapeutic work on disturbed areas, especially understanding and linguistic expression used in social communication and development of social contacts. Previous studies show that it is possible to perform some therapy using a robot. This article is a synthesis review of the literature on research with the use of robots in the therapy of children with the diagnosis of early childhood autism. The review includes scientific journals from 2005–2021. Using descriptors: ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorders), Social robots, and Robot-based interventions, an analysis of available research in PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science was done. The results showed that a robot seems to be a great tool that encourages contact and involvement in joint activities. The review of the literature indicates the potential value of the use of robots in the therapy of people with autism as a facilitator in social contacts. Robot-Assisted Autism Therapy (RAAT) can encourage child to talk or do exercises. In the second aspect (prompting during a conversation), a robot encourages eye contact and suggests possible answers, e.g., during free conversation with a peer. In the third aspect (teaching, entertainment), the robot could play with autistic children in games supporting the development of joint attention. These types of games stimulate the development of motor skills and orientation in the body schema. In future work, a validation test would be desirable to check whether children with ASD are able to do the same with a real person by learning distrust and cheating the robot.

scholarly journals A Qualitative Study of COVID-19 Distress in University Students

2021 ◽  
pp. 216769682110251
Author(s):  
Samantha G. Farris ◽  
Mindy M. Kibbey ◽  
Erick J. Fedorenko ◽  
Angelo M. DiBello
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Financial Strain ◽  
Public Response ◽  
Viral Spread ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Viral Outbreak ◽  
Selection Of

The psychological effect of the pandemic and measures taken in response to control viral spread are not yet well understood in university students; in-depth qualitative analysis can provide nuanced information about the young adult distress experience. Undergraduate students ( N = 624) in an early US outbreak “hotspot” completed an online narrative writing about the impact and distress experienced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected April-May 2020. A random selection of 50 cases were sampled for thematic analysis. Nine themes were identified: viral outbreak distress, fear of virus contraction/transmission, proximity to virus, dissatisfaction with public response, physical distancing distress, social distancing distress, academic and school-related distress, disruptive changes in health behavior and routines, financial strain and unemployment, worsening of pre-existing mental health problems, and social referencing that minimizes distress. Future work is needed to understand the persistence of the distress, in addition to developing methods for assessment, monitoring, and mitigation of the distress.

scholarly journals Auction-Based Consensus of Autonomous Vehicles for Multi-Target Dynamic Task Allocation and Path Planning in an Unknown Obstacle Environment

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 5057
Author(s):  
Wan-Yu Yu ◽  
Xiao-Qiang Huang ◽  
Hung-Yi Luo ◽  
Von-Wun Soo ◽  
Yung-Lung Lee
Keyword(s):  
Path Planning ◽  
Task Allocation ◽  
Autonomous Vehicles ◽  
Autonomous Vehicle ◽  
Dynamic Task ◽  
The Core ◽  
Dynamic Task Allocation ◽  
Vehicle Technology ◽  
Future Work ◽  
Complicated Task

The autonomous vehicle technology has recently been developed rapidly in a wide variety of applications. However, coordinating a team of autonomous vehicles to complete missions in an unknown and changing environment has been a challenging and complicated task. We modify the consensus-based auction algorithm (CBAA) so that it can dynamically reallocate tasks among autonomous vehicles that can flexibly find a path to reach multiple dynamic targets while avoiding unexpected obstacles and staying close as a group as possible simultaneously. We propose the core algorithms and simulate with many scenarios empirically to illustrate how the proposed framework works. Specifically, we show that how autonomous vehicles could reallocate the tasks among each other in finding dynamically changing paths while certain targets may appear and disappear during the movement mission. We also discuss some challenging problems as a future work.

scholarly journals Impact of a Series of Educational Talks Taught by Health Professionals to Promote Healthy Snack Choices among Children

Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 203
Author(s):  
Víctor Arufe Giráldez ◽  
Javier Puñal Abelenda ◽  
Rubén Navarro-Patón ◽  
Alberto Sanmiguel-Rodríguez
Keyword(s):  
Nutritional Quality ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Overweight And Obesity ◽  
Healthy Habits ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Nutrition And Dietetics ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

Background: One of the great challenges facing today’s society is the need to combat overweight and obesity in schoolchildren. This study aimed to analyze the impact of a cycle of didactic talks—given to families by a specialist in pediatrics, a specialist in nutrition and dietetics and a specialist in physical exercise—on childrens’ snack choices and nutrition quality. Methods: A longitudinal, quasi-experimental and quantitative investigation was designed, working with a total sample of 50 students divided into control and experimental groups. The nutritional quality of daily snacks was recorded during the month before and the month after the cycle of talks given by health experts. Results: An increase in the nutritional quality of the snacks was observed in the days after the talk—but, after a week, values returned to normal. Conclusions: The giving of educational talks to promote healthy habits may have a positive impact on the nutritional quality of school snacks in the days immediately following the talks. However, some forgetfulness was detected over time, which reduced the nutritional quality of the snacks once more. For future work, it is recommended that researchers measure the impact produced by giving regular talks.

Health, happiness and your future: using a “men’s group” format to work with homeless men in London

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 403-418
Author(s):  
Kate Thompson ◽  
Pippa Brown ◽  
Stephanie Vieira
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Psychosocial Issues ◽  
Horn Of Africa ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Care Services ◽  
Homeless Men ◽  
Group Members ◽  
Future Work ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe an intervention with a group of homeless men from the Horn of Africa, service users of the Horn of Africa Health and Wellbeing Project in London. The group was conceived by the second author who noted the presence of significant psychosocial issues for her clients, but equally their reluctance to access mainstream mental health or social care services. Design/methodology/approach Designing the group and introducing it to the men involved threw up some challenges which are explored, and the impact of the group on participants is evaluated. Findings Overall both the participants and the facilitators evaluated the group positively and it appeared to have led to lasting change for some of the group members, and this is described. The authors argue that this sort of group may be a more acceptable way to work on psychosocial issues than something more directly focused on mental health intervention. The group protocol is outlined along with suggestions for future work in this area. Originality/value This intervention represents a creative alternative to more mainstream psychological interventions for homeless or exiled men.

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