Discrete element analysis for the assessment of the accuracy of load cell-based dynamic weighing systems in grape harvesters under different ground conditions

Dynamic weighing systems based on load cells are commonly used to estimate crop yields in the field. There is lack of data, however, regarding the accuracy of such weighing systems mounted on harvesting machinery, especially on that used to collect high value crops such as fruits and vegetables. Certainly, dynamic weighing systems mounted on the bins of grape harvesters are affected by the displacement of the load inside the bin when moving over terrain of changing topography. In this work, the load that would be registered in a grape harvester bin by a dynamic weighing system based on the use of a load cell was inferred by using the discrete element method (DEM). DEM is a numerical technique capable of accurately describing the behaviour of granular materials under dynamic situations and it has been proven to provide successful predictions in many different scenarios. In this work, different DEM models of a grape harvester bin were developed contemplating different influencing factors. Results obtained from these models were used to infer the output given by the load cell of a real bin. The mass detected by the load cell when the bin was inclined depended strongly on the distribution of the load within the bin, but was underestimated in all scenarios. The distribution of the load was found to be dependent on the inclination of the bin caused by the topography of the terrain, but also by the history of inclination (inclination rate, presence of static periods, etc.) since the effect of the inertia of the particles (i.e., representing the grapes) was not negligible. Some recommendations are given to try to improve the accuracy of crop load measurement in the field.

Limit load instabilities in structural elements

Este trabajo analiza distintas inestabilidades en estructuras formadas por distintos materiales. En particular, se capturan y se modelan las inestabilidades usando el método de Riks. Inicialmente, se analiza la bifurcación en depósitos cilíndricos formados por material anisótropo sometidos a carga axial y presión interna. El análisis de bifurcación y post-bifurcación asociados con cilindros de pared gruesa se formula para un material incompresible reforzado con dos fibras que son mecánicamente equivalentes y están dispuestas simétricamente. Consideramos dos casos en la naturaleza de la anisotropía: (i) Fibras refuerzo que tienen una influencia particular sobre la respuesta a cortante del material y (ii) Fibras refuerzo que influyen sólo si la fibra cambia de longitud con la deformación. Se analiza la propagación de las inestabilidades. En concreto, se diferencia en el abultamiento (bulging) entre la propagación axial y la propagación radial de la inestabilidad. Distintos modelos sufren una u otra propagación. Por último, distintas inestabilidades asociadas al mecanismo de ablandamiento del material (material softening) en contraposición al de endurecimiento (hardening) en una estructura (viga) de a: hormigón y b: hormigón reforzado son modeladas utilizando una metodología paralela a la desarrollada en el análisis de inestabilidades en tubos sometidos a presión interna. This present work deals with the instability of structures made of various materials. It captures and models different types of instabilities using numerical analysis. Firstly, we consider bifurcation for anisotropic cylindrical shells subject to axial loading and internal pressure. Analysis of bifurcation and post bifurcation of inflated hyperelastic thick-walled cylinder is formulated using a numerical procedure based on the modified Riks method for an incompressible material with two preferred directions which are mechanically equivalent and are symmetrically disposed. Secondly, bulging/necking motion in doubly fiber-reinforced incompressible nonlinearly elastic cylindrical shells is captured and we consider two cases for the nature of the anisotropy: (i) reinforcing models that have a particular influence on the shear response of the material and (ii) reinforcing models that depend only on the stretch in the fiber direction. The different instability motions are considered. Axial propagation of the bulging instability mode in thin-walled cylinders under inflation is analyzed. We present the analytical solution for this particular motion as well as for radial expansion during bulging evolution. For illustration, cylinders that are made of either isotropic incompressible non-linearly elastic materials or doubly fiber reinforced incompressible non-linearly elastic materials are considered. Finally, strain-softening constitutive models are considered to analyze two concrete structures: a reinforced concrete beam and an unreinforced notch beam. The bifurcation point is captured using the Riks method used previously to analyze bifurcation of a pressurized cylinder.

Contribution to Load-Frequency Regulation of a Hydropower Plant with Long Tail-Race Tunnel

In this paper, a hydroelectric power plant with long tail-race tunnel has been modelled for assessing its contribution to secondary regulation reserve. Cavitation problems, caused by the discharge conduit length, are expected downstream the turbine where low pressure appears during regulation manoeuvres. Therefore, governor's gains should be selected taking into account these phenomena. On the other hand, regulation services bidden by the plant operator should fulfil TSO (Transmission System Operator) quality requirements. A methodology for tuning governor PI gains is proposed and applied to a Hydro power plant in pre-design phase in northwest area of Spain. The PI gains adjustment proposed provides a proper plant response, according to some established indexes, while avoiding cavitation phenomena.

Transversal load distribution on bridge decks

An orthotropic rectangular plate is analysed. The plate has been considered simply supported in two opposite edges and general boundary conditions along the remainder edges. Matrix formulation, very convenient for programming on a digital computer, is used through the text. This technique is applied to an actual bridge deck and the results are compared with those obtained by means of the Guyon-Massonet-Rowe method

Bridge damage identification from moving load induced deflection based on wavelet transform and Lipschitz exponent

The wavelet transform and Lipschitz exponent perform well in detecting signal singularity.With the bridge crack damage modeled as rotational springs based on fracture mechanics, the deflection time history of the beam under the moving load is determined with a numerical method. The continuous wavelet transformation (CWT) is applied to the deflection of the beam to identify the location of the damage, and the Lipschitz exponent is used to evaluate the damage degree. The influence of different damage degrees,multiple damage, different sensor locations, load velocity and load magnitude are studied.Besides, the feasibility of this method is verified by a model experiment.

Optical sensing of the fatigue damage state of CFRP under realistic aeronautical load sequences

We present an optical sensing methodology to estimate the fatigue damage state of structures made of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP), by measuring variations on the surface roughness. Variable amplitude loads (VAL), which represent realistic loads during aeronautical missions of fighter aircraft (FALSTAFF) have been applied to coupons until failure. Stiffness degradation and surface roughness variations have been measured during the life of the coupons obtaining a Pearson correlation of 0.75 between both variables. The data were compared with a previous study for Constant Amplitude Load (CAL) obtaining similar results. Conclusions suggest that the surface roughness measured in strategic zones is a useful technique for structural health monitoring of CFRP structures, and that it is independent of the type of load applied. Surface roughness can be measured in the field by optical techniques such as speckle, confocal perfilometers and interferometry, among others.

The major allergens of birch pollen and cow milk, Bet v 1 and Bos d 5, are structurally related to human licocalin 2, enabling them to manipulate T-helper cells depending on their load with siderophore-bound iron

We conclude that Bet v 1 and Bos d 5 not only structurally mimic human LCN2, but also functionally by their ability to bind iron via siderophores. The apo-forms promote Th2 cells, whereas the holo-forms appear to be immunosuppressive. These results provide for the first time a functional understanding on the principle of allergenicity of major allergens from entirely independent sources, like birch and milk.

HLA alleles determine human T-lymphotropic virus-I (HTLV-I) proviral load and the risk of HTLV-I-associated myelopathy

The risk of disease associated with persistent virus infections such as HIV-I, hepatitis B and C, and human T-lymphotropic virus-I (HTLV-I) is strongly determined by the virus load. However, it is not known whether a persistent class I HLA-restricted antiviral cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response reduces viral load and is therefore beneficial or causes tissue damage and contributes to disease pathogenesis. HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (HAM/TSP) patients have a high virus load compared with asymptomatic HTLV-I carriers. We hypothesized that HLA alleles control HTLV-I provirus load and thus influence susceptibility to HAM/TSP. Here we show that, after infection with HTLV-I, the class I allele HLA-A*02 halves the odds of HAM/TSP (P < 0.0001), preventing 28% of potential cases of HAM/TSP. Furthermore, HLA-A*02+ healthy HTLV-I carriers have a proviral load one-third that (P = 0.014) of HLA-A*02− HTLV-I carriers. An association of HLA-DRB1*0101 with disease susceptibility also was identified, which doubled the odds of HAM/TSP in the absence of the protective effect of HLA-A*02. These data have implications for other persistent virus infections in which virus load is associated with prognosis and imply that an efficient antiviral CTL response can reduce virus load and so prevent disease in persistent virus infections.

The load dependence of kinesin’s mechanical cycle

Kinesin is a dimeric motor protein that transports organelles in a stepwise manner toward the plus-end of microtubules by converting the energy of ATP hydrolysis into mechanical work. External forces can influence the behavior of kinesin, and force-velocity curves have shown that the motor will slow down and eventually stall under opposing loads of ≈5 pN. Using an in vitro motility assay in conjunction with a high-resolution optical trapping microscope, we have examined the behavior of individual kinesin molecules under two previously unexplored loading regimes: super-stall loads (>5 pN) and forward (plus-end directed) loads. Whereas some theories of kinesin function predict a reversal of directionality under high loads, we found that kinesin does not walk backwards under loads of up to 13 pN, probably because of an irreversible transition in the mechanical cycle. We also found that this cycle can be significantly accelerated by forward loads under a wide range of ATP concentrations. Finally, we noted an increase in kinesin’s rate of dissociation from the microtubule with increasing load, which is consistent with a load dependent partitioning between two recently described kinetic pathways: a coordinated-head pathway (which leads to stepping) and an independent-head pathway (which is static).

The roles of prefrontal brain regions in components of working memory: Effects of memory load and individual differences

Using an event-related functional MRI design, we explored the relative roles of dorsal and ventral prefrontal cortex (PFC) regions during specific components (Encoding, Delay, Response) of a working memory task under different memory-load conditions. In a group analysis, effects of increased memory load were observed only in dorsal PFC in the encoding period. Activity was lateralized to the right hemisphere in the high but not the low memory-load condition. Individual analyses revealed variability in activation patterns across subjects. Regression analyses indicated that one source of variability was subjects’ memory retrieval rate. It was observed that dorsal PFC plays a differentially greater role in information retrieval for slower subjects, possibly because of inefficient retrieval processes or a reduced quality of mnemonic representations. This study supports the idea that dorsal and ventral PFC play different roles in component processes of working memory.

Allostatic load as a marker of cumulative biological risk: MacArthur studies of successful aging

Allostatic load (AL) has been proposed as a new conceptualization of cumulative biological burden exacted on the body through attempts to adapt to life's demands. Using a multisystem summary measure of AL, we evaluated its capacity to predict four categories of health outcomes, 7 years after a baseline survey of 1,189 men and women age 70–79. Higher baseline AL scores were associated with significantly increased risk for 7-year mortality as well as declines in cognitive and physical functioning and were marginally associated with incident cardiovascular disease events, independent of standard socio-demographic characteristics and baseline health status. The summary AL measure was based on 10 parameters of biological functioning, four of which are primary mediators in the cascade from perceived challenges to downstream health outcomes. Six of the components are secondary mediators reflecting primarily components of the metabolic syndrome (syndrome X). AL was a better predictor of mortality and decline in physical functioning than either the syndrome X or primary mediator components alone. The findings support the concept of AL as a measure of cumulative biological burden.

Host-parasite dynamics and outgrowth of virus containing a single K70R amino acid change in reverse transcriptase are responsible for the loss of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 RNA load suppression by zidovudine.

The association between human immunodeficiency virus type I (HIV-1) RNA load changes and the emergence of resistant virus variants was investigated in 24 HIV-1-infected asymptomatic persons during 2 years of treatment with zidovudine by sequentially measuring serum HIV-1 RNA load and the relative amounts of HIV-1 RNA containing mutations at reverse transcriptase (RT) codons 70 (K-->R), 41 (M-->L), and 215 (T-->Y/F). A mean maximum decline in RNA load occurred during the first month, followed by a resurgence between 1 and 3 months, which appeared independent of drug-resistance. Mathematical modeling suggests that this resurgence is caused by host-parasite dynamics, and thus reflects infection of the transiently increased numbers of CD4+ lymphocytes. Between 3 and 6 months of treatment, the RNA load returned to baseline values, which was associated with the emergence of virus containing a single lysine to arginine amino acid change at RT codon 70, only conferring an 8-fold reduction in susceptibility. Despite the relative loss of RNA load suppression, selection toward mutations at RT codons 215 and 41 continued. Identical patterns were observed in the mathematical model. While host-parasite dynamics and outgrowth of low-level resistant virus thus appear responsible for the loss of HIV-1 RNA load suppression, zidovudine continues to select for alternative mutations, conferring increasing levels of resistance.

Short-term Load Forecasting Using Neural Network For Future Smart Grid Application

Short-term load forecasting of power system has been a classic problem for a long time. Not merely it has been researched extensively and intensively, but also a variety of forecasting methods has been raised. This thesis outlines some aspects and functions of smart meter. It also presents different policies and current statuses as well as future projects and objectives of SG development in several countries. Then the thesis compares main aspects about latest products of smart meter from different companies. Lastly, three types of prediction models are established in MATLAB to emulate the functions of smart grid in the short-term load forecasting, and then their results are compared and analyzed in terms of accuracy. For this thesis, more variables such as dew point temperature are used in the Neural Network model to achieve more accuracy for better short-term load forecasting results.

Nutrient Load Reduction: Challenges facing the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement

The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States supporting a complex ecosystem that sustains many habitats and the organisms that depend on them. The bay also supports economic, recreational, and cultural activities to over 16 million people residing in the watershed. Changes within the watershed have caused excessive levels of nutrients, mainly nitrogen and phosphorous, to pollute the bay. The Chesapeake Bay Program, guided by a complex agreement, was created to address these and other issues and oversee the restoration of the bay. The most recent version of this agreement, the Chesapeake 2000, declares its continued commitment to restore the bay with over 100 goals to be met by the year 2010. Reports show that although intensive efforts have been made to promote nutrient reduction, very little reduction has actually resulted. This project described these efforts. The final results reveal obstacles affecting progress, shortcomings to current approaches and possible solutions for future implementation.