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This paper presents a simple, practical and low-cost implementation of a power losses minimization algorithm for three-phase induction motors taking also into account both iron core losses and magnetic saturation. The algorithm evaluates, in real-time, the optimal direct axis magnetizing flux component for efficiency enhancement of the drive. A further advantage of the proposed technique is represented by a flexible and low-cost implementation by means of an ATMEL ATSAM3X8E microcontroller. The power loss minimization algorithm is tested preliminarily by means of several simulations, then, experimentally validated by applying the proposed control strategy on a 5.5 kW Field Oriented Control (FOC) induction motor drive. Significant results in terms of efficiency enhancement are presented and discussed, demonstrating that the proposed online control can significantly decrease the power losses of the drive.

This paper presents a detailed analysis of the use of a novel Harmonic Mitigation algorithm for Cascaded H-Bridge Multilevel Inverter in electrical drives for the transportation field. For this purpose, an enhanced mathematical model of Interior Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (IPMSM), that takes into account simultaneously saturation, cross-coupling, spatial harmonics, and iron loss effects, has been used. In detail, this model allows estimating accurately the efficiency and the torque ripple of the IPMSM, crucial parameters for transportation applications. Moreover, two traditional pulse width modulation strategies, Sinusoidal Phase-Shifted and Switching Frequency Optimal Phase-Shifted have been considered for comparison purposes with an optimized harmonic mitigation algorithm. Thus, this work provides a deep analysis of IPMSM drive performance fed by CHBMI, paying attention to various aspects such as the IPMSM efficiency, torque ripple, current, and voltage total harmonic distortion (THD). Finally, experimental investigations have been carried out to validate the analysis conducted.

In this paper, the description of a series of quasi-static pushing tests and dynamic snap-back tests is proposed, involving the base-isolated emergency building of the Palermo university hospital. The base isolation system is characterized by a set of double-curved friction pendulum isolators placed on the top of the columns of the underground level, characteristics that cannot be found in the experimental studies available in the literature. The aim of the work was to investigate the static and dynamic properties of the building in question and comparing the in-situ results with the characteristics assigned during the design process and to assess the level of agreement. Static lateral pushing tests were aimed at identifying the main mechanical properties of the whole isolation level (e.g. friction forces and stiffness). Moreover, dynamic snap-back tests were carried out for different levels of displacement to characterize the dynamics of the building and the re-centering capacity of the isolation system. The design of the field testing, comprising the thrust mechanical device and the reaction RC wall, is described along the paper followed by the description of the in-situ testing and its main results. Then, the role of the in situ tests in proving the structural reliability and how to choose/use them in the case of friction pendulum base-isolated structures are discussed.

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are usually deployed to different areas of interest to sense phenomena, process sensed data, and take actions accordingly. The networks are integrated with many advanced technologies to be able to fulfill their tasks that is becoming more and more complicated. These networks tend to connect to multimedia networks and to process huge data over long distances. Due to the limited resources of static sensor nodes, WSNs need to cooperate with mobile robots such as unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in their developments. The mobile devices show their maneuverability, computational and energy-storage abilities to support WSNs in multimedia networks. This paper addresses a comprehensive survey of almost scenarios utilizing UAVs and UGVs with strogly emphasising on UAVs for data collection in WSNs. Either UGVs or UAVs can collect data from static sensor nodes in the monitoring fields. UAVs can either work alone to collect data or can cooperate with other UAVs to increase their coverage in their working fields. Different techniques to support the UAVs are addressed in this survey. Communication links, control algorithms, network structures and different mechanisms are provided and compared. Energy consumption or transportation cost for such scenarios are considered. Opening issues and challenges are provided and suggested for the future developments.

The energy storage is one of the most discussed topics among Electrical Vehicles (EVs) research. Currently, supercapacitors (SCs) are collecting even more attention due to their unique features such as high-power density, high life cycle and lack of maintenance. In this paper, a supercapacitor model suitable for the simulation in automotive applications is identified. The model parameters are estimated and used to simulate the behaviour of a commercial SCs bank in different operating conditions. The model is finally validated considering experimental results.

Low frequency modulation strategies are a good solution to increase the energy conversion efficiency in high power applications. The paper is devoted to presents an innovative way to low order harmonics mitigation for seven-level Cascaded H-Bridge Inverters. In particular, this approach is based on the mitigation of selected harmonics without solve non-linear equations for an extended range of the fundamental amplitude. In fact, in real-Time operation to evaluate the control angles the polynomial equations have been identified. Through circuit simulation analysis in MatLab/PLECS environment, the effectiveness of the harmonic mitigation method has been tested and compared with theoretical results.

Battery models have gained great importance in recent years, thanks to the increasingly massive penetration of electric vehicles in the transport market. Accurate battery models are needed to evaluate battery performances and design an efficient battery management system. Different modeling approaches are available in literature, each one with its own advantages and disadvantages. In general, more complex models give accurate results, at the cost of higher computational efforts and time-consuming and costly laboratory testing for parametrization. For these reasons, for early stage evaluation and design of battery management systems, models with simple parameter identification procedures are the most appropriate and feasible solutions. In this article, three different battery modeling approaches are considered, and their parameters’ identification are described. Two of the chosen models require no laboratory tests for parametrization, and most of the information are derived from the manufacturer’s datasheet, while the last battery model requires some laboratory assessments. The models are then validated at steady state, comparing the simulation results with the datasheet discharge curves, and in transient operation, comparing the simulation results with experimental results. The three modeling and parametrization approaches are systematically applied to the LG 18650HG2 lithium-ion cell, and results are presented, compared and discussed.

This paper proposes a smart sensing method for real-time monitoring of low voltage series arc fault. It is based on the wavelet coefficient mean-difference algorithm and the four spikes appearing within two fundamental periods criterion with adaptive threshold. The method also uses the hard thresholding wavelet denoising with the universal threshold. An arc fault factor and a load adaptation factor are introduced and combined with a correction factor, so allowing the selection of the adaptive threshold in real-time and the series arc fault detection.

Selective harmonics elimination or mitigation strategies are used in all applications where it is necessary to rise the efficiency and reliability of the overall system. This paper presents a simple approach to reduce the low order harmonics amplitude of an asymmetrical staircase voltage waveform for a five-level, three-phase Cascaded H-Bridge Inverter without solving non-linear equations. Through this simple approach, polynomial equations to evaluate the control angels in real-time operations have been found. The effectiveness of the harmonic mitigation method has been tested through the simulation analysis in MatLab/PLECS environment.

The numerical computation of local electromagnetic absorption at points within the human tissue is proposed by avoiding the mesh generation in the problem domain. Recently, meshless numerical methods have been introduced as an alter- native computational approach to mesh based methods. This is an important feature to generate competitive procedure able to provide final evaluations for large data amounts in real time. In this paper the smoothed particle hydrodynamics method is considered to compute the electromagnetic absorption. First experiments are performed in two dimension at single frequencies by considering incident TM plane wave on 2D cylinder simulating a simplified model of human torso. Changes on tissue electrical properties are considered assessing the numerical approach.

The single-stage converters represent an innovation in the field of power electronics thanks their features. Aim of this work consists in the improvement of the performances of quasi-Z-Source converters by adopting a modified modulation technique, which is based on the Maximum Constant Boost Control (MCBC) and Switching Frequency Optimal (SFO). The results in terms of voltage stress and harmonic content are compared with those obtained with conventional techniques, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed modulation scheme.

This paper presents an experimental investigation on substandard partially steel jacketed RC columns strengthened under sustained loads and loaded until failure. The aim of the study is to compare the compressive response of preloaded columns with respect to the tests without preload to obtain a more realistic prediction of load-carrying capacity of structural columns after retrofitting under serviceability loads. The influence of the preload level, the delayed contribution of the confining device during the loading process and the time dependent effects are highlighted for the tested specimens. Based on the experimental observations, an analysis-oriented model is proposed for the reproduction of the compressive response of steel jacketed columns taking into account the effects of the preload.

Human maintain their body balance by sensorimotor controls mainly based on information gathered from vision, proprioception and vestibular systems. When there is a lack of information, caused by pathologies, diseases or aging, the subject may fall. In this context, we developed a system to augment information gathering, providing the subject with warning audio-feedback signals related to his/her equilibrium. The system comprises an inertial measurement unit (IMU), a data processing unit, a headphone audio device and a software application. The IMU is a low-weight, small-size wireless instrument that, body-back located between the L2 and L5 lumbar vertebrae, measures the subject's trunk kinematics. The application drives the data processing unit to feeding the headphone with electric signals related to the kinematic measures. Consequently, the user is audio-alerted, via headphone, of his/her own equilibrium, hearing a pleasant sound when in a stable equilibrium, or an increasing bothering sound when in an increasing unstable condition. Tests were conducted on a group of six older subjects (59y-61y, SD = 2.09y) and a group of four young subjects (21y-26y, SD = 2.88y) to underline difference in effectiveness of the system, if any, related to the age of the users. For each subject, standing balance tests were performed in normal or altered conditions, such as, open or closed eyes, and on a solid or foam surface The system was evaluated in terms of usability, reliability, and effectiveness in improving the subject's balance in all conditions. As a result, the system successfully helped the subjects in reducing the body swaying within 10.65%-65.90%, differences depending on subjects' age and test conditions., Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables

The aim of this work is the characterization of a dynamic wireless charging system low power prototype and the validation of a simplified mathematical model of the employed double D coils. The difference between a single receiver and a dual receiver system is also shown, highlighting how the last one can significantly reduce the costs of the charging infrastructure.

The paper presents a methodology for quantifying the electrical flexibility potential of air-conditioning systems (ACS) installed in residential buildings according to the building envelope characteristics and the ACS performance. In order to provide a thorough analysis of the issue, the ACS baseline consumption referred to the indoor temperature of 24°C has been computed for three typical residential buildings built in the South of Italy over different periods. The baseline consumption was used as a reference to estimate the effect of the set point temperature change on the ACS power profile. The results showed that increasing the set-point temperature of ACS by 2°C and 4°C leads to a reduction in electrical consumption, which depends on the thermal load and the position of the flat in the building (ground level, intermediate and upper level). The proposed methodology can support Aggregators to correctly coordinate the resources, maintai the grid security and offer Demand Response (DR) programs tailored properly on the basis of specific consumption profiles.

Italian Divertor Tokamak Test (DTT) facility is part of the general European programme on the fusion research. Its specific role is to cover the gap on the power exhaust for the future DEMOstration power plant (DEMO). This tokamak will be built and installed in Italy at Frascati ENEA laboratories. The paper describes the Toroidal Field (TF) coils circuit powered by a TF power supply that feeds in series 18 toroidal superconducting magnets and the development of three software models in order to validate the adopted technical solutions in term of maximum voltage and maximum current stress on each power device/component, due to both the operating and fault conditions, and across TF coils.

We present DEMoS (Database of Elicited Mood in Speech), a new, large database with Italian emotional speech: 68 speakers, some 9 k speech samples. As Italian is under-represented in speech emotion research, for a comparison with the state-of-the-art, we model the ‘big 6 emotions’ and guilt. Besides making available this database for research, our contribution is three-fold: First, we employ a variety of mood induction procedures, whose combinations are especially tailored for specific emotions. Second, we use combinations of selection procedures such as an alexithymia test and self- and external assessment, obtaining 1,5 k (proto-) typical samples; these were used in a perception test (86 native Italian subjects, categorical identification and dimensional rating). Third, machine learning techniques—based on standardised brute-forced openSMILE ComParE features and support vector machine classifiers—were applied to assess how emotional typicality and sample size might impact machine learning efficiency. Our results are three-fold as well: First, we show that appropriate induction techniques ensure the collection of valid samples, whereas the type of self-assessment employed turned out not to be a meaningful measurement. Second, emotional typicality—which shows up in an acoustic analysis of prosodic main features—in contrast to sample size is not an essential feature for successfully training machine learning models. Third, the perceptual findings demonstrate that the confusion patterns mostly relate to cultural rules and to ambiguous emotions.

Solar plants suffer of partial shading and mismatch problems. Without considering the generation of hot spots and the resulting security issues, a monitoring system for the health of a PV plant should be useful to drive a dynamic reconfiguration system (DRS) to solve bottlenecks due to different panels’ shading. Over the years different DRS architectures have been proposed, but no suggestions about costs and benefits have been provided. Starting from technical subjects such as differences of the topologies driving the hardware complexity and number of components, this paper identifies the cost of DRS and its lifetime, and based on these issues it provides an economic analysis for a 6 kWp PV plant in different European Union countries, in which the dissimilar incentive policies have been considered.

Single-stage converters are one promising solution in different field of applications. In particular, quasi-Z-Source VSI topology structure playsan important role because it presents the same advantages of VSI and qZS converters. In addition, it allows increasing the inverter reliability. Moreover, modulation schemes and control strategy are still being developed. For this reason, aim of this paper is to introduce a modified modulation scheme based on the Maximum Constant Boost Control (MCBC) concept and Switching Frequency Optimal (SFO)as reference signals that represents the novelty issue of this work. The analysis has been carried out by comparing the performance of the converter in terms of qZS network requirements, voltage stress and AC current harmonics between MCBC and SFO MCBC modulation schemes.

In this work, a flux and speed observer for double-sided linear induction motor applications is presented and experimentally validated. More in detail, from a Double-Sided Linear Induction Motor (DLIM) prototype, the complete modelling and the determination of the related parameters are here reported. Furthermore, the equations for a d-flux and q-flux observer are conceived and several simulation tests are performed. From the good agreements between the trends over time of the speed estimated by the observer and the simulated one, it can be stated that the observer is well designed. Moreover, in order to experimentally validate the proposed observer, a test bench is set-up for the DLIM/observer system. The experimental results carried out through means of a test bench have shown good agreement between measured and estimated speed, validating the proposed system.

With the increasing penetration of renewable and decentralized energy sources into the power grid, an extended use of DC voltages is expected on both distribution and transmission levels. Generation of DC voltages by means of voltage source converters is associated with a wide spectrum of harmonic distortions at converter terminals, both on the ac and on the dc sides. This can lead to partial discharges in power cables, which deteriorate insulation material thus weakening its performance and reducing cable life-time. In the previously published paper, the effect of harmonic distortion on appearance of partial discharges in cable insulation was evaluated. Here, the study related to the PD behavior has been made focusing on the influence of multilevel converter parameters such as the number of submodules and the switching frequency chosen to generate different voltage stresses. In addition, effects of using a function generator for producing desired waveform instead of the dSPACE board as in the previous work, are highlighted. In particular, it is shown implementation of the former made it possible utilizing the Pry-Cam synchronization and thus the realization of the PD pattern.

The use of a discrete passive filter is the most attractive solution for EMI reduction in power conversion systems. This is due to its simplicity of concept and efficiency in the frequency range up to tens of megahertz and over. The common mode and differential mode sections of the EMI filter contain capacitors and soft magnetic chokes and, when they are used in the transportation context, their design has to satisfy further constraints in terms of low weight, low volume, low losses and low cost in adjoint to filtering efficiency. In this framework the authors, by using an EMI filter design procedure already setup by themselves, investigate, also with an experimental setup, the possibility of evaluating the performance of the soft ferrite components, from the losses point of view.

The sustainable development of our planet is considerably related to a relevant reduction of CO2 global emissions, with building consumption contributing more than 40%. In this scenario, new technological conceptions, such as building-integrated photovoltaic technology, emerged in order to satisfy the requirements of sustainability imposed by the European Union. Therefore, the aim of this work is to provide a technical and economical comparison of the performances of different vertical-mounted innovative photovoltaic systems, potentially integrated on a building instead of on traditional windows or glass walls. The proposed investigation was carried out by means of experimental tests on three different next-generation vertical structures. The related results are described and discussed, highlighting the advantages and the drawbacks of the proposed technologies.

The Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) represents a valid solution for the design of control systems for inverters adopted in many industry applications, because of both its high flexibility of use and its high-performance with respect to other types of digital controllers. In this context, this paper presents an experimental investigation on the harmonic content of the voltages produced by a three-phase, five level cascaded H-Bridge Multilevel inverter with an FPGA-based control board, aiming also to evaluate the performance of the FPGA through the implementation of the main common modulation techniques and the comparison between simulation and experimental results. The control algorithms are implemented by means of the VHDL programming language. The output voltage waveforms, which have been obtained by applying to the inverter the main PWM techniques, are compared in terms of THD%. Simulation and experimental results are analyzed, compared and finally discussed.

This paper presents an economical investigation on the benefits related to the employment of reconfiguration systems for photovoltaic plants. More in detail, different structures of reconfigurators are proposed and, in order to evaluate the economical convenience on their installation, the Net Present Value is used as a validation element. Significant results are carried out from the proposed analysis.

Asset tracking involving accurate location and transportation data is highly suited to wireless sensor networks (WSNs) featuring battery-less nodes that can be deployed in virtually any environment and require little or no maintenance. In response to the growing demand for advanced battery-less sensor tag solutions, this article presents a system for identifying and monitoring the speeds of assets in a WSN with battery-less tags that receive all their operating energy through radio frequency (RF) wireless power transfer (WPT) architecture, and a unique measurement approach to generate time-domain speed readouts. The assessment includes performance characteristics and key features of a system on chip (SoC) purposely designed to power a node through RF WPT. The result is an innovative solution for RF to DC conversion able to address the principal difficulties associated with maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) with sensitivity and vice versa, a strategy, and a design optimization model to indicate the number of readers required for reliable asset identification and speed measurement. Model validation is performed through specific tests. Experimental results demonstrating the viability of the proposed advanced monitoring system are provided.

In modern high-power electrical drives, the efficiency of the system is a crucial constraint. Moreover, the efficiency of power converters plays a fundamental role in modern applications requiring also a limited weight, such as the electric vehicles and novel more electric aircraft. The reduction of losses pushes for systems with a dc bus and a high number of dc/ac converters, widespread in the vehicle, not burdened by a too expensive data processing system. The purpose of this article is to concur to reduce losses by proposing an innovative selective harmonic mitigation method based on the identification of the working areas where the reference harmonics present lower amplitudes. In particular, the main objective is to find a new way to calculate the control angles in real-time operation without solving nonlinear equations, whose resolution would require expensive controllers. Through a very simple approach, the polynomial equations, which drive the control angles, were detected for a three-phase five-level cascaded H-bridge inverter and implemented in a digital system to real-time operation with a low computational cost. As a result, a comparison between the simulation and experimental behavior is presented. In the last part of this article, a real electric machine is driven by considering the appropriate working areas and current harmonics are also evaluated.

Hybrid Energy Storage Systems (HESS) have been very popular in recent years in different applications, from electric vehicles (EVs) to smart grids and renewable energies, due to the growing need to accumulate electricity. The concept of hybridization arises from the requirement of both high energy and specific power. The battery/supercapacitor (SC) system offers great advantages in a DC bus, giving the opportunity to provide high amounts of power to the loads. In this paper, a system composed of two bidirectional DC-DC converters, one connected to a battery pack and one to a stack of supercapacitors, is presented for a DC bus in electrical mobility (E-Mobility) applications. The proposed control technique is based on the concept of power sharing, so that the high-power spikes are mainly provided by supercapacitors, while the battery is responsible for providing the average power and recharging the supercapacitors when necessary.

Under non-homogeneous solar irradiation, photovoltaic (PV) panels receive different solar irradiance, resulting in a decrease in efficiency of the PV generation system. There are a few technical options to fix this issue that goes under the name of mismatch. One of these is the reconfiguration of the PV generation system, namely changing the connections of the PV panels from the initial configuration to the optimal one. Such technique has been widely considered for small systems, due to the excessive number of required switches. In this paper, the authors propose a new method for increasing the efficiency of large PV systems under non-homogeneous solar irradiation using Series-Parallel (SP) topology. In the first part of the paper, the authors propose a method containing two key points: a switching matrix to change the connection of PV panels based on SP topology and the proof that the SP-based reconfiguration method can increase the efficiency of the photovoltaic system up to 50%. In the second part, the authors propose the extension of the method proposed in the first part to improve the efficiency of large solar generation systems by means of a two-levels architecture to minimize the cost of fabrication of the switching matrix.

In this paper we refer to the computational issues in solving Maxwell’ s curl equations without using any connectivity among the points in which the problem domain is discretized. The adopted procedure is able to approximate the electric and magnetic vector fields making use of the derivatives of a kernel function at points arranged in the computational domain. In order to improve the numerical accuracy, dealing with irregular data distribution or data located near the boundary, a suitable strategy is considered. The computational core of the overall process requires elementary linear algebra operations. In the paper the method is presented and the discussion is revolved to the computational issues. Moreover, some numerical simulations are presented to validate the numerical process.

This work presents the design, simulation, and experimental validation of new B-Spline-based modulation techniques applied to a Multilevel Power Inverter (MPI), particularly focusing the attention on the harmonic content of the output voltages of the inverter. Simulation and experimental results are proposed and discussed, mainly describing the potential benefits, such as the increase of the multi-level operation of the converter, and drawbacks (low-order harmonics) related to the adoption of B-Spline functions for multilevel inverters applied in the field of electrical drives.

The power quality requirements are increasingly stringent, due to the continuous growth of devices connected to the grid that introduce harmonics. These devices include DC to AC energy conversion systems, i.e. grid connected inverters. The design, control and operation of these systems must take into account the rules of interconnection to the electricity grid. To improve the quality of the output waveform of the grid-connected inverter, Multilevel Converters (MC) with selective harmonic elimination modulation technique can be used. This paper presents a single-phase nine level grid-connected inverter with DC/DC input stages. The obtained switching angles for THD minimization are independent of the modulation index. The proposed control technique is able to regulate both the active and the reactive power, acting respectively on the control of the DC/DC and the inverter stages.

Over the last decades, plants devoted to the generation of green energy significantly increased their number, together with the demand of same electrical energy, also stored in battery systems. This fact produced the growth of energy conversion systems with advanced performances with respect to the traditional ones. In this circumstance, multilevel converters play a significant role for their great advantages in performances, flexibility, fault-tolerability, employment of renewable energy sources and storage systems and finally yet importantly reduced filter requirements. In this context, this paper faces the performance of a cascaded H-bridge 5 level inverter in terms of harmonic distortion generated and injected into the grid. Through an accurate analysis that takes into account the pulse width modulation (PWM) multicarrier modulation techniques (phase disposition PD, phase opposition disposition POD, alternative phase opposition disposition APOD, phase shifted PS) and related reference signals (sinusoidal reference; third harmonic injection THI reference, switching frequency optimal SFO reference), a framework of distorting harmonics is presented by comparing twelve cases. The results obtained from the simulations are reproduced and validated in a prototype system of five level cascaded H-bridge multilevel inverter. A deep discussion of control and filtering system is provided to justify the choice of the best modulation technique to adopt.

In the field of the PV generation, Quasi-Z-source cascaded H-bridge (qZS-CHB) inverters are promising due to their features of modularity and high voltage conversion ratio. Thus, new topology structures and innovative modulation techniques are continuously being developed to improve the performance in terms of voltage stress and harmonic content. This paper proposes an innovative modulation technique that allows reducing the voltage stress and a specially designed grid-connected control strategy is also introduced. Through simulations in MATLAB, it has been validated that the performance of a three-phase five-level qZS-CHB is improved with the proposed solution.

In this paper we propose a system based on multimodal biofeedback for improving postural stability.

Quasi-Z-source cascaded H-bridge (q Z S - C H B) inverters are one promising solution for high power photovoltaic (PV) systems. This type of topologies inherits the advantages of cascaded converters (i.e., multilevel outputs) and impedance-source inverters (i.e., high conversion ratios). In addition, it allows increasing the inverter reliability (with high redundancy). However, the modulation and control of qZS-CHB inverters are challenging to a certain extent. Thus, this paper proposes modified modulation techniques to increase the performances of qZS-CHB converters in terms of voltage gains and stresses. The novelty lies in the use of the switching frequency optimal as reference signals in the modulation techniques. A comparison in terms of harmonics with selected modulation techniques is performed.

In this paper, a novel approach to low order harmonic mitigation in fundamental switching frequency modulation is proposed for high power photovoltaic (PV) applications, without trying to solve the cumbersome non-linear transcendental equations. The proposed method allows for mitigation of the first-five harmonics (third, fifth, seventh, ninth, and eleventh harmonics), to reduce the complexity of the required procedure and to allocate few computational resource in the Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) based control board. Therefore, the voltage waveform taken into account is different respect traditional voltage waveform. The same concept, known as “voltage cancelation”, used for single-phase cascaded H-bridge inverters, has been applied at a single-phase five-level cascaded H-bridge multilevel inverter (CHBMI). Through a very basic methodology, the polynomial equations that drive the control angles were detected for a single-phase five-level CHBMI. The acquired polynomial equations were implemented in a digital system to real-time operation. The paper presents the preliminary analysis in simulation environment and its experimental validation.

In this paper an efficient numerical method in approximating the electric and magnetic fields is provided. The method is based on an implicit leapfrog arrangement in time and without mesh in space. Moreover, a projection scheme is introduced in order to improve the accuracy of the proposed approach and applied into the computational electromagnetic (CEM) framework. The PDEs governing the process are solved and some numerical results are reported to validate the numerical process.

A multi-objective design procedure for EMI filters in power converters is proposed. In a first step, the results obtained by an automatic design of EMI filters for power electronic converters oriented to satisfy the electromagnetic compatibility standards and the power density constraint which impose the minimization of the filter volume and/or weight, are evaluated. In a second step, the power losses and the cost related to the EMI filter configurations are estimated. By using the dominance concept, the EMI filter designs which are part of the Pareto front are selected among a discrete set of feasible configurations. Therefore, the configurations of the Pareto front take into consideration the minimization of the volume, the power loss and the cost of the EMI filter. The design is mapped onto an objective function space in which the different filter implementations are evaluated and compared.

The mechanism of propulsion in swimming has been widely researched in recent years, but not completely clarified. While it is obvious that the movement of arms provides most of the thrust, it is unclear how each phase of the stroke translates into body acceleration. Investigation is carried out mainly by video analysis or using Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) which do not measure forces. In this paper, we present a wearable data acquisition system for swimmers. The system is composed of two instrumented paddles, measuring the pressure difference between palm and back of the hands, and an IMU. The paddles provide information about the forces that cause propulsion, while the IMU measures the effects of these forces. Data are acquired by a microcontroller unit placed in waterproof case at the athlete’s waist, and transferred to PC via a Bluetooth link. Early experimental data are presented.

In this paper, the network transmission properties of a feedforward Spiking Neural Network (SNN) affected by synchronous stimuli are investigated with respect to the connection probability and the synaptic strengths. By means of an event-driven method, all simulations are conducted using the Leaky Integrateand-Fire with Latency (LIFL) model. Typical cases are taken into consideration, in which a network section (module) is able to process the input information, introducing a particular behavior, that we have called path multimodality. Simulation results are discussed. Through this phenomenon, the output layer of the network can generate a number of temporally spaced groups of synchronous spikes. The multimodality effect could be applied for various purposes, for instance in coding or else transmission issues

In this paper, an original formulation of the control problem for optimal PV array reconfiguration, following a Total Cross Tied layout, is proposed. The formulation follows the well-known subset sum problem, which is a special case of the knapsack problem. The reconfiguration is a measure devoted to mitigate the mismatch effect and maximize the output power of small photovoltaic plants under non-homogeneous working conditions. Therefore, reconfiguration means changing the connections of the solar panels adaptively by a dynamic switching matrix. The control system implements an easy dynamic programming algorithm to change the switches layout. The use of the Munkres assignment method in a post-processing module makes the algorithm able to obtain the optimum configuration for which it is possible to balance and minimize the aging of the switches within the switching matrix.

In this paper proposes an experimental comparison between different rainfall harvesting devices and the study of the corresponding electrical rectifying circuit. More in detail, three harvesting structures are considered: the cantilever, the bridge and the floating circle. For each of the proposed structure, different waveforms have been acquired and discussed. The processed data have been compared in order to suggest the best choice for the rectifying circuit, from the simplest one to the most endorsed in the technical literature.

An accurate monitoring of the professional athletes’ exercises during training sessions is able to improve their performance by helping them in improving the effectiveness of the movement, in the injury prevention and in the rehabilitation protocols. Wearable and non-encumbrance DAQ (Digital Acquisition) systems are required because it is important to collect data from the athlete’s performance in his natural environment rather than in the unspecific spaces of a laboratory. This paper deals with the design of a wireless data logger for the evaluation and analysis of the sport performance. In particular, the system is composed of a multichannel sEMG (surface Electromyography) system synchronized the kinematic signals obtained by an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) placed on the back of the athlete by the use of a belt. The system can be wirelessly connected with a proper terminal for data display and analysis.

The development of HVDC (high voltage direct current) systems closely follow the growth of global energy requirements. In particular, HVDC cables are conveniently used for the interconnection of geographical areas which need a low environmental impact and/or when submarines interconnections have to be built up. The paper investigates the stored energy value in an HVDC cable during its normal duty and if it is possible to take advantage of this energy when the cable is disconnected for some reason. In particular, the idea is to store the cable energy, which would be dissipated uselessly, by using a dedicated system and then reuse it when favorable conditions hold, e.g a convenient economic scenario in the electricity market context. An hypothesis on the use of a superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) device as storage system is investigated and the shown simulation results confirm the validity of the proposed idea.

The paper proposes a cloud platform for analyzing the radiometric infrared videos uploaded by drones which patrol large photovoltaic plants. Thanks to artificial vision algorithms, it does not require any human support to select and associate the framed PV modules to the corresponding ones in the topology of the photovoltaic plant. The algorithm implements an innovative diagnostic protocol, which evaluates the thermal state of the photovoltaic module, whichever the environmental conditions are. The data automatically computed and collected in a multimedia database provide the O&M technicians with significant information to monitor the ageing of each module of the photovoltaic plant. The proposed platform also integrates a cloud-based software, named DISS, which provides quantitative and deeper information about the thermal behavior of the photovoltaic modules.

This paper presents a procedure to design EMI filters to reduce the electromagnetic disturbances generated by electrical apparatus used in avionic environment. The method proposed can be useful to save weight and size of the attenuation systems, and keep their effectiveness in agreement with the standard requirements. A design of a set of different filters with different topological characteristics is presented for a case study about an electrical actuator used for an aircraft onboard application. Performances and reliabilities of the attenuation systems are assessed by suitable full compliance experimental tests.

In this paper, a complete computer aided procedure based on the power density concept and aimed at the automatic design of EMI filters for power electronic converters is presented. It is rule-based, and it uses suitable databases built-up by considering information on passive components available from commercial datasheets. The power density constraint is taken into consideration by imposing the minimization of the filter volume and/or weight; nevertheless, the system in which the automatically designed filter is included satisfies the electromagnetic compatibility standards limits. Experimental validations of the proposed procedure are presented for two real case studies, for which the performance and the size of the best filter design are compared with those related to a conventionally designed one.

The wireless power transmission (WPT) is increasingly representing a promising technology and an innovative solution, especially for the electric vehicles (EVs) battery charging. The inductive power transfer (IPT) is the standard technology of wireless charging: the energy transfer occurs between two magnetically coupled coils. The IPT-based battery charging is especially convenient for E-bikes and the physiological effects related to the generated magnetic fields should be estimated. In this context, this work presents a 200ÂW prototype of wireless battery charger for E-bikes. In addition, the measurements regarding the surrounding magnetic field are given in detail in order to evaluate the actual physiological compatibility of the system.