Fisiquotidianía: La física de la vida cotidiana

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Anti-inflammatory activity of

The anti-inflammatory activity of the chloroform, methanol and aqueous extracts of Wigandia urens and Acalypha alopecuroides were investigated on carrageenan-induced paw edema at doses of 400 mg/kg. The three extracts of W. urens, and the aqueous extract of A. alopecuroides caused significantinhibition of the edema (58.1±6.5% and 63.5±5.4%, respectively). Indomethacin was used as positive control (8 mg/kg), and inhibited edema by 66.3±5.2%. The methanol extract of W. urens and the aqueous extract of A. alopecuroides, at doses of 200 mg/kg, inhibited pellet implantation-induced granuloma formation by 69.4±6.5 and 70.6±6.6%, respectively. These levels of inhibition are higher than those exhibited by naproxen at doses of 50 mg/kg (46.1±7.1%). Both extracts showed activity on adjuvantinduced arthritis in rats, with the best effect being observed after 96 h (82.2±4.6 and 80.6±7.3%, respectively)

Spectral signatures of symmetry-breaking dynamical phase transitions

Large deviation theory provides the framework to study the probability of rare fluctuations of time-averaged observables, opening new avenues of research in nonequilibrium physics. One of the most appealing results within this context are dynamical phase transitions (DPTs), which might occur at the level of trajectories in order to maximize the probability of sustaining a rare event. While the Macroscopic Fluctuation Theory has underpinned much recent progress on the understanding of symmetry-breaking DPTs in driven diffusive systems, their microscopic characterization is still challenging. In this work we shed light on the general spectral mechanism giving rise to continuous DPTs not only for driven diffusive systems, but for any jump process in which a discrete $\mathbb{Z}_n$ symmetry is broken. By means of a symmetry-aided spectral analysis of the Doob-transformed dynamics, we provide the conditions whereby symmetry-breaking DPTs might emerge and how the different dynamical phases arise from the specific structure of the degenerate eigenvectors. We show explicitly how all symmetry-breaking features are encoded in the subleading eigenvectors of the degenerate manifold. Moreover, by partitioning configuration space into equivalence classes according to a proper order parameter, we achieve a substantial dimensional reduction which allows for the quantitative characterization of the spectral fingerprints of DPTs. We illustrate our predictions in three paradigmatic many-body systems: (i) the 1D boundary-driven weakly asymmetric exclusion process (WASEP), which exhibits a particle-hole symmetry-breaking DPT for current fluctuations, (ii) the $3$ and $4$-state Potts model, which displays discrete rotational symmetry-breaking DPT for energy fluctuations, and (iii) the closed WASEP which presents a continuous symmetry-breaking DPT to a time-crystal phase characterized by a rotating condensate

Force Control Improvement in Collaborative Robots through Theory Analysis and Experimental Endorsement

[EN] Due to the elasticity of their joints, collaborative robots are seldom used in applications with force control. Besides, the industrial robot controllers are closed and do not allow the user to access the motor torques and other parameters, hindering the possibility of carrying out a customized control. A good alternative to achieve a custom force control is sending the output of the force regulator to the robot controller through motion commands (inner/outer loop control). There are different types of motion commands (e.g., position or velocity). They may be implemented in different ways (Jacobian inverse vs. Jacobian transpose), but this information is usually not available for the user. This article is dedicated to the analysis of the effect of different inner loops and their combination with several external controllers. Two of the most determinant factors found are the type of the inner loop and the stiffness matrix. The theoretical deductions have been experimentally verified on a collaborative robot UR3, allowing us to choose the best behaviour in a polishing operation according to pre-established criteria.The authors are grateful for the financial support of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and European Union, grant DPI2016-81002-R (AEI/FEDER, UE), to the research work here published. Rodrigo Perez-Ubeda is grateful to the Ph.D. Grant CONICYT PFCHA/DOCTORADO BECAS CHILE/2017-72180157.Pérez-Ubeda, R.; Zotovic Stanisic, R.; Gutiérrez, SC. (2020). Force Control Improvement in Collaborative Robots through Theory Analysis and Experimental Endorsement. Applied Sciences. 10(12):1-24. https://doi.org/10.3390/app10124329S1241012Top Trends Robotics 2020—International Federation of Robotics https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/news/top-trends-robotics-2020Gaz, C., Magrini, E., & De Luca, A. (2018). A model-based residual approach for human-robot collaboration during manual polishing operations. Mechatronics, 55, 234-247. doi:10.1016/j.mechatronics.2018.02.014Iglesias, I., Sebastián, M. A., & Ares, J. E. (2015). Overview of the State of Robotic Machining: Current Situation and Future Potential. Procedia Engineering, 132, 911-917. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2015.12.577Perez-Ubeda, R., Gutierrez, S. C., Zotovic, R., & Lluch-Cerezo, J. (2019). Study of the application of a collaborative robot for machining tasks. Procedia Manufacturing, 41, 867-874. doi:10.1016/j.promfg.2019.10.009Spong, M. W. (1989). On the force control problem for flexible joint manipulators. IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, 34(1), 107-111. doi:10.1109/9.8661Ren, T., Dong, Y., Wu, D., & Chen, K. (2019). Impedance control of collaborative robots based on joint torque servo with active disturbance rejection. Industrial Robot: the international journal of robotics research and application, 46(4), 518-528. doi:10.1108/ir-06-2018-0130Ajoudani, A., Tsagarakis, N. G., & Bicchi, A. (2017). Choosing Poses for Force and Stiffness Control. IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 33(6), 1483-1490. doi:10.1109/tro.2017.2708087Magrini, E., & De Luca, A. (2016). Hybrid force/velocity control for physical human-robot collaboration tasks. 2016 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). doi:10.1109/iros.2016.7759151Ahmad, S. (1993). Constrained motion (force/position) control of flexible joint robots. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, 23(2), 374-381. doi:10.1109/21.229451Calanca, A., & Fiorini, P. (2018). Understanding Environment-Adaptive Force Control of Series Elastic Actuators. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 23(1), 413-423. doi:10.1109/tmech.2018.2790350Oh, S., & Kong, K. (2017). High-Precision Robust Force Control of a Series Elastic Actuator. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 22(1), 71-80. doi:10.1109/tmech.2016.2614503Yin, H., Li, S., & Wang, H. (2016). Sliding mode position/force control for motion synchronization of a flexible-joint manipulator system with time delay. 2016 35th Chinese Control Conference (CCC). doi:10.1109/chicc.2016.7554329Ma, Z., Hong, G.-S., Ang, M. H., Poo, A.-N., & Lin, W. (2018). A Force Control Method with Positive Feedback for Industrial Finishing Applications. 2018 IEEE/ASME International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics (AIM). doi:10.1109/aim.2018.8452689Huang, L., Ge, S. S., & Lee, T. H. (2006). Position/force control of uncertain constrained flexible joint robots. Mechatronics, 16(2), 111-120. doi:10.1016/j.mechatronics.2005.10.002Chiaverini, S., Siciliano, B., & Villani, L. (1999). A survey of robot interaction control schemes with experimental comparison. IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics, 4(3), 273-285. doi:10.1109/3516.789685Winkler, A., & Suchy, J. (2016). Explicit and implicit force control of an industrial manipulator — An experimental summary. 2016 21st International Conference on Methods and Models in Automation and Robotics (MMAR). doi:10.1109/mmar.2016.7575081Neranon, P., & Bicker, R. (2016). Force/position control of a robot manipulator for human-robot interaction. Thermal Science, 20(suppl. 2), 537-548. doi:10.2298/tsci151005036nChen, S., Zhang, T., & Zou, Y. (2017). Fuzzy-Sliding Mode Force Control Research on Robotic Machining. Journal of Robotics, 2017, 1-8. doi:10.1155/2017/8128479Lin, H.-I., & Dubey, V. (2018). Design of an Adaptive Force Controlled Robotic Polishing System Using Adaptive Fuzzy-PID. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, 825-836. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-01370-7_64Perez-Vidal, C., Gracia, L., Sanchez-Caballero, S., Solanes, J. E., Saccon, A., & Tornero, J. (2019). Design of a polishing tool for collaborative robotics using minimum viable product approach. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing, 32(9), 848-857. doi:10.1080/0951192x.2019.1637026Chen, F., Zhao, H., Li, D., Chen, L., Tan, C., & Ding, H. (2019). Contact force control and vibration suppression in robotic polishing with a smart end effector. Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, 57, 391-403. doi:10.1016/j.rcim.2018.12.019Mohammad, A. E. K., Hong, J., & Wang, D. (2018). Design of a force-controlled end-effector with low-inertia effect for robotic polishing using macro-mini robot approach. Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, 49, 54-65. doi:10.1016/j.rcim.2017.05.011Xiao, C., Wang, Q., Zhou, X., Xu, Z., Lao, X., & Chen, Y. (2019). Hybrid Force/Position Control Strategy for Electromagnetic based Robotic Polishing Systems. 2019 Chinese Control Conference (CCC). doi:10.23919/chicc.2019.8865183Li, J., Zhang, T., Liu, X., Guan, Y., & Wang, D. (2018). A Survey of Robotic Polishing. 2018 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (ROBIO). doi:10.1109/robio.2018.8664890Zollo, L., Siciliano, B., De Luca, A., Guglielmelli, E., & Dario, P. (2004). Compliance Control for an Anthropomorphic Robot with Elastic Joints: Theory and Experiments. Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement, and Control, 127(3), 321-328. doi:10.1115/1.1978911Han, D., Duan, X., Li, M., Cui, T., Ma, A., & Ma, X. (2017). Interaction Control for Manipulator with compliant end-effector based on hybrid position-force control. 2017 IEEE International Conference on Mechatronics and Automation (ICMA). doi:10.1109/icma.2017.8015929Schindlbeck, C., & Haddadin, S. (2015). Unified passivity-based Cartesian force/impedance control for rigid and flexible joint robots via task-energy tanks. 2015 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). doi:10.1109/icra.2015.7139036Zotovic Stanisic, R., & Valera Fernández, Á. (2009). Simultaneous velocity, impact and force control. Robotica, 27(7), 1039-1048. doi:10.1017/s0263574709005451Volpe, R., & Khosla, P. (1993). A theoretical and experimental investigation of explicit force control strategies for manipulators. IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, 38(11), 1634-1650. doi:10.1109/9.262033Zeng, G., & Hemami, A. (1997). An overview of robot force control. Robotica, 15(5), 473-482. doi:10.1017/s026357479700057xSalisbury, J. (1980). Active stiffness control of a manipulator in cartesian coordinates. 1980 19th IEEE Conference on Decision and Control including the Symposium on Adaptive Processes. doi:10.1109/cdc.1980.272026Chen, S.-F., & Kao, I. (2000). Conservative Congruence Transformation for Joint and Cartesian Stiffness Matrices of Robotic Hands and Fingers. The International Journal of Robotics Research, 19(9), 835-847. doi:10.1177/02783640022067201Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics DLR Light Weight Robot III https://www.dlr.de/rm/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-12464/#gallery/2916

Behavioural Study of the Force Control Loop Used in a Collaborative Robot for Sanding Materials

[EN] The rise of collaborative robots urges the consideration of them for different industrial tasks such as sanding. In this context, the purpose of this article is to demonstrate the feasibility of using collaborative robots in processing operations, such as orbital sanding. For the demonstration, the tools and working conditions have been adjusted to the capacity of the robot. Materials with different characteristics have been selected, such as aluminium, steel, brass, wood, and plastic. An inner/outer control loop strategy has been used, complementing the robot¿s motion control with an outer force control loop. After carrying out an explanatory design of experiments, it was observed that it is possible to perform the operation in all materials, without destabilising the control, with a mean force error of 0.32%. Compared with industrial robots, collaborative ones can perform the same sanding task with similar results. An important outcome is that unlike what might be thought, an increase in the applied force does not guarantee a better finish. In fact, an increase in the feed rate does not produce significant variation in the finish¿less than 0.02 m; therefore, the process is in a ¿saturation state¿ and it is possible to increase the feed rate to increase productivity.Rodrigo Perez-Ubeda is grateful to the Ph.D. Grant CONICYT PFCHA/Doctorado Becas Chile/2017-72180157 and the University of Antofagasta, Chile.Pérez Ubeda, R.; Gutiérrez, SC.; Zotovic Stanisic, R.; Perles, A. (2020). Behavioural Study of the Force Control Loop Used in a Collaborative Robot for Sanding Materials. Materials. 14(1):1-19. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14010067S11914

Effectiveness of a Multifactorial Intervention in the First 1000 Days of Life to Prevent Obesity and Overweight in Childhood: Study Protoco

(1) Background: Obesity is a global health problem, and its prevention must be a priority goal of public health, especially considering the seriousness of the problem among children. It is known that fetal and early postnatal environments may favor the appearance of obesity in later life. In recent years, the impact of the programs to prevent obesity in childhood has been scarce. The aim of this research is to evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention based on the concept of early programming. (2) Methods: Non-randomized controlled trial design. Inclusion criteria are: two-year-old infants whose gestational period begins in the 14 months following the start of the intervention, and whose mothers have made the complete follow-up of their pregnancy in the same clinical unit of the study. The intervention will be developed over all the known factors that affect early programming, during pregnancy up to 2 years of life. Data will be collected through a data collection sheet by the paediatricians. A unibivariate and multivariate analysis of the data will be carried out. (3) Ethics and dissemination: The trial does not involve any risk to participants and their offspring. Signed informed consent is obtained from all participants. Ethical approval has been obtained. (4) Results: It is expected that this study will provide evidence on the importance of the prevention of obesity from the critical period of the first 1000 days of life, being able to establish this as a standard intervention in primary care

Propiedades de las rocas volcánicas de Canarias (España) utilizadas como material de escollera

In the Canary Islands, there is a wide spectrum of volcanic rocks with different properties to be used in public works. The aim of this study is to analyse the physical-mechanical properties of all the volcanic rocks present in the Canary Island archipelago in order to determine their suitability for use in maritime construction works. The great variety of volcanic rocks present on the islands have been grouped into lithotypes based on similar geo-mechanical behaviour. The laboratory test results obtained for these lithotypes establish their suitability or not to be used as breakwater material in accordance with Spanish regulations.En el archipiélago canario existe un amplio espectro de rocas volcánicas con diferentes propiedades para ser utilizadas en obras públicas. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar las propiedades físico-mecánicas de todas las rocas volcánicas presentes en el archipiélago canario con el fin de determinar su idoneidad para ser utilizadas en obras de construcción marítima. La gran variedad de rocas volcánicas presentes en las islas, se han agrupado en litotipos basados en un comportamiento geomecánico similar. Los resultados de los ensayos de laboratorio obtenidos para estos litotipos establecen su idoneidad o no para ser utilizados como material de escollera de acuerdo con la normativa española