Control Engineering and Robotics since Primary School: an Infrastructure for creating the Digital Twin model of the Learning Class

Control engineering has a cross-boundary nature because its applications span over a wide range of fields, among which science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Creating an automation literacy from the Primary School's age is beneficial for pupils because it supports the development of valuable skills that allow the comprehension and analysis of real-world phenomena. Even if many researchers and policymakers have advocated for engineering education since early education, it is usually kept for undergraduate and graduate-level education. What prevents systems theory and control education from being integrated into K12 education is the lack of available educational resources and the lack of indicators to represent the learning gain of students. To help teachers in the latter aspect, a solution can be studying the entire process as a cyber-physical human system (CPHS). The paper consists of a brief report about the work carried out by authors to represent the entire classroom as a CPHS where the physical robots designed by students, humans (teachers and learners), and cybertechnologies are interconnected to accomplish a goal which is learning. The entire infrastructure could be seamlessly deployed into the classroom, supporting learning assessment and the feedback process starting from the deployment of a (quasi) real-time intelligent collection system

A novel DPV as a holistic platform for real-time physiological status assessment of divers

This paper presents the work performed to integrate a sensors network to a more complex and extensive system, represented by the architecture that constitutes the main output of the DiveSafe European project (G.A. EASME/EMFF/2017/1.2.1.12/SI/02/ SI2.789635). The latter also includes an underwater scooter, a Docking Station, a tablet and a whole communication system between the surface and the underwater environment in which the diver is located, as well as a remote server that also allows the execution of 3D reconstruction of the appropriately photographed environment. The sensors system presented here allows to monitor the main indicators of the diver's health during underwater activities. Through these sensors, it is therefore possible to real-time monitor physiological values such as breath rate, heartbeat and glucose levels, as well as to provide information on the decompression phases execution, in order to safely ascend once the underwater work is finished. The electronic components are located inside a special waterproof box that the diver wears at the height of the belt. The main sensors have been validated, motivating the choices made

Lab4Dive Mobile Smart Lab for Augmented Archaeological Dives

Lab4Dive project aims to design, develop, and validate an innovative, marketable and competitive product for supporting underwater archaeologists in surveying, documenting and preserving the underwater cultural heritage. These activities could be improved considerably with the introduction of new technological devices and tools, helping underwater archaeologists to collect data from the marine environment. The project will provide a solution by equipping divers with portable, low cost and relatively small sized data-gathering systems (i.e. environmental sensors, acoustic localization system, HD cameras, etc.), so they can significantly improve both the amount of data collected in a single mission and the management of time and human resources at disposal. In this paper, the preliminary developments and the tests of the Lab4Dive system will be presented, which is mainly based on two modules: Cloud Server Module and the Underwater Module. The latter is based on two systems: an underwater tablet, that supports the diver during the immersion providing an augmented navigation interface that guides the diver along the selected targets; and a Docking Station, to acquire and exchange data coming from different environmental sensors, a high-resolution camera and an acoustic localization system, physically connected to it

The Lab4Dive project: A mobile smart lab for augmented archaeological dives - Overview and first results

Marine archaeologists study a large number of submerged sites of interest around the world, which require continue diving explorations and monitoring. Although technology has improved a lot the research in the underwater environment, human intervention is preferred whenever depth makes the sites accessible by divers. This paper presents the concept, the first steps and the preliminary results of the Lab4Dive project, which is co-funded by the EMFF programme of EU, that aims to design, develop, and validate an innovative, marketable and competitive product for surveying, documenting and preserving Underwater Cultural Heritage. The archaeologist will be provided with an underwater tablet equipped with environmental sensors, where a properly designed data gathering system will be accessible through a dedicated application. Lab4Dive aims also to train young researchers and to encourage multi-disciplinary cooperation through the concept of a “Blue Lab”