Sensor-based data are becoming increasingly widespread in social, behavioral and organizational sciences. Far from providing a neutral window on 'reality', sensor-based big-data are highly complex, constructed data sources. Nevertheless, a more systematic approach to the validation of sensors as a method of data collection is lacking, as their use and conceptualization have been spread out across different strands of social-, behavioral- and computer science literature. Further debunking the myth of raw data, the present article argues that, in order to (...) validate sensor-based data, researchers need to take into account the mutual interdependence between types of sensors available on the market, the conceptual (construct) choices made in the research process, and the contextual cues. Sensor-based data in research are usually combined with additional quantitative and qualitative data sources. However, the incompatibility between the highly granular nature of sensor data and the static, a-temporal character of traditional quantitative and qualitative data has not been sufficiently emphasized as a key limiting factor of sensor-based research. It is likely that the failure to consider the basic quality criteria of social science measurement indicators more explicitly may lead to the production of insignificant results, despite the availability of high volume and high-resolution data. The paper concludes with recommendations for designing and conducting mixed methods studies using sensors. (shrink)

This editorial examines how sensing practices are transforming through proliferating sensor technologies and altered sensing relations. Rather than engage with sensing as a project of the human mind or body as usually delineated within sensory classifications, this overview of sensors and sensing practices documents how sensing entities are emerging that are composed of shifting ensembles of multiple humans and more-than-humans, environments and technologies, politics and practices. By decoupling sensing from its exclusive human orientation, the editorial and collection demonstrate how (...) reworked approaches to sensing make it possible to tune in to how involvement with environmental problems unfolds and endures. The collection asks how sensing practices might be crafted that attend to the distributed and accumulative inequalities of environmental problems and to speculate toward differential collectives for addressing environmental crisis and change. (shrink)

A mass balance based model has been derived to represent the dynamical behavior of the ecosystem contained in an anaerobic digester. The model considers two bacterial populations: acidogenic and methanogenic bacteria. It forms the basis for the design of a software sensor considering both a model of the biological system and on-line gaseous measurements. The software sensor computes the concentration of inorganic carbon and volatile fatty acids (VFA) in the digester. Another software sensor is dedicated to the estimation of the (...) bacterial biomasses. The predictions of the software sensors for a real experiment are very close to the actual off-line measurements. The software sensors monitor the accumulation of VFA and thus very early detect a destabilization of the digester due to overloading. The presented methodology demonstrates the usefulness of advanced monitoring techniques for an improved understanding of the internal working of a biological system. (shrink)

Computational intelligence techniques are being investigated as an extension of the traditional fault diagnosis methods. This article presents, for the first time, a scheme for fault detection and isolation via artificial neural networks and fuzzy logic. It deals with the sensor fault of a three-link selective compliance assembly robot arm robot. A second scheme is proposed for fault detection and accommodation via analytical redundancy, and it deals with the sensor fault of a three-link SCARA robot. These proposed FDI approaches are (...) implemented on Matlab/simulink software and tested under several types of faults. The results show the importance of this process. Then, the sensor faults are detected and isolated successfully. Also, the actuator faults are detected and a fault tolerance strategy is used for reconfigurable control using a sliding-mode observer. (shrink)

Visions of an interconnected future are on the rise that foresee technologies moving toward ubiquitous "everywhere" computing and the rise of the "Internet of Things." This article examines emerging trends in informational connectivity that indicates shifts toward upcoming scenarios of re-imagined geographies and spatial landscapes that are sensored and networked. I examine how the relationships, processes, and flows between people, physical objects, and the environment will make implicit information explicit and engagement between the physical and the digital more commonplace. These (...) are the scenarios presented by emerging applications of location-specific, informationally augmented objects: a real-time sensored future. (shrink)

Based on an ethnographic study in a Danish residential care center, this article shows how the interplay of a sensor-floor technology and currently influential values of person-centeredness, privacy, and security in care transforms care work and care interactions between residents and care workers. Based on an understanding of care as realized in a heterogeneous collective of human and nonhuman actors, this article illustrates how new modes of monitoring and interpreting residents’ care needs at a distance arise, and how a new (...) organization of work focusing on quick and responsive care is established. These new care practices lead to conflicts between the values of privacy and security, to ambivalent experiences among care workers of simultaneously increased security and insecurity in work, and, paradoxically, also often to a decentering rather than person-centering of care. Instead of accommodating simultaneous compliance to the values of privacy, security, and person-centeredness, the use of the sensor-floors makes the tensions between these values continuously and loudly present in daily care practices. (shrink)

Automatized scalable healthcare support solutions allow real-time 24/7 health monitoring of patients, prioritizing medical treatment according to health conditions, reducing medical appointments in clinics and hospitals, and enabling easy exchange of information among healthcare professionals. With recent health safety guidelines due to the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting the elderly has become imperative. However, state-of-the-art health wearable device platforms present limitations in hardware, parameter estimation algorithms, and software architecture. This paper proposes a complete framework for health systems composed of multi-sensor wearable health (...) devices, high-resolution parameter estimation, and real-time monitoring applications. The framework is appropriate for real-time monitoring of elderly patients' health without physical contact with healthcare professionals, maintaining safety standards. The hardware includes sensors for monitoring steps, pulse oximetry, heart rate, and temperature using low-power wireless communication. In terms of parameter estimation, the embedded circuit uses high-resolution signal processing algorithms that result in an improved measure of the HR. The proposed high-resolution signal processing-based approach outperforms state-of-the-art HR estimation measurements using the photoplethysmography sensor. (shrink)

A suite of technological advances based on nanotechnology has received substantial attention for its potential to affect privacy. Reports of the National Nanotechnology Initiative have recognized that the societal implications of nanotechnology will include better surveillance and information-gathering technologies. A variety of academic and popular publications have explained the potential effects of nanotechnology on privacy.The ways in which nanotechnology might affect privacy are varied. It may make current information technology better, make old information-gathering techniques more reliable, or expand information-gathering into (...) novel areas. My focus in this paper is on the privacy effects of one potential application of nanotechnology: sensors capable of detecting weapons agents or drugs—"nanosensors" or "sensors" for short. Nanotechnology may make possible small, accurate, and easy-to-use sensors to detect a variety of substances, including Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Explosive agents , as well as drugs. Analyzing the potential effects on privacy of sensors can provide important insights into the nature and extent of privacy rights. (shrink)

We describe a prototype ontology-driven information system (ODIS) that exploits what we call Portion of Reality (POR) representations. The system takes both sensor data and natural language text as inputs and composes on this basis logically structured POR assertions. The goal of our prototype is to represent both natural language and sensor data within a single framework that is able to support both axiomatic reasoning and computation. In addition, the framework should be capable of discovering and representing new kinds of (...) situations and thematic roles, (e.g., roles such as agent, patient and instrument), based on new compositions of existing representations. We applied our prototype in an intelligence analysis use case to test the hypothesis that a framework of this sort can produce usefully structured information from combined natural language and sensor data inputs. We further tested our hypothesis by adding an enhanced US Air Force ontology framework to our ODIS in order to (1) process a collection of sensor data, intel reports, and mission plans; (2) build composite POR representations from these data; and (3) machine analyze the fused results to infer mission threats. (shrink)

Aiming at the shortcomings of traditional moving target detection methods in complex scenes such as low detection accuracy and high complexity, and not considering the overall structure information of the video frame image, this paper proposes a moving-target detection based on sensor network. First, a low-power motion detection wireless sensor network node is designed to obtain motion detection information in real time. Secondly, the background of the video scene is quickly extracted by the time domain averaging method, and the video (...) sequence and the background image are channel-merged to construct a deep full convolutional network model. Finally, the network model is used to learn the deep features of the video scene and output the pixel-level classification results to achieve moving target detection. This method not only can adapt to complex video scenes of different sizes but also has a simple background extraction method, which effectively improves the detection speed. (shrink)

This article presents a formal theory of robot perception as a form of abduction. The theory pins down the process whereby low‐level sensor data is transformed into a symbolic representation of the external world, drawing together aspects such as incompleteness, top‐down information flow, active perception, attention, and sensor fusion in a unifying framework. In addition, a number of themes are identified that are common to both the engineer concerned with developing a rigorous theory of perception, such as the one on (...) offer here, and the philosopher of mind who is exercised by questions relating to mental representation and intentionality. (shrink)

Information technology is widely used to fulfill societal goals such as safety and security. These application areas put ever changing demands on the functionality of the technology. Designing technological appliances to be reconfigurable, thereby keeping them open to functionalities yet to be determined, will possibly allow the technology to fulfill these changing demands in an efficient way. In this paper we present a first exploration of potential societal and moral issues of reconfigurable sensors developed for application in the safety (...) and security domain, in the context of a large scale R&D-project in the Netherlands. We discuss the subtle distinction between the relevant notions of reconfigurability, function creep, and unrestricted or unforeseen technological affordances. We argue that the feature of reconfigurability makes context of use the central issue in the assessment of the societal and moral impact of the technology. It follows that the design of good policies for new application contexts has to be central in a value sensitive design approach to reconfigurable technology. (shrink)

Some cognitive processes appear to have “phenomenal” properties that are directly revealed to the subject and not determined by physical properties. I suggest that the source of this appearance is the method by which our brain processes sensory information. The appearance is an illusion. Nonetheless, we are not mistaken when we judge that people sometimes fee lpain.

Timers and sensors are common devices that make our daily life safer, more convenient, and more efficient. In a cellular context, they arguably play an even more crucial role as they ensure the survival of cells in the presence of various extrinsic and intrinsic stresses. Biological timers and sensors generate distinct signaling profiles, enabling them to produce different types of cellular responses. Recent data suggest that they can work together to guarantee correct timing and responsiveness. By exploring examples (...) of cellular stress signaling from mitosis, DNA damage, and hypoxia, the authors discuss the common architecture of timer‐sensor integration, and how its added features contribute to the generation of desired signaling profiles when dealing with stresses of variable duration and strength. The authors propose timer‐sensor integration as a widespread mechanism with profound biological implications and therapeutic potential. -/- . (shrink)

"A arte que servisse para enaltecer a grandeza dos senhores e mostrar a baixeza dos escravos estava aí dentro dos padrões da “veritas aestheticologica”. Isso pode ser comprovado em Aristófanes e Plauto, como em Homero e Platão. O cristianismo contrapôs a tese de que todos os humanos teriam alma, mas soube conviver com a escravidão durante séculos, inclusive sacramentando-a como vontade divina (baseando na suposta maldição de Noé). Baudelaire fez, porém, no poema sobre “A raça de Caim”, a inversão do (...) discurso bíblico. Quando se fala sobre a escravidão antiga, parece que o problema não nos afeta: nosso “correto” não vê o assalariado, o desempregado e quem vive de bicos como escravos modernos, mais baratos que os antigos. Não nos preocupamos com o que incomoda. [...]. (shrink)

Background: Smart sensors have been developed as diagnostic tools for rehabilitation to cover an increasing number of geriatric patients. They promise to enable an objective assessment of complex movement patterns. -/- Objective: This research aimed to identify and analyze the conflicting ethical values associated with smart sensors in geriatric rehabilitation and provide ethical guidance on the best use of smart sensors to all stakeholders, including technology developers, health professionals, patients, and health authorities. -/- Methods: On the basis (...) of a systematic literature search of the scientific databases PubMed and ScienceDirect, we conducted a qualitative document analysis to identify evidence-based practical implications of ethical relevance. We included 33 articles in the analysis. The practical implications were extracted inductively. Finally, we carried out an ethical analysis based on the 4 principles of biomedical ethics: autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice. The results are reported in categories based on these 4 principles. -/- Results: We identified 8 conflicting aims for using smart sensors. Gains in autonomy come at the cost of patient privacy. Smart sensors at home increase the independence of patients but may reduce social interactions. Independent measurements performed by patients may result in lower diagnostic accuracy. Although smart sensors could provide cost-effective and high-quality diagnostics for most patients, minorities could end up with suboptimal treatment owing to their underrepresentation in training data and studies. This could lead to algorithmic biases that would not be recognized by medical professionals when treating patients. -/- Conclusions: The application of smart sensors has the potential to improve the rehabilitation of geriatric patients in several ways. It is important that patients do not have to choose between autonomy and privacy and are well informed about the insights that can be gained from the data. Smart sensors should support and not replace interactions with medical professionals. Patients and medical professionals should be educated about the correct application and the limitations of smart sensors. Smart sensors should include an adequate representation of minorities in their training data and should be covered by health insurance to guarantee fair access. (shrink)

Promyelocytic leukaemia nuclear bodies (PML NBs) are generally present in all mammalian cells, and their integrity correlates with normal differentiation of promyelocytes. Mice that lack PML NBs have impaired immune function, exhibit chromosome instability and are sensitive to carcinogens. Although their direct role in nuclear activity is unclear, PML NBs are implicated in the regulation of transcription, apoptosis, tumour suppression and the anti‐viral response. An emerging view is that they represent sites where multi‐subunit complexes form and where post‐translational modification of (...) regulatory factors, such as p53, occurs in response to cellular stress. Following DNA damage, several repair factors transit through PML NBs in a temporally regulated manner implicating these bodies in DNA repair. We propose that PML NBs are dynamic sensors of cellular stress, which rapidly disassemble following DNA damage into large supramolecular complexes, dispersing associated repair factors to sites of damage. The dramatically increased total surface area available would enhance interactions between PML‐associated factors regulating DNA repair and apoptosis. BioEssays 26:963–977, 2004. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

Smart cities build on the idea of collecting data about the city in order for city administration to be operated more efficiently. Within a research project gathering an interdisciplinary team of researchers – engineers, designers, gender scholars and human geographers – we have been working together using participatory design approaches to explore how paying attention to the diversity of human needs may contribute to making urban spaces comfortable and safe for more people. The project team has deployed sensors collecting (...) data on air quality, sound and mobility in a smart city testbed in Norrköping, Sweden. While these sensors are meant to capture an accurate ‘map’ of the street and what is going on along it, our interdisciplinary conversations around the sensors have revealed the heterogeneity both of smart city planning and spatial formulations of the city. The discussions have given rise to questions regarding the work that goes into constructing the sensor box itself, as well as the work of deploying it, and how these influence the ‘map’ that the sensors produce. In this paper, we draw on Lefebvre to explore how the sensors themselves produce smart spaces. We analyze how the box depends on perceived space to function (e.g. requiring electricity), and simultaneously it produces conceptualizations of space that are influenced by the materiality of the box itself (e.g. sensors being affected by heat and noise). Further, we explore how the (in)visibility of sensor technology influences lived space. (shrink)

In this study, we propose the Ankle-Worn Sensor Sleeve to help people maintain their health. Furthermore, our approach uses this sensor sleeve to improve walking motivation by making the walking motion more sensible. In this research, we pursue the design of a wearable device that users can wear as a “shoe accessory,” with the aim of promoting people’s walking motivation. This device is ankle-worn and generates electricity using the physical flexion and extension of the ankle, detects and acquires the amount (...) of electricity generated, and uses the resulting power to produce sound and light feedback while walking. The Sleeve is designed to support health problems, such as locomotive syndrome and dementia, which are caused by physical inactivity. This article presents the results of a questionnaire survey conducted on 172 people who experienced or observed the device during exhibitions. The results reveal that this device increased people’s interest and motivation to walk, including those who did not like to walk. (shrink)

Intelligent sensors should be seamlessly, securely, and trustworthy interconnected to enable automated high-level smart applications. Semantic metadata can provide contextual information to support the accessibility of these features, making it easier for machines and humans to process the sensory data and achieve interoperability. The unique overview of sensor ontologies according to the semantic needs of the layers of IoT solutions can serve a guideline of engineers and researchers interested in the development of intelligent sensor-based solutions. The explored trends show (...) that ontologies will play an even more essential role in interlinked IoT systems as interoperability and the generation of controlled linkable data sources should be based on semantically enriched sensory data. (shrink)

This article deals with detection and accommodation of sensor faults in longitudinal dynamics of an F8 aircraft model. Both the detection of the fault and reconfiguration of the failed sensor are done with the help of neural network-based models. Detection of a sensor fault is done with the help of knowledge-based neural network fault detection. Apart from KBNNFD, another neural network model is developed in this article for the reconfiguration of the failed sensor. A model-based approach of the neural network (...) is developed, which uses the radial basis function of the neural network. MBNN successfully does the task of providing analytical redundancy for the aircraft sensor. In this work, both detection and reconfiguration of a fault is done using neural networks. Hence, the control system becomes robust for handling sensor failures near steady state and reconfiguration is also faster. A generalized regression neural network, which is a type of radial basis network, is used for MBNN, which gives very efficient results for function approximation. An F8 aircraft model and C-Star controller, which improves its handling quality, are used for validation of the method involved. Models of F8 aircraft, C-Star controller, KBNNFD, and MBNN were developed using MATLAB/simulink. Successful implementation and simulation results are shown and discussed using Simulink. (shrink)

Dynamic vision sensor is a kind of bioinspired sensor. It has the characteristics of fast response, large dynamic range, and asynchronous output event stream. These characteristics make it have advantages that traditional image sensors do not have in the field of tracking. The output form of the dynamic vision sensor is asynchronous event stream, and the object information needs to be provided by the relevant event cluster. This article proposes a method based on the event correlation index to obtain (...) the object’s position, contour, and other information and is compatible with traditional tracking methods. Experiments show that this method can obtain the position information of the moving object and its continuous motion trajectory and analyze the influence of the parameters on the tracking effect. This method will have broad application prospects in security, transportation, etc. (shrink)

The biological membranes of eukaryotic cells harbor sensitive surveillance systems to establish, sense, and maintain characteristic physicochemical properties that ultimately define organelle identity. They are fundamentally important for membrane homeostasis and play active roles in cellular signaling, protein sorting, and the formation of vesicular carriers. Here, we compare the molecular mechanisms of Mga2 and Ire1, two sensors involved in the regulation of fatty acid desaturation and the response to unfolded proteins and lipid bilayer stress in order to identify their (...) commonalities and specializations. We will speculate on the cellular significance of membrane property sensors in other organelles and discuss their putative mechanisms. Based on these findings, we propose membrane property sensors as an emerging class of proteins with wide implications for organelle communication and function. (shrink)

Path selection is one of the key technologies of wireless sensor network. A reasonable choice of coverage path can improve the service quality of WSN and extend the life cycle of WSN. Biogeography-based optimization is widely used in the field of cluster intelligent optimization because its search method has a better incentive mechanism for population evolution. In this paper, the move-in and move-out operation and mutation operation of the BBO algorithm enable WSN to find an efficient routing path. In this (...) paper, simulation experiments are carried out in two scenarios of regular deployment and random deployment of WSN nodes. The experimental results show that the quality of the WSN coverage path solution optimized by the BBO algorithm in the two scenarios is better than that of the particle swarm algorithm and genetic algorithm. (shrink)

New technologies such as smart sensors improve rehabilitation processes and thereby increase older adults’ capabilities to participate in social life, leading to direct physical and mental health benefits. Wearable smart sensors for home use have the additional advantage of monitoring day-to-day activities and thereby identifying rehabilitation progress and needs. However, identifying and selecting rehabilitation priorities is ethically challenging because physicians, therapists, and caregivers may impose their own personal values leading to paternalism. Therefore, we develop a discussion template consisting (...) of a series of adaptable questions for the patient–physician encounter based on the capability approach. The goal is to improve geriatric rehabilitation and thereby increase participation in social life and well-being. To achieve this goal, we first analyzed what is considered important for participation on basis of the capability approach, human rights, and ethics of care. Second, we conducted an ethical analysis of each of the four identified dimensions of participation: political, economic, socio-cultural, and care. To improve compliance with rehabilitation measures, health professionals must align rehabilitation measures in an open dialogue with the patient’s aspiration for participation in each dimension. A discussion template based on the capability approach allows for a proactive approach in patient information and stimulates a critical assessment of treatment alternatives while reducing the risk of imposing personal values. (shrink)

Wearable sensors are an integral part of the new telemedicine concept supporting the idea that Information Technologies will improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare. The use of sensors in diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of patients not only potentially changes medical practice but also one’s relationship with one’s body and mind, as well as the role and responsibilities of patients and healthcare professionals. In this paper, we focus on knowledge assessment of the online communities of Fitbit and the (...) Quantified Self movement. Through their online forums, we investigate how users’ knowledge claims, shared experiences and imaginations about wearable sensors interrogate or confirm the narratives through which they are introduced to the publics. Citizen initiatives like the Quantified Self movement claim the right to ‘own’ the sensor generated data. But how these data can be used through traditional healthcare systems is an open question. More importantly, wearable sensors trigger a social function that is transformative of the current idea of care and healthcare, focused on sharing, socialising and collectively reflecting about individual problems. Whether this is aligned with current policy making about healthcare, whose central narrative is focused on efficiency and productivity, is to be seen. (shrink)

Para las empresas recolectoras de residuos sólidos es indispensable controlar los factores de riesgos asociados a la calidad del aire del entorno laboral de sus empleados con el objetivo de minimizar las afecciones de salud de sus trabajadores. El propósito del estudio es desarrollar un prototipo de un sensor inalámbrico de medición de calidad de aire. Este instrumento de medición será implementado en ambientes laborales para trabajadores de recolección de residuos sólidos. A partir del estudio se concluye que para empresas (...) de este sector es indispensable el control de factores de riesgos asociados a la exposición a gases y vapores. (shrink)

This book is a collection of eight in-depth and detailed research papers authored by Dr. Raman K Attri between 1996 to 2005. The book presents early-career scientific work by the author as a scientist at a research organization. The book provides the conceptual background and key electronics and mechanical design principles used in designing sensors and instrumentation systems to measure snow hydrological parameters. The systems discussed in this book can be used to measure snow depth, layer temperature, temperature distribution (...) profile, surface porosity, etc. The snow parameters measured from instruments and sensors discussed in this book are integrated into larger systems and are used in computer-driven models for snow avalanche predictions. The book presents the design challenges and design methods from electronics and instrumentation design point of view. While the book provides essential understanding of analog electronics design and associated mechanical design for snow hydrological sensors, the book also presents the background theoretical and mathematical models from snow hydrology physics that governs this electronics design. (shrink)

SUR2, similar to SUR1, is a regulatory subunit of the ATP‐sensitive potassium channel (KATP), which plays a key role in numerous important physiological processes and is implicated in various diseases. Recent structural studies have revealed that, like SUR1, SUR2 can undergo ligand‐dependent dynamic conformational changes, transitioning between an inhibitory inward‐facing conformation and an activating occluded conformation. In addition, SUR2 possesses a unique inhibitory Regulatory helix (R helix) that is absent in SUR1. The binding of the activating Mg‐ADP to NBD2 of (...) SUR2 competes with the inhibitory Mg‐ATP, thereby promoting the release of the R helix and initiating the activation process. Moreover, the signal generated by Mg‐ADP binding to NBD2 might be directly transmitted to the TMD of SUR2, prior to NBD dimerization. Furthermore, the C‐terminal 42 residues (C42) of SUR2 might allosterically regulate the kinetics of Mg‐nucleotide binding on NBD2. These distinctive properties render SUR2 intricate sensors for intracellular Mg‐nucleotides. (shrink)

The YAP/TAZ family of transcriptional co‐activators drives cell proliferation in epithelial tissues and cancers. Yet, how YAP and TAZ are physiologically regulated remains unclear. Here we review recent reports that YAP and TAZ act primarily as sensors of epithelial cell polarity, being inhibited when cells differentiate an apical membrane domain, and being activated when cells contact the extracellular matrix via their basal membrane domain. Apical signalling occurs via the canonical Crumbs/CRB‐Hippo/MST‐Warts/LATS kinase cascade to phosphorylate and inhibit YAP/TAZ. Basal signalling (...) occurs via Integrins and Src family kinases to phosphorylate and activate YAP/TAZ. Thus, YAP/TAZ is localised to the nucleus in basal stem/progenitor cells and cytoplasm in differentiated squamous cells or columnar cells. In addition, other signals such as mechanical forces, tissue damage and possibly receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) can influence MST‐LATS or Src family kinase activity to modulate YAP/TAZ activity. (shrink)

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explain the sense of choice in our contemporary world.Design/methodology/approachTaking cue from the research of the Institute of Neuroinformatics of Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, and University of Zürich, this paper is meant to highlight that the contemporary individual is gradually abandoning his own freedom of choice: the principle of moral responsibility, and – consequently – sign of humanity.FindingsIf today the smartphone is the most used tool, in the future we will soon benefit from (...) a chip under skin which could delegate our choices. It is a piece of technology that is not only inspired by biology to create robots, but could also change our life.Originality/valueFrom the massive use of the cell phone to the robots which apparently ‘‘feel’’ and show emotions like humans do. From the wearable exoskeleton to the prototype reproducing the artificial sense of touch, technological progress explodes to the extent of embodying itself in our nakedness. (shrink)

Localization Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) represent a research topic with increasing interest due to their numerous applications. However, the viability of these systems is compromised by the attained localization uncertainties once implemented, since the network performance is highly dependent on the sensors location. The Node Location Problem (NLP) aims to obtain the optimal distribution of sensors for a particular environment, a problem already categorized as NP-Hard. Furthermore, localization WSN usually perform a sensor selection for determining which nodes are (...) to be utilized for maximizing the achieved accuracy. This problem, defined as the Sensor Selection Problem (SSP), has also been categorized as NP-Hard. While different metaheuristics have been proposed for attaining a near optimal solution in both problems, no approach has considered the two problems simultaneously, thus resulting in suboptimal solutions since the SSP is biased by the actual node distribution once deployed. In this paper, a combined approach of both problems simultaneously is proposed, thus considering the SSP within the NLP. Furthermore, a novel metaheuristic combining the Black Widow Optimization (BWO) algorithm and the Variable Neighbourhood Descent Chains (VND-Chains) local search, denominated as BWO-VND-Chains, is particularly devised for the first time in the author’s best knowledge for the NLP, resulting in a more efficient and robust optimization technique. Finally, a comparison of different metaheuristic algorithms is proposed over an actual urban scenario, considering different sensor selection criteria in order to attain the best methodology and selection technique. Results show that the newly devised algorithm with the SSP criteria optimization achieves mean localization uncertainties up to 19.66 % lower than traditional methodologies. (shrink)

The article discusses the relevance of sensor-technologies as media. Beyond technical affordances sensors act as agents of implementing and activating a more-than-human sensorium within encompassing technoecologies of sensation. Outlining the onto-epistemological implications of being ‘in touch with’ sensor-media, the contribution raises questions of what it means to be included in an infrastructure of sensorial interfaces - not only of tech-assisted human-to-human or human-to-machine communication, but of unmanageable processes of machine-to-machine exchange. Delineating sensors as media necessitates reflections on the (...) temporal relations that define the ‘contemporary condition’ of intensified global computation, technological interconnectedness and the ontogenesis of sensor-media milieus, their respective temporalities and concomitant aesthetics of experienced time. (shrink)

Adaptive optics are techniques used for processing the spatial resolution of astronomical images taken from large ground-based telescopes. In this work, computational results are presented for a modified curvature sensor, the tomographic pupil image wavefront sensor, which measures the turbulence of the atmosphere, expressed in terms of an expansion over Zernike polynomials. Convolutional neural networks are presented as an alternative to the TPI-WFS reconstruction. This technique is a machine learning model of the family of artificial neural networks, which are widely (...) known for its performance as modeling and prediction technique in complex systems. Results obtained from the reconstruction of the networks are compared with the TPI-WFS reconstruction by estimating errors and optical measurements. The reconstructed wavefronts from both techniques are compared for wavefronts of 153 Zernike modes. For this case, a detailed comparison and grid search to find the most suitable neural network is performed, searching between multi-layer perceptron, CNN and recurrent networks topologies. In general, the best network was a CNN trained for TPI-WFS reconstruction, achieving better performance than the reconstruction software from TPI-WFS in most of the turbulent profiles, but the most significant improvements were found for higher turbulent profiles that have the lowest r0 values. (shrink)