Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
NEXT-GENERATION COLLABORATIVE ROBOTIC SYSTEMS FOR INDUSTRIAL SAFETY AND HEALTH

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) is defined through three objectives: (i) maintenance of workers’ health; (ii) improvement of working environment and safety; and (iii) promotion of a work culture that supports health and safety. In industry, the most frequent threat to workers’ health is musculoskeletal disorders. Furthermore, even routine tasks in certain work environments (nuclear, construction, disaster response, marine, chemical, etc.) expose workers to extreme risks like explosions, contaminations, fires, confined spaces, debris, toxic gases, etc. The goal of this research is to design and develop advanced collaborative robotic technologies towards: (i) reducing workers’ physical stress and improving their health through a novel modular full-body wearable exoskeleton with arm, lower-back, and leg modules, allowing full motion dexterity; and (ii) avoiding hazard-prone worker environments and improving safety through a new collaborative master-slave teleoperation system consisting of: (a) a hydraulicallydriven, quadruped field robot with a robotic manipulator arm for operation in hazardous environments; (b) a hand exoskeleton master device for teleoperation control. The article presents the current status of development of these technologies. Preliminary validation of the exoskeleton shows reductions in muscular efforts of up to 30% for the lower back. For the master-slave collaborative system, (a) the Hydraulic Quadruped robot prototypes can traverse rough environments through capabilities that include stair climbing, walking over obstacles, omni-directional trotting with step reflexes, running, jumping, and self-righting; (b) the 7 degrees-of-freedom (DOF) manipulator arm allows object manipulation in a large workspace with dexterous grasping of up to 160 N of payload; and (c) the novel HEXOTRAC 3-digit hand exoskeleton provides high-resolution tracking of fingers and provides force feedback for intuitive bilateral teleoperation of robotic manipulators. These next-generation industrial exoskeletons and collaborative teleoperation systems can address the emerging challenges in industrial workers’ health and safety.
The Effect of Climate Conditions on the Relation between Energy Efficiency and Urban Form

Urban sustainability has been connected to form and compactness of the urban tissue. At the same time the relationship between urban form and energy efficiency is strongly affected by climate. This paper investigates the effect of climate conditions on the relation between urban morphology and energy efficiency of urban blocks, focusing on the Greek city context. A set of building block typologies is analyzed with regard to their form factors such as S/V ratio, coverage ratio and building ratio for the climatic conditions of two cities, each one belonging to a different climatic zone. Heating and cooling loads are calculated at an urban block scale for the climate of the city of Thessaloniki (zone C) and of the city of Heraklion (zone A) in order to draw conclusions about the relation between geometry factors and energy efficiency. The results of the research indicate that there is a strong relationship between urban morphology factors and energy efficiency and that the total load demand of urban blocks can be described as a function of form parameters. Results of the research, concerning the energy demand calculation, are valuable since they indicate the energy profile of each typology according to climate and can be used for defining different urban strategies towards sustainability in a context-based climate dependent analysis.
Coupling between coils in the presence of conducting medium

The authors have studied analytically by simulation and by experiment the impact of a conducting medium on the mutual inductance between two coils, in particular as related to the attenuation of magneto-inductive (MI) waves. To illustrate the physics, the distributions of both the magnetic field and the Poynting vector are determined. They show that the plane wave approach used in the literature for the theoretical description of MI attenuation has only limited validity. It is further found that the mutual inductance becomes a complex quantity, its modulus declining monotonically as a function of conductivity or medium thickness. Their results will be relevant for the design and optimisation of MI waveguide links in conducting media, in general, and particularly when the attenuation is caused by soil conductivity. The results can also be useful for practical applications including in vivo communication and wireless power transfer for medical implants.
Work Dynamics of Task Work and Teamwork in Function Allocation for Manned Spaceflight Operations

This paper proposes a methodology for human-robot function allocation for future manned space exploration missions that uses fast-time computational simulation. Dynamics of taskwork and teamwork often result in emergent work patterns that are difficult to predict from static analysis of function allocations. We model the dynamics of taskwork and teamwork and demonstrate our approach through a case study that explores the function allocation design space for an on-orbit maintenance mission involving humans and various robots. The case study highlights the method’s ability to predict possible concerns associated with limited availability of physical resources, action interdependencies, and communication requirements with possible time delays, and shows the influence of work dynamics on mission performance.
Literature Review of the Kano Model : Development Over Time (1984-2016)

This paper is a chronological literature review of the theory of attractive quality and the Kano methodology. Since 1984, when the paper from Kano introduced the classification of different quality attributes, the theory obtained increasing attention in business and literature. This paper shows the development of the literature, which is described with the help of three phases – Genesis, Discovery, and Maturity. In addition to the review of the existing literature, the authors reveal the linkage between the theory of attractive quality and The Kiel School.
A Qualitative Analysis of Teachers’ Perception of Classroom Pedagogical Accompaniment Program

The need to increase educational quality has led public policymakers to create and implement strategies for improving teachers’ skills. One such strategy, adapted in Chile, is the classroom accompaniment program, which has become a case of teacher professional development. The present study primarily seeks to understand public schoolteachers’ perception on classroom pedagogical accompaniment program (CPAP), and at the same time its effectiveness. This qualitative research is a case study framed within an interpretive paradigm, in which semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data. A content analysis was done with 4 categories and 10 subcategories of perceptions attributed to the program and its effectiveness by 13 teachers, 8 females and 5 males, belonging to four public educational establishments. The results show opposed perceptions about the existing accompaniment program. On one hand, some teachers rate it positively and consider it beneficial for them and their students, who also received adequate feedback. On the other hand, another group of teachers considered that there were no positive contributions to their work performance, with impacts including greater reticence during the in-class observation process. Thus, the study concludes that the initial orientations and instruction regarding the role of the observing teacher are fundamental for the classroom accompaniment process to be effective and that it can be a valuable tool to apply for improving teacher performance.
Mathematical Methods of Analysis for Control and Dynamic Optimization Problems on Manifolds

Driven by applications in fields such as robotics and satellite attitude control, as well as by a need for theoretical development of appropriate tools for the analysis of geometric systems, problems of control of dynamical systems on manifolds have been studied intensively during the past three decades. In this thesis we suggest new mathematical techniques for the study of control and dynamic optimization problems on manifolds. This work has several components including: an extension of the classical Chronological Calculus to control and dynamical systems which are merely measurable in time and evolve on manifolds modeled over Banach space; novel proofs of Pontryagin Maximum Principle in settings more general than those currently existing in the literature; necessary optimality conditions for dynamic optimization problems on manifolds in which the dynamics are constrained by a differential inclusion; and a generic existence and uniqueness theorem for problems of optimal control posed on manifolds. Our studies of optimal control and dynamic optimization both include exact penalization and metric regularity results for problems with initially and terminally constrained states which are new even in the case M = R n. This work also includes generalizations of the classical Chow-Rashevski theorem from Geometric Control theory and the Fundamental and duBois-Reymond lemmas from classical Calculus of Variations to the setting of infinite-dimensional manifolds.
Performance Analysis of Permanent Magnet Vernier Generator under Mechanical Faults

In this paper no-load and full-load performance of Permanent Magnet Vernier Generators (PMVGs) is investigated in fully-aligned condition and under different types of mechanical faults. The studied mechanical faults are Static Eccentricity (SE), Dynamic Eccentricity (DE), Inclined Rotor (IR), and Run-out (RO). Furthermore, an analytical model is developed to calculate the permeance of the air-gap and the induced voltages in the health machine and under studied mechanical faults. Then, 2-D and 3-D time stepping finite element method is utilized for performance evaluation of the generator. Some discussions are made on the quality of induced voltages, torque ripples, variations of axial and radial forces and the output power of the generator under the mechanical faults considering resistive, inductive and capacitive loads connected to the terminals of the generator. Finally, the performance of an outer rotor conventional permanent magnet generator (CPMG), considering constant dimensions, constant PM, copper and iron usage is compared with the studied PMVG. The performance of two generators is studied in fully-aligned condition as well as under SE and DE.
Long-term stability of guided wave electromagnetic acoustic transducer systems

This article evaluates the long-term stability of a Lorentz force guided wave electromagnetic acoustic transducer. The specific application of the investigated electromagnetic acoustic transducer is pipeline health monitoring using low-frequency (27 kHz) long-range torsional guided waves. There is a concern that repeated swings in the temperature of the structure can cause irreversible changes in the transduction mechanism and therefore pose a risk to the long-term stability of transducers. In this article we report on guided wave signals acquired on a custom-built transducer while it was exposed to more than 90 heating cycles. The highest temperature that was reached during cycling was 80°C and the measurements were acquired over a 14-month period. At the end of the 1-year period, the transducer phase had changed by 23.32° and its amplitude by 3.7%. However, this change was not gradual and most of the change occurred early on, before the highest temperature was first reached in the temperature cycling process. The observed change after this was 6.08° phase shift and 0.9% amplitude change. The possible sources of output changes were investigated, and it was found that the mechanical properties of the contact layer between the electromagnetic acoustic transducer and the pipe surface was very important. A soft silicone interlayer performed best and was able to reduce temperature-induced phase changes in the monitored signals from a maximum of 80 degrees phase change to about 20 degrees phase change, a fourfold reduction.
The Impact of Using Novel Equations to Predict Nitrogen Excretion and Associated Emissions from Pasture-Based Beef Production Systems

The excretion of nitrogen (N) in faeces and urine from beef cattle contributes to atmospheric pollution through greenhouse gas and ammonia emissions and eutrophication of land and aquatic habitats through excessive N deposition and nitrate leaching to groundwater. As N excretion by beef cattle is rarely measured directly, it is important to accurately predict losses by utilising a combined knowledge of diet and production parameters so that the effect of dietary changes on the potential environmental impact of beef production systems can be estimated. This study aimed to identify differences between IPCC and more detailed country-specific models in the prediction of N excretion and N losses at a system level and determine how the choice of model influences the interpretation of differences in diet at the system scale. The data used in this study were derived from a farm-scale experimental system consisting of three individual grazing farms, each with a different sward type: a permanent pasture, a high sugar ryegrass monoculture, and a high sugar ryegrass with white clover (~30% groundcover). Data were analysed using a mixed linear model (residual maximum likelihood analysis). The IPCC methods demonstrated significantly lower estimates of N excretion than country-specific models for the first housing period and significantly greater losses for the grazing and second housing periods. The country-specific models enabled prediction of N partitioning to urine and faeces, which is important for estimation of subsequent N losses through the production system, although the models differed in their estimates. Overall, predicted N losses were greater using the IPCC approaches compared to using more detailed country-specific approaches. The outcomes of the present study have highlighted that different models can have a substantial impact on the predicted N outputs and subsequent losses to the environment for pasture-based beef finishing systems, and the importance, therefore, of using appropriate models and parameters.
An Improved Quantile Regression Neural Network for Probabilistic Load Forecasting

Accurate and reliable load forecasting is essential for decision-making processes in the electric power industry. As the power industry transitions toward decarbonization, distributed energy systems, and integration of smart grid features, an increasing number of decision-making processes rely on uncertainty analysis of electric load. However, traditional point forecasting cannot address the uncertainties with only one forecasting value generated at each time step. As they are capable of representing uncertainties, probabilistic forecasts such as prediction intervals and quantile forecasts are preferred. Nevertheless, their practical application is limited partly due to the long training time of multiple probabilistic forecasting models. Traditional quantile regression neural network (QRNN) can train a single model for making quantile forecasts for multiple quantiles at one time. Whereas, the training cost is still unaffordable with large datasets. This paper proposes an improved QRNN (iQRNN) to address the issues of traditional QRNN, which incorporates popular techniques in deep learning areas. A case study on a publicly available dataset shows that not only can the proposed iQRNN generate remarkably superior quantile forecasts than state-of-the-art methods, but also the proposed iQRNN is more accurate, stable, and computationally efficient than traditional QRNN.
Systems-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes (STAMP) Applied to a U.S. Coast Guard Buoy Tender Integrated Control System

The Systems-Theoretic Accident Model (STAMP) developed by MIT's Dr. Nancy Leveson was applied in this thesis to a ship navigation control system used on U.S. Coast Guard buoy tenders. The legacy system installed on the Service's 16 sea-going buoy tenders experienced numerous incidents that had potential to be hazardous to the ships and their crews. Faced with the dual needs of ensuring safety of mission execution and restoring confidence in the overall ship control system, yet faced with a limited budget, Coast Guard decision-makers elected to conduct a partial recapitalization of the system's hardware and software. This thesis explores the application of system safety methods to analyze the legacy system on the seagoing buoy tenders. An accident analysis of a particular incident was conducted using STAMP methodologies, and its results were compared/contrasted with the results of a more traditional root cause failure analysis that was contracted by the Coast Guard following the incident. Several added insights pertaining to system safety and process improvement were obtained by using STAMP. Additionally, a hazard analysis was performed on the control system using STAMP techniques. This hazard analysis yielded 92 specific design requirements that may be incorporated into future system upgrades on these or similar vessels. The thesis concludes that STAMP methodologies are appropriate to generate actionable recommendations for future control system upgrades on U.S. Coast Guard buoy tenders. It also concludes that STAMP techniques may lead to safer controls in the greater hierarchical control structure for shipboard buoy tending operations. Finally, suggestions are made for future research/application of STAMP principles in the Coast Guard's management of operational safety, asset acquisition, and cybersecurity. Thesis Supervisor: Nancy Leveson Title: Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Análise e controle de gerador síncrono a ímã permanente aplicado a sistema de conversão de energia eólica

Master’s Dissertation Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia Elétrica Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, RS, Brasil ANALYSIS AND CONTROL OF PERMANENT MAGNET SYNCHRONOUS GENERATOR APPLIED TO WIND ENERGY CONVERSION SYSTEM Author: Thiago Araújo Bernardes Advisor: Humberto Pinheiro Place and Date: Santa Maria, June 26, 2009. This dissertation addresses the analysis and control of permanent magnet synchronous generators (PMSG) found in wind energy conversion system. The operation modes of the wind turbine the current and voltage constraints of a PWM rectifier are defined and a methodology to determine the generator current is presented. The generator currents obtained guarantee the maximization of wind energy extraction as well as the minimization of the PMSG and rectifier losses. In addition, a space-vector modulation technique in overmodulation region is reviewed in detail and applied aiming: (i) to maximize the generator power; (ii) to utilize the entire PWM rectifier DC link voltage resource, and (iii) to obtain a smooth transition to six-step operation. Furthermore, a single current controller is designed for all operating modes being capable to avoid the controller states overload as well as the undesired effects due to the operation in the overmodulation region. The stability analysis of the closed loop system is investigated by means of linear matrix inequality conditions to estimate a region of operation with guaranteed stability. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the performance of the proposed system.
Novel gamma-sarcoglycan interactors in murine muscle membranes

Background: The sarcoglycan complex (SC) is part of a network that links the striated muscle cytoskeleton to the basal lamina across the sarcolemma. The SC coordinates changes in phosphorylation and Ca++‐flux during mechani‐ cal deformation, and these processes are disrupted with loss‐of‐function mutations in gamma‐sarcoglycan (Sgcg) that cause Limb girdle muscular dystrophy 2C/R5. Methods: To gain insight into how the SC mediates mechano‐signaling in muscle, we utilized LC‐MS/MS proteomics of SC‐associated proteins in immunoprecipitates from enriched sarcolemmal fractions. Criteria for inclusion were co‐ immunoprecipitation with anti‐Sgcg from C57BL/6 control muscle and under‐representation in parallel experiments with Sgcg‐null muscle and with non‐specific IgG. Validation of interaction was performed in co‐expression experi‐ ments in human RH30 rhabdomyosarcoma cells. Results: We identified 19 candidates as direct or indirect interactors for Sgcg, including the other 3 SC pro‐ teins. Novel potential interactors included protein‐phosphatase‐1‐catalytic‐subunit‐beta (Ppp1cb, PP1b) and Na+‐K+‐Cl−‐co‐transporter NKCC1 (SLC12A2). NKCC1 co‐localized with Sgcg after co‐expression in human RH30 rhabdomyosarcoma cells, and its cytosolic domains depleted Sgcg from cell lysates upon immunoprecipitation and co‐localized with Sgcg after detergent permeabilization. NKCC1 localized in proximity to the dystrophin complex at costameres in vivo. Bumetanide inhibition of NKCC1 cotransporter activity in isolated muscles reduced SC‐dependent, strain‐induced increases in phosphorylation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2). In silico analysis suggests that candidate SC interactors may cross‐talk with survival signaling pathways, including p53, estrogen recep‐ tor, and TRIM25. Conclusions: Results support that NKCC1 is a new SC‐associated signaling protein. Moreover, the identities of other candidate SC interactors suggest ways by which the SC and NKCC1, along with other Sgcg interactors such as the membrane‐cytoskeleton linker archvillin, may regulate kinase‐ and Ca++‐mediated survival signaling in skeletal
A FFIRMATIVE A CTION P OLICIES AND THE L IST -E XPERIMENT : THE C ASE OF U NIVERSITY DMISSIONS

In this paper, we adopt an indirect questioning methodology to measure attitudes toward the use of race as a criterion for admission in brazilian higher education institutions. In recent years, brazilian universities have increasingly adopted a quota system by which a fixed number of places are reserved for Afro and indigenous students. We hypothesize that attitudes toward such affirmative action policies cannot be measured by conventional survey questions because non-eligible students—mostly white and Asian students—may fear to appear prejudiced by showing opposition to them. This survey effect is well-known as the social desirability effect. Thus we adopt a list experiment to measure students’ attitudes toward the race-based quota admission system. This methodology provides respondents with a certain degree of privacy and thus allows to better measure sincere attitudes toward that object. As expected, the results show that non-eligible students tend to underreport their opposition to racial quotas in university admission, but the proportion of those who under-report is negligeable (6.0%). More interestingly, the findings show that quota eligible students, Afro and indigenous brazilians, tend, for their part, to overwhelmingly under-report their approval of the use of race in admission. Specifically, eligible students, when provided privacy in their responses, strongly approve of the racial quota system (70.2%), but publicly voice only timid approval of it (26.3%).