A new multisensor software architecture for movement detection: Preliminary study with people with cerebral palsy

A five-layered software architecture translating movements into mouse clicks has been developed and tested on an Arduino platform with two different sensors: accelerometer and flex sensor. The archi-tecture comprises low-pass and derivative filters, an unsupervised classifier that adapts continuously to the strength of the user's movements and a finite state machine which sets up a timer to prevent in-voluntary movements from triggering false positives. Four people without disabilities and four people with cerebral palsy (CP) took part in the experi-ments. People without disabilities obtained an average of 100% and 99.3% in precision and true positive rate (TPR) respectively and there were no statistically significant differences among type of sensors and placement. In the same experiment, people with disabilities obtained 97.9% and 100% in precision and TPR respectively. However, these results worsened when subjects used the system to access a commu-nication board, 89.6% and 94.8% respectively. With their usual method of access-an adapted switch- they obtained a precision and TPR of 86.7% and 97.8% respectively. For 3-outof- 4 participants with disabilities our system detected the movement faster than the switch. For subjects with CP, the accelerometer was the easiest to use because it is more sensitive to gross motor motion than the flex sensor which requires more complex movements. A final survey showed that 3-out-of-4 participants with disabilities would prefer to use this new technology instead of their tra-ditional method of access

Editorial: Metallic micronutrient homeostasis in plants

Transition elements, such as copper, iron, or zinc, are essential nutrients for plants. They participate in every biological process. However, intracellular metal levels must be maintained within a narrow physiological concentration. Too little, and not enough cofactors are available to the cell; too much, and Fenton-type reactions and mismetallation events will disrupt many cellular processes. As a result, plants have developed complex systems to control metal uptake and to deliver them to all tissues and cells. In this Research Topic, we have collected some of the most recent work furthering our understanding of Metallic Micronutrient Homeostasis in Plants.Fil: Roschzttardtz, Hannetz. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; ChileFil: González Guerrero, Manuel. Universidad Politécnica de Madrid; EspañaFil: Gomez Casati, Diego Fabian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Rosario. Centro de Estudios Fotosintéticos y Bioquímicos. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas. Centro de Estudios Fotosintéticos y Bioquímicos; Argentin

Cooktop Sensing Based on a YOLO Object Detection Algorithm

Deep Learning (DL) has provided a significant breakthrough in many areas of research and industry. The development of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) has enabled the improvement of computer vision-based techniques, making the information gathered from cameras more useful. For this reason, recently, studies have been carried out on the use of image-based DL in some areas of people’s daily life. In this paper, an object detection-based algorithm is proposed to modify and improve the user experience in relation to the use of cooking appliances. The algorithm can sense common kitchen objects and identify interesting situations for users. Some of these situations are the detection of utensils on lit hobs, recognition of boiling, smoking and oil in kitchenware, and determination of good cookware size adjustment, among others. In addition, the authors have achieved sensor fusion by using a cooker hob with Bluetooth connectivity, so it is possible to automatically interact with it via an external device such as a computer or a mobile phone. Our main contribution focuses on supporting people when they are cooking, controlling heaters, or alerting them with different types of alarms. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time a YOLO algorithm has been used to control the cooktop by means of visual sensorization. Moreover, this research paper provides a comparison of the detection performance among different YOLO networks. Additionally, a dataset of more than 7500 images has been generated and multiple data augmentation techniques have been compared. The results show that YOLOv5s can successfully detect common kitchen objects with high accuracy and fast speed, and it can be employed for realistic cooking environment applications. Finally, multiple examples of the identification of interesting situations and how we act on the cooktop are presented.The current study has been sponsored by the Government of the Basque Country-ELKARTEK21/10 KK-2021/00014 (“Estudio de nuevas técnicas de inteligencia artificial basadas en Deep Learning dirigidas a la optimización de procesos industriales”) and ELKARTEK23-DEEPBASK (“Creación de nuevos algoritmos de aprendizaje profundo aplicado a la industria”) research programmes

Industrial and technological policy of digital transformation, service and intelligent product connected. Strategies and projects of the energy sector

La política industrial es una acción coordinada de los gobiernos en los niveles europeo, nacional y autonómico, destinada a orientar los recursos de producción a los productores en ciertas industrias para ayudarles a ser más innovadores y competitivos. La digitalización, conectividad e incorporación de inteligencia a los productos y procesos, determina un potencial de competitividad para las empresas, sectores productivos y de servicios, en base a la posibilidad de realizar productos personalizados de mayor calidad y la aparición de nuevas oportunidades de negocios basadas en los servicios para ganar en competitividad. Esta situación, suscita el interés del establecimiento de un marco regulatorio multinivel, multiescala y multisectorial que constituya un facilitador del potencial de estas tecnologías en el desarrollo e Políticas Industriales. En el presente trabajo se formula un protomodelo de establecimiento de Política Industrial para conducir el proceso de innovación a través de la transformación digital del sector industrial y estrategias para su materialización en las distintas empresas. Dicho protomodelo se concreta para el sector energético.Industrial policy is a coordinated action of governments at European, national and regional levels, aimed at orienting production resources to producers in certain industries to help them become more innovative and competitive. The digitization, connectivity and incorporation of intelligence to products and processes, determines a potential for competitiveness for companies, productive sectors and services, based on the possibility of making personalized products of higher quality and the emergence of new business opportunities based in services to gain competitiveness. This situation raises the interest of establishing a multilevel, multiscale and multisectoral regulatory framework that constitutes a facilitator of the potential of these technologies in the development of Industrial Policies. In the present work, a proto model of the establishment of Industrial Policy is formulated to lead the process of innovation through the digital transformation of the industrial sector and strategies for its materialization in the different companies. Said protomodel is specific for the energy sector

Null controllability of the heat equation with boundary Fourier conditions: the linear case

In this paper, we prove the global null controllability of the linear heat equation completed with linear Fourier boundary conditions of the form ∂y ∂n + β y = 0. We consider distributed controls with support in a small set and nonregular coefficients β = β(x, t). For the proof of null controllability, a crucial tool will be a new Carleman estimate for the weak solutions of the classical heat equation with nonhomogeneous Neumann boundary conditions.Ministerio de Educación y Cienci

Redox-dependent and redox-independent functions of Caenorhabditis elegans thioredoxin 1

Thioredoxins (TRX) are traditionally considered as enzymes catalyzing redox reactions. However, redox-independent functions of thioredoxins have been described in different organisms, although the underlying molecular mechanisms are yet unknown. We report here the characterization of the first generated endogenous redox-inactive thioredoxin in an animal model, the TRX-1 in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We find that TRX-1 dually regulates the formation of an endurance larval stage (dauer) by interacting with the insulin pathway in a redox-independent manner and the cGMP pathway in a redox-dependent manner. Moreover, the requirement of TRX-1 for the extended longevity of worms with compromised insulin signalling or under calorie restriction relies on TRX-1 redox activity. In contrast, the nuclear translocation of the SKN-1 transcription factor and increased LIPS-6 protein levels in the intestine upon trx-1 deficiency are strictly redox-independent. Finally, we identify a novel function of C. elegans TRX-1 in male food-leaving behaviour that is redox-dependent. Taken together, our results position C. elegans as an ideal model to gain mechanistic insight into the redox-independent functions of metazoan thioredoxins, overcoming the limitations imposed by the embryonic lethal phenotypes of thioredoxin mutants in higher organisms.NIH Office of Research Infrastructure P40 OD010440Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness BFU2015- 64408-PFondo Social Europeo BFU2015- 64408-PNational Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health R01AI07640

Exact controllability to the trajectories of the heat equation with Fourier boundary conditions: the semilinear case

This paper is concerned with the global exact controllability of the semilinear heat equation (with nonlinear terms involving the state and the gradient) completed with boundary conditions of the form ∂y ∂n + f(y) = 0. We consider distributed controls, with support in a small set. The null controllability of similar linear systems has been analyzed in a previous first part of this work. In this second part we show that, when the nonlinear terms are locally Lipschitz-continuous and slightly superlinear, one has exact controllability to the trajectories.Ministerio de Educación y Cienci