A combined approach for the attribution of handwriting: the case of Antonio Stradivari’s manuscripts

Numerous artefacts from Antonio Stradivari’s workshop are currently preserved in the “Museo del Violino” (Museum of the Violin) in Cremona, Italy. A large number of them are paper models containing instructions and technical notes by the great violin maker. After his death, this collection has had several owners, while new annotations added to the original ones, sometimes imitating Stradivari’s handwriting, caused problems of authenticity. The attribution of these relics is a complex task and, until now, only a small part of them has been examined by palaeographers. This paper introduces a multi-analytical approach able to facilitate the study of handwriting in manuscripts with the combined use of image processing and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy: the former provides a fast and automatic screening of documents; the latter allows to analyse the chemical composition of inks. For our tests, 17 paper relics, dated between 1684 and 1729, were chosen. Palaeographic analysis was used as reference. The results obtained showed the validity of the combined approach proposed herein: the two techniques proved to be complementary and useful to clarify the attribution of different pieces of handwriting

Endurance driven energy management system for all-electric marine autonomous surface vehicle

An autonomous eco-robotic Surface Vessel (ASV) is designed to operate in extreme weather conditions with an autonomy of several days or months. This research work aims to present a process for on-board power management between the vessel’s power sources, while maximizing the use of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and taking into consideration onboard sensor, navigation and control and data transfer power requirements. A detailed architecture for a DC network integrating Photovoltaic (PV) panels, Fuel Cells (FCs), hydro generator and energy storage systems is developed. An efficient and flexible Energy Management System (EMS) is developed for managing power sources and maximising endurance using only clean energy. To assess the performance of EMS in meeting the energy demands of the Ocean drone’s equipment and propulsion systems, a simulation-based analysis is carried out for realistic missions and scenarios. The developed EMS strategy intends to harvest the energy from PV and hydrogenerator while maintaining the Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) as charged as possible. The developed power supply system architecture and EMS can jointly accommodate the need for efficient and long-lasting operation of the vessel with CO2-emission free energy sources