Real-Time Experimental Comparison of Two Depth Control Schemes for Underwater Vehicles Regular Paper

International audienceThis paper deals with an experimental comparison be‐ tween the proportional integral derivative (PID) control law and the adaptive nonlinear state feedback control, both applied on the AC-ROV underwater vehicle. The experi‐ mental results evaluate the closed-loop behaviour of the system under each controller in various operating condi‐ tions in order to compare how robust they are towards parameters' change and how they can reject external disturbances. It was concluded that the adaptive controller ensures a faster convergence and can adapt to a change of parameters as well as compensate for external disturban‐ ces. The PID needs to be retuned for every parameter change and is more sensitive to external disturbances

Nonlinear Controller for the Set-Point Regulation of a Buck Converter System

In this paper, we present a nonlinear PID controller based on saturation functions with variable parameters in order to regulate the output voltage of a buck converter in the presence of changes in the input voltage. The main feature of the proposed controller is to bound the control input with a variable parameter to avoid the windup effect generated by the combination of the integral control action and some operation conditions. The main advantages of the proposed nonlinear PID controller are its low computing cost and the simple tuning task to implement the control strategy in an embedded system. The acceptable behavior of the closed-loop system is presented through the simulation and experimental results

Vibration Measurement Using Laser Triangulation for Applications in Wind Turbine Blades

The blades in a wind turbine are currently manufactured with flexible and light materials, which make them more susceptible to the effects of vibrations when the wind speed is high enough, causing fatigue damage, affecting the functionality of its structure and aerodynamic efficiency. This work presents a comparison of the modal vibration parameters, applied to a cantilever beam, determined with two experimental methods—the use of accelerometers and a proposed optical non-contact method—based on the principle of laser triangulation and photogrammetry techniques. This technique uses the geometric symmetry of the equidistant displacements along the z axis of the beam to obtain the amplitude data. Parameters such as natural frequency and modal form are obtained by fitting the data to a nonlinear equation with a solution which is an exponential/harmonic equation. Also, analytically, these parameters are determined, and a comparison is made between the experimental methods. The result shows that the relative error of the first-order natural vibration frequency is below 1%. The proposed method is simple, efficient, reliable, and it is also a method that has not been applied to the test of wind turbine blades, so its implementation as this type of wind turbine component is an area of opportunity for the validation of modal vibration parameters in the wind industry. An analysis of results is presented showing benefits of the proposed method and its limitations

Evolving trends in the management of acute appendicitis during COVID-19 waves. The ACIE appy II study

Background: In 2020, ACIE Appy study showed that COVID-19 pandemic heavily affected the management of patients with acute appendicitis (AA) worldwide, with an increased rate of non-operative management (NOM) strategies and a trend toward open surgery due to concern of virus transmission by laparoscopy and controversial recommendations on this issue. The aim of this study was to survey again the same group of surgeons to assess if any difference in management attitudes of AA had occurred in the later stages of the outbreak. Methods: From August 15 to September 30, 2021, an online questionnaire was sent to all 709 participants of the ACIE Appy study. The questionnaire included questions on personal protective equipment (PPE), local policies and screening for SARS-CoV-2 infection, NOM, surgical approach and disease presentations in 2021. The results were compared with the results from the previous study. Results: A total of 476 answers were collected (response rate 67.1%). Screening policies were significatively improved with most patients screened regardless of symptoms (89.5% vs. 37.4%) with PCR and antigenic test as the preferred test (74.1% vs. 26.3%). More patients tested positive before surgery and commercial systems were the preferred ones to filter smoke plumes during laparoscopy. Laparoscopic appendicectomy was the first option in the treatment of AA, with a declined use of NOM. Conclusion: Management of AA has improved in the last waves of pandemic. Increased evidence regarding SARS-COV-2 infection along with a timely healthcare systems response has been translated into tailored attitudes and a better care for patients with AA worldwide

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

Saturation based nonlinear PID control for underwater vehicles: Design, stability analysis and experiments

International audienceDuring sea missions, underwater vehicles are often exposed to changes in the parameters of their control systems and subject to external disturbances due to the influences of ocean currents. These issues make the design of a robust controller quite a challenging task. This paper focuses on the design of a nonlinear PID controller, based on a set of saturation functions for trajectory tracking on an underwater vehicle. The main feature of the proposed control law is that it preserves the advantages of robust control and remains easy to fine-tune in real applications. Using the Lyapunov concept, we prove the asymptotic stability of the closed-loop tracking system. The effectiveness and robustness of our proposed controller for trajectory tracking in depth and yaw dynamics is demonstrated through real-time experiments

A nonlinear controller based on saturation functions with variable parameters to stabilize an AUV

International audienceThis paper deals with a nonlinear controller based on saturation functions with variable parameters for set-point regulation and trajectory tracking control of an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). In many cases, saturation functions with constant parameters are used to limit the input signals generated by a classical PD (Proportional-Derivative) controller to avoid damaging the actuators; however this abrupt bounded harms the performance of the controller. We, therefore, propose to replace the conventional saturation function, with constant parameters, by a saturation function with variable parameters to limit the signals of a PD controller, which is the base of the nonlinear PD with gravitational/ buoyancy compensation and the nonlinear PD þ controllers that we propose in this paper. Consequently, the mathematical model is obtained, considering the featuring operation of the underwater vehicle LIRMIA 2, to do the stability analysis of the closed-loop system with the proposed nonlinear controllers using the Lyapunov arguments. The experimental results show the performance of an AUV (LIRMIA 2) for the depth control problems in the case of set-point regulation and trajectory tracking control

Saturation based nonlinear depth and yaw control of underwater vehicles with stability analysis and real-time experiments

International audienceThis paper deals with two nonlinear controllers based on saturation functions with varying parameters, for set-point regulation and trajectory tracking on an Underwater Vehicle. The proposed controllers combine the advantages of robust control and easy tuning in real applications. The stability of the closed-loop system with the proposed nonlinear controllers is proven by Lyapunov arguments. Experimental results for the trajectory tracking control in 2 degrees of freedom, these are the depth and yaw motion of an underwater vehicle, show the performance of the proposed control strategy

Mathematical modeling and fuzzy proportional–integral–derivative scheme to control the yaw motion of a wind turbine

Abstract In this paper, we present a mathematical model and control strategy to regulate the yaw of a horizontal axis wind turbine. In order to obtain the dynamic equations of the yaw motion, the mathematical model is developed using the Euler–Lagrange formulation and considers the wind turbine as a manipulator robot with three degrees of freedom (DOF). A fuzzy proportional‐integral‐derivative (PID) controller is proposed to manipulate the yaw angle for power regulation. In addition, we have developed a low cost experimental platform to implement the designed controller to obtain experimental results for the dynamic behavior of the closed‐loop system