Anna Maria Lucia Lanzolla

Feasibility of a Photovoltaic–Thermoelectric Generator: Performance Analysis and Simulation Results

This paper describes a theoretical approach to evaluate the performance of a hybrid solar system made with photovoltaic cells and thermoelectric (TE) modules. After a brief treatment of the integrated system, energy conversion and performance parameters are evaluated through numerical simulations depending on the global radiation and temperature distribution obtained by the Joint Research Center of the European Commission and of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The contribution of TE module to total energy seems significant in southern European towns and less substantial when the locations considered are very distant from the equator and show the possibility of using TE devices for energy production.

A Technique to Improve the Image Quality in Computer Tomography

The purpose of this paper is to assess the effect of different noise reduction filters on computed tomography (CT) images. In particular, denoising filters based on the combination of Gaussian and Prewitt operators and on anisotropic diffusion are proposed. Simulation results show that the proposed techniques increase the image quality and allow the use of a low-dose CT protocol.

A Suitable Threshold for Speckle Reduction in Ultrasound Images

This paper presents a novel parametric thresholding procedure to reduce the effect of speckle noise in ultrasound (US) medical images. The method comprises the use of an adaptive data-driven exponential operator that operates on wavelet coefficients of the US image to suppress undesired effects of disturbances, preserving signal details. The obtained results demonstrate that the proposed denoising method increases the medical image quality and, therefore, it can be a useful tool in medical diagnosis.

A Smart Sensor Network for Sea Water Quality Monitoring

Measurement of chlorophyll concentration is gaining more-and-more importance in evaluating the status of the marine ecosystem. For wide areas monitoring a reliable architecture of wireless sensors network is required. In this paper, we present a network of smart sensors, based on ISO/IEC/IEEE 21451 suite of standards, for in situ and in continuous space-time monitoring of surface water bodies, in particular for seawater. The system is meant to be an important tool for evaluating water quality and a valid support to strategic decisions concerning critical environment issues. The aim of the proposed system is to capture possible extreme events and collect long-term periods of data.

Functional Evaluation of Handgrip Signals for Parkinsonian Patients

This paper concerns the problem of recording and analyzing biomedical data that characterize the motor activities of the limbs in patients suffering from Parkinsons disease. The aim of this paper is the individuation of suitable parameters that are useful for detecting subjects affected by Parkinsons disease and revealing the state of the patient. Hence, a simple and inexpensive system that measures the force of palmar grip is presented and discussed, and a suitable software protocol that is able to record and manage the acquired data is developed. Finally, some biomedical parameters have been identified, characterizing the motor activities of limbs. The study of these parameters and the analysis of the correlations between the acquired data permit taking out useful information and details about the objective evaluation of Parkinson pathology, taking into account the metrological characteristics of the used measurement system

Remote Didactic Laboratory “G. Savastano,” The Italian Experience for E-Learning at the Technical Universities in the Field of Electrical and Electronic Measurement: Architecture and Optimization of the Communication Performance Based on Thin Client Technology

The Remote Didactic Laboratory Laboratorio Didattico Remoto -LA.DI.RE. “G. Savastano” is an e-learning measurement laboratory supported by the Italian Ministry of Education and University. It provides the students of electric and electronic measurement courses with access to remote measurement laboratories, delivering different didactic activities related to measurement experiments. The core of the software architecture is the integration of the Learning Management System (LMS) with the remotely accessible measurement laboratories through web services and thin client paradigm, providing a new approach to remote experiments on measurement instrumentation. The overview of this paper is on the different solutions concerning the thin client technology, and the solution implemented is described. This solution takes into account the delivered services to students and teachers and permits optimization of the communication performances. The results of the comparison among the performances of different implementations of the thin client paradigm highlight the advantages of the adopted solution. As a consequence, the description of the thin client protocol implemented, together with the presentation of the LMS and delivered services given in a previous paper, makes an exhaustive analysis of the software architecture of the LA.DI.RE. “G. Savastano.”

Model characterization in measurements of environmental pollutants via data correlation of sensor outputs

The aim of this paper is to develop a simple air pollutant model for the analysis and the characterization of environmental data, acquired by means of multisensor monitoring system and elaborated by suitable software agents. Modeling is basically important in order to validate measured data and to forecast the time-varying behavior of contaminating substances. The proposed model is initially based on the individuation of possible correlations existing between some pollutants. Afterward, to increase the accuracy of estimated values, the influence of meteorological quantities is taken into account to improve significantly the so-obtained model. Finally, some information about reliability degree of estimate is provided.

A Portable Optical Sensor for Sea Quality Monitoring

In this paper, we propose the modeling, the design, and the development of a high sensitivity cheap optical sensor for chlorophyll a and water transparency based on chlorophyll fluorescence and turbidity due to scattering for in situ monitoring of trophic status of seawater. The sensor is designed in order to detect very low chlorophyll concentration and low level turbidity by means of a numeric lock-in amplifier technique, with a common resonant input stage. The sensor is designed and implemented by considering a proper layout suitable for a good light source coupling. The presented prototype integrates on a board two LED sources emitting red and blue light to measure both chlorophyll-a and turbidity. The system assures a chlorophyll sensitivity of 1 mV/2.5 μg/l, a detectivity of 0.2 μg/l, with a 40-dB minimum attenuation of all the other light sources. It is attractive with respect to commercial systems because it guarantees considerable reliability with low manufacturing costs.

Design and Characterization of Solar-Assisted Heating Plant in Domestic Houses

This paper deals with the development and characterization of an innovative domestic heating system that is driven by a solar-assisted heat pump to increase system efficiency. A suitable online measurement system of overall observable quantities has been integrated in the plant to give accurate and updated measurements of all the variables that are of interest to the whole system. A more detailed analysis of the quantities that mainly influence system performance has been carried out, and a suitable mathematical model that is able to describe and control the behavior of the interesting phenomena has been developed. The amount of heating energy depends on the local weather conditions. In the thermal plant proposed here, there is a solar energy harvesting device; this kind of plant needs a highly sensitive control system because of the great sensitivity of solar-powered systems to climatic variations. The use of the proposed system allows monitoring and controlling of the heating conditions of domestic houses without high environmental impact and energy costs.

An Extensive Unified Thermo-Electric Module Characterization Method

Thermo-Electric Modules (TEMs) are being increasingly used in power generation as a valid alternative to batteries, providing autonomy to sensor nodes or entire Wireless Sensor Networks, especially for energy harvesting applications. Often, manufacturers provide some essential parameters under determined conditions, like for example, maximum temperature difference between the surfaces of the TEM or for maximum heat absorption, but in many cases, a TEM-based system is operated under the best conditions only for a fraction of the time, thus, when dynamic working conditions occur, the performance estimation of TEMs is crucial to determine their actual efficiency. The focus of this work is on using a novel procedure to estimate the parameters of both the electrical and thermal equivalent model and investigate their relationship with the operating temperature and the temperature gradient. The novelty of the method consists in the use of a simple test configuration to stimulate the modules and simultaneously acquire electrical and thermal data to obtain all parameters in a single test. Two different current profiles are proposed as possible stimuli, which use depends on the available test instrumentation, and relative performance are compared both quantitatively and qualitatively, in terms of standard deviation and estimation uncertainty. Obtained results, besides agreeing with both technical literature and a further estimation method based on module specifications, also provides the designer a detailed description of the module behavior, useful to simulate its performance in different scenarios.