real time assistance to manual assembly through depth camera and visual feedback

Abstract The current fourth industrial revolution significantly impacts on production processes. The personalized production paradigm enables customers to order unique products. The operators assemble an enormous component variety adapting their process from product to product with limited learning opportunities. Digital technologies are increasingly adopted in production processes to improve performance and quality. Considering this framework, this research proposes a hardware/software architecture to assist in real-time operators involved in manual assembly processes. A depth camera captures human motions in relation with the workstation environment whereas a visual feedback guides the operator through consecutive assembly tasks. An industrial case study validates the architecture

Hyperglycemia and angiotensin II cooperate to enhance collagen I deposition by cardiac fibroblasts through a ROS-STAT3-dependent mechanism

AbstractCardiac fibroblasts significantly contribute to diabetes-induced structural and functional changes in the myocardium. The objective of the present study was to determine the effects of high glucose (alone or supplemented with angiotensin II) in the activation of the JAK2/STAT3 pathway and its involvement in collagen I production by cardiac fibroblasts. We observed that the diabetic environment 1) enhanced tyrosine phosphorylation of JAK2 and STAT3; 2) induced nuclear localization of tyrosine phosphorylated STAT3 through a reactive oxygen species-mediated mechanism, with angiotensin II stimulation further enhancing STAT3 nuclear accumulation; and 3) stimulated collagen I production. The effects were inhibited by depletion of reactive oxygen species or silencing of STAT3 in high glucose alone or supplemented with exogenous angiotensin II. Combined, our data demonstrate that increased collagen I deposition in the setting of high glucose occurred through a reactive oxygen species- and STAT3-dependent mechanism. Our results reveal a novel role for STAT3 as a key signaling molecule of collagen I production in cardiac fibroblasts exposed to a diabetic environment

Redox proteome analysis of auranofin exposed ovarian cancer cells (A2780)

The effects of Auranofin (AF) on protein expression and protein oxidation in A2780 cancer cells were investigated through a strategy based on simultaneous expression proteomics and redox proteomics determinations. Bioinformatics analysis of the proteomics data supports the view that the most critical cellular changes elicited by AF treatment consist of thioredoxin reductase inhibition, alteration of the cell redox state, impairment of the mitochondrial functions, metabolic changes associated with conversion to a glycolytic phenotype, induction of ER stress. The occurrence of the above cellular changes was extensively validated by performing direct biochemical assays. Our data are consistent with the concept that AF produces its effects through a multitarget mechanism that mainly affects the redox metabolism and the mitochondrial functions and results into severe ER stress. Results are discussed in the context of the current mechanistic knowledge existing on AF

An integrated analysis of the effects of Esculentin 1-21 on Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The antimicrobial peptide esculentin 1–21 (Esc 1–21) is a shorter synthetic version of the 46-residue peptide occurring in the Rana esculenta skin secretion. Here we propose an integrated proteomic and transcriptomic approach to interpret the biological effects of this peptide on Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We further investigated the response to this peptide by correlating the results of the transcriptome and proteome analysis with phenotypic effects. The results show that S. cerevisiae adapts to Esc 1–21 using the High Osmolarity Glycerol (HOG) pathway involved in osmotic tolerance and cell wall maintenance. Comparative proteomics reveals that Esc 1–21 causes downregulation of enzymes of the lower glycolytic pathway and in genes involved in spindle body formation and remodelling of cell-wall synthesis. Moreover the peptide induces downexpression of protein actin within 45 min and cells pre-treated with peptide show less sensitivity to osmotic stress and increased sensitivity to heat shock stress. The results obtained with the two different methodologies are in agreement at the cellular process levels. A combined approach may help elucidate the main aspects related to the effects of this peptide on the eukaryotic cell. The employment of different technologies may reveal the potential and limitations of each adapted approach in a prospective application for drug screening

Large-scale response of the Eastern Mediterranean thermohaline circulation to African monsoon intensification during sapropel S1 formation

This study was supported by Shell International Exploration and Production Inc. We thank the R/V URANIA crew for at sea assistance. This is the ISMAR contribution n. 1914. We thank Dr. L. Capotondi and Dr. L. Vigliotti for their constructive comments on the first draft of the manuscript. We also thank Dr. Daria Pasqual (University of Padova, Dept. of Geosciences) for her assistance in XRF analyses. We thank two anonymous reviewers and the Editor H. Bauch for their constructive comments. We also acknowledge Prof. Gerhard Schmiedl (Universität Hamburg) and Associate Prof. Syee Weldeab (Earth Science, UC Santa Barbara) for providing published data used in this study.Peer reviewedPostprin

GEOSTAR, an observatory for deep sea geophysical and oceanographic researches: characteristics, first scientific mission and future activity

GEOSTAR (GEophysical and Oceanographic STation for Abyssal Research) is a project funded by in the 4th Framework Programme of the European Commission, with the aim of developing an innovative deep sea benthic observatory capable of carrying out long-term (up to 1 year) scientific observations at abyssal depths. The configuration of the observatory, conceived to be a node of monitoring networks, is made up of two main subsystems: the Bottom Station, which in addition to the acquisition and power systems and all the sensors also hosts the communications systems; and the Mobile Docker, a dedicated tool for surface-assisted deployment and recovery. At present the Bottom Station is equipped with a triaxial broad-band seismometer, two magnetometers (fluxgate and scalar), CTD, transmissometer, ADCP, but it can easily host other sensors for different experiments. The first phase of the project, started in November 1995, was concluded with the demonstration mission in Adriatic Sea at shallow water depth (42 m) in August - September 1998. Some preliminary results of this first scientific experiment are presented and discussed. The second phase, started in 1999, will end with a long-term deep sea scientific mission, scheduled during 2000 for 6-8 months at 3400 m.w.d. in the southern Tyrrhenian bathyal plain.Published491-4973A. Ambiente MarinoN/A or not JCRrestricte

Mission results from the first GEOSTAR observatory (Adriatic Sea, 1998)

We assess the first mission of the GEOSTAR (GEophysical and Oceanographic STation for Abyssal Research) deep-sea multidisciplinary observatory for its technical capacity, performance and quality of recorded data. The functioning of the system was verified by analyzing oceanographic, seismological and geomagnetic measurements. Despite the mission’s short duration (21 days), its data demonstrated the observatory’s technological reliability and scientific value. After analyzing the oceanographic data, we found two different regimes of seawater circulation and a sharp and deepening pycnocline, linked to a down-welling phenomenon. The reliability of the magnetic and seismological measurements was evaluated by comparison with those made using on-land sensors. Such comparison of magnetic signals recorded by permanent land geomagnetic stations and GEOSTAR during a “quiet” day and one with a magnetic storm confirmed the correct functioning of the sensor and allowed us to estimate the seafloor observatory’s orientation. The magnitudes of regional seismic events recorded by our GEOSTAR seismometer agreed with those computed from land stations. GEOSTAR has thus proven itself reliable for integrating other deep-sea observation systems, such as modular observatories, arrays, and instrumented submarine cablesPublished361-373ope