Biosystems engineering

The accuracy of a commercial pressure mapping system was evaluated and a number of techniques for the improvement of pressure measurements were developed. These were required in order to use the pressure mapping system in a tyre/surface interaction study which involved determination of the tyre contact pressure distribution on, both, hard and soil surfaces. In the evaluation of the system, the effect of sensor calibration procedures on the accuracy of the system in measuring pressure was investigated. A purpose built pressure calibration chamber was used to calibrate the sensors, which enabled the proprietary built-in calibration system to be evaluated along with a novel calibration procedure employing, both, an individual and multi-point calibration of each sensing element and the rejection of sensing elements that did not conform to the sensitivity of the majority of the sensing elements. These measures reduced the uncertainty in pressure measurements from ± 30% to ± 4%. Further, evaluation of the compliance of the material was also conducted to enable the sensors to be used for interface pressure measurements between two different surface materials other than those used during sensor calibration. As a result, a procedure for normalising the recorded pressure by adjusting the recorded load output to equal the applied load was established. The improvement of the accuracy of the sensors made it possible for the system to be used to determine the pressure distribution resulting from a range of tyres on a hard surface and in the soil profile.

The accuracy of a commercial pressure mapping system was evaluated and a number of techniques for the improvement of pressure measurements were developed. These were required in order to use the pressure mapping system in a tyre/surface interaction study which involved determination of the tyre contact pressure distribution on, both, hard and soil surfaces. In the evaluation of the system, the effect of sensor calibration procedures on the accuracy of the system in measuring pressure was investigated. A purpose built pressure calibration chamber was used to calibrate the sensors, which enabled the proprietary built-in calibration system to be evaluated along with a novel calibration procedure employing, both, an individual and multi-point calibration of each sensing element and the rejection of sensing elements that did not conform to the sensitivity of the majority of the sensing elements. These measures reduced the uncertainty in pressure measurements from ± 30% to ± 4%. Further, evaluation of the compliance of the material was also conducted to enable the sensors to be used for interface pressure measurements between two different surface materials other than those used during sensor calibration. As a result, a procedure for normalising the recorded pressure by adjusting the recorded load output to equal the applied load was established. The improvement of the accuracy of the sensors made it possible for the system to be used to determine the pressure distribution resulting from a range of tyres on a hard surface and in the soil profile.

p. 1 A publicly funded institution working for innovation in the building trade, CSTB (Centre Scientifique et Technique du Bâtiment), France's Scientific and Technical Centre for the Building Trade has four key activities: conducting research, providing expertise, assessing innovation, and disseminating knowledge, these activities being organised to take up the challenges of sustainable development in the building world. Its range of skills covers construction products, buildings, and how they are integrated into neighbourhoods, towns, and cities. With its staff of 918, its subsidiaries, and its national, European, and international networks of partners, CSTB works for all of the stakeholders in the building and construction industry, to improve the quality and the safety of buildings. Institute for the Prevention of Occupational Accidents and Diseases) works both for the companies and for their 18 million employees who come under the French Social Security's general scheme. A general practitioner in occupational safety and health, INRS works with the other institutional stakeholders in occupational risk prevention. From acquiring new knowledge to transferring it out into the field, INRS proposes appropriate responses to occupational risks in all of their diversity. A staff of 632 makes their contributions to a variety of areas such as chemicals, toxicology, mechanics, acoustics, etc. as well as to regulation or standardisation. Founded in 1947, INRS is a non-profit-making association managed by a Board of Directors made up equally of representatives from employer organisations and of representatives from employee union organisations. p. 2

A dynamic model of ammonia removal by gas-phase biofiltration is presented. Complex biodegradation kinetics including inhibitions and oxygen limitation were used. Since pH has a strong influence on kinetic parameters and governs the process of ammonia absorption into the biofilm, proton concentration (H + ) was included as a state variable in the model. Different approaches to model pH variations in biological systems can be found in literature. Amongst the different approaches tested for modelling pH variations during ammonia biofiltration, an ion balance method based on the electroneutrality condition in the biofilm was chosen in this work. This approach was demonstrated to be reliable and efficient to describe pH profiles in gas-phase ammonia biofiltration. The biofilter model was implemented in a home-made simulation environment developed in MATLAB. Model evaluation was performed by comparison of model predictions with experimental data obtained in a pilot-scale biofilter. The model was able to predict qualitatively and quantitatively the behaviour of the system under dynamic conditions, particularly for pH, nitrite, nitrate and ammonium measured in the leachate of the pilot-scale biofilter.

A new design of a vacuum heat pump dryer was built and tested. The dryer was used to dry chilli to study the effects of drying parameters such as pressure and temperature within the drying chamber on the qualities of the dried product and the drying time. The qualities of dried product included colour change, percentage shrinkage, rehydration ratio and surface structure. The drying data were fitted to a number of different thin-layer drying models with the Midilli model giving better predictions than the other models. Drying time decreased with an increase of drying temperature or a decrease of drying pressure. Colour change increased with an increase in drying temperature or drying pressure. Drying temperature had insignificant effects on rehydration ratio and percentage shrinkage (P > 0.05). Rehydration ratio notably decreased with an increase in drying pressure, while percentage shrinkage increased with an increase in drying pressure. Both drying pressure and temperature affected the surface structure of the dried chillies. It was found that the influence of drying pressure was more pronounced than that of drying temperature. The surface structure was smoother with decreasing drying pressure.

A new design of a vacuum heat pump dryer was built and tested. The dryer was used to dry chilli to study the effects of drying parameters such as pressure and temperature within the drying chamber on the qualities of the dried product and the drying time. The qualities of dried product included colour change, percentage shrinkage, rehydration ratio and surface structure. The drying data were fitted to a number of different thin-layer drying models with the Midilli model giving better predictions than the other models. Drying time decreased with an increase of drying temperature or a decrease of drying pressure. Colour change increased with an increase in drying temperature or drying pressure. Drying temperature had insignificant effects on rehydration ratio and percentage shrinkage (P > 0.05). Rehydration ratio notably decreased with an increase in drying pressure, while percentage shrinkage increased with an increase in drying pressure. Both drying pressure and temperature affected the surface structure of the dried chillies. It was found that the influence of drying pressure was more pronounced than that of drying temperature. The surface structure was smoother with decreasing drying pressure.

As part of a study to characterise and examine the use of wild sunflower species (Helianthus petiolaris Nutt), some physical properties and morphological characteristics of seeds from different locations in Argentina were determined. The oil content ranged between 27% and 30% (wb) and the moisture content varied from 8Á9% to 10Á4%. The average length, width, and thickness of the seed, measured with a micrometer, were 4Á5, 2Á02, and 1Á2 mm, respectively. The calculated mean values of seed equivalent diameter, surface area, and sphericity were 2Á25 mm, 16Á2 mm 2 , and 0Á48, respectively. The bulk and true densities measured with a hectolitre tester and by picnometry, respectively, were 350 and 399 kg/m 3 . The angle of repose ranged between 28Á61 and 30Á21. The morphological characteristics as well as the hull thickness and percentage were also evaluated by scanning electron microscopy. The hull thickness and percentage had mean values 0Á07 mm and 21%, respectively. Achenes presented straight and double hairs and a morphological study showed a pericarp structure with an amorphous and lignified fibre layer and air cavities between the inner parenchyma and the cotyledon.

Leaf insertion angle Maize (Zea mays) Leaf angle and curvature are considered important by breeders for increasing plant productivity. We developed a smartphone app (PocketPlant3D) that makes use of the device accelerometer and magnetometer to measure leaf insertion angle and the leaf angles from the insertion to the tip, in turn used to reconstruct the 3D distribution of the angles of photosynthetic tissues. Starting from these angles, PocketPlant3D derives the mean leaf tilt angle (MTA) and the parameters of the Campbell and b leaf angle distributions (LAD), as well as a new leaf curvature indicator. The app was compared with other methods for quantifying precision in measuring leaf insertion angle on maize and sweetcorn (4320 leaf insertion angle measurements) via a ring test. Both precision metrics (repeatability and reproducibility) were similar for the different methods, with the exception of the digital inclinometer, which was the less precise. Concerning the analysis of canopy structure (a total of more than 72,000 angles were measured), PocketPlant3D allowed two genotypes to be discriminated for MTA and, especially, for the parameters of the two LADs and for the curvature indicator, whereas the two genotypes presented similar leaf insertion angles. The completeness of the information collected and the time effectiveness make Pock-etPlant3D a useful tool for phenotyping activities and ecophysiological studies.

Monitoring of apple fruit development on the tree is necessary for determination of optimum harvest date. The current method is to pick several times during fruit development fruit samples and to analyse them in a destructive way. Sufficient experience is necessary to correctly interpret the results of analyses. Appreciable errors can occur, if an apple cultivar shows high variability in fruit maturation. However, reduction of errors by taking enlarged samples is not viable. More reliable results could be expected if non-destructive continuous monitoring of the same fruits during fruit development on tree would be possible. Measurements of fruit ripening on the tree were carried out by using portable equipment with a miniaturised spectrophotometric module. By means of a specific glass-fibre probe, the partial light transmittance through fruit was detected in wavelength range from 500 to 1000 nm. Tests were performed on 'Elstar' apples in a commercial orchard during pre-harvest and harvest period 2003. From the spectral data, different indices were derived to characterise the fruit pigment change and maturity progress in comparison with conventional laboratory analyses for fruit maturity analysis. The portable spectrophotometer worked reliably and indicated sensitively changes of the spectral signature of apple fruit during the measuring period. Spectral indices as well as laboratory data demonstrated very high variance of maturity progress between individual 'Elstar' fruits. The spectral indices of each single fruit changed continuously over the time. The red-edge as well as a normalised chlorophyll index exhibited moderate decline, while a normalised anthocyanin index increased sigmoidally. The results obtained with these indices showed the potential of non-destructive fruit maturity monitoring on the tree.

The effect of the nozzle geometry on the pressure drop of a sand filter was experimentally studied. Four nozzles were analysed: one commercially produced with a conical shape and three alternative cylindrical underdrains that differed in the location and the number of slots. Experiments in both filtration mode and backwashing conditions for a wide range of superficial velocities were carried out. The results reported a reduction of the filter energy consumption greater than 20% could be achieved by simply modifying the position of the slots above the surface of the underdrain element. The effects of the nozzle were further investigated by means of an analytical model that correctly predicted the pressure drop of the water flow through the filter. The model confirmed that the distribution of the slots in the underdrain was a critical factor for determining the length of the region with a nonuniform flow within the sand. When using the commercial nozzle at flow rates >0.85 l s À1 , this region produced the major contribution to energy losses in the filter due to increases in the tortuosity of the water path within the porous medium. From these results, it is suggested that an affordable way to increase the energy efficiency of already existing installations would be to replace the current underdrain elements with new improved designs.

The performance of three filtration systems (screen, disc and a combination of screen and disc filters) used in microirrigation systems and their automatic backwashing efficiency were studied at inlet pressures of 300 and 500 kPa. The filters were used for more than 900 h with a biological effluent. The physical parameters of the effluent such as turbidity, total suspended solids (TSS) and number of particles were not affected significantly by the different filtration systems at both pressures. Automatic backwashings were classified as being inefficient depending on the value of the initial head loss across the filter after a backwashing took place. The number of filter backwashings required for the screen filter was reduced at 500 kPa, especially due to an increase in efficient backwashings at this inlet pressure. Filtered volume was significantly larger at the beginning of the experiment than after 800 operation hours. The disc filter at both 300 and 500 kPa consumed more water for backwashing than the other filtration systems.

Mechanized and automated setups for efficacious harvesting with clinical purity is gaining unprecedented demand with very few real time mechanisms operating in the horticultural gardens. The demand for herbal solutions derived from medicinal plants can be used as food supplements and nutritional remedies to treat diseases is increasing upfront. However the therapeutic quality of the harvested crops that represents the medicinal effectiveness is greatly influenced by the mechanics of crop cutting-cutter geometry, speed, accuracy of cut plane, cycle time, type of prime mover, temperature in cutting zone and cutter materials. Mechanisation curbs plant pathogens by circumventing virulence mechanisms that insidiously evolve due to bacterial infestations causing diseases that exacerbate deficit of medicinal supplements. Mechanized harvesting enhances throughput propagation by reducing turnaround time to raise crop intensity of medicinal plants, unsustainable by manual harvesting. Mechanized harvesting is a time tested technique to economize the harvesting costs. It also provide security to farmer's life in fields beleaguered with rodents, fossil remnants and in hazardous zones that is not plausible by manual harvesting. In this paper we are expounding a qualitative analysis of the harvesting purity and productivity of medicinal plants by mechanized set up corroborated with empirical evidence. Inventive findings regarding ways to prevent oxidative stress, power loss and enhance productivity and throughput propagation and retain purity of plant and harvested crops are discussed here.

Leaf insertion angle Maize (Zea mays) Leaf angle and curvature are considered important by breeders for increasing plant productivity. We developed a smartphone app (PocketPlant3D) that makes use of the device accelerometer and magnetometer to measure leaf insertion angle and the leaf angles from the insertion to the tip, in turn used to reconstruct the 3D distribution of the angles of photosynthetic tissues. Starting from these angles, PocketPlant3D derives the mean leaf tilt angle (MTA) and the parameters of the Campbell and b leaf angle distributions (LAD), as well as a new leaf curvature indicator. The app was compared with other methods for quantifying precision in measuring leaf insertion angle on maize and sweetcorn (4320 leaf insertion angle measurements) via a ring test. Both precision metrics (repeatability and reproducibility) were similar for the different methods, with the exception of the digital inclinometer, which was the less precise. Concerning the analysis of canopy structure (a total of more than 72,000 angles were measured), PocketPlant3D allowed two genotypes to be discriminated for MTA and, especially, for the parameters of the two LADs and for the curvature indicator, whereas the two genotypes presented similar leaf insertion angles. The completeness of the information collected and the time effectiveness make Pock-etPlant3D a useful tool for phenotyping activities and ecophysiological studies.

The use of tractors to carry out agricultural work has played an important role in mechanizing the agricultural sector. A repairable mechanical system (such as an agricultural tractor) is subject to deterioration or failure. In this study, a regression model was used to predict the failure rate of a John Deere 3140 tractor. The machine failure pattern was carefully studied, and key factors affecting the failure rate were identified in five regions of the Khouzestan province. Through a questionnaire, data was obtained from farm records. This data was grouped into six sub-groups, according to the annual use hours (AUH) and the manner in which the tractors were stored. Results showed that AUH and storage policies affected failure rate slightly. With an increase in the age of the tractors, the failure rate in the tractors used for 1050-2000 hours annually and stored outdoors was higher than those used for 200-1000 hours annually and stored in sheds. When the tractors were of the same age, the slope of the curve in the 200-1000 annual use hours increased gradually and then rapidly, but failure rate in the 1050-2000 annual use hours was high from the beginning, and subsequent increase in this value was almost uniform. As a result, it can be said that with an increase in the annual use hours, the failure and breakdown rate in John Deere 3140 tractors rapidly increases, but maintenance conditions only slightly affect the failure and breakdown rate.

This study evaluates the development of a new air jet impinging method related to a machine for extracting citrus juice and juice sacs. The method is based on a twin nozzle that moves in a spiral direction towards the depth of halved citrus fruits. In this study the effect of reservoir air pressure, nozzle velocity direction (depth of fruit), rotational speed of the nozzle, twin nozzle configuration (nozzle inclination and distance between nozzle outlets), and fruit size were studied on extraction efficiency. Maximum removed juice and juice sacs was observed at air pressure of 500 kPa, nozzle velocity of 10 mm/s, and rotational speed of 20 rpm. Nozzle configuration was found to be a dominant parameter in extraction of juice sacs. Oblique adjacent twin nozzle showed higher extraction efficiency (96.92%) than normal detached twin nozzle (91%). Fruit size had no significant effect (5%) on extraction efficiency.

Jet impinging method was employed for extracting arils from pomegranate fruit. The method is based on extracting the arils with the help of water jets while broken open pomegranate is in motion during jet impinging. Response surface methodology was used to determine the optimum processing conditions that yield maximum extracted arils and minimum mechanical damage to them. The independent variables were water pressure, nozzle diameter, reciprocating speed of nozzle, number of nozzles, and speed of pomegranate conveyor. The coefficient of determination, R values for extraction efficiency and percentage of damaged arils were greater than 0.900. The complex interaction of these variables was investigated and two quadratic mathematical models were derived for the prediction of extraction efficiency and damage amount. The analysis of variance showed that nozzle diameter was the most significant factor affecting extraction efficiency and integrity of arils. An increase in water pressure, n...

Purpose Sugarcane, as an important industrial crop, is always considered as one of the strategic commodity and supported by governments. One of the most important repairable systems in agro-industrial companies is a sugarcane harvester machine. The failures of this machine cause a delay in operations and reduce product yield and quality. This machine has a key role in sugarcane harvesting operations of the agro-industries. Methods Availability of sugarcane harvester machine was determined by using the Markov chain method which is a robust probabilistic method according to the actual conditions of the sugarcane harvesting system in the agro-industries. The methodology outlined in this study has been utilized to 12 sugarcane harvester machines, namely CASE IH Austoft 7000. Results According to the results, harvesting system availability was calculated as 87.5%, 86.4%, 95.3%, and 90.4% for the first, second, third, and fourth harvesting groups, respectively. For these groups, the down probability of the system is evaluated to be 12.5%, 13.6%, 4.7%, and 9.6%, respectively. Conclusion On average, the down probability was 10.1%, meaning that the machine will not be available at 10.1% of days at harvesting season. Due to the high sensitivity of the crop that delayed harvesting, agro-industry managers should try to reduce this amount by increasing system reliability and optimizing planned maintenance activities to decrease scheduled downs that have a direct effect on harvest time.

This study investigates the input–output energy-flow patterns and CO2 emissions from the wheat–rice crop rotation system. In this regard, an arid region of Punjab, Pakistan was selected as the study area, comprising 4150 km2. Farmers were interviewed to collect data and information on input/output sources during the 2020 work season. The total energy from these sources was calculated using appropriate energy equivalents. Three energy indices, including energy use efficiency (ηe), energy productivity (ηp), and net energy (ρ), were defined and calculated to investigate overall energy efficiency. Moreover, the data envelopment analysis (DEA) technique was used to optimize the input energy in wheat and rice production. Finally, CO2 emissions was calculated using emissions equivalents from peer-reviewed published literature. Results showed that the average total energy consumption in rice production was twice the energy consumed in wheat production. However, the values of ηe, ηp, and ρ w...

This study investigates the input–output energy-flow patterns and CO2 emissions from the wheat–rice crop rotation system. In this regard, an arid region of Punjab, Pakistan was selected as the study area, comprising 4150 km2. Farmers were interviewed to collect data and information on input/output sources during the 2020 work season. The total energy from these sources was calculated using appropriate energy equivalents. Three energy indices, including energy use efficiency (ηe), energy productivity (ηp), and net energy (ρ), were defined and calculated to investigate overall energy efficiency. Moreover, the data envelopment analysis (DEA) technique was used to optimize the input energy in wheat and rice production. Finally, CO2 emissions was calculated using emissions equivalents from peer-reviewed published literature. Results showed that the average total energy consumption in rice production was twice the energy consumed in wheat production. However, the values of ηe, ηp, and ρ w...

Després d'escriure tota la tesi em vé molt de gust escriure els agraïments per deixar constància del suport que he rebut durant aquests 5 anys. I ho he fet una mica lluny dels discursos clàssics, de manera agosarada i estalviant paraules: Una porta que es tanca, La ment que s'allibera, Els pensaments damunt la taula, I la mirada endavant. Enrera queden els anys, I les anècdotes viscudes, Els savis còmplices continuen, Amb la nova sang impacient. Les amistats resten en un núvol, Allí encara s'hi escolten, Els ritmes marxosos dels inicis, i l'harmonia dels temps actuals. Una ombra pintada m'ha acompanyat de nit i de dia, la flor que arrela al cor, i els que han servit l'esperança No són només paraules sinó pensaments, No és només paper sinó sentiment, No són només fets sinó coneixement, Un petit pas cap a la veritat, O un reconfort en la ignorància? Volia donar les gràcies als meus directors de Tesi, la Marilós i en Jesús, per invertir part del seu temps en la meva formació. També a en Manel que em va donar la oportunitat de treballar al departament, i especialment a en Sebas amb qui ha sigut un plaer treballar. A la següent pàgina hi ha l'agraïment general a tots els membres del LEQUIA que està directament relacionat amb l'escrit anterior. Disculpes als qui no van ser retratats en el seu moment, però que de ben segur es poden sentir plenament identificats (Aumatell, Bartro, Elvira, Núria, Christian, Estefi, Marta, Esther, Adam, Teia...). A part volia agraïr el suport de les "ombres pintades " que serien els meus pares, el meu germà, els amics de sempre (Txorri, Pep, Marcos, Xevi, Masete, Carme, Jordi, Miguelon, Mila...) els amics del bàsquet (Gerard, Paez, Dani, Octavi), els amics de la carrera (Christian, Xevi, Sala, Bras, Pepe, Francesc, Mireia) i als que estan o han estat relacionats amb el pis de les beates (Sebas, Xavi, Oriol) per compartir amb mi el temps fora de la universitat. En especial volia donar les gràcies a la Maria que ha sofert tota la tesis de molt a prop i m'ha donat suport en tot moment fins i tot quan vaig anar a Bèlgica, i com no a la família de la Maria i als nebodets pels bons moments. Thanks also to the BIOMATH people and specially to Peter, Gürkan and Kris for the oportunity they gave me to work with them and of course, for their friendship. Volumetric exchange ratio X W MLSS concentration in the wastage * Accurate general structure * Accurate structure with specific information at each step * Accurate structure but does not go into * No accurate structure * Feed-back loops are considered * Feed-back loops are considered detail at each step * Duration estimation of the different calibration steps * No feedback loops Main points * Biological characterization, calibration, * Data verification, model structure, influent wastewater * Data quality control, careful documentation * Biological characterization model structure characterization Six model objectives: Three model studies: * No specification of possible objectives * No specification of possible objectives 1) Optimization and upgrading 1) system choice during basic design * The objectives defined in collaboration * Establish field of validity and expected 2) cost reduction 2) Optimization studies with the client and plant operator. accuracy 3) development of control strategies 3) Development of control strategies 4) Meeting the effluent criteria 5) Reuse of effluent wastewater 6) Design of the treatment plant * Specific description of the variables needed * Accurate review of required data * No specification of required data * Complete review of required data * 1st use available data, then perform extra monitoring * Based on mass balances (sludge age). No guidance * Mass balances, equations available * Based on mass balances and * Based on statistical analysis for * No especific guidance. Referred to * More info referred to Meijer et al. ( 2001) and measurements accuracy identifying outliers Barker and Dold 1995 and Nowak et al., 1999 Nowak et al., 1999 * No specific guidance. Referred to Meijer (2001) * Three submodels considered: * Four elements considered: * No specification of model structure * Not specified 1) Mass transfer 1) compartments number 2) settling 2) aeration 3) biological and influent characterization 3) settling 4) Control structure * Review of used biological models. * No guidance for selecting the biological model. * Review of the existing biological models * Review of the existing biological models * Phosphorus removal is considered * No phosphorus removal considered * Phosphorus removal is considered * Phosphorus removal is considered * Decision chart on settling characterization * Decision chart on settling characterization * Little mention * Not emphasized * Combination of biological (respirometry) and * Combination of physical-chemical methods and * It referres to Roeleveld and * Comparison of different methods physical-chemical methods BOD measurements Vanloosdrecht (2002) * Ref: Roeleveld 2001; STOWA, 1996; STOWA 1999 * Respirometry methods (µ mH , µ mA , K S , K NH , b H ) * Experimental evaluation of model parameters considered * It refers to Vanrolleghem et al . (1999) * Comparison of three methods * Identifiability analysis also considered not usefull * Foccused on µ mA , b A , η g , η H * OED also considered, although no guidance is available * Iterative procedure: * Iterative procedure: * Iterative procedure: * Iterative procedure 1) Steady state calibration. (X I , Y H , b H ) 1) Sludge age 1) Sludge age * case-specific calibration procedure 2) Dynamic calibration 2) Effluent ammonia 2) Effluent ammonia 3) Effluent nitrate 3) Effluent nitrate * Common pitfalls are presented 4) Effluent phosphate * No proposal of parameters to be tuned * Parameters to be tuned are proposed * No prosal of parameters to be tuned * Parameters to be tuned are proposed * Both in steady state and in dynamic calibration * Sensitivity test for process parameters * In a pre-simulation, before monitoring * Not specifically included in a part of the campaign calibration protocol * Solutions when there is no success have to be * No mention of evaluation * Evaluation of the results is performed * No mention of evaluation found by re-evaluation of the plant data, the sub-after the study models or even the targets defined in the first step

In precision agriculture, autonomous ground and aerial vehicles can lead to favourable improvements in field operations, extending crop scouting to large fields and performing field tasks in a timely and effective way. However, automated navigation and operations within a complex scenarios require specific and robust path planning and navigation control. Thus, in addition to proper knowledge of their instantaneous position, robotic vehicles and machines require an accurate spatial description of their environment. An innovative modelling framework is presented to semantically interpret 3D point clouds of vineyards and to generate low complexity 3D mesh models of vine rows. The proposed methodology, based on a combination of convex hull filtration and minimum area c-gon design, reduces the amount of instances required to describe the spatial layout and shape of vine canopies allowing the amount of data to be reduced without losing relevant crop shape information. The algorithm is not hindered by complex scenarios, such as nonlinear vine rows, as it is able to automatically process non uniform vineyards. Results demonstrated a data reduction of about 98%; from the 500 Mb ha À1 required to store the original dataset to 7.6 Mb ha À1 for the low complexity 3D mesh. Reducing the amount of data is crucial to reducing computational times for large original datasets, thus enabling the exploitation of 3D point cloud information in real-time during field operations. When considering scenarios involving cooperating machines and robots, data reduction will allow rapid communication and data exchange between in field actors.

Active contours Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) is a clinical standard imaging technique in ophthalmology, which provides much more information than other classical modalities. Since retinal morphology and pathological structures can be identified in an effective way in the OCT images, image processing-based methods are emerging to extract their information. As a prior step to any automatic application for feature extraction, delimitation of retinal layers must be automated. On the other hand, medical research needs to process a large amount of information from different patients and the clinical studies are usually performed in a multi-centre schema. Therefore, not only is automation of retinal layer segmentation needed, but also a flexible framework must be designed to allow the experts to manage all clinical data, as well as extracting features of interest. With that aim, this work presents a framework for OCT image processing, which provides automatic procedures for retinal layer segmentation and the extraction of different statistics for medicalsupport. A web-based interface was designed in order to make it available to the ophthalmic experts and accessible from different centres. Since the framework was used by ophthalmologists in a real case scenario, its robustness and suitability for this task are shown, making it a very relevant tool for clinical and research purposes.

Importance of phase angle measurement during the application of electrical impedance spectroscopy was studied by executing pot experiments with maize. Electrical impedance, phase angle (strength of capacitive character), and dissipation factor in the plant-soil system were scanned between 100 and 10 000 Hz current frequency. The frequency-dependent change in the phase angle could be described by optimum curves culminating within 920-3 650 Hz. Since the rate of energy dissipation is independent of root extent, the higher phase angle and lower energy dissipation were associated with the higher coefficient of determination achieved for the root electrical impedance - root system size (root dry mass and root surface area) regressions. The characteristic frequency selected on the basis of phase angle spectra provided a higher significance level at statistical comparison of plant groups subjected to stress conditions influencing root development. Due to the physicochemical changes observa...

SIMLIDAR is an application developed in C++ that generates an artificial orchard using a Lindenmayer system. The application simulates the lateral interaction between the artificial orchard and a laser scanner or LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging). To best highlight the unique qualities of the LIDAR simulation, this work focuses on apple trees without leaves, i.e. the woody structure. The objective is to simulate a terrestrial laser sensor (LIDAR) when applied to different artificially created orchards and compare the simulated characteristics of trees with the parameters obtained with the LIDAR. The scanner is mounted on a virtual tractor and measures the distance between the origin of the laser beam and the nearby plant object. This measurement is taken with an angular scan in a plane which is perpendicular to the route of the virtual tractor. SIMLIDAR determines the distance measured in a bi-dimensional matrix N×M, where N is the number of angular scans and M is the number of steps in the tractor route. In order to test the data and performance of SIMLIDAR, the simulation has been applied to 42 different artificial orchards. After previously defining and calculating two vegetative parameters (wood area and wood projected area) of the simulated trees, a good correlation (R 2 =0.70-0.80) was found between these characteristics and the wood area detected (impacted) by the laser beam. The designed software can be valuable in horticulture for estimating biomass and optimising the pesticide treatments that are performed in winter.

Automation provides key benefits to production plants: increased speed of production, improved quality control, enhanced worker safety, and reduced production costs. Numerous types of systems use automated control throughout the world; in cotton gins, there are a few main systems that rely on some form of control: material flow, fire suppression, dryer temperature, press operation, and moisture restoration systems. This chapter provides an overview of control systems in general along with key examples of control systems in use in U.S. cotton gins.

In this study, the cutting force and energy requirement of corn (Zea mays L.) stalk at different internodes (diameter), from the bottom to the top internode positions for Pionner 2105, Pioner 1570, KWS and MAY 75 varieties, were determined. The mean diameter of internodes varied between 11.28-19.00 mm from top to bottom. Also, cob breakout force and energy requirements were determined for these varieties. According to test results, the cutting force requirement of the varieties were found statistically different. While the highest cutting force requirement was found in MAY75 variaty as 504.79 N and Pioneer 2105 as 537.80 N, the lowest values were obtained in the KWS variety as 409.50 N. Similar results were found for cutting energy values. While, there were no found difference between MAY 75 and Pioneer 2105 varieties, cutting energy requirements were found statistically different (p<0.01) among the other varieties. The highest cutting energy requirements has been found in Pionee...

Land fragmentation and dispersion hampers the optimisation of agricultural management. In this study, a methodology is proposed to quantify the extra costs to farmers caused by the spatial dispersion among agricultural parcels in their farms. The methodology proposed measures the length of the trips between parcels in the same farm, adds the inoperative periods due to the travel and then estimates the additional costs for fuel and labour. The study focuses on traditional olive cultivation in the province of Jaen, Spain, as a major crop with a highly fragmented and scattered structure. Thus, the profitability of this crop is seriously reduced so lower production costs become necessary to prevent crop abandonment. The results indicate that the dispersion of the olive parcels has a significant impact on production costs, with cases in which the expense of travel between parcels represents more than a quarter of the overall farming costs. The significant impact of the spatial dispersion of the parcels on production costs evidences the need for policies either to enlarge farm size or to encourage shared cultivation to offset the spatial scattering of olive parcels.

The main objective the research is to analyze potential of Artificial Intelligence in order to understand how it can be integrated to improve ergonomic performance and related safety outcomes. Musculoskeletal disorders are the among the most common and expensive health problems related to occupational environments. In work processes, human operators are continuously submitted to physical, environmental, psychological, and psychosocial stress factors that can affect -amongst others -the musculoskeletal system. The effective identification of major factors that can affect the workers' health requires knowledge from several fields, such as anatomy, physics, mathematics, anthropometry, psychology, sociology, etc. On the other hand, Artificial Intelligence has grown significantly in recent years and has penetrated all fields of activity, including the field of industrial ergonomics. The human -"smart" work equipment interaction is becoming more and more a current activity and this interaction must take place in complete safety and health state. The paper aims to investigate how ergonomic performance can be significantly improved by using Artificial Intelligence. The results obtained will be integrated into operational prevention systems that will be developed in the near future.

La calidad del café evaluada a partir de su composición química, características físicas y organolépticas se ha convertido en un tema de investigación de importancia nacional e internacional para lograr una mejor comercialización del grano de café pergamino. Se realizó un estudio del efecto del secado solar intermitente (intermitencia provocada por el día y la noche) sobre algunos compuestos químicos de interés en la calidad del café. El efecto del secado se correlacionó con atributos sensoriales para la especie C. arabica variedades Caturra y Castillo®. En la primera etapa experimental se realizó un diseño factorial por bloques con variables independientes: 6 niveles para el proceso de secado (secado mecánico: 40 ° C y 50 ºC con caudal de aire de 60 y 100 m 3 •min -1 •t -1 cps; secado con exposición al sol directo y secado solar en marquesina) y 2 niveles para la variedad de café (Caturra y Castillo®). Los experimentos de secado con dos repeticiones se realizaron en 3 fincas del departamento de Antioquia. En la segunda etapa experimental se construyó una marquesina para realizar el secado solar de café variedad Castillo® con recomendaciones técnicas del Comité de Cafeteros de Antioquia. Las variables como temperatura, humedad relativa y radiación solar dentro de la Marquesina se registraron con un Datalogger. Las curvas de pérdida de peso del café durante el secado solar y mecánico se construyeron bajo el método Gravimet (Cenicafé). La concentración de varios ácidos grasos y sacarosa se midió con técnicas de HPLC y GC-MS, y se concluyó que el tiempo de secado al sol afecta la evolución de estos compuestos. En este sentido, los procesos de secado al sol durante un período de tiempo más prolongado, como los de los sistemas artesanales (marquesina) condicionados por las condiciones climáticas y sometidos a la energía solar, hacen que los ácidos grasos y la sacarosa en los granos de café disminuyan de manera más significativa. En este estudio, se desarrolló un modelo matemático 1D para predecir la evolución temporal de la pérdida de humedad durante el secado solar, y se validó con éxito con datos experimentales.

The present publication is a compilation of the abstracts for the NJF seminar 438: Sensors for soil and plant mapping and terrain analysis, in Skara, Sweden, 27-28 October 2010. The objective of the seminar is to present a variety of measurement techniques and their applications to provide an opportunity for knowledge exchange and discussion concerning the use of sensors for soil and plant mapping, terrain analysis and other related subject areas.

For precision agriculture to provide both economic and environmental benefits over conventional farm practice, management strategies must be developed to accommodate the spatial variability in crop performance that occurs within fields. Experiments were established in crops of winter barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) over three seasons. The aim of which was to evaluate a set of variable rate nitrogen strategies and examining the spatial variation in crop response to applied N. The optimum N application rate varied from 90 to in excess of 160 kg N ha -1 in different parts of the field, which supports the case for applying spatially variable rates of N. This, however, is highly dependent on seasonal variations, e.g. the quantity and distribution of rainfall and the effect that this has on soil moisture deficits and crop growth. Estimates of yield potential, produced from either historic yield data or shoot density maps derived from airborne digital photographic images, were used to divide experimental strips into management zones. These zones were then managed according to two N application strategies. The results from the historic yield approach, based on three years of yield data, were inconsistent, and it was concluded that that this approach, which is currently the most practical commercial system, does not provide a suitable basis for varying N rates. The shoot density approach, however, offered considerably greater potential as it takes account of variation in the current crop. Using this approach, it was found that applying additional N to areas with a low shoot population and reducing N to areas with a high shoot population resulted in an average strategy benefit of up to 0.36 t ha -1 compared with standard farm practice.

A fundamental component of adopting the concept of precision farming in practice is the ability to measure spatial variation in soil factors and assess the influence of this on crop variability in order to apply appropriate management strategies. The aim of this study was to appraise potential methods for measuring spatial variability in soil type, nutrient status and physical properties in practical farming situations. Five fields that are representative of more than 30% of soils used for arable production in England and Wales were selected for use as case studies. Maps of soil type were generated from a conventional hand auger survey on a 100 m grid and the excavation of targeted soil profile pits. These were compared with those refined using a mechanised soil coring device and scans of electromagnetic inductance (EMI) carried out while the soil could reasonably be considered to be at, or near, field capacity moisture content. In addition, soil sampling for nutrient analyses was conducted on a 50 m grid to examine the spatial variation in nutrient status. Conventional methods for sampling soil were found to be appropriate for identifying soil types at specific locations within the field sites, however, they were time-consuming to perform which placed an economic and therefore a practical limitation on the sampling density possible. The resulting data were considered to be too sparse for demarcating soil type boundaries for use in the context of precision farming. The location of soil boundaries were refined by using the mechanised soil corer, however, the limitation of this was found to be the time required to analyse the soil cores produced. Maps of soil variation generated from EMI scans conducted at field capacity appear to reflect the underlying variation in soil type observed in maps generated using the mechanised soil corer. and, therefore, this approach has potential as a cost-effective, data-rich, surrogate for measures of soil variability. Results from analyses of soil samples for measurement of nutrient status indicated that whilst there was considerable variation in macro-and micro-nutrient levels in each field, with the exception of pH, these levels were above commonly accepted agronomic limits. Results did however demonstrate the potential for addressing variation in critical factors such as pH Soils in arable cultivation similar to those at the field sites Other arable areas in England and Wales

Experiments at two sites growing winter wheat show that in order to manage a wheat canopy more effectively, the use of specific remote sensing techniques both to monitor crop canopy expansion, and to determine variable nitrogen applications at key timings is required. Variations in seed rate were used to achieve a range of initial crop structures, and treatments were compared to standard farm practice. In the first year, the effect of varying seed rate (250, 350 and 450 seeds m -2 ) on crop structure, yield components and grain yield, was compared to the effects of underlying spatial variation. Plant populations increased up to the highest rate, but shoot and ear populations peaked at 350 seeds m -2 . Compensation through an increased number of grains per ear and thousand grain weight resulted in the highest yield and gross margin at the lowest seed rate. In later experiments, the range of seed rates was extended to include 150 seeds m -2 , each sown in 24 m wide strips split into 12 m wide halves. One half received a standard nitrogen dose of 200 kg [N] ha -1 , the other a variable treatment based on near 'real-time' maps of crop growth. Both were split into three applications, targeted at mid-late tillering (early March), growth stages GS30-31 (mid April) and GS33 (mid May). At each timing, calibrated aerial digital photography was used to assess crop growth in terms of shoot population at tillering, and canopy green area index at GS30-31 and GS33. These were compared to current agronomic guidelines. Application rates were then varied below or above the planned amount where growth was above or below target respectively. In the first field, total nitrogen doses in the variable treatments ranged from 188-243 kg [N] ha -1 , which gave higher yields than the standards at all seed rates in the range 0.36-0.78 t ha -1 and gross margins of £17-60 ha -1 . In the second field, variable treatments ranged from 135-197 kg [N] ha -1 that resulted in lower yields of -0.32 to +0.30 t ha -1 . However, in three out of the four seed rates, variable treatments produced higher gross margins than the standard, which ranged from £2 to £20 ha -1 . In both fields, the greatest

The results from alternative spatial nitrogen application studies are analysed in economic terms and compared to the costs of precision farming hardware, software and other services for cereal crops in the UK. At current prices the benefits of variable rate application of nitrogen exceed the returns from a uniform application by an average of £22 ha -1 . The cost of the precision farming systems range from £5 ha -1 to £18 ha -1 depending upon the system chosen for an area of 250 ha. The benefits outweigh the associated costs for cereal farms in excess of 80 ha for the lowest price system to 200 -300 ha for the more sophisticated systems. The scale of benefits obtained depends upon the magnitude of the response to the treatment and the proportion of the field that will respond. To be cost effective, a farmed area of 250 ha of cereals, where 30% of the area will respond to variable treatment, requires an increase in crop yield in the responsive areas of between 0.25 t ha -1 and 1.00 t ha -1 (at £65 t -1 ) for the basic and most expensive precision farming systems respectively.

This paper summarises the results of a 6-yr study, involving five principal fields in England covering 13 soil types, which represent approximately 30% of the soils on which arable crops are grown. The aim of the project was to determine guidelines to maximise profitability and minimise environmental impact of cereal production using precision farming. The study focused on the interaction between soil/water variability and nitrogen applications. The earlier work concentrated on identifying the in-field variability and the development of a 'real-time' sensing technique, while the later work compared spatially controlled inputs with uniform agronomic practice. A number of techniques were used to decide upon the variable application strategy. These included yield variability from historic yield maps, variability in shoot density in the spring, and variability in the subsequent development of the canopy; the latter two enabling the development of the concept of 'realtime' agronomic management. In uniformly managed fields, there were considerable differences in the spatial patterns and magnitudes of yield variation between fields and seasons, which linked to soil variation and annual differences in rainfall and earlier field operations. Electromagnetic induction (EMI) was found to be a suitable surrogate for detailed soil coring and cluster analysis of EMI and yield data provided an objective method to subdivide fields into management zones for targeted sampling of soil nutrients and pH; and for estimating replenishment levels of P and K fertilisers. Considerable reductions in the cost of soil sampling were possible with this approach. Yield maps, however, were not a useful basis for determining a variable nitrogen application strategy. It was shown that the spatial variation in canopy development with a field can be effectively determined using aerial digital photography for 'real-time' management. This technique can improve the efficiency of cereal production through managing variations in the crop canopy and gave an average economic return of £22 ha À1 while reducing the nitrogen surplus by approximately one-third. Benefits from spatially variable application of nitrogen outweigh costs of the investment in precision farming systems for cereal farms greater than 75 ha for systems costing £4500. This area increases in size in proportion to the capital cost. Integrating the economic costs with the proportion of the farmed area that has benefit potential enables the break-even yield increase to be estimated. Typically a farm with 250 ha of cereals where 20% of the area could respond positively to spatially variable nitrogen would need to achieve a yield increase of 1Á1 t ha À1 on that 20% to break even. These economic advantages linked to the environmental benefits should improve the longer term sustainability of cereal production. Common problems, such as waterlogging and fertiliser application errors should be corrected prior to the spatial application of fertilisers and other inputs. From the overall results a set of practical guidelines has been incorporated in a single decision support tool to help farmers.

For precision agriculture to provide both economic and environmental benefits over conventional farm practice, management strategies must be developed to accommodate the spatial variability in crop performance that occurs within fields. Experiments were established in crops of winter barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) over three seasons. The aim of which was to evaluate a set of variable rate nitrogen strategies and examining the spatial variation in crop response to applied N. The optimum N application rate varied from 90 to in excess of 160 kg N ha -1 in different parts of the field, which supports the case for applying spatially variable rates of N. This, however, is highly dependent on seasonal variations, e.g. the quantity and distribution of rainfall and the effect that this has on soil moisture deficits and crop growth. Estimates of yield potential, produced from either historic yield data or shoot density maps derived from airborne digital photographic images, were used to divide experimental strips into management zones. These zones were then managed according to two N application strategies. The results from the historic yield approach, based on three years of yield data, were inconsistent, and it was concluded that that this approach, which is currently the most practical commercial system, does not provide a suitable basis for varying N rates. The shoot density approach, however, offered considerably greater potential as it takes account of variation in the current crop. Using this approach, it was found that applying additional N to areas with a low shoot population and reducing N to areas with a high shoot population resulted in an average strategy benefit of up to 0.36 t ha -1 compared with standard farm practice.

Some mechanical and frictional properties of Mucuna Bean seed were studied at different moisture content as a panacea for developing processing machines for the seed. The mechanical properties namely; force, deformation, stress and energy to crack both on the seed’s major and minor axis were determined by use of a Universal Testing machine (UTM), while the coefficient of friction of the seed was obtained using an incline plane. At moisture level 4.79 to 18.53 % (d.b.), the coefficient of friction increased from 0.205 to 0.277, 0.231 to 0.298, 0.205 to 0.287, 0.218 to 0.313 and 0.249 to 0.329 with plywood, aluminium, glass, galvanized steel and rough wood as structural materials. The force to crack the seed on its major axis decreased from 1595.1 to 244.9 N as moisture level increased from 4.79 to 18.53% (d.b.). Similar trend was recorded for the minor axis. The deformation on both axes decreased as moisture level increased. The stress to break the seed ranged from 2.79 to 21.61 N/mm...

Most stakeholders, including farmers and sugar millers, are interested in sugarcane quality to plan for harvesting
season. However, the impact of different juice extraction methods on juice quality is not clearly understood.
While individual factories measure soluble solids content (SSC) to gauge sugar content before harvest, the
extraction method significantly affects the measurement. This study was performed to determine and compare
the SSC in sugarcane juice extracted by the direct extraction method (DEM) and shredded extraction method
(SEM), and to develop a calibration model to monitor SSC in juice using NIR measurement to support harvest
planning. A total of 156 sugarcane samples were collected, and the juice was extracted using both DEM and SEM.
Their spectra data were acquired using NIR spectrometer (400–2500 nm) and uniformly divided into calibration
and validation sets. The models were developed using PLS regression. Calibration models developed from short
and long wavelengths showed significant prediction, with RMSEP values of 0.27 ◦Brix and 0.11 ◦Brix for in­
dependent samples, and biases of 0.05 ◦Brix and 0.00 ◦Brix for DEM and SEM, respectively. These results indicate
that the choice of juice extraction methods can significantly influence predictions of sugarcane maturity based on
SSC levels. Therefore, farmers and sugar millers should consider their extraction methods when monitoring and
predicting sugarcane harvest maturity.

A simulation model was used to quantify the effect of the AERO controller on dry matter loss, moisture content, grain temperature and required aeration time for five Brazilian States during one year. The application focused on maize because it is the dominant crop in the regions studied, but the analyses can be applied to other grains and locations as well. Decision making of the AERO controller is based on simulation of the aeration process and on real time data acquisition. It proved to be an effective strategy and showed its significant potential as a non-chemical preventative practice for safe storage.

Animal houses require an adequate ventilation system to allow for efficient production and, indirectly, high product quality. Indoor air quality is also important in relation to a healthy work and housing environment for both farmer and animal. Furthermore, ventilation is directly linked with emissions of gases with environmental impact, such as ammonia, methane and nitrous oxide. To acquire a better understanding of the complex natural ventilation process in and around animal houses, air velocity measurements were carried out in 1:60 scale models of a dairy cattle house placed in a wind tunnel, using a reference air velocity of 3.5 m s À1 . Six different ventilation opening configurations were compared, in order to quantify their effect on internal and leeward air velocity profiles. The different scale model designs clearly gave rise to variable indoor and outdoor air velocities. Enlarging the inlet opening height led to lower velocities near the inlet, while higher velocities were measured at the outlet. The air velocities at the centre of the house were hardly affected by the inlet opening height, even with the front wall completely removed. Removing the outlet wall at the same time, however led to much higher velocities at the centre of the scale model (3e4 times higher). Higher airflow rates were found in scale models with larger ventilation opening surface areas. The presented results additionally provide a useful experimental basis towards validation of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations.

Although high greenhouse tunnels are often used by growers in the Mediterranean basin, the data on the distributed microclimate within such structures is limited. Experiments were carried out in a naturally ventilated mono-span greenhouse with continuous screened side vents to determine the ventilation rate, temperature, humidity and air velocity distributions and the energy partitioning of the incoming radiation. Results indicate that the ventilation rate increases linearly with wind speed. When the wind blows perpendicularly to the greenhouse opening plane there is a cross-flow between the windward and leeward openings that results in gradients in the air and crop temperatures between windward and leeward sides. Gradients in temperature, humidity and air velocity are observed in the vertical direction as well. The temperature and humidity ratio were larger near the roof than near the crop while the air velocity was higher near the crop than near the roof. The gradients in the vertical direction were larger than those encountered in a horizontal plane in a direction parallel to the mean flow (from windward to leeward opening). The root mean square (RMS) values of the air velocity in all three components, the RMS of temperature normalised by the temperature difference between inside and outside and the turbulent fluxes were generally higher near the windward opening than near the leeward one. Nearly 75% of the net radiation in the greenhouse was consumed as latent heat by plant transpiration while only about 14% was converted to sensible heat.

Around the world in warm climates fans are used to ventilate commercial greenhouses. They are usually mounted at one end of the greenhouse and suck ambient air through openings at the opposite end. As the air moves from one end of the greenhouse to the other, gradients of temperature, humidity and CO 2 develop along the structure. These gradients result in an inhomogeneous microclimate for the crop and are, therefore, undesirable for growers. Models to predict these gradients were developed for the case of constant (with respect to time) ventilation rate, and were verified by experiments in a greenhouse in which pepper was grown. The experimental results were based on measurements in which the 'open chamber' approach was applied to the whole greenhouse. The models were then used to predict changes in temperature, humidity ratio and CO 2 concentration in the air along the greenhouse at different hours of the day. The model results show that the largest gradients are to be expected at around midday (11:00e12:00), when the intensity of solar radiation is greatest.