Automatic Controller Research Articles

Air–Oxygen Blenders for Mechanical Ventilators: A Literature Review

Respiratory diseases are one of the most common causes of death in the world and this recent COVID-19 pandemic is a key example. Problems such as infections, in general, affect many people and depending on the form of transmission they can spread throughout the world and weaken thousands of people. Two examples are severe acute respiratory syndrome and the recent coronavirus disease. These diseases have mild and severe forms, in which patients gravely affected need ventilatory support. The equipment that serves as a basis for operation of the mechanical ventilator is the air–oxygen blender, responsible for carrying out the air–oxygen mixture in the proper proportions ensuring constant supply. New blender models are described in the literature together with applications of control techniques, such as Proportional, Integrative and Derivative (PID); Fuzzy; and Adaptive. The results obtained from the literature show a significant improvement in patient care when using automatic controls instead of manual adjustment, increasing the safety and accuracy of the treatment. This study presents a deep review of the state of the art in air–oxygen benders, identifies the most relevant characteristics, performs a comparison study considering the most relevant available solutions, and identifies open research directions in the topic.

Automatic Water Level Indicator and Controller

Abstract: This Project mainly aims at optimizing the use of water. Since water wastage has become a major and global issue now, hence water conservation has now become more important. One of the common sources of wastage we encounter is the overflow of water. This project aims to help judge the water level inside the water tank and display it accordingly on the screen while also preventing any overflow of water which is achieved through the Arduino Uno. The ultrasonic sensors used helps determine the water level in tank which is then send to the Arduino Uno, the LCD then attached to it displays the level to us. According to the level of water inside the tank, the Arduino helps turn ON or OFF the servo motor hence closing the source of water. In this way, through the automation of water control, we intent to save the energy and our natural resource. Keywords: Arduino-UNO, DC motor, LCD display, Servo, Ultrasonic sensor

The Emergence of Interactive Music: The Vision and Presence of Joel Chadabe

The Emergence of Interactive Music: The Vision and Presence of Joel Chadabe

Shared human–robot path following control of an unmanned ground vehicle

This paper considers the shared path following control of an unmanned ground vehicle by a single person. A passive measure of human intent is used to blend the human and machine inputs in a mixed initiative approach. The blending law is combined with saturated super-twisting sliding mode speed and heading controllers, so that exogenous disturbances can be counteracted via equivalent control. It is proven that when the proposed blending law is used, the combined control signals from both the human and automatic controller respect the actuator magnitude constraints of the machine. To demonstrate the approach, shared control experiments are performed using an unmanned ground vehicle, which follows a lawn mower pattern shaped path.

A Li-Ion Battery Charger With Variable Charging Current and Automatic Voltage-Compensation Controls for Parallel Charging

To preferably regulate the charging current and decrease circuit complexity for parallel charging, a battery charger with variable charging current (VCC) and automatic voltage-compensation (AVC) controls is presented. Based on the battery voltages, the VCC control not only dynamically maximizes the charging currents in both the trickle current (TC) and constant current (CC) stages but also prevents from damaging multiple batteries. Thus, the VCC control realizes safe charging and reduces charging time for parallel battery packs in the TC and CC stages. Owing to the battery’s parasitic resistance, a conventional charger changes from CC to constant voltage (CV) stage without approaching the rated voltage of the battery packs. The AVC control estimates the parasitic resistance and determines the proper transition timing from the CC to CV stage. Therefore, the duration of CC stage is prolonged and the CV charging time is reduced. Thanks to the VCC and AVC controls, the proposed battery charger can achieve charging time reduction and charging safety simultaneously. The experimental results verify that the periods of CC and CV stages are extended and shortened, respectively, and charging currents are maximized to the predefined values in the TC and CC stages. The maximum efficiencies in the CC and CV stages are up to 96.4%. Furthermore, compared to charging dual battery packs with conventional control, the proposed controls can save about half of total charging time.

Automatic liquid flow controller for hydraulic drilling machine

The procedure for conducting scientific experiments in the development of an automatic flow regulator with hydraulic control is considered. The necessity of using automatic systems in the drilling process is proved. The results of experimental studies of liquid flow regulator, namely its output characteristic and oscillograms of hydraulic motor acceleration under various operating modes are presented.

Automatic Street Lighting Controller with Anti-Theft Alarm

In times when security is the topmost priority of every community, the provision of adequate and functional streetlights is deemed necessary as one of the measures to protect life and property. In this study, the researchers designed and constructed a prototype device Automatic Streetlight Controller with anti-theft alarm using a Light-dependent resistor (LDR) and Photodiode – Infrared LED tandem. This study was conducted to assess the qualitative description, functionality, and level of acceptability regarding the constructed Automatic Streetlight Controller with Anti-theft device in terms of its performance as to device and simulator/trainer, the convenience of use, safety, assembly of parts, and cost. A mixed research design was used that includes both qualitative and quantitative research design. The qualitative description of the device was presented in narrative form and assessed using a focused-group discussion. Quantitative research design is done using quasi-experimental in testing the functionality, trials were made to assess its functionality and descriptive survey method was used to assess the level of acceptability. Probability sampling was also used thru the lottery method to get the two (2) selected groups of respondents: the 3rd year BSIT- Electricity block B students and community barangay officials of Calunasan, Calape, Bohol. T-test was used to test its significance using the 0.05α. Results have shown that on testing the device has 100% good performance and is rated as it functions well. The acceptability level was rated “very high” which means highly acceptable by both respondents. Therefore, the device can be used if implanted in existing street lights or newly built ones to improve the condition of our street lights to properly illuminate the streets for an improved security system.

Development of a numerical multi-layer model of skin subjected to pulsed laser irradiation to optimise thermal stimulation in photorejuvenation procedure

Background and Objective: This paper presents the development of a 3D physics-based numerical model of skin capable of representing the laser-skin photo-thermal interactions occurring in skin photorejuvenation treatment procedures. The aim of this model was to provide a rational and quantitative basis to control and predict temperature distribution within the layered structure of skin. Ultimately, this mathematical and numerical modelling platform will guide the design of an automatic robotic controller to precisely regulate skin temperature at desired depths and for specific durations. Methods: The Pennes bioheat equation was used to account for heat transfer in a 3D multi-layer model of skin. The effects of blood perfusion, skin pigmentation and various convection conditions are also incorporated in the proposed model. The photo-thermal effect due to pulsed laser light on skin is computed using light diffusion theory. The physics-based constitutive model was numerically implemented using a combination of finite volume and finite difference techniques. Direct sensitivity routines were also implemented to assess the influence of constitutive parameters on temperature. A stability analysis of the numerical model was conducted. Results: Finally, the numerical model was exploited to assess its ability to predict temperature distribution and thermal damage via a multi-parametric study which accounted for a wide array of biophysical parameters such as light coefficients of absorption for individual skin layers and melanin levels (correlated with ethnicity). It was shown how critical is the link between melanin content, laser light characteristics and potential thermal damage to skin. Conclusions: The developed photo-thermal model of skin-laser interactions paves the way for the design of an automated simulation-driven photorejuvenation robot, thus alleviating the need for inconsistent and error-prone human operators.

Automation of Agricultural Grain Unloading-on-the-go

This paper describes the development and experimental validation of a novel grain unloading-on-the-go automation system (automatic offloading) for agricultural combine harvesters. Unloading-on-the-go is desirable during harvest, but it requires highly-skilled and exhausting labor because the combine operator must fulfill multiple tasks simultaneously. The automatic offloading system can unburden the combine operator by automatically monitoring the grain cart fill status, determining the appropriate auger location, and controlling the relative vehicle position and auger on/of. An automation architecture is proposed and experimentally demonstrated to automate the unloading-on-the-go process. To allow for diferent operator-selected unloading scenarios, the automatic offloading controller has three fill strategies and two movement control options, “open-loop” and “closed-loop”. The automatic offloading controller was implemented on a dSPACE MicroAutoBox II and integrated into a combine harvester. In addition, a stereo-camera-based perception system was connected to the automatic offloading controller via an Ethernet cable for grain fill profile measurement during unloading. In-feld testing demonstrated that the automatic offloading system can effectively automate the unloading-on-the-go of a combine harvester to fill a grain cart to the desired level under nominal harvesting conditions.

Physiological response of black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) to deficit irrigation

Due to the amount of water used in the agricultural sector, compared to other activities, irrigation must be done carefully and based on knowledge of plant water relations. The aim of this work was to evaluate the physiological behavior of young black pepper plants (Piper nigrum L.), subjected to water defi cit, as well as the potential for recovery after stress. In 5 L pots, the plants were subjected to different irrigation levels (100; 78; 58 and 32% of the control depth), with irrigation management performed by an automatic controller from a water tension sensor in the soil. The following traits were evaluated: leaf osmotic potential (Ψo), relative water content (RWC), stomatal conductance (gs) and photosynthetic pigments. To evaluate the plants’ recovery capacity, substrate rehydration was performed when about 50% of the plants in a treatment had stomatal conductance (gs) close to zero. The different levels of water defi cit reduced the values of all traits. In the treatment 32%, values of -2.39 MPa for Ψo, 60% for RWC and gs close to zero were observed on the 28 th day of water restriction. After three days of rehydration of this treatment, the recovery of these values was partial, not reaching the values of the treatments 100 and 78%. Black pepper plants showed high susceptibility to water restrictions and low capacity for recovery after stress.

Hybrid Control Architecture of an Unmanned Surface Vehicle Used for Water Quality Monitoring

The study of water quality in reservoirs, lakes, and coasts is an activity that mainly uses human-crewed marine vehicles to obtain site parameters such as temperature, conductivity, salinity, pH, and others. This task is facilitated by unmanned vehicles, which improve data quality in hazardous areas and minimize human exposure. This work presents a novel methodology based on systems engineering concepts and hybrid control architecture for a catamaran-class unmanned surface vehicle (USV) named EDSON-J, for remote water quality monitoring activities with payload instrumentation. Critical aspects of the project development are considered, such as requirements, risk management, design flexibility, logical decomposition, functional classification, verification, integration and validation, and technological plan. The applied methodology proposes the main components for the vehicle, a main computer running robotic operating system (ROS) with deliberative control architecture for high-level tasks and a secondary computer running finite state machine (FSM) with hierarchical control architecture for low-level tasks, executing control and navigation algorithms. The results are given through missions of water quality monitoring, attaching a multiparameter payload sonde. Manual and automatic mode controls are suitable for circular and zig-zag maneuvers and show better performance for the proposed platform, guaranteeing the specifications and requirements of the vehicle design and validating the proposed hybrid control architecture.

Design of Automatic Batch Calibration and Correction System for IMU

Thanks to its light weight, low power consumption, and low price, the inertial measurement units (IMUs) have been widely used in civil and military applications such as autopilot, robotics, and tactical weapons. The calibration is an essential procedure before the IMU is put in use, which is generally used to estimate the error parameters such as the bias, installation error, scale factor of the IMU. Currently, the manual one-by-one calibration is still the mostly used manner, which is low in efficiency, time-consuming, and easy to introduce mis-operation. Aiming at this issue, this paper designs an automatic batch calibration method for a set of IMUs. The designed automatic calibration master controller can control the turntable and the data acquisition system at the same time. Each data acquisition front-end can complete data acquisition of eight IMUs one time. And various scenarios of experimental tests have been carried out to validate the proposed design, such as the multi-position tests, the rate tests and swaying tests. The results illustrate the reliability of each function module and the feasibility automatic batch calibration. Compared with the traditional calibration method, the proposed design can reduce errors caused by the manual calibration and greatly improve the efficiency of IMU calibration.

Management of software-corrected tracking of ground objects with the help of aircraft

The problem of an automatic controller synthesis for software-corrected tracking of a surface moving object with the help of an aircraft surveillance and search system is considered. Program control functions, based on open and closed circuits, are obtained. The method of the inverse dynamic problem as the main method of synthesis is used. Examples of control calculation for tracking a surface moving object are given. Keywords software-corrected tracking, automatic control synthesis, inverse dynamic problem method

On-line automatic controller tuning using Bayesian optimisation - a bulk tailings treatment plant case study

The automatic tuning problem of multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) controllers is considered within the framework of Bayesian optimisation and applied in simulation to a bulk tailings treatment process. The aim is to develop a model free, on-line, automatic tuner which can optimise the performance of a given controller to the task at hand. The automatic tuning procedure can be conducted during commissioning, when poor controller performance is observed or when the process has changed. Simulations indicate that the method is able to locate the optimal tuning parameters for the bulk tailings treatment process as compared to a de-coupled controller developed from a model of the process. The parameters were obtained from an objective function which was balanced and weighted according to the response required.

Hexacopter Drones for Fertilizer Sowing in the Agricultural Sector Using the Global Positioning System (GPS)

Indonesian agricultural products are one of the highest-yielding agricultural commodities on the Asian continent. Farmers are still reliant on a manual method to agricultural land care and management, one of which is the application of fertilizer to agricultural land. As a result, with the help of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or a robot flying drone, a system or fertilizer sowing equipment is utilized on plants. The results of this study led to the creation of a hexacopter drone equipped with fertilizer-based sensors and GPS. Hexacopter refers to a quadcopter having only four rotors. Drone rides are paired with tank-shaped sower actuators and fertilizer spraying as a container and fertilizer sowing method. Using GPS sensor block m8n, which serves as a satellite signal receiver and is converted to a position point in the form of longitude and latitude values, the vehicle can travel to fertilize by following the route of the coordinate point that has been identified in the agricultural land region. The Pixhawk 2.4.8 flight control system, which uses automatic or autonomous controls, can run smoothly, allowing the ride to automatically seed the track. The Lippo 2300mAh 4s battery has a maximum ride load lifting capability of 500 grams of fertilizer and a fertilizing height of three meters.

Aplikasi Alarm Pergantian Jam Belajar Menggunakan Teknik Counter Berbasis Adruino

The automatic bell serves to signal the turn of the hour for each lesson, and there are no more picket officers who forget to ring the bell. This automatic bell will ring at the right time, so lesson changes are no longer a mess. Furthermore, the delay in changing study hours often results in the subsequent teaching and learning process being short of time in public elementary schools. As an example of the use of the Arduino Uno microcontroller which is used as an automatic school bell controller. One of the conveniences possessed by this automatic learning hour change alarm is a control system by inputting the school bell schedule into the Arduino Uno microcontroller, then the alarm for changing the learning hours for public elementary schools will activate automatically according to the adjusted school bell schedule input.

The role of demand response in residential electricity load reduction using appliance shifting techniques

PurposeSome of the major concerns since the implementation of smart meters (prepaid meters) in some parts of Ghana is how electricity consumers have benefited from data obtained from these meters by providing important statistics on electricity-saving advice; this is one of the key demand-side management methods for achieving load reduction in residential homes. Appliance shifting techniques have proved to be an effective demand response strategy in load reduction. The purpose of this paper is therefore to help consumers of electricity understand when and how they can shift some appliances from peak to off-peak and vice versa.Design/methodology/approachThe research uses an analysis technique of Richardson et al. (2010). In their survey on time-of-use surveys to determine the usage of electricity in households as far as appliance shifting was concerned, this study allowed for the assessment of how the occupants’ daily activities in households affect residential electricity consumption. Fell et al. (2014) modeled an aggregate of electricity demand using different appliances (n) in the household. The data for the peak time used in this study were identified from 05:00 to 08:00 and 17:00 to 21:00 for testing the load shifting algorithms, and the off-peak times were pecked from 10:00 to 16:00 and 23:00. This study technique used load management considering real-time scheduling for peak levels in the selected homes. The household devices are modeled in terms of controlled parameters. Using this study’s time-triggered loads on refrigerators and air conditioning systems, the findings suggested that peak loads can be reduced to 45% as a means of maintaining the simultaneous quality of service. To minimize peak loads to around 35% or more, Chaiwongsa and Wongwises (2020) have indicated that room air conditioning and refrigerator loads are simpler to move compared to other household appliances such as cooking appliances. Yet in conclusion, this study made a strong case that a decrease in household peak demand for electricity is primarily contingent on improvements in human behavior.FindingsThis study has shown that appliance load shifting is a very good way of reducing electrical consumption in residential homes. The comparative performance shows a moderate reduction of 1% in load as was found in the work done by Laicaine (2014). The results, however, indicate that load shifting to a large extent can be achieved by consumer behavioral change. The main response to this study is to advise policymakers in Ghana to develop the appropriate demand response and consumer education towards the general reduction in electrical load in domestic households. The difficulty, however, is how to get the attention of consumer’s on how to start using appliances with less load at peak and also shift some appliances from off-peak times. By increasing consumer knowledge and participation in demand response, it is possible to achieve more efficiency and flexibility in load reduction. The findings were benchmarked with existing comparison studies but may benefit from the potential production of structured references. However, the findings show that load shifting can only be done by modifying consumer actions.Research limitations/implicationsIt should be remembered that this study showed that the use of appliances shifting in residential homes results in load reduction benefits for customers, expressed as savings in electricity prices. The next step will be to build on this cost/benefit study to explain and measure how these reductions transform into net consumer gains for all Ghanaian households.Practical/implicationsLoad shifting will include load controllers in the future, which would automatically handle electricity consumption from various appliances in the home. Based on the device and user needs, the controllers can prioritize loads and appliance usage. The algorithms that underpin automatic load controllers will include knowledge about the behaviors of groups of end users. The results on the time dependency of activities may theoretically inform the algorithms of automatic demand controllers.Originality/valueThis paper addresses an important need for the country in the midst of finding solutions to an unending energy crisis. This paper presents demand response to the Ghanaian electricity consumer as a means to help in the reduction of load in residential homes. This is a novel research as no one has at yet carried out any research in this direction in Ghana. This paper has some new information to offer in the field of demand in household electricity consumption.

WHISPER: Wireless Home Identification and Sensing Platform for Energy Reduction

Many regions of the world benefit from heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems to provide productive, comfortable, and healthy indoor environments, which are enabled by automatic building controls. Due to climate change, population growth, and industrialization, HVAC use is globally on the rise. Unfortunately, these systems often operate in a continuous fashion without regard to actual human presence, leading to unnecessary energy consumption. As a result, the heating, ventilation, and cooling of unoccupied building spaces makes a substantial contribution to the harmful environmental impacts associated with carbon-based electric power generation, which is important to remedy. For our modern electric power system, transitioning to low-carbon renewable energy is facilitated by integration with distributed energy resources. Automatic engagement between the grid and consumers will be necessary to enable a clean yet stable electric grid, when integrating these variable and uncertain renewable energy sources. We present the WHISPER (Wireless Home Identification and Sensing Platform for Energy Reduction) system to address the energy and power demand triggered by human presence in homes. The presented system includes a maintenance-free and privacy-preserving human occupancy detection system wherein a local wireless network of battery-free environmental, acoustic energy, and image sensors are deployed to monitor homes, record empirical data for a range of monitored modalities, and transmit it to a base station. Several machine learning algorithms are implemented at the base station to infer human presence based on the received data, harnessing a hierarchical sensor fusion algorithm. Results from the prototype system demonstrate an accuracy in human presence detection in excess of 95%; ongoing commercialization efforts suggest approximately 99% accuracy. Using machine learning, WHISPER enables various applications based on its binary occupancy prediction, allowing situation-specific controls targeted at both personalized smart home and electric grid modernization opportunities.

RESULTS OF DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF COMPUTER-INTEGRATED TECHNOLOGY OF GREENHOUSES ARTIFICIAL LIGHTING CONTROL

The development and implementation of the automation and digitalization technologies of growing crops production processes in industrial greenhouses is being actualized for increasing of crop yields. This fact, in turn, positively influences on the re-equipment of the software and hardware base of protected soil domestic agricultural production, which stimulates an increase of investment attractiveness and long-term sustainability of Ukrainian agricultural enterprises. The main purpose of the article is developing of the scientific approaches on creation and testing of computer-integrated technology for artificial lighting control in the protected ground agricultural production conditions. The research object is automatic control process of artificial lighting. The research subject is methods and hardware-software components of the indoor greenhouse microclimate. Research methods are analysis of existing development methods, mathematical and computer modeling, hardware and software experimental testing. In course of the research, the component base has been substantiated and the block diagram of the hardware and software for the control of lighting technology has been developed. As a result, a computer model has been synthesized and tested, which is implemented on microprocessor technology and algorithms of the fuzzy logic theory for control the intensity and spectral composition of LED lamps in greenhouses. The prototype of control system for artificial additional lighting of greenhouse crops has been implemented and experimentally investigated. The implemented hardware and software means of computer-integrated technology allow to automatically control the parameters of LED lamps, taking into account the types and periods of growing crops.

Ziegler and Nichols meet Kermack and McKendrick: Parsimony in dynamic models for epidemiology

The COVID-19 crisis popularized the importance of mathematical modeling for managing epidemics. A celebrated pertinent model was developed by Kermack and McKendrick about a century ago. A simplified version of that model has long been used and became widely popular recently, even though it has limitations that its originators had clearly articulated and warned against. A basic limitation is that it unrealistically assumes zero time to recovery for most infected individuals, thus underpredicting the peak of infectious individuals in an epidemic by a factor of as much as about 2. One could avoid this limitation by returning to the original comprehensive model, at the cost of higher complexity. To remedy that, we blend Ziegler-Nichols modeling ideas, developed for automatic controller tuning, with Kermack-McKendrick ideas to develop novel model structures that predict infectious peaks accurately yet retain simplicity. We illustrate these model structures with computer simulations on real epidemiological data.