Scipedia: Documents published in 2018

Wider economic benefits of investments in transport corridors and the role of complementary policies

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:21:49 +0200

This paper estimates the impact of the Golden Quadrilateral and North-South-East-West Highways in India on welfare, social inclusion, and environmental quality. The analysis uses district-level data for 1994-2011 and the difference-in-difference method. The results suggest that the highways shifted employment from the farm to the nonfarm sector, and that this shift was accompanied by an increase in output per capita. However, there is no evidence of an impact on household expenditure per capita, the poverty rate, or the incidence of regular wage employment. The results suggest that the highways caused an increase in air pollution. The effects of the highways are heterogeneous, depending on conditions in local factor and product markets.

Document type: Book

Societal Trends Influencing Mobility and Logistics in Europe: A Comprehensive Analysis.

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:20:21 +0200

The objective of this paper is to establish a comprehensive view of societal trends that have an impact on mobility and logistics in the future. Based on a review of scientific literature, the output of European research projects and reports from consultancies, the result of this investigation provides a broad and comprehensive set of factors that influence, and will influence in the future, mobility and logistics. The set is composed of 29 trends organised under 9 larger categories covering economic issues, societal issues, urbanisation, the environment, the digital society, new business models, safety, security and the legislative framework. The present analysis has greatly benefitted from the concept of liquid modernity developed by Bauman that enabled a broad and complete view on the dynamics of society and mobility. It allows describing linkages between social and economic trends, and between society and technology, especially information and communication technology. Thus, the added value of this contribution is its systematic approach allowing to describe this complex topic in an exhaustive manner while focussing on links and dependencies.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

On the Front Line of Community-Led Air Quality Monitoring

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:18:45 +0200

In this chapter, we explore the potential of community-led air quality monitoring. Community-led air quality monitoring differs from top-down monitoring in many aspects: it is focused on community needs and interests and a local problem and, therefore, has a limited geographical coverage as well as limited temporal coverage. However, localised air quality monitoring can potentially increase the spatial and temporal resolution of air quality information if there is a suitable information-sharing mechanism in place: information from multiple community-led activities can be shared at the city scale and used to augment official information. At the core of the chapter, we provide a detailed experiential description of the process of urban air quality practice, from which we draw our conclusion. We suggest that accessible and reliable community-led air quality monitoring can contribute to the understanding of local environmental issues and improve the dialogue between local authorities and communities about the impacts of air pollution on health and urban and transport planning.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

World bank s engagement with transport in cities the early years

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:08:05 +0200

The main focus of this report is on the initial period of the World Banks engagement with transport in cities (1972-82). This study looks at the project practice in light of the strategy document, Urban Transport Sector paper which was published in 1975 to guide the Banks lending program. The strategy focused on the relation between poverty and transport, recommending a spatially-extensive, low-cost, and price-based response to access and traffic problems; improvements in provision of public transport services; and coordination between land use and transport planning. The report presents a thorough analysis of the Banks strategy and practice in the urban transport sector as well as overview of lessons learned, including from projects that did not achieve their planned objectives. Overall, these pioneering efforts in both strategy and practice were well conceived and executed and played a catalytic role in most client cities.

Document type: Book

Transport Connectivity, Medical Supplies, and People's Health Care Access : Evidence from Madagascar

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:07:49 +0200

Health care access is a challenge in rural areas in Africa. On the demand side, rural people are often poor, and transport connectivity is typically bad in rural and remote areas. Because of limited transport connectivity, the quality of health care services provided is also often compromised. In Madagascar, the poor condition of the road network has long hampered the sustainability of the medical supply chain in rural areas. The paper shows that people's demand for health care services is affected not only by local transport connectivity, but also availability of medical supplies at the health facility level, which is also determined by primary and secondary road network connectivity. This in turn further suppresses people's demand in rural areas. The results also indicate that it is important to ensure financial affordability among the poor, which is found to be one of the most crucial constraints.

Document type: Book

A 2050 Vision for Energy-efficient and CO2-free Urban Logistics

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:05:55 +0200

The energy strategy 2050 of Switzerland is aiming at a substantial reduction of the consumption of not renewable energy and of energy sources, which are harmful for the climate, the environment and humans. The research project “Energy efficient and CO2-free Urban Logistics” aims at estimating and evaluating the potential of a more efficient use of energy, a reduction of CO2-emissions and the substitution of non-renewable energy resources regarding urban logistics in Switzerland. Possible developments in urban logistics and their impact on energy consumption and CO2-emission are shown in a scenario analysis. Furthermore a vision 2050 has been developed which fulfils the challenging targets for an “Energy efficient and CO2-free Urban Logistics” in Switzerland. The scenario analysis was completed in October 2016 and the vision has been carried out between November 2016 and June 2017. Based on the vision an action plan will be developed until end of 2017.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Privacy and Security in Data-Driven Urban Mobility

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:04:29 +0200

A wide range of smart mobility technologies are being deployed within urban environment. These technologies generate huge quantities of data, much of them in real-time and at a highly granular scale. Such data about mobility, transport, and citizens can be put to many beneficial uses and, if shared, for uses beyond the system and purposes for which they were generated. Jointly, these data create the evidence base to run mobility services more efficiently, effectively, and sustainably. However, generating, processing, analyzing, sharing, and storing vast amounts of actionable data also raises several concerns and challenges. For example, data privacy, data protection, and data security issues arise from the creation of smart mobility. This chapter highlights the various privacy and security concerns and harms related to the deployment and use of smart mobility technologies and initiatives, and makes suggestions for addressing apprehensions about and harms arising from data privacy, protection, and security issues.

Pareto Based Bat Algorithm for Multi Objectives Multiple Constraints Optimization in GMPLS Networks

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 14:00:54 +0200

Modern communication networks offer advance and diverse applications, which require huge usage of network resources while providing quality of services to the users. Advance communication is based on multiple switched networks that cannot be handle by traditional IP (internet protocol) networks. GMPLS (Generalized multiprotocol label switched) networks, an advance version of MPLS (multiprotocol label switched networks), are introduced for multiple switched networks. Traffic engineering in GMPLS networks ensures traffic movement on multiple paths. Optimal path(s) computation can be dependent on multiple objectives with multiple constraints. From optimization prospective, it is an NP (non-deterministic polynomial-time) hard optimization problem, to compute optimal paths based on multiple objectives having multiple constraints. The paper proposed a metaheuristic Pareto based Bat algorithm, which uses two objective functions; routing costs and load balancing costs to compute the optimal path(s) as an optimal solution for traffic engineering in MPLS/GMPLS networks. The proposed algorithm has implemented on different number of nodes in MPLS/GMPLS networks, to analysis the algorithm performance.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

An efficient computational strategy for robust maintenance scheduling application to corroded pipelines

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:52:32 +0200

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Incorporating resilience in infrastructure prioritization application to the road transport sector

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:08:26 +0200

Disruption of infrastructure services can cause significant social and economic losses, particularly in the event of a natural disaster. The World Bank Group and the Government of Japan established the Quality Infrastructure Investment Partnership to focus attention on the quality dimensions of infrastructure in developing countries, with a focus on promoting disaster resilience. Moreover, to support infrastructure investment decision making for sustainable and resilient development, the World Bank and Kyoto University have operationalized key resilience concepts at the project level and developed quantitative indicators capturing key aspects of infrastructure resilience related to the road transport sector. These indicators estimate resilience, expressed as functionality loss and recovery time across four dimensions: travel time, economic benefit, provision of life-saving services, and provision of relief goods. The paper applies indicator calculations to three case studies of proposed bypass roads in Japan and provides an example comparison of calculated indicators across the three projects for each resilience dimension. Further piloting of the approach will help refine the indicators, test their relative utility in decision making, and offer a better understanding of the data and analytical demands.

Document type: Book

Minibus taxis public transport and the poor

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:07:43 +0200

This report, a background note for the South Africa Systematic Country Diagnostic, documents public transport accessibility, focusing particularly on minibus taxis and on poor households, and describe the costs of commuting to work, using the 2013 National Household Travel Survey conducted by Statistics South Africa. It also explains how the minibus taxi industry works, based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2013 and 2017 in the minibus taxi industry, and what this implies for costs and accessibility of minibuses to users. It analyzes publicly available data on fatal crashes and police data on violence to describes the risks to users of public transport from fatal crashes and also taxi violence. It also suggest some policy options to improve transport outcomes for the poor.

Document type: Book

Roads and Rural Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:00:33 +0200

This paper assesses the relation between access to markets and cultivated land in Sub-Saharan Africa. Making use of a geo-referenced panel over three decades (1970-2005) during which the road network was significantly improved, the analysis finds a modest but significant positive association between increased market accessibility and local cropland expansion. It also finds that cropland expansion, in turn, is associated with a small but significant increase in local gross domestic product. These results are suggestive of agricultural activities that develop at the extensive margin, which are mostly to serve local demand, but are not indicative of commercial agriculture that serves external markets.

Document type: Book

Mental Workload in the Explanation of Automation Effects on ATC Performance

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:00:03 +0200

Automation has been introduced more and more into the role of air traffic control (ATC). As with many other areas of human activity, automation has the objective of reducing the complexity of the task so that performance is optimised and safer. However, automation can also have negative effects on cognitive processing and the performance of the controllers. In this paper, we present the progress made at AUTOPACE, a European project in which research is carried out to discover what these negative effects are and to propose measures to mitigate them. The fundamental proposal of the project is to analyse, predict, and mitigate these negative effects by assessing the complexity of ATC in relation to the mental workload experienced by the controller. Hence, a highly complex situation will be one with a high mental workload and a low complex situation will be one in which the mental workload is low.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Negro employment in land and air transport a study of racial policies in the railroad airline trucking and urban transit industries

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 12:59:24 +0200

Document type: Book

Pulled or Pushed? The Emigration of Portuguese Scientists

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 12:58:06 +0200

This chapter addresses the migration of scientific professionals from Portugal in the past few decades, focusing on the pull (which attract skilled workers to a country) and push (which repel workers away from the country of origin) factors that drive this migration. Based on official statistics, a questionnaire survey with researchers abroad and semi-structured interviews with returnee scientists, the chapter shows how Portugal, as a semi-peripheral country, has traditionally been a sending rather than a receiving country for scientists. Exit trends were actively encouraged throughout the last few decades by national science policies (training of human resources that provided opportunities for studying and working abroad) and by European policies (of intra-EU mobility). Similarly, the growth of resources in the Portuguese scientific system came to be a factor for attracting foreign scientists to Portugal. Mobility rates, both outbound and return, were high but over time push factors became less significant, as Portugal increased its attractiveness for young researchers wishing to pursue advanced training and even for foreign researchers. However, in later years, the economic crisis and the austerity measures implemented to deal with it, as well as some changes in science policy, have created favourable conditions for an increase in brain drain. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Toward Great Dhaka : A New Urban Development Paradigm Eastward

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 12:55:41 +0200

A unique strategic opportunity beckons Bangladesh. Dhaka, the economic powerhouse of the country, stands on the cusp of a dramatic transformation that could make it much more prosperous and livable. Today, Dhaka is prone to flooding, congestion, and messiness, to a point that is clogging its growth. But toward its east, where two major highway corridors will one day intersect, is a vast expanse of largely rural land. And much of it is within 6 kilometers of the most valuable parts of the city. The time to make the most of this eastward opportunity is now. Many parts of East Dhaka are already being developed in a haphazard way at an alarmingly rapid pace. Private developers are buying land and filling it with sand so they can build and sell new houses and apartments. Canals and ponds are disappearing, and the few narrow roads crossing the area are being encroached by construction. This spontaneous development could soon make East Dhaka look like the messy western part of the city, and retrofitting it later will be more difficult and costlier than properly planning and developing it now. Toward Great Dhaka: A New Urban Development Paradigm Eastward seeks to analyze how the opportunity of East Dhaka could be realized. Using state-of-the-art modeling techniques, the study simulates population, housing, economic activity, and commuting times across the 266 unions that constitute Greater Dhaka. It does so under various scenarios for the development of East Dhaka, but always assessing the implications for the entire city. The simulations suggest that pursuing a strategic approach to the development of East Dhaka would make Greater Dhaka a much more productive and livable city than continuing with business as usual. Based on current trends, Greater Dhaka would have a population of 25 million in 2035 and an income per capita of US$8,000 at 2015 prices. However, embracing a strategic approach would add 5 million people to the city. And, it would be a more productive city, with nearly 1.8 million more jobs and an income per capita of more than US$9,200 at 2015 prices, enough to put Dhaka on the map of global cities.

Document type: Book

Towards filling the gap of routing changes in software-defined networks

Scipedia content — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 12:47:08 +0200

The inflexibility and rigidity of the current networking systems in light of the growing number of computing devices that connected to the Internet has led to the need of a new generation of computer networks. In this context, software-defined network has recently emerged as one of the most recognisable solutions to facilitate the network management and decrease the complexity through detaching the control layer from network appliances. Since, each new technology accompanied with new issues and concerns, one of the main challenges that facing the SDNs is the fault tolerance and resilience. Although there are a numerous of studies that have discussed this issue, the after failure repair scenario is remained unclear and have not addressed well yet. For this reason, we specify this paper as a step forward to address the issue of routing changes, which is important for utilising the optimal paths after failure repair. We produced a new network model as well as a compatible framework with SDN architecture to fulfil the routing changes activity. The consequence is estimated based on an analytical model and finally, a case study example is provided in order to conceptualise the concept.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Regulatory changes in international air transport and their impact on tourism development in asia pacific

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 10:01:54 +0200

This chapter reviews the history of regulation and deregulation in international air transport and discusses the positive impacts of deregulation and open skies on the tourism sector in the Asia Pacific region. The Hong Kong–Bangkok market was examined, which shows that the granting of the fifth freedom rights has given the two places sufficient air service provisions to build tourism. Future reforms in air transport such as relaxing ownership restrictions and expanding air freedoms rights are explored.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Updating the Failure Probability of Miter Gates Based on Observation of Water Levels

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:57:08 +0200

Hydraulic steel structures, especially lock gates play a significant role in keeping navigation traffic uninterrupted. After a few decades of operation, many of the welded joints may suffer various degrees of deterioration, primarily due to fatigue. To economically combining crack inspection with a scheduled maintenance of the movable parts of the gate, it is valuable to predict inspection time of the welded joints using the historical operations of the gate, i.e. the variation of water levels. Updating failure probability of welded joint is mature in the offshore industry, but it is rarely applied for inland navigation lock gates where the contribution to fatigue failure comes from the variation of water pressures during operation of the lock gates. The scope of this paper is to predict the inspection time of a welded joint using the observed water levels from the operational history. The updating of the failure probability is done for three inspection techniques, considering annual probability and repair decisions. The results show the effects of critical annual probability and the probability of detections (PODs) on the update failure probability for a welded joint.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

The optimal mix of pricing and infrastructure expansions to alleviate traffic congestion and in bus crowding in grand casablanca

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:56:52 +0200

Like in many large cities in developing countries, traffic in Grand Casablanca, Morocco, is congested and public buses are crowded. These conditions are alleviated by a combination of supply-side infrastructure expansions, such as more buses and new road capacity, and demand-side pricing instruments, such as parking and fuel taxes. Using an empirical urban transportation mode choice model for Casablanca, this study finds a mix of these expansion policies and pricing instruments to alleviate congestion and maximize aggregate social welfare. The optimal mix is sensitive to the marginal costs of the infrastructure expansions. If the city were to spread out in its periphery where land constraints do not exist and land is available at lower prices, a supply-side instrument, particularly the optimal expansion of roads, would be far more effective in achieving welfare gains than the use of optimal pricing instruments without new roads. By contrast, if the city were to densify in already built-up areas, land and other physical constraints and the high price of land may leave expensive “elevated roads” as the only option. In this case, demand-side instruments together with the elevated roads would equally contribute to reduce traffic congestion and in-bus crowding.

Document type: Book

Characterizing the variation in atmospheric radiation at aviation altitudes

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:53:36 +0200

For astronauts and travelers in aircraft, space weather can quickly increase dose rates resulting from naturally occurring ionizing radiation by more than a 1000-fold. Historically, monitoring of these events has been done primarily by a combination of ground-based and satellite instrumentation. At best, these data sources provide a local (ground-level monitors) or global (satellite) average picture of an event as it evolves. With considerable modeling effort, a better global picture of an event emerges after the event has passed. For aviation users this is inadequate. Real-time local estimates on flight routes are preferred to enable appropriate responses from pilots and air traffic management. Modeling and measurement programs are described, and a new aviation dose index is discussed to provide examples of systems that are in development or that have been recently adopted for addressing problems with the current monitoring, warning, and evaluation methods.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

On the use of machine learning for eeg based workload assessment algorithms comparison in a realistic task

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:52:07 +0200

The measurement of the mental workload during real tasks by means of neurophysiological signals is still challenging. The employment of Machine Learning techniques has allowed a step forward in this direction, however, most of the work has dealt with binary classification. This study proposed to examine the surveys already performed in the context of EEG-based workload classification and to test different machine learning algorithms on real multitasking activity like the Air Traffic Management. The results obtained on 35 professional Air Traffic Controllers showed that a KNN algorithm allows discriminating up to three workload levels (low, medium and high) with more than 84% of accuracy on average. Moreover, in such realistic employment it emerges how important is to opportunely choose the set of features to ward off that task-related confounds could affect the workload assessment.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Planning for Diversity in an Era of Social Change

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:46:55 +0200

This chapter discusses how the UK planning system and local planning practice have responded to the ethnic, cultural, religious and demographic diversification of British society generated by 20th- and 21st-century waves of migration. Planning theorists and practitioners have advocated new forms of ‘planning for diversity’ since the 1980s, driven by a politics of recognition of difference. Such concerns have first been addressed through national legislative anti-discrimination and equality provisions. Local planning authorities have encouraged the participation of ethnic minority groups in planning processes and sought to address their specific needs, through both minority-targeted policies and area-based urban policies. Planners have also played a role in creating spaces of (multicultural) encounter. The chapter concludes by contrasting normative calls for ‘planning for diversity’ with the ambiguities, contradictory outcomes, dilemmas and challenges of doing so in practice.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Estimation of Speed and Distance of Surrounding Vehicles from a Single Camera

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:44:14 +0200

Deep Learning requires huge amount of data with related labels, that are necessary for proper training. Thanks to modern videogames, which aim at photorealism, it is possible to easily obtain synthetic dataset by extracting information directly from the game engine. The intent is to use data extracted from a videogame to obtain a representation of various scenarios and train a deep neural network to infer the information required for a specific task. In this work we focus on computer vision aids for automotive applications and we target to estimate the distance and speed of the surrounding vehicles by using a single dashboard camera. We propose two network models for distance and speed estimation, respectively. We show that training them by using synthetic images generated by a game engine is a viable solution that turns out to be very effective in real settings.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Making industrial analytics work for factory automation applications

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:43:37 +0200

In this contribution, we give an insight in our experiences in the technical and organizational realization of industrial analytics. We address challenges in implementing industrial analytics in real-world applications and discuss aspects to consider when designing a machine learning solution for production. We focus on technical and organizational aspects to make industrial analytics work for real-world applications in factory automation. As an example, we consider a machine learning use case in the area of industry compressors. We discuss the importance of scalability and reusability of data analytics pipelines and present a container-based system architecture.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Risk analysis of innovative maritime transport solutions using the extended failure mode and effects analysis fmea methodology

Scipedia content — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 09:12:55 +0200

This paper presents a validated set of innovative maritime solutions analyzing, based on the extended"br" Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) methodology, the main risks that could potentially hinder or delay"br" their implementation, thus providing a set of appropriate strategies and measures that can be adopted for"br" mitigating those risks.

Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

TPOT a tree based pipeline optimization tool for automating machine learning

Scipedia content — Wed, 23 Sep 2020 13:02:23 +0200

As data science becomes increasingly mainstream, there will be an ever-growing demand for data science tools that are more accessible, flexible, and scalable. In response to this demand, automated machine learning (AutoML) researchers have begun building systems that automate the process of designing and optimizing machine learning pipelines. In this chapter we present TPOT v0.3, an open source genetic programming-based AutoML system that optimizes a series of feature preprocessors and machine learning models with the goal of maximizing classification accuracy on a supervised classification task. We benchmark TPOT on a series of 150 supervised classification tasks and find that it significantly outperforms a basic machine learning analysis in 21 of them, while experiencing minimal degradation in accuracy on 4 of the benchmarks—all without any domain knowledge nor human input. As such, genetic programming-based AutoML systems show considerable promise in the AutoML domain. Document type: Part of book or chapter of book

Discovering behavioral patterns among air pollutants: A data mining approach

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:26:17 +0200

Air pollutants affect both human health and the environment. For this reason, environmental managers and urban planners focus their efforts in monitoring air pollution. In this context, complete information is required to support the decision-making process to improve the quality of life in urban zones. Hence, it is important to extract knowledge not only on concentration levels but associations between air pollutants. Based on the Cross-industry standard process for data mining, this paper presents an approach which leads to identify correlations and incidence between the most harmful pollutants in the Andean Region: Ozone, Carbon monoxide, Sulfur dioxide, Nitrogen dioxide and, Particulate material. This paper describes an experiment using a real dataset from a monitoring station in Cuenca, Ecuador located in the Andean region. The results show that the proposed approach is effective to extract knowledge useful to support the evaluation of air quality in urban zones. In addition, this approach provides a starting point for future data mining applications for the analysis of air pollution in the context of the Andean region.

The Extended Kalman Filter in the Dynamic State Estimation of Electrical Power Systems

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:26:07 +0200

The state estimation and the analysis of load flow are very important subjects in the analysis and management of Electrical Power Systems (EPS). This article describes the state estimation in EPS using the Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) and the method of Holt to linearize the process model and then calculates a performance error index as indicators of its accuracy. Besides, this error index can be used as a reference for further comparison between methodologies for state estimation in EPS such as the Unscented Kalman Filter, the Ensemble Kalman Filter, Monte Carlo methods, and others. Results of error indices obtained in the simulation process agree with the order of magnitude expected and the behavior of the filter is appropriate due to follows adequately the true value of the state variables. The simulation was done using Matlab and the electrical system used corresponds to the IEEE 14 and 30 bus test case systems. State Variables to consider in this study are the voltage and angle magnitudes.

Sliding modes control for a heat Exchange system: experimental validation

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:25:50 +0200

Sliding modes control (SMC) is a nonlinear control method with a systematic design procedure that allows to obtain a explicit solution for the control input. This method has some advantages, such as robustness against external disturbances and unpredictable parametric variations. On this work, two conventional SMC techniques, one using the error and other using the error integral, are designed and validated in a heat exchange system composed of a single pass circulation electric heater, whose control objective is to regulate the output temperature of the fluid, under the influence of external disturbances, such as variations in the flow and inflow temperature, manipulating the electric current passing through the heater resistance. The two SMC algorithms are analyzed using numerical simulations and their performance is compared through the integral absolute error and the integral absolute control input, selecting the best one to be tested experimentally. The experimental results indicate that the SMC is capable of fulfilling the control objective with satisfactory performance.
Keywords: Conventional sliding modes control; heat exchange system; nonlinear control.

A Fuzzy Sliding Mode Controller for Planar 4-Cable Direct Driven Robot

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:25:41 +0200

Cable Direct Driven Robots (CDDRs) are a special class of parallel robots but they are formed by replacing all the supporting rigid links with cables. Compare with traditional robots, these robots are good candidates for performing a wide range of potential applications. A Planar CDDR model is considered in this paper since no rotational move and no moment resistance are required on the end-effector, all 4 cables convene in a single point and the end-effector is modeled as a point mass. The main goal of this paper is to present a new approach in control by developing a Sliding Mode Controller (SMC) with a Fuzzy-PI as sliding surface using Fuzzy logic toolbox in Matlab/Simulink. The tests performed were Step change reference test and Tracking trajectory test to observe the behavior of the cables during the trajectory and the end-effector movement. Simulation was carried out on Planar 4-Cable CDDR to prove the effectiveness of the proposed control law and the results were compared with a PI Controller and a conventional SMC in terms of integral square error (ISE) index. Only the kinematic model of Planar 4-Cable CDDR is considered in this paper.

Fault Tolerant MPC Controller for Electric Heater Control

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:25:31 +0200

Los controladores MPC son buenos eliminando el error de estado estacionario aun si el sistema controlado es afectado por perturbaciones. Pero el MPC no fue pensado para mantener su desempeño bajo condiciones de falla por sí solo. El control tolerante a fallas se compone de algoritmos de control, estrategias de detección y compensación de fallas. En este trabajo se implementó un controlador MPC usando la estrategia de matriz dinámica junto con un generador de residuo basado en modelo para detectar la ocurrencia de una falla en el sistema controlado. La cuantificación de fallas se logró mediante el uso de Redes neuronales artificiales y un filtro pasa banda, lo cual permitió realizar una acción de compensación para mejorar el tiempo de recuperación del sistema ante una falla.

Root-Locus Analysis of Delayed First and Second Order Systems

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:25:22 +0200

For finite dimensional linear system the root-locus method is well established however for the case of delayed systems the method has some problems due to the transcendental term involved. This work intends to illustrate the problems that arises when a root-locus diagram is performed as well as to develop a Matlab function that provides the root-locus diagram for delayed low order systems. In this way, some comments about the problems that should be tackled to obtain a generalization of the computational method for delayed systems with real m poles and n zeros

Modelling of Learning Styles in Relation to University- level Lectures

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:25:13 +0200

Throughout this paper we seek to demonstrate the practicality of obtaining an approximate model of the relationship between a score that determines the learning styles of a student and the results obtained in a specific University-level lecture. The study considered the voluntary participation of over six hundred students from “Escuela Politécnica Nacional” of Ecuador (EPN). The Index of Learning Styles model was used to establish the various learning styles of the students. The analysis of the results considers the linear correlation and the correlation distance.

Concurrent design of a lower limb rehabilitation mechanism

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:25:04 +0200

The rehabilitation given by robotic systems is a choice for minimizing the recovery time of a patient and boost their muscular and skeletal capacity on a limb damaged. However, the high cost of these systems limits patients to receive these kind of treatments. The systems of one degree of freedom are a low cost alternative to health care and rehab at home.
In this paper, the structural design of an 8-link mechanism for the rehabilitation of lower limbs is performed, based on the approach and solution of an optimization problem in which certain objectives are met, such as dimensional synthesis, and the minimizing of torque to make control easier.

Fractional order modeling of a nonlinear electromechanical system

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:24:55 +0200

This paper presents a novel modeling technique for a VTOL electromechanical nonlinear dynamical system, based on fractional order derivatives. The proposed method evaluates the possible fractional differential equations of the electromechanical system model by a comparison against actual measurements and in order to estimate the optimal fractional parameters for the differential operators of the model, an extended Kalman filter was implemented. The main advantages of the fractional model over the classical model are the simultaneous representation of the nonlinear slow dynamics of the system due to the mechanical components and the nonlinear fast dynamics of the electrical components.

Event-Triggered Control for a Three DoF Manipulator Robot

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:24:47 +0200

In the classical approach of Time-Triggered Control (TTC), the control signal is updated at each sampling time as well as the system states to be controlled, which could imply a redundancy in the computational calculation as well as in the transfer of information in the regulation objective. On the other hand, the Event-Triggered Control (ETC) approach performs the same task in an asynchronous way, i.e,, it only updates the control signal when a performance requirement is violated and the states are updated at each sampling time. This reduces the amount of computational calculation without affecting the performance of the closed loop system. For this reason, in the present work the ETC is developed for the stabilization of a manipulator robot with three Degree of Freedom (DoF) in the joint space where a Lyapunov Control Function (LCF) is proposed to formulate the event function (e¯), which indicates whether or not is required the control signal updating. Simulation results show the reduction of the updates compared with a TTC.

Predictive ADRC Control Using LMI

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:24:39 +0200

On recent times Active Disturbance Rejection Control has drawn both the attention of industrial and scientific community due to its capability to handle uncertainties and nonlinearities without using an explicit model of the system; on this paper a modification of the ADRC algorithm is presented, first an Extended State Predictor is calculated and later, a controller is built using the LMI approach, the proposal is evaluated through simulations on the Cayley-Rodriguez representation of the Monoaxial satellite

Efficient solution of nonlinear model predictive control by a restricted enumeration method

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:24:30 +0200

This work presents an alternative method to solve the nonlinear program (NLP) for nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) problems. The NLP is the most computational demanding task in NMPC, which limits the industrial implementation of this control strategy. Therefore, it is important to consider algorithms that can solve the nonlinear program, not only in real time but also guaranteeing feasibility. In this work, the restricted enumeration method is proposed as alternative to solve the NLP for NMPC problems, showing successful results for pH control in a sugar cane process plant. This method enumerates in restricted way a set of final control element possible positions around the current one. Next, it tests all positions in that set to find the best one, taken as the optimization solution.

Data analysis and tools applied to modeling and simulation of a PV system in Ecuador

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:24:14 +0200

This paper presents a research was carried out for the management of a photovoltaic system in a Microgrid, with applications and the use of tools applied to modeling and computational simulation in the Microgrid laboratory implanted in the facilities of the University of Cuenca (Ecuador). Additionally, through the use of automatic learning techniques, the behavior of the photovoltaic system has been modeled in the study area based on radiation and temperature with very good results. In addition, several applications can be made in real engineering studies such as feasibility, performance analysis, energy estimation, educational models, etc.

Analysis of benthic macroinvertebrates and biotic indices to evaluate water quality in Sardina´s river, Ecuadorian Chocó Andino

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:23:17 +0200

An aquatic macroinvertebrates community analysis was made at Sardinas River, in the rainy and wet seasons of 2018, using macroinvertebrates as environmental bioindicators; these were collected with Surber net and hand collection, in five points along the river. In the laboratory they were classified and identified as class, order and family. They were studied by the analysis of richness (S) and abundance (N). The environmental quality was determinate applying the BMWP/Col and EPT indices. A total of 526 individuals belonging to 15 orders and 44 families were collected. 35 in the rainy season and 31 in the dry season. The most abundant family in rainy season was Leptophlebiidae, 34 specimens (12.8%). In dry season, the most representative was Chironomidae with 45 individuals (17.2%). In rainy season the point 2 had greater richness S16 and in the dry season P1, S18. P3 - P5 presented medium quality water (BMWP/Col = 69-94 and an EPT average of 47.05%). This study determined through BMWP/Col and EPT indices, in association with the taxa collected and the calculations of (S), (N) and relative abundance (%), the ecological status of the studies’ area.

Energy and exergy evaluation in a 1.6L Otto cycle internal combustion engine

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:22:58 +0200

This paper aimed to evaluate the behavior of an Otto Cycle internal combustion of a 1.6 L engine measuring its performance by the energy and exergy balance. The energy calculation was developed in a previously set route at a constant speed of 50 km/h and 90 km/h. It was determined, that the analysis of the energy and exergy balance contributes to recognize the performance of an internal combustion after the experimentation based on observation, measurement, methods of induction, deduction and synthesis. Also, it was resolved that the engine has an average energy efficiency of 27.57 % for a speed of 50 km/h, while the total exergy flow of the system is 22 %. Therefore, there is no significant difference with the efficiency results at 90 km/h.

Quality parametres of four types of formulations based on Trichoderma asperellum and Purpuricillium lilacinum

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:22:41 +0200

The genus Trichoderma and to a lesser extent Purpureocillium, have been studied extensively for their properties as beneficial microorganisms and their effectiveness in disease control. However, biological efficacy is not the only parameter considered when formulating a microorganism; viability, purity and concentration in the formulation are important characteristics to ensure success in the field. The aim of this study was to access different types of formulations (granules, powders, liquids) to record their behavior over time, using the variables viability, concentration and purity to select best formulations based on these parameters. As a result, it was obtained that the bioformulates based on T. asperellum showed greater stability during storage, with dry solid formulations being more stable in comparison with liquid products. In terms of the P. lilacinum formulations, it was observed that the presentation of wettable powders showed the highest concentration and stability over the time.

Analysis of the methodology for rate determination in commercial transportation service of conventional and executive taxis

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:22:30 +0200

An efficient transport service allows a society to have economic progress and improves quality of life. Part of this structure is the issue in the determination of pricing the service of it, thus, the incomes of the offeror and good service to the user can be guaranteed. In Ecuador, the National Traffic Agency establishes a methodology that considers the offer of kilometers and operating costs. However, this methodology does not establish how to get and analyse the information that feeds the model, this aspect can generate biases and subjectivities at the time to define the rate. This study seeks to detect deficiencies in the methodology and suggest the relevant changes as an alternative to it, for this a mixed approach is considered, which not only considers surveys but also instrumentation and hi-technology to measure fuel consumption, tire wear, distance traveled and number of passengers. Once the analysis of the methodology was developed, a new approach to information gathering was proposed; and to validate, an experiment was applied to a canton of the country, with this it was possible to obtain rates that better represent the reality of the sector under analysis.

Study of the dynamic performance of an Otto engine using mixtures two types of “Extra and Super” gasolines

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:22:12 +0200

The purpose of this study is to compare and examine the performance of an engine, using gasoline with 92 octanes (Super), 87 octanes (Extra) and two volume mixtures of these two types of gasoline, the first one had 50% of volume of each type, the second one had a volume value of 70% of Super with 30% of Extra. To evaluate the performance of the engine, a dynamometer was used to obtain the characteristics curves of power and torque, a gas analyzer was used to determine the level of emission of pollutant gases from the engine (CO, CO2, HC, y NOx), finally an homologated cycle was carried out to measure fuel consumption. The mixture of Super 50% with Extra 50% obtained a higher power value with 81.3 HP, the Super gasoline obtained a higher torque value of 89.2 lb-ft, in cycle ASM 2525, the CO, HC and NOx were measured, the Super gasoline, Extra gasoline and the mixture of 50% of each gasoline were the least polluting ones, in cycle ASM 5015, CO, HC and NOx were measured, Super gasoline, Extra and the Super 70% V mixture with Extra 30% V respectively were less polluting, in the static gas test the least polluting was Super.

Aerodynamic design of 100 KW blades for horizontal axis wind turbines located on the “Cerro Villonaco” zone

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:21:51 +0200

In this paper, the design and aerodynamic simulation of a rotor for horizontal axis wind turbine for the Cerro Villonaco was carried out. The aerodynamic design aimed for a blade with an optimal geometry, which is defined by the chord and the twist angle of the airfoil. The design parameters conferred to the project were given by the characteristics of the wind in the Villonaco Wind Farm. Results were validated with an aerodynamic simulation, developed in a software employing the mathematical model known as blade element momentum theory, to verify its optimum performance against the requirements established with a TSR, with the goal to set a design method for subsequent investigations. Finally, a rotor analysis was carried out, obtaining an output mechanical power of 107 KW, thus corroborating the design power with the characteristics of the Villonaco Wind Farm.

Production of a fermented drink based on quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa)

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:21:41 +0200

The aim of this study was to develop a beverage obtained from the fermentation of the soluble extract of germinated quinoa under the action of traditional yogurt cultures (S. thermophilus and L. bulgaricus ) and probiotic cultures (Lactobacillus. acidophilus and Bifidobacterium ). Two factors under study were established: the xanthan gum percentage (0.30%, 0.40 % and 0.50% w/w) and sucrose:fructose relation (90:10, 70:30, 50:50) added in the formulation. The quantified variables were: acidity, pH, viscosity and phase separation. The study was conducted under the completely randomized design (CRD), analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey mean separation test with a confidence level of 95 %. The best treatment included 0.50 % xanthan gum and sucrose:fructose relation of 90:10 in its formulation. The product was subjected to sensory tests in which it was determined that the product liked to consumers (score of 3.2 points on a 5-point hedonic scale). Finally, a fermented drink made from quinoa was obtained with 9 g of protein per 200 g of product and with a shelf life estimated in 70 days at 4oC. This product could be an alternative to fermented beverages such as cow's milk yogurt and soy-fermented drink.

A context ontology for a mobile recommender system of advertisements)

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:21:32 +0200

Currently, most recommendation systems do not consider the context in which they are executed, being inappropriate to operate on mobile devices, this can be observed in the field of advertising, where users are overwhelmed by the excessive general information that they receive, causing widespread dissatisfaction with their use. One of the biggest challenges to incorporate contextual information to the software is the design of a formal model for its representation, because traditional methods are inadequate for this purpose, being necessary to use alternative approaches such as those based on ontologies. This work describes the process used in the construction of an ontology to represent the information of the advertisements and the contextual dimensions: location, time and users’ needs, to consider when recommending. Through the application of the NeOn methodology, an expressive and extensible ontological model was obtained that integrates the ontologies: FOAF, OWL-Time and WGS84 Geo Positioning. The proposed ontology is an initial contribution for the creation of a context-aware mobile recommender system of advertisements.

Modeling and Simulation of the Robot Mitsubishi RV-2JA controlled by electromyographic signals

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:21:23 +0200

The aim of this work is control the Mitsubishi RV-2JA Robot using sEMG surface electromyographic signals. The sEMG signals were obtained from the hand through a Myo bracelet with surface sensors. Myo surface sensors are able to detect the electromyographic signals generated by the muscles. The integration of the system was performed in Matlab's Simulink platform to process, identify, validate and control the robot through the electromyographic signals. The hand gestures analysis was performed using a temporal approximation that allowed the extraction of characteristics of the signals. It was determined that the parameters Electromyographic Integrated, Mean Absolute Value, Quadratic Mean and Variance have direct correlation with the type of Hand movement. In order to classify the first movements like spread fingers, wave right, wave left, elder and voor, we used 6 neural networks, which allow to activate 3 degrees of freedom of the robot. For the integration and verification of the real-time system, the hardware in loop simulation (HIL) was applied. This simulation allowed the execution of the plant model, the connection with the appropriate control and communication system to verify that the system controls the robot.

Use of an orthogonal arrangement for the analysis of the process of die sink electrical discharge machining with shape electrodes of graphite and copper on aluminum micro-casting)

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 15:21:14 +0200

This paper deals with the use of the Taguchi method in the realization of experiments to solve the multiple answers in the process of EDM machining using copper and graphite electrodes. This manufacturing process was carried out on the aluminum microfusion material widely used in the footwear manufacturing industry. The experimentation was carried out according to an orthogonal arrangement L8. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine the effects of the input variables (tooling material, pulse time, tool shape and cutting depth) on the output variables (material removal rate and surface roughness); as well as a regression analysis to predict the results of the experimental analysis. The results have shown that machining parameters can be optimized with considerations of multiple responses effectively. It is evident that the pulse time is the main influencer in the material removal rate (MRR) and the machining time has a greater influence on the surface roughness (Ra). Finally, it was demonstrated that the copper electrode has better working efficiency and the graphite gives better surface roughness.

Reduction of the variability of a water demineralization process by ion exchange; for the production of soft drinks.

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:56 +0200

The focus of this work was to find the necessary solutions to reduce variability, increase capacity and establish a plan to improve the water demineralization process for beverage production. For this, the diagnosis of the process was made and the elements, supplies and equipment were physically recognized, from the taking of the source to the manufacture of the beverages. The critical quality variables were determined by quality control according to laboratory tests and historical data. It was established within the problematic that the two critical quality variables were the hardness and alkalinity of the water; the process was studied with the reference in these two variables to know the root causes that caused the problems, measurements were made to calculate the capacity of the process and perform stability analysis, and the root causes of the problem were determined. The improvement included staff training, start-up manual and equipment regeneration manual, as well as process controls through type X-R control charts. The reduction of variability, the increase in capacity and improvement of the process was achieved.

Study of the antioxidant capacity and content of polyphenols in the clarification process of Jamaica flower (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) wine

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:49 +0200

The objective of this research was to study the effect of the clarification process by tangential microfiltration (MFT) and the static clarification in cold at 6 °C for six days, on the content of polyphenols and the antioxidant capacity of the Jamaica flower (Hibiscus sabdariffa L) wine, made from fresh chalices. Physicochemical analyzes (soluble solids, pH, turbidity, titratable acidity expressed as tartaric and malic acid, color and turbidity) and biochemical analyzes were performed by spectrophotometry of total polyphenols content (Folin-Ciocalteu method) and antioxidant capacity (TEAC method). The antioxidant capacity of the fermented wort without clarification treatment was superior to the fermented wort clarified by MFT at 2 bar and inferior to the fermented wort clarified in cold at 6 °C and for six days. The antioxidant activity of the fermented must clarified by MFT at 2 bar is lower compared to the cold static clarification process with an antioxidant activity of 8.21 mM of Trolox equivalent / 100 ml. The process of clarification in cold at 6 °C and for six days contains greater capacity of antioxidant, but in function of the cleaning (NTU) as attribute of quality is low in comparison to the one obtained by tangential microfiltration to 2 bar.

Evaluation of the extract obtained as leached of coconut (Cocos nucifera) fiber as a bioestimulant in remediation of a soil contaminated with oil

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:40 +0200

The use of the extract obtained as a leaching of the coconut fiber (Cocos nucifera) as a biostimulant for the remediation of a savanna soil contaminated with heavy oil was evaluated. Through standardized procedures, the main characteristics of the extract, oil and soil were obtained. The soil was contaminated with 100 mL of heavy oil per kilogram. Four experimental units of 1 kg each were established, leaving the first as a pattern without treatment and 3 treated with extract in proportions of 50, 100 and 150 mL, each with 3 replicates distributed at random. The units were left under controlled laboratory conditions and the percentage of oils and fats and the pH were determined every 7 days by means of the EPA 9071b and ASTM D4972 standards, until complying with the Venezuelan standard Decree 2635. It was concluded by means of a Factorial ANOVA analysis, that both the volume of extract applied and the exposure time exert a statistically significant influence on the percentage of oils and fats and the pH with 95% confidence level. All soil units treated with extract reached the limit value established in Decree 2635 at 28 days.

Effect of the addition of malted and unmalted quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa wild) in Ale type beer with barley (Hordeum vulgare) malt

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:31 +0200

The effect of the addition of malted quinoa (QM) and without malting (QSM) was evaluated in an Ale type beer with malted barley. Formulations containing 35 and 50% of QM and QSM were developed. Quinoa was previously unsapponificated and characterized. Density, alcoholic degree, turbidity, total acidity and pH were determined before and after the fermentation process. Analysis of color (L, a *, b *, Hue and Cr *) and sensorial acceptability were performed. Unsapponification process increased moisture content, reduced fat and ash and slightly decreased carbohydrates, nevertheless, protein and fiber content were not affected. After the fermentation, the beer with QM presented lower density, higher alcohol content and turbidity. No difference was found in total acidity and pH, while the color of beer with QM presented lower values in the analyzed color parameters (except a *). The formulation with the highest overall acceptance was the one with 50% QM. The use of QM for brewing is an alternative for the consuming of this cereal and a novel product for the consumer.

Repercution of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Kluyveromyces fragilis (L-4UCLV) on the bioproductive parameters of pigs

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:22 +0200

With the objective of evaluating the repercussion of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Kluyveromyces fragilis L-4UCLV on the productive indicators and the health of the pigs in the different productive stages, two experiments (I and II) were carried out. 14 and 42 hybrid pigs CC21 (Yorkshire - Landrace / L35 Duroc) were used, respectively, distributed in two and three groups of 7 and 14 animals each. Control (T1); prepared-A (T2) and prepared-B (T3). T2, contained L. acidophillus and T3, L. acidophilus more K. fragilis (L-4 UCLV). A completely randomized design was used to evaluate weight gain (WG), average daily gain (ADG), feed conversion (FC), food efficiency (FE), incidence of diarrhea and mortality. WG, ADG, FC and FE were higher (p

Elaboration of a pasteurized beverage from a quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) protein extract

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:12 +0200

The research consisted on evaluating parameters to obtain a quinoa beverage. Quinoa soluble protein (SP) extraction and two process conditions (addition of stabilizer and pasteurization temperature) were considered as parameters. The concentration of SP in the protein extract was studied through the factors: flour:NaOH solution ratio (1:2.50, 1:3.25 and 1:4.00), conditioning temperature (20 and 45 ºC), and pH (7.50 and 8.00), for 30 min at laboratory scale. The protein extract with the highest SP concentration was replicated at pilot scale, and white sugar, vanilla flavor and stabilizer (0.00 and 0.25 %) were added to formulate beverage. Then, the pasteurization temperature (120 and 135 ºC) was evaluated. The independent variables: soluble protein variation (SPVb), suspension percentage and microbial population reduction (MPR) were measured at day 0. The protein extract that was obtained with a flour-NaOH solution ratio of 1:3.25, 20 ºC and pH 7.5 reached 77.10 ± 1.76 %. The beverage had a VPSb -2.36 ± 0.25 %, a suspension percentage of 98.33 ± 1.53 % and 2.36 % of protein at 120 ºC with stabilizer 0.25 %.

Software evaluation of the effectiveness of the seatbelt anchorages of a commercial bus seat according to regulation ECE R14

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:58:03 +0200

The seatbelt is an important element to keep the occupant subject to the seat during an accident. However, if the seatbelt anchorage does not resist the occupant during a crash, it is ejected from the seat. Therefore, it is essential to analyze its effectiveness. The purpose of this work is to assess the strength of the anchorages for safety belts of 2 and 3 anchorage points of a commercial bus seat, applying the Regulation of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE-R14). The materials properties of the seat structure and the belt anchorages were obtained by tensile and bending tests. A finite element model was created using Piecewise Linear Isotropic Plasticity from Ansys – LsDyna. The anchors were evaluated by applying forces on the pelvic and thoracic blocks fastened through the belt as specified in the regulation. In the analysis, the anchors presented large deformations reaching the rupture. Modifying the shape and position of the anchors and increasing structural reinforcements in high-stress areas, the anchors complied with the regulation. This work aims to create a methodology for the seating industry that allows assessing their models prior to homologations

Bromatological characterization and evaluation of the antimi- crobial activity of Ecuadorian banana peel (Musa paradisiaca)

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:52 +0200

The bromatological composition of banana peel (Musa paradisiaca) produced in Ecuador was determined and the fractions and phytochemical groups responsible for its antimicrobial activity were identified. The bromatological analysis determined a humidity of 88.94% and 11.06% of total solids (1.55% of ash, 0.47% of fat, 0.74% of protein, 0.87% of fiber and 8.3% total carbohydrates). To obtain the fractions, two methods of maceration were applied. The first used four solvents of different polarities, such as petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate and water. The extracts were subjected to phytochemical screening tests that identify the presence of fatty compounds, sterols, triterpenes, saponins and tannins. The second method used 70% ethanol as solvent and five fractions were generated. Tests of antimicrobial activity by the agar diffusion method were performed in Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli using the crude ethanolic extract and its fractions, microbiological activity was evidenced. Phytochemical screening assays and chromatography were performed on each fraction and extract identifying the main groups of compounds responsible for the antimicrobial activity.

Processing a beverage using by-products of the dairy industry

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:43 +0200

Worldwide whey production is 180 to 190 million tonnes per year, generating 1.6 billion liters of acid whey as waste. Ecuador allocates 40% of milk production to industrialization and to the production of artisanal cheeses. Whey contains lactose, total solids, protein, minerals and vitamins; the acid whey has more phosphorus, lactic acid and essential amino acids compared to sweet whey. Nutrients produce pollution by generating high amounts of BOD and DBQ. The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of whey acid and xanthan gum in the preparation of an orange nectar. A completely randomized design with factorial arrangement 22 (acid whey: 10 and 15%, xanthan gum: 0.05 and 0.1%) and four replicates were used. The treatment with 10% acid whey and 0.1% xanthan gum was the only one that met the established specifications for pH, acidity and soluble solids. Sensory was located between "I like" and "I like it very much" (level of satisfaction of 85%). The purchase intention showed that 86% of consumers would buy the product. The data were analyzed using Analysis of Variance and Tukey's test (5%).

Merging Manual and Automated Egg Candling: A Safety and Social Solution

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:35 +0200

Eggs should comply with strict quality control processes. The first step of the quality process is egg candling analysis. Egg candling is a non-destructive procedure that consists on applying light against an egg to detect abnormalities. This process is usually done manually at small and medium poultry factories. Manual egg candling is prone to human mistakes and can cause health problems to the workers. It is necessary to implement an automated process. The following study briefly describes a device that merges automated and manual egg candling analysis. Furthermore, it goes beyond the design and describes valid solutions regarding occupational safety and malnutrition that can emerge due to the implementation of this innovative design.

Numerical analysis of the speed profiles of a water flow through a gradual reduction pipe

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:27 +0200

The objective of this research work is to understand the behavior of water flow through gradual contraction. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a useful approach to solve the equations that describe the movement of fluids, using numerical methods and computational techniques. This area of mechanics provides the fundamentals of pipe hydraulics and channel hydraulics. A study of the flow through the pipeline has been made to calculate the children in the changes of the geometry. The energy losses derived from the pipes. Calculation of the cases: the occurrences of the incidents in the geometry on the part of the student and also with the help of the ANSYS software fluently. Calculations were used using the K-epsilon model. This simulation provides the values of pressure, velocity and kinetic turbulence in several sections of the pipe where water is its flow.

Potential of aquatic plants for the removal total coliforms and Escherichia coli in wastewaters

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:17 +0200

In Ecuador, many communities depend on untreated surface water as the primary source of drinking water and are contaminated with fecal coliforms and Escherichia coli. The objective of the present study was to find aquatic plants with remove of contaminated water with E. coli and total coliforms. For this purpose, the following species were sampled: Azolla caroliniana Willd., Eichhornia crassipes, Pistia stratiotes, Salvinia auriculata, Ceratopteris thalictroides and Lemna sp. (Positive control). The plants were reproduced in vitro and bioassays were performed to verify their ability to remove E. coli. Assays were run by triplicate in 0.5 L of water with fertilizer and an E. coli ATCC25922 reference strain was inoculated. As negative control the bacteria without plants and positive control were inoculated with the plant L. minor. After 7 days, the remaining bacterial load was determined. To analyze E. coli, the technique ISO 9308-1 was used. A percentage of 99% E. coli removal was found for A. caroliniana, E. crassipes, C. thalictroides (L.) Brongn and Lemna minor. And 100% for P. stratiotes and S. auriculata. Subsequent waste water tests were performed in which S. auriculate and A. caroliniana achieved 100% removal of the coliforms and the remaining lower efficiency. The use of these species is proposed for the treatment of wastewaters.

Design of a Smart and Compact Illumination System

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:08 +0200

Light is a very influential environmental factor in the quality of life and the performance of people. For this reason, it is necessary to create and implement technologies that help maintain healthy environments, in terms of lighting, for users. If we add to this the large amount of electrical energy that is wasted due to bad consumption habits and the use of outdated and inefficient devices, the importance of this work is evident, which proposes the design of a compact and versatile lamp that easily replaces traditional light bulbs with advantages such as an automatic on and off control depending on the movement registered in the room, an automatic control of lighting level to maintain optimal levels at all times and regulation of the light tone according to the room and at the time of day. To achieve the aforementioned, LED technology, a microcontroller and sensors were used, which together with control techniques govern the behavior of the lamp. Several operating parameters were established such as lighting level and tone of the emitted light which were fulfilled within certain operating conditions.

Embedded System Oriented to Babies in Crawl Phases for Accident Prevention in Applied a Smart Textile

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:57:00 +0200

The crawling of babies is the way to discover and learn their motor, cognitive, social, and emotional functions, among others. Because of this, infants are exposed to different dangers such as falls, burns, bodily injuries among the most common, where the home is the place of major incidents. Due to the above, the present investigation focuses on the development of an embedded system within an intelligent textile that allows accidents to be noticed. The system is in a garment in the form of a harness that has a connection with knee pads with magnetic sensors. These elements are responsible for detecting magnetic security tapes previously placed in places of greatest danger in the home. As a result, the system issues an alert with a reaction time of 7.6 seconds, after the system is activated.

Analysis by the finite element method of the behavior of the ABS brake pads with materials based on steel and zinc discretizing the continuous element using CAE software

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:56:52 +0200

In this paper, the study of the behavior of the brake pads of an ABS system was carried out using the finite element analysis method. This method is based on the transformation of a body of continuous nature into an approximate discrete model, this transformation is known as the discretization of the model. For this reason, one of the most critical actions is to perform quality meshing, so that this allows improving the convergence of results by optimizing the computational load, which enables the problem to be solved in less time. The use of software tools to carry out this type of study has the advantage that in the post-processing the type of parameters that can be studied can be chosen, in this case, mechanical and thermal variables that allowed to characterize the behavior of the materials were analyzed. The study was carried out for two materials: Trimat MN1081 which is composed of steel and non-ferrous filaments and Trimat GZC composed of zinc fibers, in this way important characteristics of these materials were obtained, such as stress, deformation, penetration, the flow heat and energy. Based on the method developed and the results obtained, a study will be conducted with alternative materials, which will allow determining the feasibility of using these materials in search of optimal results in both mechanical characteristics and costs.

Linear Quadratic Regulator and Model Predictive Control Applied to a Four-Tank System: A Performance Comparison

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:56:44 +0200

This paper shows a comparison between two linear controllers, a PI-LQR and a Soft-Constrained MPC applied to a Four-Tank process, which main characteristics are the nonlinearities, multiple inputs and outputs coupled together and slow behavior. The model was linearized around an operating point by using an optimization method, named least square. Also, a general mathematic formulation for both controllers is presented that can be extended to any process control. All the procedure was described in detail as well as the simulation results for both controllers. To achieve a real performance comparison the experimental data were obtained under the same conditions and all the response parameters were analyzed.

Attacking an ERP with Open Source Software

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:56:35 +0200

Information security is a growing concern in companies and organizations, being even higher when linked to financial platforms where sensitive information exists. This article explains the techniques used in the pentesting performed on the ERP software developed in APEX 5 by the University of Azuay. To achieve this goal, six stages has been considered for perform a penetration test: I) Conceptualization, where is defined the scope of the tests to be performed. II) Preparation of the laboratory, which identifies some of the tools used to initiate the safety tests. III) Obtaining of information, where the possible objects are recognized and scanned in greater depth to identify intrinsic characteristics for subsequently exploit them. IV) Analysis of the vulnerabilities found in the previous stage. V) Exploitation of vulnerabilities; and VI) post-exploitation, a stage that contemplates the destruction of evidence of the attack and the conservation of the connection and the accesses obtained to extract information. All these stages were carried out within the facilities of the “Universidad del Azuay”, considering the development environment in which this software is currently located.

Multitemporal Analysis of vegetation change at Chimborazo Reserve as a result of climate change

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:56:23 +0200

Climate change is a global problem that affects the state of conservation of ecosystems in all regions of the world; as well as in the Chimborazo Fauna Production Reserve, which is linked to anthropogenic activities inside and outside it, such as the extensive and intensive grazing of sheep and cattle that have caused effects on vegetation and soil given to the consumption of native plants and all ecosystem processes because they are related to each other. The methodology used to achieve optimal discrimination of vegetation change and conservation status is obtained through the application of satellite images LANDSAT 5, LANDSAT 7, orthophotos and aerial photographs from 1962 to 1966 up to 2010 distributed in three periods; using procedures such as supervised classification and the calculation of the Normalized Differential Index of Vegetation. Anthropogenic activity for the period 1962-1966 determines 0.26% and snow is 10.30%, while for the period 2010-2011, the percentage of intervention increases to 9.54% and the snow decreases to 4.46%, evidencing the loss of perpetual snow due to solar radiation.

Determination of cadmium and lead in water, sediment and bioindicator organisms in Estero Salado, Ecuador

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:56:14 +0200

Evidence of pollution by heavy metals have been detected in the city of Guayaquil, province of Guayas, coastal Ecuador. The water and sediment in the mangrove environs of Puente Portete in Estero Salado were tested for concentrations of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb), as well as the following organisms: gastropods, including Littorina varia and Cerithidea mazatlanica, and the leaves of Rhizophora racemosa, Laguncularia racemosa, Avicennia germinans, and Conocarpus erectus. The samples were analyzed using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The values of Cd and Pb in water and sediment exceeded the permissible limits established by Ecuadorian and Canadian standards. The gastropod species L. varia and C. mazatlanica were the best indicator organisms for detecting pollution by accumulating 2.45 ± 0.49 ppm Pb and 1.49 ± 0.67 ppm Cd, respectively. Because of the low bioavailability of heavy metals in sediments, mangrove plants did not accumulate Cd and Pb in leaves.

MOOCEP: A method for Building Massive Online Courses for Elderly People: Using a MOOCEP creation

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:56:05 +0200

Today, the population of elderly people has increased significantly in relation to the total world population. In recent years, this segment of population has shown a greater adherence and interest in technological advances, among them the Internet and its services; this, with the aim of develop different activities such as entertainment, obtain current information, learning different topics, among others. However, applications and websites do not take into account the specific requirements of elderly people. Hence, it is necessary to have methodologies, processes and tools that take into account appropriate forms of interaction specific to this vulnerable sector of the population. This article is an extension to the one presented at the INCISCOS 2017 conference, which proposed a methodology for the creation of massive online courses, called MOOCEP. In this work, it has been considered convenient to test the devices created with the use of MOOCEP, by presenting these resources to elderly people, in order to make a comparison of the before and after knowledge of the various topics presented in the learning platform.

Application of standard web services for the automatic hydrometeorology monitoring, integrating information from diverse sensors using ontologies

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:55:56 +0200

The last developments in worlwide technology and the continuous grow in telecommunications have resulted in the requirement to make available the information generated by a number of devices, especially for those that incorporate sensors, with the goal of reacting to any relevant events that could occur. The latest advances in this area have resulted in the development of several devices with heterogeneous types and from different vendors. This paper presents a proposal for an architecture that integrates serveral standard web services for the compilation, organization and storage of the information generated by a network of hydrometeorology sensors. Likewise, the paper proposes the application of standard services for controling remotely these sensors and for managing events and generating early warnings. The aforementioned web services are some examples of the set of services that form the Sensor Web Enablement standard. Considering the diversity, both in type and vendor, that is typically found

Indoors positioning with Android, Bluetooth and RSSI

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:55:44 +0200

This research has two main objectives. First, to determine experimentally the relationship between RSSI and distance. Second, with trilateration techniques, to establish the location of the receiver device in the experimental environment. The main contributions are: to determine how Bluetooth devices interact between them and how they differ when dealing with RSSI measures; to collect data over controlled distances applying to it regression analysis to establish the RSSI – distance relationship; to evaluate the basic trilateration techniques to produce a functional prototype for an indoor positioning system using Android devices. Results are encouraging considering that even with an extremely heterogeneous hardware and software configuration, it was possible to get a high average precision.

Inclusive Education: Mobile Serious Games for People with Cognitive Disabilities

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:55:34 +0200

Nowadays, the use of mobile devices is increasingly frequent. In many occasions they are used as a means of entertainment for people through video games. Serious games is a category of video games used as teaching methods in different environments. They use fun as a strategy for the learning process. However, the vast majority do not focus on vulnerable groups such as people with cognitive disabilities, because they do not consider accessibility parameters in their design. Some video games development companies have proposed general guidelines for the implementation of accessible video games, but they have not been formalized as good practices or standards. This article presents a compilation and analysis of different accessibility guidelines for the development of mobile serious games for people with cognitive disabilities. It also proposes a model to evaluate the access of serious games for people with cognitive disabilities and applies it in a case study. Finally, an evaluation tool is proposed for mobile serious games developers focused on people with cognitive disabilities.

Influence of social networks on the analysis of sentiment applied to the political situation in Ecuador

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:55:22 +0200

Knowing the opinion of a sector of the population can be as important to launch a product in marketing, as to know the opinion of voters, in politics. In Ecuador, the social network Twitter has become one of the main means of direct interaction between political figures and the population. So a study that reflects feelings in Spanish by idioms of each region, gives us a great opportunity to study the relationship between the level of acceptance on Twitter of a candidate and the election results. The contribution of this article is the analysis of feelings (SA) using a tool for NLP adapted to the variation of Spanish used in Ecuador, taking advantage of the fact that most of the literature has focused on the English language, while adaptations for languages, like Spanish, they are minimal and are still in process due to the complexity inherent in the language.

Generation of a Quality Model for Learning Objects Using the iStar Notation and the ISO/IEC 25010 Standard

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:55:10 +0200

This study describes the process for the creation of a quality model that evaluates Learning Objects in terms of technology and didactics by using i* notation. In order to achieve the objective, quality models from both aspects were reviewed along with LO concepts and quality characteristics that a LO must accomplish were determined in order to consider the evaluation characteristics. The IQMC method was used to construct the diagram for strategic (SD) i* sections for the final quality model. With the SD model created, it was established the traceability between the generated model criteria and the ISO/IEC 25010 matrix to keep a correlation between the i* notation characteristics and the standard ISO matrix mentioned before. The matrix obtained was enriched with conceptual characteristics and with the attributes that a LO should fulfill. The different metrics in the ISO matrix were established for LO evaluations. As a result, a model through LO evaluation with each one of the selected metrics was generated.

Design of a linear microwave amplifier for X-Band carriers

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:54:57 +0200

In the present article, are exposed the results obtained in the design of a linear microwave amplifier for X-band carriers. Fundamentally, shows the contributions made in the techniques of implementation of high frequency amplifier circuits based on transistors of GaN HEMT technology; as well as the elaboration of polarization lines and adaptation ports, stability control and gains in the desired frequency range. It should be noted the use of free software tools for the characterization of the transistor through its S parameters and the geometry of the transmission lines of the circuit.

Mini-Spin and Mini-Spin-VR: equivalence between virtual and traditional anxiety test

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:54:48 +0200

Virtual reality technologies enable the representation of a vast array of existing and fictitious environments into virtual, digital scenes. These scenes allow for the easy integration of users into a controlled laboratory, allowing them to participate on a variety of scientific studies. Many different areas, like psychology, have already integrated virtual technologies into its field; nevertheless, there are still many open problems related. The main focus of this work is to find out if the virtual environments could replace traditional pen and paper psychological test. Thanks to the use of the two one sided equivalence test, results showed significant statistical equivalence.

Strategy for responding to computer incidents of insecurity set in Ecuadorian law

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:54:38 +0200

Assurance the security of information, information systems, services and networks implies socializing, also knowing how to respond to an event where such information security has been violated and how manage the identified digital evidence. The present paper is a solution, based on international standards and complying with the current Law of Ecuador. Digital evidence will be identified at the scene of a computer incident by the authorized persons. The authorization must indicate what motivates, authorizes and limits the identification of evidence. The phase of obtaining the digital evidence identified will depend on the established internal circumstances and policies. The preservation of the objective evidence is carried out through chain of custody, the verifiable, complete and reliable results are reported. The previously described strategy was applied as a case study to the incidents of violation of logical securities. The digital evidence found in the place was recognized, extracted, preserved and informed about. Throughout the process, the chain of custody was implemented, which assurance the integrity and reliability of the data. In each phase it was recorded as, when, where and who manipulated both digital signs and digital devices.

An expert system based on data mining and linear integer programming to support the timetabling design and courses assignment in higher education

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:54:25 +0200

Commonly, the most of organizations tend to manage the timetables of their employees according to traditional guidelines (imposing an 8-hour work day). The primary objective of this approach is controlling some variables such as the attendance and absenteeism of the employees, and even, in some cases considering this situation as work efficiency. However, the new organizational tendencies have broken specific paradigms based on mechanistic orientation, trying to create a new horizon towards the construction of organic and dynamic organizations. For these reasons, in this paper, we present an expert system based on integer linear programming and data mining with the aim of addressing the problem of assigning courses to teachers and timetabling (considered an NP-complete problem). The preliminary results are encouraging, given that the system was able to assign courses on a database consisting off 133.000 registers of teachers, and at the same time, generate timetables with minimal computational costs.

Reconstruction of the Electric Consumption Pattern from Big Data using MapReduce Technique

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:54:15 +0200

The work presents the performance of the MapReduce technique to reconstruct the load curve from a previously stored amount of information coming from smart metering of electrical energy and currently considered as Big Data. The management of information in the stage of an intelligent electrical network considered as a System of Management of Measured Data or MDMS needs reducing the times with respect to the reports that are required in a certain moment for decision making in relation to the electrical demand response. Therefore, this paper proposes the use of MapReduce as a technique to obtain information of the load curve in a suitable time to obtain trends and statistics related to the residential electric pattern.

Moving the IT Infrastructure to the Cloud

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:54:05 +0200

Cloud computing services are nowadays advertised as an emerging business model. Moreover, these services bring innovative solutions in a more sophisticated competitive market. But, the decision for their adoption could be significantly reduced due to organizations’ concerns related to security, privacy, and trust. The challenge involves such questions as where to start, which provider should the company choose or whether it is even worthwhile. Thus, this paper proposes an improved unified framework, based on a previous study where a 6 step process framework was introduced. This improved framework add one new step for security and control after the migration process. At the end, a 7 processes framework is proposed aimed to fulfill organizations’ concerns when decide to adopt cloud computing services with a follow-up step. This additional step intends to help IT directors to make sure everything is working properly in a methodological way, in order to achieve a successful cloud computing migration process. An effective solution that is gaining momentum and popularity for competitive organizations.

Petroleum coke as a filter controller in oil-base drilling fluid

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:56 +0200

The large amount of petroleum coke produced in Venezuela, leadsed to its use as a filtering controller in oil-based fluids. Initially, the coke was subjected to an oil extraction process using the Soxhlet method and extraction of sulfur by means of microwaves. Then an infrared Spectroscopy (IR) was performed and compared with another spectroscopy of natural petroleum coke, where the effectiveness of the applied process was evidenced. Were made, four (4) drilling fluid (12 ppg) with coke as filter driver, varying its concentration in 6, 8, 10 and 12 lb / bl and after dynamic aging (300 ° F, 100 lpcm) the physical properties of plastic viscosity, yield point, gel 10 s, gel 10 min and filtrate were studied, obtaining a range of values of 25.3-26.3; 5.7-6.3; 4-5; 7-10 and 10.3-10.9 respectively. A statistical study of split plots demonstrated that there were significant statistical differences between the physical properties of the formulated fluids and the physical properties of a standard fluid with lignite as a filtering controller. It was concluded that despite the statistical differences presented, the use of petroleum coke as a filter controller for the conditions under study is possible.

Determination of the optimum speed for MIG welding of alloy 5086-H116, by hardness test, tensile test and metallographic examination for the manufacture of aluminum tankers

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:48 +0200

For the construction of the specimens welded by the GMAW process of the aluminum alloy 5086-H116, advance speeds of 300, 400, 500, 600 and 700 mm / min are used that are within the recommended range, the same as they allowed the energy contributed to the union. From the results obtained in the different tests, it was determined that the most suitable welding advance speed is 500 mm / min (with a contributed energy of 335.34 J / mm), this energy is the most suitable mechanical in the 5086-H116 alloy welding at an amperage of 148 A. At this energy level, the lowest loss of magnesium occurs; the particle size of Al3Mg2 is finer and easier distributed evenly on the α matrix, that allows obtaining the best mechanical properties.

A Practical Model to Perform Comprehensive Cybersecurity Audits

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:40 +0200

These days organizations are continually facing being targets of cyberattacks and cyberthreats; the sophistication and complexity of modern cyberattacks and the modus operandi of cybercriminals including Techniques, Tactics and Procedures (TTP) keep growing at unprecedented rates. Cybercriminals are always adopting new strategies to plan and launch cyberattacks based on existing cybersecurity vulnerabilities and exploiting end users by using social engineering techniques. Cybersecurity audits are extremely important to verify that information security controls are in place and to detect weaknesses of inexistent cybersecurity or obsolete controls. This article presents an innovative and comprehensive cybersecurity audit model. The CyberSecurity Audit Model (CSAM) can be implemented to perform internal or external cybersecurity audits. This model can be used to perform single cybersecurity audits or can be part of any corporate audit program to improve cybersecurity controls. Any information security or cybersecurity audit team has either the options to perform a full audit for all cybersecurity domains or by selecting specific domains to audit certain areas that need control verification and hardening. The CSAM has 18 domains; Domain 1 is specific for Nation States and Domains 2-18 can be implemented at any organization. The organization can be any small, medium or large enterprise, the model is also applicable to any Non-Profit Organization (NPO).

Diversity and floristic composition of the Los Búhos Forest located in the province of Chimborazo, Ecuador

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:31 +0200

To promote conservation processes it is essential to know the biodiversity under analysis. The objective of the present work was to determine the composition, diversity and floristic importance of El Bosque Los Búhos to generate a baseline that allows the management of the resource for academic purposes. A description of the floristic composition was made, the alpha (α) and beta (β) biodiversity indexes were determined and the ecological importance of the species (IVI's) was calculated. The data indicate that the floristic composition of the forest is formed in three strata by 56 species, 18 orders and 27 families. The arboreal stratum presents a biodiversity average (2,534-Margalef) and high dominance (0,8367-Simpson), the shrub layer has low biodiversity (1,811-Margalef) and low dominance (0,4441-Simpson), and the herbaceous stratum presents biodiversity average (3,882-Margalef) and high dominance (0,7101-Simpson). The species with the highest IVI's for the arboreal stratum are Mimosa quitensis (Benth.1848), Acacia retinodes (Schltdl.1847), y Tecoma stans (L.) Juss. ex Kunth. 1819). For the shrub layer are Agave americana (L.1753), Lantana megapotamica (Spreng. Tronc. 1974), Retama sphaerocarpa (L. Boiss. 1840) y Opuntia cylindrica (Lam. DC. 1828). Finally for the herbaceous stratum is Carpobrotus edulis (L.) N.E.Br. 1926).

Forecasting of daily precipitation occurrence in an altitudinal gradient in southern Ecuador using a weather generator

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:22 +0200

Precipitation forecast is fundamental for improving the management of water resources, for development projects and risk reduction. Due to its high variability, high quality rain forecasts are still a challenge. In the present study, a weather generator (WG) was used to study the quality of the forecast of daily rainfall occurrence. The WG was implemented using three variables as predictors: the binary variable precipitation occurrence of the previous day (Kt-1), the maximum and minimum temperatures of the previous day (Txt-1, Tnt-1, respectively); and two co-variables: monthly values of the observed Sea Surface Temperature Anomalies of the Regions 1+2 and 3.4 of El Niño-Southern Oscillation (Niño 1+2 and Niño 3.4 respectively). We found that the variables Kt-1, Tnt-1 and co-variable Niño 3.4 are those that improve the performance of the precipitation occurrence forecasting. There was a noticeable difference in the number of consecutive wet and dry spell days in the altitudinal gradient in a rainy period. We propose several hypotheses based on the use of WG, which allow the understanding of the functioning of the climate system and the improvement of the forecast of precipitation occurrence in a mountainous area.

Effect of the application of nutritive solution for the initial growth of Polylepis racemosa at hatchery level

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:12 +0200

Afforestation and reforestation programs with emphasis on ecological sustainability focus their efforts on the protection of water sources, eroded soils recovery, and the establishment of agroforestry systems in high altitude areas, where quality plants are required. The present study aims to determine the response in aerial and foliar growth of nursery yagual (Polylepis racemosa) to the application of different nutritive solutions after transplantation. A completely randomized blocks (RCB) experimental design was established with seven treatments and four repetitions. The treatments consisted in the use of a mixture of three fertilizers (ammonium nitrate, potassium nitrate and mono potassium phosphate) at three different concentrations (100-50-100 (D1), 150-75-150 (D2), 200-100-200 (D3) mg.L-1NPK respectively), and two application frequencies (two (F1) and three (F2) times per week), plus a control treatment. The analyzed variables were the total height (hT) and the number of leaves (N° H). According to the results, the largest height and the greatest number of leaves were obtained when fertilizing with 200-100-200 mg.L-1 NPK, with three times per week applications for 120 days. On the other hand, the treatment that rendered the shortest plants and lowest number of leaves was the D1-F1 combination, which, in the case of leaf number, was not significantly different from the control.

Implementation of a prototype for capture and digital processing of thermal images acquired from a UAV

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:53:03 +0200

The present work focuses on the development of a prototype for capturing and processing thermal images from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The system consists of two parts: an "air" stage installed in a DJI Phantom 3 Standard. And another programmed into a receiving PC called "ground". The “air” system is composed by a Flir Lepton thermal camera, a Raspberry Pi card and a GPS module (for georeferencing). After that the images are sent to the PC using an Ad-Hoc network. The PC performs an analysis of the information through the use of histograms and edge detection (Canny algorithm). An algorithm is obtained in order to discriminate photographs with clearly heat points. Through the use of the algorithm the probability of detecting false positives in the images is reduced avoiding a waste of time and power during the processing. Finally, to verify the correct operation of the system, the prototype was tested in adverse weather conditions (fog) in the Pululahua Volcano sector.

Review of the state of the art of batteries in automotive applications

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:52:54 +0200

Purpose of this paper is the review of the literature and analyze the progress and application that battery technologies have made in the automotive industry, due to the implementation of electrified systems in the power train, that are used in hybrid and electric vehicles. The technologies which are used, were classified by the materials applied in the construction of the electrochemical cells, lead acid, lithium ion and nickel metal hydride were the chosen ones. It was identified the most important characteristics as the capacity, the nominal voltage of their cells, among others. Lead-acid batteries will continue to occupy a considerable market share because of their cost, but they cannot be used as propulsion batteries. Nickel-metal hydride batteries withstand higher work stress and have higher energy density, so they are mainly used in hybrid vehicles. Because of the demand for energy and power, that electric vehicles need, is used the lithium-ion technology.

Evaluation of gas emissions in light gasoline vehicles in height conditions. Case study Quito, Ecuador

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:52:45 +0200

At present it is very important to estimate the contribution of the vehicle fleet in the inventories of polluting emissions for the city of Quito due to its geographical characteristic that places it at a height above 2810 m. In this research, the emission factors en route of three fuels used mainly by light vehicles in Ecuador are evaluated; Super gasoline with 93 octane; Extra gasoline with 87 octanes; and Ecopaís gasoline (Extra gasoline and 5% bioethanol). A Chevrolet Aveo 1.6 L vehicle was used, instrumented with an on-board system to obtain information on pollutant emissions and total fuel consumption in a pre-determined route of 12 km, at an average speed of 40 km/h. The simplified combustion model was used to develop a mass balance with respect to the amount of carbon present in the fuel, and thus obtain the emission factors ( ) in grams of pollutant per kilometer traveled. The results obtained are: Extra gasoline: CO 3.194 g/km, HC 0.060 g/km and NOx 0.142 g/km; Gasoline 92 Super: CO 4.770 g/km, HC 0.099 g/km and NOx 0.281 g/km; and Ecopaís gasoline: CO 5.939 g/km, HC 0.082 g/km and NOx 0.279 g/km.

Evaluation of Micro-Algae Biomass in the Limoncocha Lagoon as a Raw Material for the Production of Bio-fuels

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:52:36 +0200

It was determined the best experimental conditions for the production and evaluation of microalgae biomass, which come from Limoncocha, for the purpose of proving the feasibility of use in biofuel acquisition. Different crops were monitored in order to obtain the growth kinetics of microalgae and establish the yield with which they are produced on a laboratory scale controlling the different variables that interfere in this process. Once the biomass was gotten in the photo bioreactors, it was characterized to know its composition and lipid content. The productivity for the first consortium Vischeria/Scenedesmus sp was of 0,088 g L-1 day-1, which reached a total of 5030000 cel/mL and for the second consortium Chlorella/Monoraphidium Contortum sp was of 0,091 g L-1 day-1 with a total of 5537636 cel/mL. For the lipid composition through Soxhlet method by using a mixture of chloroform / methanol as solvents, the gotten results were from 16% out of the total lipids for Vischeria/Scenedesmus sp consortium and 42 % for Chlorella/Monoraphidium Contortum sp consortium.

Characterization and spatio-temporal dynamics of Cylindrospermopsis raciborski in an Amazonian Lagoon, Ecuador.

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:52:27 +0200

The cyanobacteria Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii, is a fresh water ubiquitous species from tropical to temperate weather. It is potentially capable of producing toxins. Thus it is necessary to monitor its presence in fresh waters associated to recreational use activities and human consumption. There are official reports and one thesis reporting the presence of C. raciborskii in Ecuador. Nevertheless, this country does not appear in the latest distribution maps of this species in the scientific literature. In this article, we report the presence of C. raciborskii in Ecuador, together with the characterization of the environmental conditions of one of the habitats where this species is present: the Limoncocha lagoon, province of Sucumbíos.

Clarification of used cooking oil and discoloration of red palm oil with the use of ozone, activated carbon and hydrogen peroxide

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:52:16 +0200

Alternative processes for the clarification of used cooking oil (UCO) and the discoloration of red palm oil (RPO) were evaluated. The clarification of UCO consisted of two steps, sediment removal and bleaching. In the first step, three methods were tested: heating, washing with brine, sedimentation and filtration; sedimentation alone; and washing with brine, sedimentation and filtration. The third method allowed the highest removal of impurities. For the second step, three methods were proved: adsorption with activated carbon (AC); ozonation, and application of hydrogen peroxide. The best method was ozonation, with a dose of 0.1946 mol O3/L and a post-treatment temperature of 60 °C; a 24.39% discoloration was reached. Regarding RPO, the best treatment was the adsorption with activated carbon. The ratio of oil: AC that produced the best results was 25:1; a 90.48% color decrease was achieved. The analysis of the quality parameters measured in the treated oils (acid value, saponification value, color and suspended solids) determined that both could be used as raw material for manufacturing soap.

Agile Architecture Based on ISA-88 for the Design of Execution Control Chart in Distributed Applications using IEC-61499

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:52:06 +0200

Nowadays, industrial automation systems must optimize control techniques and communication integration of their processes, to introduce concepts given by Industry 4.0. To achieve this, it is necessary to introduce new automation standards to achieve agile and intelligent manufacturing systems, this is the reason why the IEC-61499 standard is considered as the main option. In an industrial level, the ISA-88 standard offers a coherent set of rules and terminology for batch digital control and it defines models for this kind of industries. This is why it is necessary to contribute with low cost alternatives to the industry with which it can implement the Industry 4.0 concepts in various control systems. The present working paper proposes the development of Function Blocks (FBs) networks under IEC-61499 standard to integrate distributed control systems with the help of embedded hardware using the ISA-88 standard as a basis for the development of control algorithms and FB’s Execution Control Chart (ECC).

Design and construction of an automatic dryer for cacao a rotating type of hot air base for a capacity of 500 kg

Scipedia content — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 13:51:56 +0200

The increase of time in the process of dry of cocoa and the problematic winter season motivated in realizing an automatic drying machine for cocoa that fulfills the characteristics of dry, reducing to a percentage of adequate humidity in the Mirador Lojano Community located in the Province of Santo Domingo of the Tsáchilas. The development of the project has as its scope to design and build an automatic dryer for cocoa based on hot air rotary type for a capacity of 500 Kg; this involved the collection of information necessary to carry out the design methodology, the study of existing technological alternatives in the market and select the most viable one that meets the user's requirements, quality and production parameters. Subsequently the mechanical and energetic design of the elements that make up the machine was made. In conclusion, the automatic drying machine for cocoa achieves an adequate drying of 9% humidity in a period of 4 to 5 hours during the process, thus improving the efficiency and production.

Self-regulation in children with attention deficit disorders and hyperactivity a problem in child development

Scipedia content — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 11:14:53 +0200

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is characterized by a pattern of lack of attention, hyperactivity and impulsivity; derived from poor behavioral, cognitive and emotional self-regulation that negatively impacts the patient and their environment, and that if we are treated in time can trigger behavioral, emotional and social problems such as mood disorders, antisocial behavior, substance abuse among others. To explain ADHD, Barkley (1997) points out that the key symptoms underlie a deficit in inhibitory control associated with executive dysfunctions, which impede self-regulation. The objective of the present investigation was to determine self-regulation in children with ADHD. The research was carried out through a non-experimental and transversal design. The population consisted of parents of children with ADHD between 6 and 8 years of age who attend the Psychoeducational Development Center CEDEPSI, C.A. For data collection, the executive function evaluation questionnaire was used through the BRIEF behavior. Among the results, the existence of failures of self-regulation at a behavioral, cognitive and emotional level was detected, detected in the executive functions of emotional control, working memory and monitoring mainly. Therefore, the need to stimulate adequate executive functioning and self-regulatory capacities in children with ADHD is considered imperative

Characterization of the endocrine-metabolic and anthropometric profile in a group of patients diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome.

Scipedia content — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 11:14:44 +0200

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine-metabolic dysfunction that affects 6 to 10% of women of reproductive age. It is characterize by chronic anovulation, hyperandrogenism and the presence of metabolic complications such as obesity, dyslipidemia, arterial hypertension, coronary artery disease and fatty liver. The objective of this research was to characterize the endocrine-metabolic and anthropometric profile in a group of patients diagnosed with PCOS. The population consisted of 81 patients who attended the gynecologic clinic of the Urban Outpatient Type II "Dr. Ramón Gualdrón"from Barquisimeto-Lara State, of which only 50 patients met the criteria of the 2003 Rotterdam Consensus for the diagnosis of PCOS. According to the results of this study, the endocrine profile of the patients is characterized by normal levels of progesterone and free testosterone and insulin in the normal upper range; lipid profile within normal parameters as well as average values of uric acid; the HOMA Index indicated insulin resistance. Regarding the anthropometric profile, the patients were mostly overweight with a waist/hip index indicativeof an android type fatty distribution. In conclusion, the endocrine-metabolic and anthropometric profile observed corresponds to SOP, in which the state of insulin resistance shown by the HOMA index constitute the central pathophysiological axis.

Social capital and lifestyles: a review of the literature

Scipedia content — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 11:14:36 +0200

ABSTRACT

Currently many studies suggest that social capital is a key determinant of physical and psychological health in the population; however little is known about the relationship between this and the behaviors associated with lifestyles. The aim of this study is to identify, through a review of the literature, the empirical evidence that assesses the relationship between social capital and behaviors associated with lifestyles. Original sources in English, Spanish and Portuguese of the databases were reviewed: Pubmed, Scielo, Ebsco, Google Scholar and Sciencedirect between the years 2000 and 2017; was using the following descriptors: social capital, lifestyles and health behaviors. The final sample consisted of thirty-six articles. The findings suggest that social capital is related to all the factors associated with lifestyles to a greater or lesser extent. Studies support the idea that social participation, social support networks, social trust and membership as elements of social capital have a significant influence on lifestyles, hence the important of incorporating it in future programs and interventions of health promotion.

The figure of Bartolomé Finizola Celli in the background of Cardiovascular Program of Lara State

Scipedia content — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 11:14:28 +0200

We present a network of indirect and direct relationships between important persons in Venezuelan medicine since the early twentieth century and Bartolomé Finizola Celli, founder of the Cardiovascular Program of the Lara state. These relationships began with Dr. Luis Razetti and his legacy that goes through time by his disciples. We describe the events and personalities that influenced Dr. Bartolomé Celli during three periods of his life: university medical studies, practice in the rural areas and postgraduate cardiology studies. We highlight the lessons learned in each period, maintaining the basic doctrine as a fundamental condition.

The Pan american Health Organization and Venezuela

Scipedia content — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 11:14:21 +0200

On June 14 of this year, the Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Carissa F. Etienne met with the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela with the objective of seeking "joint strategies to preserve the health of the Venezuelans ". The following week, at the 162nd session of the PAHO Executive Committee held in the city of Washington DC (USA), a report was released on the health situation in Venezuela, where updated figures on the transmission of diseases such as malaria are presented. measles, tuberculosis, diphtheria and AIDS. The document mentions the "significant increase" of malaria in Venezuela since 2015, when there were 136,000 cases which increased to 406,000 in 2017. The report indicates that this increase is associated with the migration of infected people in the mining areas of the country. Bolivar state to other areas of the country, as well as the scarcity and / or cost of antimalarial drugs and the weakening of vector control programs.

Scipedia: Documents published in 2018

Wider economic benefits of investments in transport corridors and the role of complementary policies

Societal Trends Influencing Mobility and Logistics in Europe: A Comprehensive Analysis.

On the Front Line of Community-Led Air Quality Monitoring

World bank s engagement with transport in cities the early years

Transport Connectivity, Medical Supplies, and People's Health Care Access : Evidence from Madagascar

A 2050 Vision for Energy-efficient and CO2-free Urban Logistics

Privacy and Security in Data-Driven Urban Mobility

Pareto Based Bat Algorithm for Multi Objectives Multiple Constraints Optimization in GMPLS Networks

An efficient computational strategy for robust maintenance scheduling application to corroded pipelines

Incorporating resilience in infrastructure prioritization application to the road transport sector

Minibus taxis public transport and the poor

Roads and Rural Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

Mental Workload in the Explanation of Automation Effects on ATC Performance

Negro employment in land and air transport a study of racial policies in the railroad airline trucking and urban transit industries

Pulled or Pushed? The Emigration of Portuguese Scientists

Toward Great Dhaka : A New Urban Development Paradigm Eastward

Towards filling the gap of routing changes in software-defined networks

Regulatory changes in international air transport and their impact on tourism development in asia pacific

Updating the Failure Probability of Miter Gates Based on Observation of Water Levels

The optimal mix of pricing and infrastructure expansions to alleviate traffic congestion and in bus crowding in grand casablanca

Characterizing the variation in atmospheric radiation at aviation altitudes

On the use of machine learning for eeg based workload assessment algorithms comparison in a realistic task

Planning for Diversity in an Era of Social Change

Estimation of Speed and Distance of Surrounding Vehicles from a Single Camera

Making industrial analytics work for factory automation applications

Risk analysis of innovative maritime transport solutions using the extended failure mode and effects analysis fmea methodology

TPOT a tree based pipeline optimization tool for automating machine learning

Discovering behavioral patterns among air pollutants: A data mining approach

The Extended Kalman Filter in the Dynamic State Estimation of Electrical Power Systems

Sliding modes control for a heat Exchange system: experimental validation

A Fuzzy Sliding Mode Controller for Planar 4-Cable Direct Driven Robot

Fault Tolerant MPC Controller for Electric Heater Control

Root-Locus Analysis of Delayed First and Second Order Systems

Modelling of Learning Styles in Relation to University- level Lectures

Concurrent design of a lower limb rehabilitation mechanism

Fractional order modeling of a nonlinear electromechanical system

Event-Triggered Control for a Three DoF Manipulator Robot

Predictive ADRC Control Using LMI

Efficient solution of nonlinear model predictive control by a restricted enumeration method

Data analysis and tools applied to modeling and simulation of a PV system in Ecuador

Analysis of benthic macroinvertebrates and biotic indices to evaluate water quality in Sardina´s river, Ecuadorian Chocó Andino

Energy and exergy evaluation in a 1.6L Otto cycle internal combustion engine

Quality parametres of four types of formulations based on Trichoderma asperellum and Purpuricillium lilacinum

Analysis of the methodology for rate determination in commercial transportation service of conventional and executive taxis

Study of the dynamic performance of an Otto engine using mixtures two types of “Extra and Super” gasolines

Aerodynamic design of 100 KW blades for horizontal axis wind turbines located on the “Cerro Villonaco” zone

Production of a fermented drink based on quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa)

A context ontology for a mobile recommender system of advertisements)

Modeling and Simulation of the Robot Mitsubishi RV-2JA controlled by electromyographic signals

Use of an orthogonal arrangement for the analysis of the process of die sink electrical discharge machining with shape electrodes of graphite and copper on aluminum micro-casting)

Reduction of the variability of a water demineralization process by ion exchange; for the production of soft drinks.

Study of the antioxidant capacity and content of polyphenols in the clarification process of Jamaica flower (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) wine

Evaluation of the extract obtained as leached of coconut (Cocos nucifera) fiber as a bioestimulant in remediation of a soil contaminated with oil

Effect of the addition of malted and unmalted quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa wild) in Ale type beer with barley (Hordeum vulgare) malt

Repercution of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Kluyveromyces fragilis (L-4UCLV) on the bioproductive parameters of pigs

Elaboration of a pasteurized beverage from a quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) protein extract

Software evaluation of the effectiveness of the seatbelt anchorages of a commercial bus seat according to regulation ECE R14

Bromatological characterization and evaluation of the antimi- crobial activity of Ecuadorian banana peel (Musa paradisiaca)

Processing a beverage using by-products of the dairy industry

Merging Manual and Automated Egg Candling: A Safety and Social Solution

Numerical analysis of the speed profiles of a water flow through a gradual reduction pipe

Potential of aquatic plants for the removal total coliforms and Escherichia coli in wastewaters

Design of a Smart and Compact Illumination System

Embedded System Oriented to Babies in Crawl Phases for Accident Prevention in Applied a Smart Textile

Analysis by the finite element method of the behavior of the ABS brake pads with materials based on steel and zinc discretizing the continuous element using CAE software

Linear Quadratic Regulator and Model Predictive Control Applied to a Four-Tank System: A Performance Comparison

Attacking an ERP with Open Source Software

Multitemporal Analysis of vegetation change at Chimborazo Reserve as a result of climate change

Determination of cadmium and lead in water, sediment and bioindicator organisms in Estero Salado, Ecuador

MOOCEP: A method for Building Massive Online Courses for Elderly People: Using a MOOCEP creation

Application of standard web services for the automatic hydrometeorology monitoring, integrating information from diverse sensors using ontologies

Indoors positioning with Android, Bluetooth and RSSI

Inclusive Education: Mobile Serious Games for People with Cognitive Disabilities

Influence of social networks on the analysis of sentiment applied to the political situation in Ecuador

Generation of a Quality Model for Learning Objects Using the iStar Notation and the ISO/IEC 25010 Standard

Design of a linear microwave amplifier for X-Band carriers

Mini-Spin and Mini-Spin-VR: equivalence between virtual and traditional anxiety test

Strategy for responding to computer incidents of insecurity set in Ecuadorian law

An expert system based on data mining and linear integer programming to support the timetabling design and courses assignment in higher education

Pulled or Pushed? The Emigration of Portuguese Scientists