2024
Autores
Carneiro, GA; Santos, J; Sousa, JJ; Cunha, A; Pádua, L;
Publicação
DRONES
Abstract
Precision agriculture (PA) has advanced agricultural practices, offering new opportunities for crop management and yield optimization. The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in PA enables high-resolution data acquisition, which has been adopted across different agricultural sectors. However, its application for decision support in chestnut plantations remains under-represented. This study presents the initial development of a methodology for segmenting chestnut burrs from UAV-based imagery to estimate its productivity in point cloud data. Deep learning (DL) architectures, including U-Net, LinkNet, and PSPNet, were employed for chestnut burr segmentation in UAV images captured at a 30 m flight height, with YOLOv8m trained for comparison. Two datasets were used for training and to evaluate the models: one newly introduced in this study and an existing dataset. U-Net demonstrated the best performance, achieving an F1-score of 0.56 and a counting accuracy of 0.71 on the proposed dataset, using a combination of both datasets during training. The primary challenge encountered was that burrs often tend to grow in clusters, leading to unified regions in segmentation, making object detection potentially more suitable for counting. Nevertheless, the results show that DL architectures can generate masks for point cloud segmentation, supporting precise chestnut tree production estimation in future studies.
2024
Autores
Baltazar, A; Santos, FN; Moreira, AP; Soares, SP; Reis, MJCS; Cunha, JB;
Publicação
2024 IEEE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON AUTONOMOUS ROBOT SYSTEMS AND COMPETITIONS, ICARSC
Abstract
Precision spraying in agriculture is crucial for optimizing the application of pesticides while minimizing environmental impact. Despite significant advancements in control models for spraying systems, predictive control algorithms were not used. This paper addresses this gap by proposing a real-time control framework that integrates predictive control strategies to ensure consistent pressure output in a trailer sprayer. Based on information from various sensors, the framework anticipates and adapts to dynamic environmental conditions, enhancing accuracy and sustainability in spraying practices. A methodology is developed to define a proportional valve model. Based on this valve model, the predictive control model optimizes valve movements to minimize errors between predicted and reference pressures, thereby improving spraying efficiency. This study demonstrates the viability of predictive control in improving precision spraying systems applicable to autonomous robots, encouraging future advances in agricultural spraying technologies.
2024
Autores
Mota, A; Serôdio, C; Valente, A;
Publicação
ELECTRONICS
Abstract
Smart home devices are becoming more popular over the years. A diverse range of appliances is being created, and Ambient Intelligence is growing in homes. However, there are various producers of these gadgets, different kinds of protocols, and diverse environments. The lack of interoperability reduces comfort of the user and turns into a barrier to smart home adoption. Matter is growing by constructing an open-source application layer protocol that can be compatible with all smart home ecosystems. In this article, a Matter overview is provided (namely, of the Commissioning stage), and a Matter Accessory using ESP32-S3 is developed referring to the manufacturer's SDKs and is inserted into an existent household ecosystem. Its behavior on the network is briefly analyzed, and interactions with the device are carried out. The simplicity of these tasks demonstrates accessibility for developers to create products, especially when it comes to firmware. Additionally, device commissioning and control are straightforward for the consumer. This capacity of gadget incorporation into diverse ecosystems using Matter is already on the market and might result in higher device production and enhanced smart home adoption.
2024
Autores
da Silva, IFS; Silva, AC; de Paiva, AC; Gattass, M; Cunha, AM;
Publicação
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
Abstract
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a non-invasive technique used in cardiac diagnosis. Using it, specialists can measure the masses and volumes of the right ventricle (RV), left ventricular cavity (LVC), and myocardium (MYO). Segmenting these structures is an important step before this measurement. However, this process can be laborious and error-prone when done manually. This paper proposes a multi-stage method for cardiac segmentation in short-axis MRI based on fully convolutional networks (FCNs). This automatic method comprises three main stages: (1) the extraction of a region of interest (ROI); (2) MYO and LVC segmentation using a proposed FCN called EAIS-Net; and (3) the RV segmentation using another proposed FCN called IRAX-Net. The proposed method was tested with the ACDC and M&Ms datasets. The main evaluation metrics are end-diastolic (ED) and end-systolic (ES) Dice. For the ACDC dataset, the Dice results (ED and ES, respectively) are 0.960 and 0.904 for the LVC, 0.880 and 0.892 for the MYO, and 0.910 and 0.860 for the RV. For the M&Ms dataset, the ED and ES Dices are 0.861 and 0.805 for the LVC, 0.733 and 0.759 for the MYO, and 0.721 and 0.694 for the RV. These results confirm the feasibility of the proposed method.
2024
Autores
Tramontana, P; Marín, B; Paiva, ACR; Mendes, A; Vos, TEJ; Amalfitano, D; Cammaerts, F; Snoeck, M; Fasolino, AR;
Publicação
2024 IEEE CONFERENCE ON SOFTWARE TESTING, VERIFICATION AND VALIDATION, ICST 2024
Abstract
Software testing is an indispensable component of software development, yet it often receives insufficient attention. The lack of a robust testing culture within computer science and informatics curricula contributes to a shortage of testing expertise in the software industry. Addressing this problem at its root -education- is paramount. In this paper, we conduct a comprehensive mapping review of software testing courses, elucidating their core attributes and shedding light on prevalent subjects and instructional methodologies. We mapped 117 courses offered by Computer Science (and related) degrees in 49 academic institutions from four Western European countries, namely Belgium, Italy, Portugal and Spain. The testing subjects were mapped against the conceptual framework provided by the ISO/IEC/IEEE 29119 standard on software testing. Among the results, the study showed that dedicated software testing courses are offered by only 39% of the analysed universities, whereas the basics of software testing are taught in at least one course at every university. The analysis of the software testing topics highlights the gaps that need to be filled in order to better align the current academic offerings with the real industry needs.
2024
Autores
Cojocaru, I; Coelho, A; Ricardo, M;
Publicação
2024 20TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON WIRELESS AND MOBILE COMPUTING, NETWORKING AND COMMUNICATIONS, WIMOB
Abstract
The Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) 5G network architecture, introduced in 3GPP Release 16, leverages a shared 5G spectrum for both access and backhaul networks. Due to the novelty of IAB, there is a lack of suitable implementations and performance evaluations. This paper addresses this gap by proposing EMU-IAB, a mobility emulator for private standalone 5G IAB networks. The proposed emulation environment comprises a 5G Core Network, an IAB-enabled Radio Access Network (RAN), leveraging the Open-RAN (O-RAN) architecture. The RAN includes a fixed IAB Donor, a mobile IAB Node, and multiple User Equipments (UEs). The mobility of the IAB Node is managed through EMU-IAB, which allows defining the path loss of emulated wireless channels. The validation of EMU-IAB was conducted under a realistic IAB node mobility scenario, addressing different traffic demand from the UEs.
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