Remote Operation Research Articles

Achieving Functional Recovery through Seismic Retrofit of Existing Buildings: Barriers and Opportunities

Earthquakes can cause extensive damage to buildings, with lengthy impacts in terms of community recovery. As a result, there is a growing interest in design approaches and standards for buildings that ensure postearthquake functional recovery. This paper qualitatively explores barriers and opportunities for achieving functional recovery in the retrofit of existing buildings. The study employs a set of focus groups engaging 21 participants who are experienced in the seismic retrofit of reinforced concrete buildings in the US. Qualitative analysis methods were used to analyze the collected data and to identify the key themes. The thematic analysis revealed three groups of owners and buildings: (1) those for which functional recovery-based retrofit may be achievable, including owners with long ownership time horizons, high-value contents or operations, and buildings whose functions cannot easily be relocated; (2) those for which retrofit for functional recovery is likely not needed nor practical, including buildings whose functions can be distributed to provide geographic redundancy or replaced with remote operations or a different building; and (3) buildings for which life safety retrofits, sustainability upgrades, or other renovations may improve functional recovery even if not explicitly targeted. The study also revealed significant barriers related to retrofit costs, insufficient or inadequate tools and guidelines for retrofit implementation, difficulty in communication of benefits, and a contradiction between community-scale goals and building-scale decisions. Opportunities identified to address these barriers include strategies to improve access to capital and funding, measure and communicate economic and other benefits, and develop tools and guidelines. This study is the first to rigorously explore the feasibility of achieving functional recovery for existing buildings, which make up a major part of the US building stock and are, therefore, significant impediments to postearthquake community recovery. The study suggests actions that can facilitate moving towards functional recovery objectives.

Metabolic Syndrome, Hyperlipidemias, and Associated Clinical Markers Among Military Airmen

BACKGROUND: Due to the increased overweight and obesity prevalence in Colombia, the aim of this study is to determine the frequency of metabolic syndrome (MetS) among Colombian Air Force military aviators, crews, remote piloted aircraft operators, and air traffic controllers and relationships with clinical markers. METHODS: Operationally active Columbian Air Force military personnel examined periodically at the Colombian Air Force Aerospace Medical Directorate were chosen for a cross-sectional study performed among 2179 subjects. Medical history, anthropometrics, and laboratory results were analyzed and frequencies, correlations, and odds ratios were calculated. RESULTS: Overall prevalence of MetS was 21.7%; in subjects with BMI ≥25, frequency increased to 36% vs. those with BMI <25. Hypertriglyceridemia was present in 31%, impaired fasting glucose 12.5%, hypertension (≥130/85 mmHg) 14.4%, low HDL-C 35.2%, and increased waist circumference 46.2%. Those with three criteria were 14.6%, four criteria 5.8%, and five criteria 1.2%. Pilots had a significantly lower prevalence of MetS at 17.7% and an adjusted OR of 0.61 (0.49–0.76) than other crew; hyperuricemia was three times more likely (3.2–5.1) and hypercholesterolemia OR was 2.3 (1.9–2.9). Subjects with MetS had a significantly higher fat percentage, waist circumference, low-density lipoprotein, very low-density lipoprotein, non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, atherogenic index of plasma (AIP), uric acid, and white blood cell (leukocyte) count, and a lower estimated glomerular filtration rate. There is a linear relationship of the AIP and waist circumference, BMI, uric acid, and white blood cell count. DISCUSSION: MetS prevalence among Colombian Air Force aviators is lower than the general population, higher than other countries, and displays worse lipid profiles that increase cardiovascular and diabetes mellitus risk within the military. Malpica D. Metabolic syndrome, hyperlipidemias, and associated clinical markers among military airmen. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2023; 94(8):604–609.

Optimal Scheme of Remote Backup Automatic Switch Applied to Renewable Energy Grids

The support of renewable energy to the bus voltage during the grid fault period will cause the failure action of the backup automatic switch (BPAS). Moreover, the improper coordination of renewable energy and source supply lines in the process of BPAS operation will lead to the asynchronous close of a circuit breaker, which seriously threatens the stable operation of the power system. To solve the above problems, an optimal operation strategy applied to the remote BPAS is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the operation logic and characteristics of internal BPAS and remote BPAS are analyzed. Secondly, the mechanism of failure action and asynchronous close of a circuit breaker in regional power grids with renewable energy sources are analyzed. Then, to improve the speed and reliability of the BPAS, a strategy of remote BPAS operation suitable is proposed. To avoid the problem of failure action, by monitoring the low-frequency condition of the regional power grid, the strategy accelerates the bus voltage loss to shorten the operation time of the BPAS. Moreover, the operation conditions of BPAS are optimized to avoid the asynchronous close of the circuit breaker between renewable energy and source supply lines. Finally, the experimental results in the 110 kV transformer substation verify that the improved remote BPAS strategy can effectively improve the reliability and quickness of the grid connecting to renewable energy.

Underwater Acoustic Communication Technology for Wireless Remotely Operated Vehicles

Underwater Acoustic Communication Technology for Wireless Remotely Operated Vehicles

Analysis of the existing regulations on certification and training of autonomous vessels operators

The development of autonomous navigation has reached a stage where the issue of creating a system for training specialists in the field of autonomous ship management and developing a regulatory framework that defines the requirements for methodological, personnel and logistical support for such training arises. A brief analysis of the available bibliographic sources on the topic of training operators of autonomous vessels is presented. The requirements of the procedures for the training and certification of autonomous ships operators contained in three regulatory documents published to date such as Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships. Principles and Code of Practice of the British Marine Industry Association, Regulations for the Classification of Offshore Autonomous and Remotely Operated Surface Vessels of the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping and Norwegian Register Standard are considered. A list of basic competencies necessary for the management of autonomous vessels has been formed. A significant part of the knowledge, skills and abilities that make up these competencies are acquired at the stage of training under programs for obtaining a professional seafarer diploma at the management level. The competencies of the autonomous vessel operator are formed on the basis of maritime competencies by adding additional knowledge, skills and abilities that reflect the specifics of the serviced autonomous vessels, equipment and apparatus used in a particular remote control center and navigation conditions in the serviced area. Additional competencies of the operator are largely related to other specialties (IT specialists, electromechanics, radio specialists). In the future, within the framework of the international regulation carried out by the IMO, in the training of autonomous ships operators, the approach underlying the training of ship traffic control systems operators can be used.

Numerical Analysis of the Thrust Characteristics of Propulsion Systems of Hybrid Remotely Operated Vehicle

Numerical Analysis of the Thrust Characteristics of Propulsion Systems of Hybrid Remotely Operated Vehicle

Adaptation of a community health outreach model during the COVID-19 pandemic: the case of the Mexican consulates in the United States of America

The Ventanillas de Salud (VDS – “Health Windows”) are a culturally sensitive outreach program within the 49 Mexican Consulates in the United States that provides information and health care navigation support to underserved and uninsured Mexican immigrants. During the COVID-19 pandemic the VDS rapidly transitioned to remote operations adding new services. Based on the EquIR implementation framework, this qualitative study investigates how adaptations to improve emergency preparedness were performed. We conducted motivational interviews with three actors – six VDS coordinators, eight partner organizations, and ten VDS users– in two VDS, Los Angeles and New York, to document specific needs of the target population and identify implementation processes to adapt and continue operating. The VDS adapted their model by adding new services for emerging needs, by switching service provision modalities, and by expanding the network of partner organizations. According to the VDS staff, these adaptations increased their topics, depth, reach, and diversified their users. Users had mostly positive opinions about the VDS adaptation, although they highlighted some heterogeneity across service provision. The VDS is a public health intervention able to serve a marginalized population and its implementation offers valuable lessons to complement health systems and to improve preparedness and resiliency for future crises.

Temporal Shift Module (TSM) Based Automatic Fall Detection with Bounding Box Grounding.

Fall detection is one of the important tenets of remote geriatric care operations. Fall is one of the main causes of injury in old individuals leading to fractures, concussions, and different issues that might lead to prompt demise. In a world increasingly making the elderly live in isolation, accurate and real-time detection of falls is very important to remote caregivers to be able to provide timely medical assistance. Recent advancements in vision-based technologies have got promising results; however, these models are often trained on acted datasets and their appropriateness for application in the wild is not well established. In this paper, we propose a vision-based fall detection mechanism that improves the accuracy of in-the-wild complex events. The proposed system is built leveraging Temporal Shift Module (TSM) with a bounding box grounding (BBG) approach for accurate Region Of Interest (ROI) sequence generation when sudden deformation in the shape is observed. Compared to the general 3D CNN based approaches, the proposed model achieves better accuracy while maintaining the level of computational complexity at that of the 2D CNN models. The proposed approach demonstrates promising performance on both acted and in-the-wild datasets.

Use of lightweight FFT-based algorithms for remote measurements using DIC

Abrupt collapse events that result in casualties due to failure of load-bearing structures have been reported in recent years. Continuous remote monitoring of these structures, assessing the behavior under operational load, could provide a reliable prevention, as the developing damage manifests itself through a loss of stiffness, and therefore excessive deflections. Digital image correlation (DIC) algorithms based on fast Fourier transform (FFT) were implemented in a small computer unit Raspberry Pi, capable of remote operation in a low-energy demand mode. The unit is fully autonomous, capable of localizing QR code targets and extracting encoded information. This strategy allows us to instantly evaluate displacements of QR codes attached to any surface and send the data to a server. The software was developed in Python, allowing for two modes: the online mode for current data evaluation with information transfer via the MQTT protocol and the offline mode used for retrospective evaluation.

Optical fiber SPR biosensor with frequency multiplexing compensated laser heterodyne feedback for ultrasensitive detection of fluoroquinolones

The widespread usage and discharge of fluoroquinolones (FQs) have caused negative environmental consequences that can threaten human health. The development of ultrasensitive and simple devices for detection of various FQs is an important requirement. Here, we proposed a novel optical fiber surface plasmon resonance biosensor to achieve the ultrasensitive detection of FQs, in which the frequency-shifted light returned to the laser resonator and stimulated laser heterodyne feedback interferometry to amplify the intensity changes caused by the refractive index (RI) variations. In addition, we further presented a quasi-common path frequency multiplexing compensation method to compensate for the noise of the developed biosensor, resulting in a RI resolution of 1.06 × 10−6 RIU. Besides, the gold nanorods were used to generate localized surface plasmon resonance to further amplify the signal to achieve the ultrasensitive detection. A variety of FQs were detected with ultra-low detection limits, including enrofloxacin (0.61 ng/L), ciprofloxacin (0.54 ng/L), norfloxacin (0.31 ng/L), pefloxacin (0.32 ng/L), and sarafloxacin hydrochloride (0.97 ng/L). With the advantages of high sensitivity, compact size, and remote operation capability, the developed biosensor holds the promise of detecting other antibiotics with universality in hard-to-reach spaces, thus having the potential to demonstrate a promising approach to environmental monitoring.

Remote Operation of Instruments for Education and Research.

Remote Operation of Instruments for Education and Research.

Preliminary Experimental Quantification of Helium Leakages from Flanged Connections at HCPB TBS Operative Conditions

The HCPB TBS (Helium-Cooled Pebble Bed Test Blanket System) is one of the two European TBSs that will be installed and tested in the ITER reactor. The use of flanged connections in the Helium Coolant System and the Tritium Extraction System of the HCPB TBS would make the remote maintenance operations easier and faster. Therefore, investigating the helium leakage from flanges becomes a fundamental step toward the control of the tritium activity in the Port Cell, as the helium flow will contain a variable but not negligible amount of tritium. The first set of experiments on helium leakages from flanged connections is described in this paper. The experiments were performed in a HeFUS3 facility, an eight-shaped helium loop designed to work at HCPB-TBS-relevant conditions. The facility can provide a helium mass flow rate in the range of 0.27–1.4 kg/s and can reach a pressure as high as 80 bar and a temperature up to 530 °C. Two types of gaskets were tested in this campaign: a spiral-wound gasket and an oval ring joint. The gasket/flange assemblies are described in detail in this paper, together with the test section that hosts them and the performed commissioning tests. The tests were carried out at 500 °C and 80 bar. In these conditions, the leak rate from the flange with the oval ring joint resulted in being, on average, 1.42·10−6 mbar∙L/s, while the leak rate from the flange with the spiral-wound gasket resulted in being, on average, 3.73·10−3 mbar∙L/s.

A New Remote Hyperspectral Imaging System Embedded on an Unmanned Aquatic Drone for the Detection and Identification of Floating Plastic Litter Using Machine Learning

This paper presents a new Remote Hyperspectral Imaging System (RHIS) embedded on an Unmanned Aquatic Drone (UAD) for plastic detection and identification in coastal and freshwater environments. This original system, namely the Remotely Operated Vehicle of the University of Littoral Côte d’Opale (ROV-ULCO), works in a near-field of view, where the distance between the hyperspectral camera and the water surface is about 45 cm. In this paper, the new ROV-ULCO system with all its components is firstly presented. Then, a hyperspectral image database of plastic litter acquired with this system is described. This database contains hyperspectral data cubes of different plastic types and polymers corresponding to the most-common plastic litter items found in aquatic environments. An in situ spectral analysis was conducted from this benchmark database to characterize the hyperspectral reflectance of these items in order to identify the absorption feature wavelengths for each type of plastic. Finally, the ability of our original system RHIS to automatically recognize different types of plastic litter was assessed by applying different supervised machine learning methods on a set of representative image patches of marine litter. The obtained results highlighted the plastic litter classification capability with an overall accuracy close to 90%. This paper showed that the newly presented RHIS coupled with the UAD is a promising approach to identify plastic waste in aquatic environments.

Impacts of COVID-19 on Drug Treatment Court Operations: Lessons Learned Through Normalization Process Theory

ABSTRACT This qualitative study investigates the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on drug treatment courts through the lens of court team members. We conducted semi-structured interviews, guided by Normalization Process Theory, to learn how transitioning to remote operations impacted courts, clients, and practices. Team members gave mixed reviews of the utilization of remote technology for drug treatment court processes, citing the advantages of increased flexibility and accessibility alongside concerns about client accountability. Additionally, there was disagreement on whether remote technology promoted or hindered communication between the clients and the judge. Interviewees also endorsed the idea of keeping the remote option post-pandemic for specific categories of clients.

Digital Collaborations Set To Begin Unlocking Production

_ In the brave new world of oil and gas production, digital alliances are emerging as a powerful tool for minimizing costs and maximizing efficiencies while ensuring safe and reliable operations. In the fast-paced world of business and innovation, an old proverb often rings true: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Innovative industry collaborations are making a difference, with traditional oil and gas service firms like Baker Hughes and SLB forming strategic partnerships with cutting-edge digital technology providers, leveraging the expertise of both to advance abilities and operations. By leveraging technology such as artificial intelligence, automation, and remote operations, the oil and gas industry can monitor valuable resources with increased granularity and deploy its talented teams to concentrate on mission-critical endeavors, driving growth and maximizing their potential for success. By harnessing the power of digital, oil and gas companies can now access real-time data, enabling them to make more informed decisions and streamline processes. On the flip side, the digital technology companies involved in these partnerships gain valuable insights and domain knowledge from their energy counterparts, leading to tailored solutions to meet the specific needs of the energy sector and potentially opening new market opportunities. Need for Value The driving force behind these collaborations is the shift from a grow-at-all-costs mentality to one focused on value per barrel, according to Nikhil Patel, partner at McKinsey & Company. “These collaborations reflect a broader need for value from digital,” said Patel. “We’ve had multiple rounds of market price challenges and multiple rounds of oil and gas companies pulling the usual levers to bring costs down and production up. Those cannot be pulled much further. Digital remains one of the few means to improve performance meaningfully.” The challenge, Patel said, is finding a way to thrive and succeed at the goal of increasing the value per barrel of production. “Digital is central to that,” he said. “Digital transformation isn’t new to the industry, which has invested billions of dollars into digital. The results, however, have been ambiguous to date.” Patel said there’s a question about what is holding the oil and gas industry back from delivering on the full promise of digital. “While everyone believes in its potential, many companies, after a decade of trying to make it work, are stepping back and asking, ‘What will it take?’”, he said, adding that McKinsey has found in its research on the degree of success and failure that less than 30% of digital transformations succeed. The answer can be found at the heart of those collaborative partnerships that understand and respect the knowledge and skills of each partner. “Oil and gas companies are really good at producing barrels in a capital- and risk-heavy environment, but struggle to keep up with digital change,” he said. “The tech companies are setting the pace of digital change but aren’t built to drive change into the oil patch. They’ve recognized that they can do something special by combining their strengths and offsetting their gaps.”

Design of a Multi-DOF Structure Based on Dynamic Analysis and Autonomous Operation Algorithm

Aiming at the problem of sandy soil collection, a multi-DOF mechanical structure is improved. Manipulator is developed by optimizing the integral middle boom to telescopic arm, and an automatic quick coupler is designed which is between the manipulator and the operating unit. The multi-DOF structure is analyzed based on dynamic theory, and the results of the limited operation range and the cylinder driving force are obtained, which could provide a theoretical basis for the structural design and the cylinder selection. An autonomous operation algorithm for sandy soil collection is proposed. The angle discretization method is adopted to improve collection efficiency. The model prototype is established to carry out the experimental verification. Through the test, the device in remote operation mode shows great performance in working conditions, and the autonomous operation algorithm can reduce the working intensity and risk of the operator and improve the efficiency of sandy soil operation.

The cybersecurity aspect of remote tower optical systems

In the aviation domain, the past decade has seen the rise of emergent and often disruptive technologies, including automation, digital transformation, and data analytics. The solutions derived from these technologies, like unmanned aircraft or remote tower operations, on one hand were created in order to generate some sort of a benefit, but on the other hand they led us to a previously uncharted territory, called cybersecurity vulnerabilities. If these vulnerabilities are exploited, they may lead to a massive damage to the Aviation Ecosystem that can contribute to catastrophic failures. With this in mind, protection to the remote tower optical systems is of paramount importance. Therefore, this study focuses on providing a framework for cybersecurity assessments of remote tower optical systems.

E-Learning in Kuwait: Students’ Perspective

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has wreaked havoc on societies around the world and continues to do so and produced cataclysmic socio-economic challenges. This virus compelled countries to enact restrictive policies in order to combat, defend, and prevent against the spread of infection. In most nations, including Kuwait, a complete lockdown was imposed, with necessary measures taken to limit social gatherings, wear protective masks, and encourage social distancing. Businesses, organizations, and institutions have been forced to discover new avenues to survive and thrive by converting to remote operation using digital technology. Similarly, the epidemic has forced educational institutions to abandon conventional face-to-face instruction in favor of online digital learning. The goal of this study is to assess the online learning process in Kuwait from the perspective of students. In this regard, a survey questionnaire was designed and distributed to students throughout Kuwait; 830 students responded, with just 500 students with complete answers. In light of the dangerous and widespread of the harmful virus, analysis found that students consent to online learning. However, most prefer face-to-face instruction in a classroom setting.

Investigation of subsea oil pipeline rupture

In the current work, a full-bore rupture in the form of a fast-running ductile fracture has occurred at an 18-inch offshore pipeline in the subsea portion. The pipeline was constructed from longitudinal seam welded pipe conforming to API 5L Grade X42. A subsea survey using the remote operation vehicle showed a pipeline rupture at a depth of 2756 in. from the sea surface. Shiny scratch marks on the outer surface of the pipeline at the rupture location were observed as well. The visual examination revealed that the crack originated at a sharp weld toe angle (149°) at the outer surface. The crack originated in the HAZ region and propagated along the longitudinal seam weld. The rupture origin was a fatigue pre-crack of 0.078-inch depth and 6.7-inch length that propagated at a sharp weld toe angle during the pipeline service life. The stress analysis revealed that the burst was not due to the operation pressure, but rather due to stresses introduced by a sharp tool dragging over the bare pipeline surface. The tool introduced huge external stresses to the pipeline. Both of the internal pressure and the external stresses contributed to the crack propagation during the rupture.

Исследование алгоритмов работы дистанционной защиты в системах распределенной генерации

Current trends in the development of power supply systems for industrial facilities when applying the principles of distributed generation consist in the implementation of power supply from several power sources of different types and characteristics (photovoltaic cells, wind power plants, microturbine plants, diesel power plants), the maximum approximation of power sources to electrical loads, the use of electricity storage. The availability of such installations near consumers reduces the quantitative energy consumption by reducing the technical losses of the ge¬nerated energy and reducing dependence on fossil fuels. However, with these advantages, distri¬buted generation has created technical problems, one of which is the complication of relay protection systems due to the possibility of powering the damage point from different sides. This circumstance requires the development of new algorithms and protection schemes to ensure selectivity and to increase the sensitivity of relay protection. The purpose of the study is to analyze the algorithms of remote protection in distributed generation systems. The methods used comprise an integrated approach, including scientific analysis, processing and analysis of the results of theoretical and experimental studies in the field of relay protection of electrical complexes in networks with distributed generation. The results obtained present the analysis of various algorithms for the implementation of protection, which were implemented as proposals for distribution networks. The system of remote protection in networks containing distributed generation systems is presented, and the algorithms of operation are compared to increase the sensitivity of remote protection devices to the occurrence of various emergency modes: single-phase and three-phase short circuits. Several algorithms for increasing the sensitivity of remote protection for distribution networks in the presence of several power sources are considered. The comparison of these algorithms according to the criteria of the implementation cost, the accuracy of implementation, the number of necessary input data is also carried out. Practical significance of the research the research results can be used to take into account the effect of changes in the parameters of protected connections under conditions of electrical complexes operation in a network with distributed ge¬neration on the effectiveness of remote protection. They make it possible to increase the sensitivity and selectivity of the remote protection operation in case of emergency situations.