Methods for autonomous wristband placement with a search-and-rescue aerial manipulator

A new robotic system for Search And Rescue (SAR) operations based on the automatic wristband placement on the victims’ arm, which may provide identification, beaconing and remote sensor readings for continuous health monitoring. This paper focuses on the development of the automatic target localization and the device placement using an unmanned aerial manipulator. The automatic wrist detection and localization system uses an RGB-D camera and a convolutional neural network based on the region faster method (Faster R-CNN). A lightweight parallel delta manipulator with a large workspace has been built, and a new design of a wristband in the form of a passive detachable gripper, is presented, which under contact, automatically attaches to the human, while disengages from the manipulator. A new trajectory planning method has been used to minimize the torques caused by the external forces during contact, which cause attitude perturbations. Experiments have been done to evaluate the machine learning method for detection and location, and for the assessment of the performance of the trajectory planning method. The results show how the VGG-16 neural network provides a detection accuracy of 67.99%. Moreover, simulation experiments have been done to show that the new trajectories minimize the perturbations to the aerial platform.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Response to fungal exudates of the rhizosphere isolate Pseudomonas sp. UMAF110 involves a GGDEF/EAL domain-containing protein

Pseudomonas sp. UMAF110, isolated from rhizosphere soil in Spain, display in vitro antagonism towards the pythopathogenic fungus Rosellinia necatrix and is able grow in fungal exudates (BM-RE medium). A transposon mutant library of this strain was constructed and several mutants were selected by their reduced competitiveness in BM-RE medium. Pseudomonas sp. UMAF110-G3, which contains the transposon into a gene encoding a putative REC/PAS/GGDEF/EAL protein, was selected for further characterization. Blastn searches using the sequence of the gene interrupted by the transposon in UMAF110-G3, here called cmpA (c-di-GMP Metabolizing Protein), yielded a single positive hit (98% cover, 78% identity) with a gene from a terpene-degrading Pseudomonas sp. strain isolated from soil. Context analysis of the cmpA gene in Pseudomonas sp. UMAF110 showed that this gene is located downstream from several genes involved in flagellar motility/chemotaxis. RT-PCR experiments further confirmed that cmpA form a transcriptional unit with the che gene cluster. Expression analysis of cmpA by qRT-PCR clearly showed upregulation of this gene after transfer of Pseudomonas sp. UMAF110 cells to BM-RE medium, suggesting a role for this operon in response to fungal exudates. Deletion of cmpA in Pseudomonas sp. UMAF110 did not affect the ability of the strain to form biofilms under the conditions tested. However, overexpression of wild type CmpA in Pseudomonas putida KT2440 negatively regulated biofilm formation in this strain. Together, these results suggest that CmpA could be involved in signal transduction pathways regulating flagellar motility/chemotaxis in response to fungal exudates.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Study of the Dependence of Solar Radiation Regarding Design Variables in Photovoltaic Solar Installations with Optimal Dual-Axis Tracking

Solar tracking is an efficient strategy to increase the radiative capture of photovoltaic collectors. Within the multiple efforts made in recent decades to improve the production of these facilities, various works have studied solutions to optimize the number of rotation axes (single or dual rotation axes), the degree of collector coverage, the distances between trackers, the geometric arrangement of trackers or the minimization of shading between collectors. However, although in this type of installation it is common to find collectors with geometric shapes other than rectangles, no studies on the influence of the shape of the collectors on the radiative incidence are found in the literature. In this connection, the present work systematically addresses the study of incident solar radiation in photovoltaic installations with dual-axis trackers with collectors of different geometric shapes. By means of the exhaustive study, the conclusion is drawn that, for dual-axis photovoltaic installations with an optimal tracking strategy, the main variables that influence the annual radiative incidence are the spacing between collectors, the coverage ratio (GCR), and the collector surface, while the type of arrangement of collectors and the shape of these do not show predictive values

An interpolated spatial images method for the analysis of multilayered shielded microwave circuits

In this paper, an efficient interpolation method is presented in order to compute the Green’s function associated to electrical sources, when they are placed inside cylindrical cavities. The interpolation scheme is formulated in the frame of the spatial images technique recently developed. The original idea was to calculate, for every location of a point electric source, the complex values of the electric dipole and charge images, placed outside the cavity, to impose the appropriate boundary conditions for the potentials. In order to considerably reduce the computational cost of the original technique, a simple interpolation method is proposed to obtain the complex values of the images for any source location. To do that, a rectangular spatial subdivision inside the cavity is proposed. Each new sub-region is controlled by means of the exact images values obtained when the source is placed at the four corners of the region. The key idea is to use a bilinear interpolation to obtain the images complex values when the source is located anywhere inside this sub-region. The interpolated images provide the Green’s functions of the new source positions fast, and with high accuracy. This new approach can be directly applied to analyze printed planar filters. Two examples with CPU time comparisons are provided, showing the high accuracy and computational gain achieved with the technique just derived.This work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science under Grant FPU-AP2006-015 and with the Project TEC2007-67630-C03-02

La alteración térmica en los sílex de los valles alcoyanos (Alicante, España). Una aproximación desde la arqueología experimental en contextos del Paleolítico Medio: El Salt

S’hi estudia l’alteració tèrmica dels sílex procedents del jaciment arqueològic del Salt (Alcoi, Alacant), amb la finalitat de contribuir a l’anàlisi de l’ús i el control de l’energia calorífica per part dels grups neandertals de la muntanya alacantina. Es recorre a l’arqueologia experimental i als estudis espacials per a indagar en el funcionament de les estructures de combustió i en l’organització de les activitats vinculades a l’ús del foc, com a factors explicatius de les ocupacions humanes en aquest assentament. Paraules clau: Sílex. Termoalteració. Paleolític mitjà. Neandertal. Estructures de combustió.In this paper we focus our attention on a study of thermic alteration of flint from the archaeological site of El Salt (Alcoy, Alicante, Spain), with the goal of contributing to the analysis of the use and control of heat energy by Neanderthal groups from the mountains of Alicante. We use experimental archaeology and spatial analysis to investigate the function of the combustion structures as well as the organization of activities related to the use of fire, which are explanatory factors of the human occupations in this site. Keywords: Flint. Thermic alteration. Middle Paleolithic. Neanderthal. Hearths.Se estudia la alteración térmica de los sílex procedentes del yacimiento arqueológico de El Salt (Alcoy, Alicante), con la finalidad de contribuir al análisis del uso y control de la energía calorífica por parte de los grupos neandertales de la montaña alicantina. Se recurre a la arqueología experimental y a los estudios espaciales para indagar en el funcionamiento de las estructuras de combustión y en la organización de las actividades vinculadas al uso del fuego, como factores explicativos de las ocupaciones humanas en este asentamiento. Palabras clave: Sílex. Termoalteración. Paleolítico Medio. Neandertal. Estructuras de combustión. S’hi estudia l’alteració tèrmica dels sílex procedents del jaciment arqueològic del Salt (Alcoi, Alacant), amb la finalitat de contribuir a l’anàlisi de l’ús i el control de l’energia calorífica per part dels grups neandertals de la muntanya alacantina. Es recorre a l’arqueologia experimental i als estudis espacials per a indagar en el funcionament de les estructures de combustió i en l’organització de les activitats vinculades a l’ús del foc, com a factors explicatius de les ocupacions humanes en aquest assentament. Paraules clau: Sílex. Termoalteració. Paleolític mitjà. Neandertal. Estructures de combustió

Analysis of inductive multiport microwave devices employing a novel double parallel plate approach

The authors present a novel surface integral equation approach to analyse inductive microwave devices with several parallel input­ output ports containing inductive metallic and dielectric obstacles. The technique decomposes the main problem into three subproblems, employ- ing different kinds of Green's functions. One of the subproblems uses the classical Green's func- tions of an infinite unbounded medium with the constitutive parameters of the dielectric obstacles. A novel point of the technique is the formulation of the two other subproblems with two different, 908 rotated parallel plate regions. In these regions the parallel plate waveguide Green's functions are used to simplify the modelling of the excitation problem. The second novel aspect of the work is in the treatment of these Green's functions, to smooth their behaviour, and to improve their con- vergence. Several numerical results are presented to demonstrate the usefulness of the algorithms proposed. Also, several results for inductive microwave devices are presented to show the practical value of the approach.Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, Ref. TEC2007-67630-C03-02. Fundación Séneca, Ref. 08833/PI/0

Influence of Obesity and Metabolic Disease on Carotid Atherosclerosis in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease (CordioPrev Study)

Background Recent data suggest that the presence of associated metabolic abnormalities may be important modifiers of the association of obesity with a poorer prognosis in coronary heart disease. We determined the influence of isolated overweight and obesity on carotid intima media thickness (IMT-CC), and also assessed whether this influence was determined by the presence of metabolic abnormalities. Methods 1002 participants from the CordioPrev study were studied at entry. We determined their metabolic phenotypes and performed carotid ultrasound assessment. We evaluated the influence of obesity, overweight and metabolic phenotypes on the IMT-CC. Results Metabolically sick participants (defined by the presence of two or more metabolic abnormalities) showed a greater IMT-CC than metabolically healthy individuals (p = 4 * 10−6). Overweight and normal weight patients who were metabolically healthy showed a lower IMT-CC than the metabolically abnormal groups (all p<0.05). When we evaluated only body weight (without considering metabolic phenotypes), overweight or obese patients did not differsignificantly from normal-weight patients in their IMT-CC (p = 0.077). However, obesity was a determinant of IMT-CC when compared to the composite group of normal weight and overweight patients (all not obese). Conclusions In coronary patients, a metabolically abnormal phenotype is associated with a greater IMTCC, and may be linked to a higher risk of suffering new cardiovascular events. The protection conferred in the IMT-CC by the absence of metabolic abnormality may be blunted by the presence of obesit

Proteomics in drug hypersensitivity

21 p.-4 fig.-1 tab.Drug hypersensitivity reactions result from the activation of the immune system by drugs or their metabolites. The clinical presentations of drug hypersensitivity can range from relatively mild local manifestations to severe systemic syndromes that can be life-threatening. As in other allergic reactions, the causes are multifactorial as genetic, metabolic and concomitant factors may influence the occurrence of drug hypersensitivity. Formation of drug protein adducts is considered a key step in drug adverse reactions, and in particular in the immunological recognition in drug hypersensitivity reactions. Nevertheless, non-covalent interactions of drugs with receptors in immune cells or with MHC clefts and/or exposed peptides can also play an important role. In recent years, development of proteomic approaches has allowed the identification and characterization of the protein targets for modification by drugs in vivo and in vitro, the nature of peptides exposed on MHC molecules, the changes in protein levels induced by drug treatment, and the concomitant modifications induced by danger signals, thus providing insight into context factors. Nevertheless, given the complexity and multifactorial nature of drug hypersensitivity reactions, understanding the underlying mechanisms also requires the integration of knowledge from genomic, metabolomic and clinical studies.This work has been supported by grants SAF2012-36519 and SAF2015-68590R from MINECO/FEDER and RETIC RD12/0013/0008 from ISCIII to D.P.-S., and by RETIC RD12/0013/0001 and CP15/00103 from ISCIII, and PI-0699-2011 and PI-0179-2014 from Junta de Andalucía to M.I.M.Peer reviewe

Planted or Natural Pine Forests, Which One Will Better Recover after Drought? Insights from Tree Growth and Stable C and H Isotopes

Increasing intensity and frequency of droughts are leading to forest dieback, growth decline and tree mortality worldwide. Reducing tree-to-tree competition for water resources is a primary goal for adaptive climate silviculture strategies, particularly in reforested areas with high planting density. Yet, we need better insights into the role of stand type (i.e., natural forests versus plantations) on the resilience of pine forests to droughts across varying time scales. In this study, we combined dendrochronological data and stable C (δ13C) and H (δ2H) isotopes measured in tree-ring wood as well as in specific wood chromatographically isolated compounds to investigate contrasting responses to drought of natural versus planted stands of two representative pine species, i.e., Pinus pinaster and Pinus nigra in southeastern Europe. Natural stands exhibited about two-fold increase in tree-ring growth in average (basal area at 20 years-BAI20) as compared to planted stands. A response function analysis showed contrasting seasonal growth patterns for both species, which were related to monthly mean temperature and precipitation. Both stand type and species variables influenced growth resilience indices. Both pine species revealed contrasting resilience patterns among forest types; whereas planted stands seemed to be less sensitive to yearly droughts as determined by a higher recovery index (CRc) for P. pinaster, the contrary was found in the case of P. nigra. On the other hand, while resistance CRT and resilience CRS indices were higher for planted than natural forests in the case of P. pinaster, little differences were found for P. nigra. Beyond comparisons, carbon stable isotopes shed lights on the role of forest types in dry sites, being δ13C consistently lower in natural than in planted forests for both pine species (p < 0.05). We concluded that planted forest assimilated more carbon as per unit of water used than natural stands in response to droughts. Both δ13C and δ2H isotopic signals were positively correlated for both species for planted forests. However, a lack of correlation was evidenced for natural stands. Consistent with δ13C observations, δ2H concentrations in woody phenolic compounds (guaiacol and oleic acid) revealed contrasting patterns among forest types. This puts forward that δ2H concentrations in woody phenolic compounds (rather than in woody tree ring) accounts for other confounding factors in tree ring formation that can be associated with forest type. Our results highlight the value of stable isotope approaches versus conventional dendrochronological tools in drought studies and call for the consideration of forest type as an endogenous aspect defining the vulnerability of pine forests to climate