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In higher education institutions, there is a strong interaction between research and teaching activities. This paper presents a case study on the research–teaching nexus based on an analysis of academic results related to the course "Instrumentation and Data Analyses in Marine Sciences" within the Marine Sciences and Technologies Bachelor's Degree at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), taught at the Vilanova i la Geltrú campus (Barcelona, Spain). The start of this degree in the academic year 2018–2019 allowed the assignment of technological subjects in the degree to a research group with extensive experience in the research and development of marine technologies. The first section of this paper aims to provide a justification for establishing the Marine Sciences and Technologies Bachelor's Degree. It highlights the necessity of this program and delves into the suitability of the profiles of the professors responsible for teaching marine technology subjects. Their entrepreneurial research trajectory and their competence in electronic instrumentation are strong arguments for their appropriateness. The next section of the paper explores a detailed analysis of academic results based on surveys and student performance indices. Through a thorough examination of these data, this case study demonstrates, within the context of all UPC degrees, that assigning a research group made up of experienced professors and researchers in the field who are accustomed to working as a team produces superior academic results compared to assignments to professors who do not work as a team. Teamwork presents specific skills necessary for operating the infrastructures and equipment associated with an experimental degree. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In higher education institutions, there is a strong interaction between research and teaching activities. This paper presents a case study on the research–teaching nexus based on an analysis of academic results related to the course “Instrumentation and Data Analyses in Marine Sciences” within the Marine Sciences and Technologies Bachelor’s Degree at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), taught at the Vilanova i la Geltrú campus (Barcelona, Spain). The start of this degree in the academic year 2018–2019 allowed the assignment of technological subjects in the degree to a research group with extensive experience in the research and development of marine technologies. The first section of this paper aims to provide a justification for establishing the Marine Sciences and Technologies Bachelor’s Degree. It highlights the necessity of this program and delves into the suitability of the profiles of the professors responsible for teaching marine technology subjects. Their entrepreneurial research trajectory and their competence in electronic instrumentation are strong arguments for their appropriateness. The next section of the paper explores a detailed analysis of academic results based on surveys and student performance indices. Through a thorough examination of these data, this case study demonstrates, within the context of all UPC degrees, that assigning a research group made up of experienced professors and researchers in the field who are accustomed to working as a team produces superior academic results compared to assignments to professors who do not work as a team. Teamwork presents specific skills necessary for operating the infrastructures and equipment associated with an experimental degree.

In this paper, we present a cost-effective system for monitoring and controlling alkaline electrolyzers, intending to improve hydrogen gas production on a laboratory scale. Our work includes two main innovations. Firstly, we suggest an approach to calibrate a standard air flow meter to accurately measure the flow of hydrogen-rich gas from electrolyzers, improving measurement accuracy while keeping costs low. Secondly, we introduce a unique cascade control method to manage hydrogen-rich gas production in the electrolyzer, ensuring precise control over gas flow rates. By combining affordable, energy-efficient devices with a PI control system, we achieve efficient gas production through electrolysis, replacing manual control approaches. Experimental results confirm the effectiveness of our cascade control method, demonstrating stable operation with minimal errors. These results provide a foundation for further research into control strategies to enhance the performance of electrolytic cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A solar position sensor is an essential optoelectronic device used to monitor the sun's position in solar tracking systems. In closed-loop systems, this sensor is responsible for providing feedback signals to the control system, allowing motor adjustments to optimize the angle of incidence and minimize positioning errors. The accuracy required for solar tracking systems varies depending on the specific photovoltaic concentration. In the case of the concentrator photovoltaic (CPV), it is normally essential to track the sun with a position error of less than ±0.6°. To achieve such precision, a proposed sensor configuration composed of low-cost embedded electronics and multifiber optical cable is subjected to characterization through a series of measurements covering range, sensitivity, and resolution. These measurements are performed in controlled indoor environments as well as outdoor conditions. The results obtained exhibit a resolution of 2.6 × 10 − 3 degrees when the sensor is illuminated within its designated field of view of ±0.1°, particularly in external conditions. Considering the performance demonstrated by the proposed solar position sensor, coupled with its straightforward modeling and assembly compared to position sensors documented in the literature, it emerges as a promising candidate for integration into solar tracking systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research presents the prediction of temperatures in the chamber of a solar dryer using artificial neural networks (ANN). The dryer is a forced-flow type and indirect. Climatic conditions, temperatures, airflow, and geometric parameters were considered to build the ANN model. The model was a feed-forward network trained using a backpropagation algorithm and Levenberg–Marquardt optimization. The configuration of the optimal neural network to carry out the verification and validation processes was nine neurons in the input layer, one in the output layer, and two hidden layers of thirteen and twelve neurons each (9-13-12-1). The percentage error of the predictive model was below 1%. The predictive model has been successfully tested, achieving a predictor with good capabilities. This consistency is reflected in the relative error between the predicted and experimental temperatures. The error is below 0.25% for the model’s verification and validation. Moreover, this model could be the basis for developing a powerful real-time operation optimization tool and the optimal design for indirect solar dryers to reduce cost and time in food-drying processes.

This research presents the prediction of temperatures in the chamber of a solar dryer using artificial neural networks (ANN). The dryer is a forced-flow type and indirect. Climatic conditions, temperatures, airflow, and geometric parameters were considered to build the ANN model. The model was a feed-forward network trained using a backpropagation algorithm and Levenberg–Marquardt optimization. The configuration of the optimal neural network to carry out the verification and validation processes was nine neurons in the input layer, one in the output layer, and two hidden layers of thirteen and twelve neurons each (9-13-12-1). The percentage error of the predictive model was below 1%. The predictive model has been successfully tested, achieving a predictor with good capabilities. This consistency is reflected in the relative error between the predicted and experimental temperatures. The error is below 0.25% for the model's verification and validation. Moreover, this model could be the basis for developing a powerful real-time operation optimization tool and the optimal design for indirect solar dryers to reduce cost and time in food-drying processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A one-component organosilicon composition based on a Lestosil SM-NT block copolymer solution containing an optimal ratio of linear polydimethylsiloxane and ladder phenylsilsesquioxane units in an organic solvent was developed. A heterosiloxane solution containing boron and zirconium atoms in alkoxysilane in the siloxane chain and special additives that increase the operational properties of coatings was used as a curing system. The composition is to be used to obtain heat-resistant electrically insulating and moisture-resistant coatings with improved physical and chemical properties for use as protective materials in microelectronics and electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although society, governments and the business sector are increasingly demanding that Higher Academic Centers translate their innovative potential into products and services that affect society, little is known or done about the entrepreneurial skills that both lecturers and students need in the context of electronic engineering academic degrees. Inevitably, the fact that some teachers lack certain skill sets will have a negative impact on some students’ professional careers. This article demonstrates a range of initiatives in knowledge transfer which have been carried out over more than 30 years by the university research team making the proposal. Such initiatives have allowed the integration of, not only creative thinking, but also other skills differing from traditional teaching and which can help students to successfully compete for jobs requiring higher qualifications. Following the methodology of a case study within the framework of the Polytechnic University School of Vilanova i la Geltrú (EPSEVG) of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC), the novelty of the research lies in its focus on the results obtained. In the 1990s, entrepreneurial initiatives encouraged the creation of reference laboratories and the teaching of innovative subjects in the field of virtual instrumentation. Years later, this teaching activity would be complemented by the launch of lines of research/technology transfer. It should be noted that, in its initial stages, this entrepreneurial trajectory was characterized by limited material and human resources, but thanks to the discovery of little-explored areas of activity (niches), opting for working in cooperation networks (science-technology symbiosis), and the entrepreneurial profile of the members of the research team, it has been possible to gain a space in the research/development of marine technologies in the national and European context, as stated in the text. This empirical research has contributed significantly to shaping a new degree in Marine Sciences and Technologies. Likewise, the results of this study reveal that a significant number of electronic engineering students have acquired entrepreneurial skills by engaging in teaching and research and development activities in different Higher Academic Centers.

Acquiring biopotentials with fidelity using low-cost circuits is a significant challenge in biomedical instrumentation. In this perspective, our goal is to investigate the characteristics of the widely applied AD8232®, an analog front-end for biopotential acquisition. We designed and evaluated circuits to acquire the most common biosignals: electrocardiogram (ECG), electromyogram (EMG), and electroencephalogram (EEG). Our findings show that the circuit is suitable for ECG and EMG instrumentation, although it has limitations for EEG signals, particularly concerning the gain. The entire project of the boards is also a contribution of this work as we intend to corroborate open-source do-it-yourself biomedical instrumentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrical signals are generated and transmitted through plants in response to stimuli caused by external environment factors, such as touching, luminosity, and leaf burning. By analyzing a specific plant's electrical responses, it is possible to interpret the impact of external aspects in the plasma membrane potential and, thus, determine the cause of the electrical signal. Moreover, these signals permit the whole plant structure to be informed almost instantaneously. This work presents a brief discussion of plants electrophysiology theory and low-cost signal conditioning circuits, which are necessary for the acquisition of plants' electrical signals. Two signal conditioning circuits, which must be chosen depending on the signal to be measured, are explained in detail and electrical simulation results, performed in OrCAD Capture Software are presented. Furthermore, Monte Carlo simulations were performed to evaluate the impact of components variations on the accuracy and efficiency of the signal conditioning circuits. Those simulations showed that, even after possible component variations, the filters' cut-off frequencies had at most 4% variation from the mean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of the use of graphical user interfaces (GUI) applied to the optical-electronic systems for telecommunications and instrumentation allows observing the existing possibilities in the integration of engineering systems with computer equipment to facilitate access to information and optimize human/machine interaction in the different scenarios of the industries that are currently being developed. Through the use of academic databases, indexed and accepted by the scientific community, a total of sixty bibliographic references oriented to the design and implementation of graphical user interfaces developed at an international level in Colombia, and the region of Norte de Santander were consulted, analyzing the different programming environments and the expected usability in the control and monitoring of optoelectronic systems. It is observed that there is a boom in the use of open license programming environments and that researchers tend to integrate multiple development platforms to take advantage of the characteristics of each one of them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tracking marine mammals with electronic devices enables researchers to better understand animal movements and at‐sea behavior. For pinnipeds, instruments are typically glued to the animal's hair, either directly to the pelage or via a fabric patch. These instruments are retrieved by cutting the pelage or cutting through the patch. The impact of these modifications to the pelage is presumed to be minimal and short‐lived, but this has never been explicitly investigated. This study examined effects of instrument attachment on northern fur seal pelts. To assess thermal consequences of instrumentation, we determined thermal resistance of pelts in water for instruments glued directly to the pelage or with a neoprene base. For each attachment method, we measured the pelt unmodified, with instrument attached, and with instrument removed. Using a hyperbaric chamber, we measured the extent to which water could penetrate the pelt's air layer during diving. Removing the tag by cutting the pelage reduced thermal function of the pelt in water and allowed more air to escape under pressure. In contrast, a neoprene patch better maintained the insulation in water and reduced air loss under pressure. Our results suggest the use of neoprene may reduce negative consequences of instrumentation in fur seals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrical signals are generated and transmitted through plants in response to stimuli caused by external environment factors, such as touching, luminosity, and leaf burning. By analyzing a specific plant’s electrical responses, it is possible to interpret the impact of external aspects in the plasma membrane potential and, thus, determine the cause of the electrical signal. Moreover, these signals permit the whole plant structure to be informed almost instantaneously. This work presents a brief discussion of plants electrophysiology theory and low-cost signal conditioning circuits, which are necessary for the acquisition of plants’ electrical signals. Two signal conditioning circuits, which must be chosen depending on the signal to be measured, are explained in detail and electrical simulation results, performed in OrCAD Capture Software are presented. Furthermore, Monte Carlo simulations were performed to evaluate the impact of components variations on the accuracy and efficiency of the signal conditioning circuits. Those simulations showed that, even after possible component variations, the filters’ cut-off frequencies had at most 4% variation from the mean.

Copyright of Animal Technology & Welfare is the property of Institute of Animal Technology of Great Britain and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In view of the constant biological researches, it is important to highlight the necessity to develop new instrumentation techniques. In this way, it is possible to use organisms as biological sensors to define new methodologies for a better understanding of the behavior of living beings. Indiscriminate contamination of soil by herbicide has been receiving more attention due to the increase in agriculture and the world population growth. This work presents a technique to analyze the behavior of the Folsomia candida when it is exposed to an area with an herbicide containing glyphosate. The tests used concentrations of the contaminant at the 1:50 and 1:100 dilutions and the media preparation followed culture standards. The computational system developed proved to be efficient and promising to detect Folsomia candida movements when subjected to environmental contamination. In the analysis of the results, we sought to understand the organism's preference between contaminated and uncontaminated area, and the preference of the resting places and media. The results indicated preference of the organism for the uncontaminated areas, in the two dilutions used. Thus, the system created and the applied methodology can be used in preliminary toxicity tests, for example, tests on chemical compounds and their possible effects in the soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work provides quantitative data related to the use of Lofstrand crutches, these data are the strengthapplied on the armrest to the contact surface, the angle of the crutch relative to its axis of origin.Modular sensors of magnetometer, gyroscope and accelerometer were used. The results presented are: the dynamic force variation in the order of 0 kgf to 50 kgf was measured by the Force Sensing Resistor (FSR) sensor indicating the convergence of the data with the theoretical reference. Another innovative contribution of this work is the geoprocessing during the walk of the user. Finally, the purpose of the system is to explore the use of the Canadian crutch for the walking response and consequent storage of the users data, providing a mapping for user walk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the fulfilled research process for the development of an intelligent system for the efficient use of water in sanitary units in the domestic environment. Fundamentally, the research focused on two processes, firstly, the development of a high reliability system to monitor the actual consumption of sanitary units and secondly the development of an enhanced system for the intelligent control of consumption of the same sanitary unit. The research highlights the constitution of an M2M technological solution, with high precision that impacts environmental sustainability, through the generation of awareness regarding the rational use of water resources in daily actions of personal hygiene.

The demand for quality control and environmentally acceptable animal production are important requirements in livestock monitoring and control. Monitoring the ingestive behaviour of grazing ruminants has applications in measuring animal welfare, detection of animal diseases and modelling the animal production system. In this work, a non-invasive method for fibre intake estimation on ruminants is presented using a surface electromyography (sEMG) based sensor system. In order to acquire bite/chewing sEMG signals, superficial disposable electrodes were placed on three uncastrated male goats' masseter muscle, housed in individual pens, and data was sampled during eating using an analogue-to-digital converter. Feed samples and-left-overs were weighed before and after the experiment, respectively, to estimate the total intake. Electromyographic preprocessed data was sent to a computer, where seven signal features were extracted. Feed intake was modelled by fitting sEMG features as a predictor by means of a linear model. Results indicate that fibre intake could be successfully predicted in goats eating several forages (Tifton 68 and Tifton 85 grass hay, bad quality Tifton hay, and forage oat hay) with coefficients of determination ( R 2 ) higher than 0.867, using the signal feature called Slope Sign Change (SSC) as a predictor, which expresses signal frequency characteristics and indicates physiological aspects of bite/chewing. The present work demonstrates that sEMG based systems can be used as a non-invasive feed fibre intake estimation tool. • Novel electronic method for monitoring the feeding behavior. • Method based on signal processing of the masseter muscle surface electromyography. • Extracted sEMG features highly correlated to fibre intake for different feeds. • Feed intake prediction model does not require known feed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune condition influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. Dirty electricity generated by electronic equipment is one of the environmental factors that may directly or indirectly impact MS susceptibility. The current Study aimed to evaluate the relationship between the usage time of electronic equipment and susceptibility to MS in North–West Iranian people. This approach was carried out upon 471 MS-diagnosed patients and 453 healthy participants as control group in East Province of Azerbaijan. By utilizing structured questionnaires, the information of all participants about usage status of some electronic devices was obtained. Data were analyzed by IBM SPSS Statistics version 18.0 and the quantitative variables were analyzed by Chi Square and Independent sample t tests. P values below or equal to 0.05 were considered as significant. Among the evaluated items in this approach, the utilization of cell phones and satellite television dishes were significantly higher in MS patients (p < 0.001, p = 0.07). Furthermore, a correlation was observed between sleeping with cell phone and/or laptop under the pillow (p = 0.011) and MS disease; however, there was no significant differences between MS patients and controls in computer using and television watching. Our study reinforces the concept that the utilization of some electronic devices and the continuous exposure to dirty electricity would increase the risk of MS disease thereupon by enhancing the cognizance of adverse effects of dirty electricity and reducing the time spent over electronic devices during adolescence and adulthood the occurrence probability of MS could be declined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows the development of a graphical interface and electronic instrumentation based on a programming algorithm for the simultaneous measurement, monitoring and visualization of magnitudes of pH (hydrogen potential), Na+ (sodium ions) and O2 (oxygen) present in conventional and nonconventional yeast. The data obtained experimentally with the methodology proposed in this work, are used for the characterization of different biochemical processes such as yeast fermentation. The electronic instrumentation is validated by correlating the linearization coefficients of the pH, Na + and 02 sensors (09951, 0.9929 and 1 respectively). Finally, the algorithm performed is validated in the LabView graphical platform correct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows the design and construction of an electrocardi-ograph capable of capturing and showing the electrical activity of the human heart through a single channel. For this purpose, a circuit comprising an amplification phase, that uses an instru-mentation amplifier (INA), and an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is designed and connected to a Raspberry Pi (RPI) micro-computer through a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI). In addi-tion, a software, responsible for the cardiac signal acquisition, storage and visualization was written in Python programming language and executed in the microcomputer. The obtained sig-nals were analyzed by software GNU/Octave, where digital signal processing techniques (PDS) were employed in the development of filters. With the prototype, it was possible to observe the main waves that compose the Electrocardiogram, in agreement with the expected signal for the bipolar DI peripheral derivation, where the measurement points are located in both arms. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Dyna is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Medellin, Facultad de Minas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Los laboratorios virtuales se han consolidado en la última década como una valiosa herramienta de apoyo para el ejercicio docente en diferentes áreas de la formación profesional. En la actualidad podemos encontrar implementaciones que van desde la virtualización de prácticas en ciencias básicas hasta la experimentación virtual en temas específicos de ingeniería. Si bien los mayores desarrollos en este campo se han alcanzado en otras latitudes, en los últimos años, local y regionalmente, se han dado pasos firmes hacia la incorporación efectiva de estos escenarios de enseñanza-aprendizaje a la actividad académica universitaria. Se plantea la implementación de prácticas virtuales para la asignatura de Instrumentación Electrónica como elemento de optimización de los recursos tecnológicos y locativos existentes. Adicionalmente, dentro del marco metodológico del proyecto, se plantean estos escenarios como un medio para fortalecer las experiencias académicas e investigativas del estudiante por fuera del aula de clase. Concluimos que más allá de una mera implementación o novedad tecnológica, los laboratorios virtuales nos abren una puerta para la experimentación con nuevas formas y medios de enseñanza aprendizaje, contribuyendo así a la efectividad formativa de la relación docente-estudiante.

This paper addresses the problem of predictive diagnostic in high-power transformers. Particularly, this paper is focused on their use in uninterruptible power supply systems for safety critical applications, such as railway interlocking signaling installations. With respect to the state of the art, where typically only thermal and electrical faults are monitored, this work proposes a distributed network of measuring nodes where also vibration-based mechanical stress diagnosis is implemented. Mechanical degradation is tracked through vibration measures, using multichannel accelerometers, with sensitivity down to 0.5 mg and local signal processing in the transformed frequency domain, up to 1 kHz. A compact hardware-software implementation of the nodes is also presented. The performances of the diagnostic system are assessed through experimental measurements on real three-phase high-power transformers used in railway applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autonomous measurement units are indispensable for the development of the smart grid in order to get faster processing responses, stability, and to provide the user with information regarding power quality (losses, harmonics, outages, steady-state and transient events). In this paper, the development of a novel FPGA-based real-time analyzer is presented. The signal processing nucleus is based on higher-order statistics, introducing the Spectral Kurtosis as an online assessment. Indeed, this fourth-order spectrum enhances non-Gaussian behavior in very unfavorable noise conditions. In the Power Quality assessment frame, the outline of this spectrum can be used to reveal the presence of underlying electrical perturbations. In this paper it is presented an autonomous analyzer that uses the Spectral Kurtosis to detect the presence of low level harmonics. These harmonics are difficult to detect using conventional techniques and can generate problems in power distribution when they are associated to a resonant response in the powered load. The proposed system has been described in synthesizable VHDL and performs an indirect estimator of a poly-spectrum slide, based on the FFT. This synthesizable description has been implemented using a low cost FPGA, enabling a continuous monitoring of the power signal (without dead times) with a high oversampling rate. The proposed solution has been conceived to be introduced in smart grids with high penetration of Distributed Energy Resources (DER). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article describes the construction and simplified analysis of a small-scale Coilgun prototype - electromagnetic weapon that launches a metallic slug whose operation is similar to linear electric motors, also seen in magnetic locks. The design can be constructed with low cost and easily available components, though it involves sophisticated electromagnetism concepts. The system can be employed to Laboratory experiments on Physics as well as on Engineering, to address Electromagnetic Conversion of Energy, namely linear electric motors and actuators. The article discusses circuit models, the electromagnetic force on the slug and also field plots generated from a commercial simulator. The used instrumentation for velocity measurement is also presented, alongside with measured data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this work was to gather a collection of practical laboratory experiences , to discover the physical principles of different types of electrical transducers , and to compare them with theoretical models.