A Smart Home Network for Proactive Users

According to the European Strategy Energy Technology (SET) Plan, the resident-user engagement into thenational energy strategy is pivotal, as reported by the Challenge 1st: “Active consumer is at the centre of the energy system”. The Italian Ministry of Economic Development and ENEA have entered into a Program Agreement for the execution of the research and development lines of General Interest for the NationalElectricity System. In particular, as part of the “Development of an integrated model of the Urban Smart District” project. An experimental demonstration of a Smart Home network is being carried out in the Centocelle district of Rome and called “Smart Home Centocelle”. The project was developed in an informal settlement, which shares a common background with likewise urban settings, such as a lack of public transportation convenience or enjoyable public spaces and average quality housing, whereas people who adhered to the project have a medium-high education level and proved to be sensitive to alternative and more sustainable energy sources. Our research has examined the deployment progress made so far, gathering and analysing all the information to assess how the project applications could affect various quality-of-life dimensions: safety, health, environmental quality and personal comfort perception, social connectedness and the cost of living, above all

Redundancy analysis of cooperative dual-arm manipulators

This paper presents the redundancy analysis of two cooperative manipulators, showing how they can be considered as a single redundant manipulator through the use of the relative Jacobian matrix. In this way, the kinematic redundancy can be resolved by applying the principal local optimization techniques used in the single manipulator case. We resolve the redundancy by using the Jacobian null space technique, which permits us to perform several tasks with different execution priority levels at the same time; this is a useful feature, especially when the manipulators are to be mounted on and cooperate with a mobile platform. As an illustrative example, we present a case study consisting of two planar manipulators mounted on a smart wheelchair, whose degrees of redundancy are employed to move an object along a pre-defined path, while avoiding an obstacle in the manipulator's workspace at the same time

Stress detection in computer users from keyboard and mouse dynamics

Detecting stress in computer users, while technically challenging, is of the utmost importance in the workplace, especially now that remote working scenarios are becoming ubiquitous. In this context, cost-effective, subject-independent systems are needed that can be embedded in consumer devices and classify users' stress in a reliable and unobtrusive fashion. Leveraging keyboard and mouse dynamics is particularly appealing in this context as it exploits readily available sensors. However, available studies are mostly performed in laboratory conditions, and there is a lack of on-field investigations in closer-to-real-world settings. In this study, keyboard and mouse data from 62 volunteers were experimentally collected in-the-wild using a purpose-built Web application, designed to induce stress by asking each subject to perform 8 computer tasks under different stressful conditions. The application of Multiple Instance Learning (MIL) to Random Forest (RF) classification allowed the devised system to successfully distinguish 3 stress-level classes from keyboard (76% accuracy) and mouse (63% accuracy) data. Classifiers were further evaluated via confusion matrix, precision, recall, and F1-score

First Approach to a Holistic Tool for Assessing RES Investment Feasibility

Combining availability, viability, sustainability, technical options, and environmental impact in an energy-planning project is a difficult job itself for the today’s engineers. This becomes harder if the potential investors also need to be persuaded. Moreover, the problem increases even more if various consumptions are considered, as their patterns depend to a large extent on the type of facility and the activity. It is therefore essential to develop tools to assess the balance between generation and demand in a given installation. In this paper, a valuable tool is developed for the seamless calculation of the integration possibilities of renewable energies and the assessment of derived technical, financial and environmental impacts. Furthermore, it also considers their interaction with the power grid or other networks, raising awareness of the polluting emissions responsible for global warming. Through a series of Structured Query Language databases and a dynamic data parameterization, the software is provided with sufficient information to encode, calculate, simulate and graphically display information on the generation and demand of electric, thermal and transport energy, all in a user-friendly environment, finally providing an evaluation and feasibility report

Biological age estimation using an eHealth system based on wearable sensors

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Digital twin reference model development to prevent operators' risk in process plants

In the literature, many applications of Digital Twin methodologies in the manufacturing, construction and oil and gas sectors have been proposed, but there is still no reference model specifically developed for risk control and prevention. In this context, this work develops a Digital Twin reference model in order to define conceptual guidelines to support the implementation of Digital Twin for risk prediction and prevention. The reference model proposed in this paper is made up of four main layers (Process industry physical space, Communication system, Digital Twin and User space), while the implementation steps of the reference model have been divided into five phases (Development of the risk assessment plan, Development of the communication and control system, Development of Digital Twin tools, Tools integration in a Digital Twin perspective and models and Platform validation). During the design and implementation phases of a Digital Twin, different criticalities must be taken into consideration concerning the need for deterministic transactions, a large number of pervasive devices, and standardization issues. Practical implications of the proposed reference model regard the possibility to detect, identify and develop corrective actions that can affect the safety of operators, the reduction of maintenance and operating costs, and more general improvements of the company business by intervening both in strictly technological and organizational terms

Fault Detection and Isolation for Multi-Sensor Navigation Systems: Model-Based Methods and Applications

Fault Detection and Isolation (FDI) methods that monitor the navigation system for sensor faults in real-time, can contribute significantly to improve system reliability. Quick detection and isolation of sensor faults can prevent serious damages and irreparable consequences. In this book, remarkable model-based fault diagnosis techniques, such as the Structural Analysis and the Parity Space Approach, are presented and successfully applied to detect and isolate navigation sensor faults in an autonomous navigation robot. The dynamical model of the robot is derived in linear and nonlinear state-space form. Structural analysis is performed on the robot nonlinear model to analyse its structural properties, and thus to provide the set of redundancy relations necessary for fault diagnosis. The required knowledge about weak/strong detectability of sensor faults is obtained applying the Parity Space Approach to the robot linearized model. The effects of the sensor noise are also accounted. In this case, the fault detection reduces to the problem of detecting a change in the mean of a normally distributed random sequence. FDI applications on multi-sensor navigation systems are also provided

Human Monitoring, Smart Health and Assisted Living: Techniques and technologies

Interest in Information and Communication Technologies for human monitoring, smart health and assisted living is growing due to the significant impact that these technologies are expected to have on improving the quality of life of ageing populations around the world. This book brings together chapters written by a range of researchers working in these topics, providing an overview of the areas and covering current research, developments and applications for a readership of researchers and research-led engineering practitioners. It discusses the promises and the possible advantages of these technologies, and also indicates the challenges for the future. Topics covered include: personal monitoring and health data acquisition in smart homes; contactless monitoring of respiratory activity; technology-based assistance of people with dementia; wearable sensors for gesture analysis; design and prototyping of home automation systems for the monitoring of elderly people; multi-sensor platform for circadian rhythm analysis; smart multi-sensor solutions for activity detection; human monitoring based on heterogeneous sensor networks; mobile health for vital signs and gait monitoring systems; and smartphone-based blood pressure monitoring for falls risk assessment