A method for the assessment and compensation of positioning errors in industrial robots

Industrial Robots (IR) are currently employed in several production areas as they enable flexible automation and high productivity on a wide range of operations. The IR low positioning performance, however, has limited their use in high precision applications, namely where positioning errors assume importance for the process and directly affect the quality of the final products. Common approaches to increase the IR accuracy rely on empirical relations which are valid for a single IR model. Also, existing works show no uniformity regarding the experimental procedures followed during the IR performance assessment and identification phases. With the aim to overcome these restrictions and further extend the IR usability, this paper presents a general method for the evaluation of IR pose and path accuracy, primarily focusing on instrumentation and testing procedures. After a detailed description of the experimental campaign carried out on a KUKA KR210 R2700 Prime robot under different operating conditions (speed, payload and temperature state), a novel online compensation approach is presented and validated. The position corrections are processed with an industrial PC by means of a purposely developed application which receives as input the position feedback from a laser tracker. Experiments conducted on straight paths confirmed the validity of the proposed approach, which allows remarkable reductions (in the order of 90%) of the orthogonal deviations and in-line errors during the robot movements

Laboratorio di Restauro architettonico

Nell'a.a. 2013-14 la didattica del Laboratorio di restauro (Scuola di Architettura Urbanistica Ingegneria delle cstruzioni del Politecnico di Milano) è stata coinvolta in una esperienza di sinergia con l'attività educativa promossa dalla Provincia a sostegno di un gruppo di studenti di scuole lecchesi, a rischio di abbandono scolastico. Tema comune di lavoro è stato la vicenda della fabbrica Faini di Lecco, che produceva materiali metallici, da decenni dismessa. Il tema del 'recupero' è stato quindi affrontato su due fronti: da una parte il gruppo lecchese di allievi delle scuole di secondo grado è stato guidato dagli insegnanti attraverso un'esperienza di laboratorio teatrale; dall'altra parte,gli studenti del Laboratorio di restauro si sono occupati, come previsto dal programma didattico, del progetto di 'recupero' degli edifici del complesso, divenuto testimonianza di archeologia industriale e in attesa di riutilizzazione. L'argomento di lavoro, affrontato da angolazioni e da soggetti evidentemente differenti - anche per età anagrafica - ha visto occasioni comuni di scambio di informazioni, di notizie storiche e di visite dell'area della ex fabbrica. Gli esiti dell'iniziativa sono stati positivi sia per gli allievi delle scuole, sia pe rgli studenti universitari. I primi hanno progettato e messo in scena uno spettacolo, rappresentato in due repliche, al termine del loro percorso di 'recupero', che ha portato anche benefici diretti sul piano scolastico. Gli studenti del Politecnico hanno svolto regolarmente le attività laboratoriali previste e ad alcuni di essi, più particolarmente interessati, è stata offerta l'occasione di seguire da vicino alcuni aspetti tecnici dell'allestimento scenografico e della regia. Inoltre, in concomitanza con le date dello spettacolo, è stata esposta una selezione di elaborati prodotti nell'ambito del Laboratorio di restauro

Oxidative stress and neonatal respiratory extracorporeal membrane oxygenation

Oxidative stress is a frequent condition in critically ill patients, especially if exposed to extracorporeal circulation, and it is associated with worse outcomes and increased mortality. The inflammation triggered by the contact of blood with a non-endogenous surface, the use of high volumes of packed red blood cells and platelets transfusion, the risk of hyperoxia and the impairment of antioxidation systems contribute to the increase of reactive oxygen species and the imbalance of the redox system. This is responsible for the increased production of superoxide anion, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radicals, and peroxynitrite resulting in increased lipid peroxidation, protein oxidation, and DNA damage. The understanding of the pathophysiologic mechanisms leading to redox imbalance would pave the way for the future development of preventive approaches. This review provides an overview of the clinical impact of the oxidative stress during neonatal extracorporeal support and concludes with a brief perspective on the current antioxidant strategies, with the aim to focus on the potential oxidative stress-mediated cell damage that has been implicated in both short and long-term outcomes

Robotic therapy : Cost, accuracy, and times. New challenges in the neonatal intensive care unit

Background: The medication process in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), can be challenging in terms of costs, time, and the risk of errors. Newborns, especially if born preterm, are more vulnerable to medication errors than adults. Recently, robotic medication compounding has reportedly improved the safety and efficiency of the therapeutic process. In this study, we analyze the advantages of using the I.V. Station\uae system in our NICU, compared to the manual preparation of injectable drugs in terms of accuracy, cost, and time. Method: An in vitro experimental controlled study was conducted to analyze 10 injectable powdered or liquid drugs. Accuracy was calculated within a 5% difference of the bottle weight during different stages of preparation (reconstitution, dilution, and final product). The overall cost of manual and automated preparations were calculated and compared. Descriptive statistics for each step of the process are presented as mean \ub1 standard deviation or median (range). Results: The median error observed during reconstitution, dilution, and final therapy of the drugs prepared by the I.V. Station\uae ranged within \ub15% accuracy, with narrower ranges of error compared to those prepared manually. With increasing preparations, the I.V. Station\uae consumed less materials, reduced costs, decreased preparation time, and optimized the medication process, unlike the manual method. In the 10 drugs analyzed, the time saved from using the I.V. Station\uae ranged from 16 s for acyclovir to 2 h 57 min for teicoplanin, and cost savings varied from 8% for ampicillin to 66% for teicoplanin. These advantages are also capable of continually improving as the total amount of final product increases. Conclusions: The I.V. Station\uae improved the therapeutic process in our NICU. The benefits included increased precision in drug preparation, improved safety, lowered cost, and saved time. These advantages are particularly important in areas such as the NICU, where the I.V. Station\uae could improve the delivery of the high complexity of care and a large amount of intravenous therapy typically required. In addition, these benefits may lead to the reduction in medication errors and improve patient and family care; however, additional studies will be required to confirm this hypothesis

A young infant with transient severe hypertriglyceridemia temporarily associated with meropenem administration : A case report and review of the literature

Background: Slight changes in the lipid profile can be observed over the acute phase of infectious diseases. Moreover, some antiinfective drugs can modify serum lipid concentrations, although antibiotics do not seem to have a relevant, direct, or acute effect on the lipid profile. Methods:A 75-day-old breastfed Caucasian female, born at term after a regular pregnancy, was hospitalized for osteomyelitis. She was immediately treated with intravenous meropenem and vancomycin. Therapy was effective, but after 22 days of treatment, her blood was found to be viscous with a purple shade. Results: A fasting blood sample showed serum triglycerides of 966mg/dL, total cholesterol of 258mg/dL, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol of 15mg/dL. Secondary causes of hyperlipidemia and primary hereditary disorders were ruled out. Thereafter, the possibility that antibiotics may have had a role in the hypertriglyceridemia was considered, and meropenem was discontinued. After 72 hours of meropenem discontinuation, a sharp modification of lipid variables was observed, and further testing showed a complete normalization of the lipid profile. Conclusion: In this child with osteomyelitis, the increase in serum triglycerides appeared suddenly after 3 weeks of meropenem treatment and resolved quickly after meropenem discontinuation, thus highlighting the possible association between meropenem and lipid profile alterations. Monitoring the lipid profile should be considered in cases of long-term treatment with meropenem, and further studies on meropenem safety should include evaluation of the lipid profile

Cyclic nucleotide-dependent relaxation in human umbilical vessels

Umbilical vessels have a low sensitivity to dilate, and this property is speculated to have physiological implications. We aimed to investigate the different relaxing responses of human umbilical arteries (HUAs) and veins (HUVs) to agonists acting through the cAMP and cGMP pathways. Vascular rings were suspended in organ baths for isometric force measurement. Following precontraction with the thromboxane prostanoid (TP) receptor agonist U44069, concentration-response curves to the nitric oxide (NO) donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP), the soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) stimulator BAY 41-2272, the adenylate cyclase (AC) activator forskolin, the \u3b2-adrenergic receptor agonists isoproterenol (ADRB1), salmeterol (ADRB2), and BRL37344 (ADRB3), and the phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitors milrinone (PDE3), rolipram (PDE4), and sildenafil (PDE5) were performed. None of the tested drugs induced a relaxation higher than 30% of the U44069-induced tone. Rings from HUAs and HUVs showed a similar relaxation to forskolin, SNP, PDE inhibitors, and ADRB agonists. BAY 41-2272 was significantly more efficient in relaxing veins than arteries. ADRB agonists evoked weak relaxations (< 20%), which were impaired in endothelium-removed vessels or in the presence of the NO synthase inhibitor L-NAME, sGC inhibitor ODQ. PKA and PKG inhibitors impaired ADBR1-mediated relaxation but did not affect ADRB2-mediated relaxation. ADRB3-mediated relaxation was impaired by PKG inhibition in HUAs and by PKA inhibition in HUVs. Although HUA and HUV rings were relaxed by BRL37344, immunohistochemistry and RT-qPCR analysis showed that, compared to ADRB1 and ADRB2, ADRB3 receptors are weakly or not expressed in umbilical vessels. In conclusion, our study confirmed the low relaxing capacity of HUAs and HUVs from term infants. ADRB-induced relaxation is partially mediated by endothelium-derived NO pathway in human umbilical vessels

Fever and pain management in childhood : Healthcare providers’ and parents’ adherence to current recommendations

In order to evaluate the adherence of healthcare providers and parents to the current recommendations concerning fever and pain management, randomized samples of 500 healthcare providers caring for children and 500 families were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire. The 378 health care providers (HCPs) responding to the survey (75.6%) included 144 primary care pediatricians (38.1%), 98 hospital pediatricians (25.9%), 62 pediatric residents (16.4%), and 71 pediatric nurses (19.6%); the 464 responding parents (92.8%) included 175 whose youngest (or only) child was 645 years old (37.7%), 175 whose youngest (or only) child was aged 6-10 years (37.7%), and 114 whose youngest (or only) child was aged 11-14 years (24.6%). There were gaps in the knowledge of both healthcare providers and parents. Global adherence to the guidelines was lower among the pediatric nurses than the other healthcare providers (odds ratio 0.875; 95% confidence interval 0.795-0.964). Among the parents, those of children aged 6-10 and 11-14 years old, those who were older, and those without a degree answered the questions correctly significantly less frequently than the others. These findings suggest that there is an urgent need to improve the dissemination of the current recommendations concerning fever and pain management among healthcare providers and parents in order to avoid mistaken and sometimes risky attitudes, common therapeutic errors, and the unnecessary overloading of emergency department resources. Pediatric nurses and parents with older children, those who are older, and those with a lower educational level should be the priority targets of educational programmes

Successful extracorporeal membrane oxygenation after incidental azygos vein cannulation in a neonate with right-sided congenital diaphragmatic hernia interruption of the inferior vena cava and azygos continuation

Incidental azygos vein cannulation has been reported in a few cases of neonatal extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). This complication is described in the literature mainly in pathological conditions wherein increased central venous pressure dilates the superior vena cava (SVC), i.e., right congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) or pulmonary hypertension. Azygos vein cannulation should always be suspected in cases of impaired venous return and circuit failure. Although rare, it hinders proper venous aspiration of the ECMO circuit and generally requires repositioning or replacement of the venous cannula or conversion to central cannulation. In this report, we describe a newborn with severe right CDH who required ECMO assistance, wherein incidental cannulation of the azygos vein resulted in successful functioning of the circuit because of the concomitant presence of isolated interruption of the inferior vena cava and azygos continuation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of successful neonatal ECMO despite azygos vein cannulation in a patient with such rare physiology

Refractive outcome in preterm newborns with ROP after propranolol treatment. A retrospective observational cohort study

Background: Recent explorative studies suggest that propranolol reduces retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) progression, but the short-term effects of propranolol treatment at 1 year of corrected age have not been extensively evaluated. Methods: A multi-center retrospective observational cohort study was conducted to assess the physical development and the refractive outcome of infants with prior ROP treated with propranolol. Forty-nine infants treated with propranolol were compared with an equal number of patients who did not receive any propranolol therapy and represent the control group, with comparable anthropometrical characteristics and stages of ROP. Results: The weight, length, and head circumference at 1 year of corrected age were similar between infants who had been treated, or not, with propranolol, without any statistically significant differences. Refractive evaluation at 1 year showed spherical equivalent values decreasing with the progression of ROP toward more severe stages of the disease, together with an increasing number of infants with severe myopia. On the contrary, no differences were observed between infants who had been treated with propranolol and those who had not. Conclusion: This study confirms that the progression of ROP induces an increase of refractive errors and suggests that propranolol itself does not affect the refractive outcome. Therefore, if the efficacy of propranolol in counteracting ROP progression is confirmed by further clinical trials, the conclusion will be that propranolol might indirectly improve the visual outcome, reducing the progression of ROP