•Absolute and relative accuracy of 24 UAV-SfM photogrammetry workflows are assessed.•Co-alignment reduces relative errors to below 2 cm regardless of positioning quality.•Co-aligning RTK and generic ...GNSS surveys results in RTK class accuracy.•Absolute z errors are minimized by adding GCPs in least one survey.•We recommend to apply co-alignment in all change detection studies.
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Structure from Motion (UAV-SfM) photogrammetry is increasingly applied to topographic change detection, which requires multitemporal Digital Surface Models (DSMs) with high relative accuracy. Of these tools, Ground Control Points (GCPs) and an image processing method called co-alignment have so far shown promising results for change detection studies. However, there is still insufficient research on the extent of improving 3D model accuracy by combining these tools. In our study we assess absolute and relative accuracy of 120 DSMs generated through 24 workflows of UAV-SfM photogrammetry. Surveys were acquired with two different UAVs with Real Time Kinematic (RTK) or generic Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) positioning, and processed with varying combinations of survey co-alignment and GCPs. We show that co-alignment reduces relative errors to below 2 cm regardless of positioning quality. A single RTK survey in a co-aligned project is sufficient to obtain high absolute xy accuracy, but GCPs for at least one survey are still required to reduce absolute z error. We demonstrate that co-aligning RTK surveys with generic GNSS surveys results in RTK class accuracy for all surveys, even when mixed sensor grades are used. Our findings enable high-accuracy change detection with lower accuracy archived images when combined with RTK surveys. For future UAV-SfM change detection studies, we recommend to apply co-alignment for all studies, and where possible to include GCPs and RTK image coordinates in one survey to optimize absolute accuracy. Collecting and digitizing GCPs in multiple surveys has shown little additional benefit when co-alignment is applied and therefore may be omitted to save time, especially in challenging field conditions.
Food safety issues have recently attracted public concern. The deleterious effects of compromised food safety on health have rendered food safety analysis an approach of paramount importance. While ...conventional techniques such as high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry have traditionally been utilized for the detection of food contaminants, they are relatively expensive, time-consuming and labor intensive, impeding their use for point-of-care (POC) applications. In addition, accessibility of these tests is limited in developing countries where food-related illnesses are prevalent. There is, therefore, an urgent need to develop simple and robust diagnostic POC devices. POC devices, including paper- and chip-based devices, are typically rapid, cost-effective and user-friendly, offering a tremendous potential for rapid food safety analysis at POC settings. Herein, we discuss the most recent advances in the development of emerging POC devices for food safety analysis. We first provide an overview of common food safety issues and the existing techniques for detecting food contaminants such as foodborne pathogens, chemicals, allergens, and toxins. The importance of rapid food safety analysis along with the beneficial use of miniaturized POC devices are subsequently reviewed. Finally, the existing challenges and future perspectives of developing the miniaturized POC devices for food safety monitoring are briefly discussed.
This study examined the safety and productivity data analysis of a dairy farm over a 3-year period following the implementation of a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system in 2018. ...The CCP was “the selection of milking cows” and the critical limit was “the withholding period has passed”. No deviation from the critical limit was observed, the safety of the milk is ensured. In addition, the average daily milk yield per cow increased, while the average number of somatic cells/ml decreased. The number of cows with newly diagnosed mastitis increased, and the product excluded. These results suggest that the HACCP system had a positive effect on milk yield per cow and led to a decrease in somatic cells.
Drinking water is of paramount importance for people’s health. Many outbreaks due to poor water quality are being recorded even nowadays. Although the institutional framework exists at global (e.g., ...WHO guidelines) and national level, there are still many factors contributing to water contamination. Risk assessment tools, such as HACCP and Water Safety Plans, are being elaborated all over the world to act proactively referring to drinking water quality. The present paper aims at reviewing the implementation status of risk assessment tools around the world and presenting the benefits and the difficulties recorded during the implementation process. The benefits include improved water quality, improved operational efficiency, reduced consumers’ complaints, reduced production cost, and reduced potential hazardous incidents. Studying the difficulties, the identification of critical success factors for the implementation of such tools is feasible. Some of the critical success factors include the financial and human resources, staff training, effective identification of critical control points, correct estimation of the occurrence and the severity of the hazards, effective coordination, and efficient monitoring.
The computerized design of non-generated pure rolling internal helical gear drives with combined transverse tooth profiles based on the active design of the meshing line function is presented. The ...application of different combinations of curves, namely circular arcs and involutes, to form the gear active tooth profiles is discussed. The parametric equations for tooth surfaces and the basic design parameters and equations of geometric sizing are proposed. The meshing performance and mechanical behavior are studied in terms of the contact patterns, maximum contact and bending stresses and peak-to-peak level of loaded transmission errors compared with a design of internal helical gear drive with corrected fillet. The combination of a circular arc and an involute connected at the pitch point to form the active tooth profile for both the pinion and the internal gear shows reduced maximum contact and bending stresses and lower peak-to-peak level of the loaded function of transmission errors. The proposed design of combined tooth profiles will contribute to lower the noise and vibration of the proposed gear drives, increase the endurance and life of the gear drive, and lower the heat generation due to pure rolling conditions of the achieved bearing contact.
•Pure rolling internal helical gear drives were proposed.•Design of combinations of tooth profiles was studied.•Recommended combination of tooth profiles was proposed.•Loaded transmission errors were limited to low level.
High-resolution Digital Surface Models (DSMs) from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) imagery with accuracy better than 10 cm open new possibilities in geosciences and engineering. The accuracy of such ...DSMs depends on the number and distribution of ground control points (GCPs). Placing and measuring GCPs are often the most time-consuming on-site tasks in a UAV project. Safety or accessibility concerns may impede their proper placement, so either costlier techniques must be used, or a less accurate DSM is obtained. Photogrammetric blocks flown by drones with on-board receivers capable of RTK (real-time kinematic) positioning do not need GCPs, as camera stations at exposure time can be determined with cm-level accuracy, and used to georeference the block and control its deformations. This paper presents an experimental investigation on the repeatability of DSM generation from several blocks acquired with a RTK-enabled drone, where differential corrections were sent from a local master station or a network of Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS). Four different flights for each RTK mode were executed over a test field, according to the same flight plan. DSM generation was performed with three block control configurations: GCP only, camera stations only, and with camera stations and one GCP. The results show that irrespective of the RTK mode, the first and third configurations provide the best DSM inner consistency. The average range of the elevation discrepancies among the DSMs in such cases is about 6 cm (2.5 GSD, ground sampling density) for a 10-cm resolution DSM. Using camera stations only, the average range is almost twice as large (4.7 GSD). The average DSM accuracy, which was verified on checkpoints, turned out to be about 2.1 GSD with the first and third configurations, and 3.7 GSD with camera stations only.
Since the inauguration of information systems research (ISR) two decades ago, the information systems (IS) field's attention has moved beyond administrative systems and individual tools. Millions of ...users log onto Facebook, download iPhone applications, and use mobile services to create decentralized work organizations. Understanding these new dynamics will necessitate the field paying attention to digital infrastructures as a category of IT artifacts. A state-of-the-art review of the literature reveals a growing interest in digital infrastructures but also confirms that the field has yet to put infrastructure at the centre of its research endeavor. To assist this shift we propose three new directions for IS research: (1) theories of the nature of digital infrastructure as a separate type of IT artifact, sui generis; (2) digital infrastructures as relational constructs shaping all traditional IS research areas; (3) paradoxes of change and control as salient IS phenomena. We conclude with suggestions for how to study longitudinal, large-scale sociotechnical phenomena while striving to remain attentive to the limitations of the traditional categories that have guided IS research. PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
•A comprehensive framework is proposed for risk assessment in process industries.•A combination of expert knowledge and improved fuzzy AHP is used to address uncertainty in failure data.•Bayesian ...network is utilized for probabilistic reasoning about system reliability.•Fault tree and Bayesian network are employed for the risk analysis of ethylene transportation line.•Critical basic events are identified considering dependency among events.
Fault tree analysis is a widely used method of risk assessment in process industries. However, the classical fault tree approach has its own limitations such as the inability to deal with uncertain failure data and to consider statistical dependence among the failure events. In this paper, we propose a comprehensive framework for the risk assessment in process industries under the conditions of uncertainty and statistical dependency of events. The proposed approach makes the use of expert knowledge and fuzzy set theory for handling the uncertainty in the failure data and employs the Bayesian network modeling for capturing dependency among the events and for a robust probabilistic reasoning in the conditions of uncertainty. The effectiveness of the approach was demonstrated by performing risk assessment in an ethylene transportation line unit in an ethylene oxide (EO) production plant.
UAV Photogrammetry today already enjoys a largely automated and efficient data processing pipeline. However, the goal of dispensing with Ground Control Points looks closer, as dual-frequency GNSS ...receivers are put on board. This paper reports on the accuracy in object space obtained by GNSS-supported orientation of four photogrammetric blocks, acquired by a senseFly eBee RTK and all flown according to the same flight plan at 80 m above ground over a test field. Differential corrections were sent to the eBee from a nearby ground station. Block orientation has been performed with three software packages: PhotoScan, Pix4D and MicMac. The influence on the checkpoint errors of the precision given to the projection centers has been studied: in most cases, values in Z are critical. Without GCP, the RTK solution consistently achieves a RMSE of about 2–3 cm on the horizontal coordinates of checkpoints. In elevation, the RMSE varies from flight to flight, from 2 to 10 cm. Using at least one GCP, with all packages and all test flights, the geocoding accuracy of GNSS-supported orientation is almost as good as that of a traditional GCP orientation in XY and only slightly worse in Z.
Digital terrain models (DTMs) are digital elevation models (DEMs) that represent the bare ground surface. They are created by multiple sources, including satellite remote sensing, aerial photography, ...and ground-based surveys, and are often combined with other data sources to create highly detailed models. As the demand for accurate and detailed information about the Earth's surface continues to grow, DTMs have become an increasingly important tool for researchers in different fields. This study aims to create a DTM with a spatial resolution of 0.50 m for São Caetano do Sul, São Paulo, Brazil, integrated with a topobathymetric map of three water courses running along the borders of the study area. For the conventional DTM generation, a WV-2 stereo pair was used. A total of 55 ground control points (GCPs) were collected using the GNSS-RTK method, being 60% used for model building and 40% employed for validation. The topobathymetric survey was accomplished using a GNSS-RTK device placed along the analyzed open streams. For validation purposes, we used bias and MAE metrics. Overall, the methodology presented in this article provides a useful approach for generating high-resolution DTMs that can be used in a range of applications, especially in urban hydrodynamic studies.
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