Development of Location-Data-Based Orchard Passage Map Generation Method.

Currently, pest control work using speed sprayers results in increasing numbers of safety accidents such as worker pesticide poisoning and rollover of vehicles during work. To address this, there is growing interest in autonomous driving technology for speed sprayers. To commercialize and rapidly expand the use of self-driving speed sprayers, an economically efficient self-driving speed sprayer using a minimum number of sensors is essential. This study developed an orchard passage map using location data acquired from positioning sensors to generate autonomous driving paths, without installing additional sensors. The method for creating the orchard passage map presented in this study was to create paths using location data obtained by manually driving the speed sprayer and merging them. In addition, to apply the orchard passage map when operating autonomously, a method is introduced for generating an autonomous driving path for the work start point movement path, work path, and return point movement path.

Development of a Moving Baseline RTK/Motion Sensor-Integrated Positioning-Based Autonomous Driving Algorithm for a Speed Sprayer.

To address problems such as pesticide poisoning and accidents during pest control work and to enable efficient work in this area, the development of a competitively prices speed sprayer with autonomous driving is required. Accordingly, in order to contribute to developing the commercialization of a low-cost autonomous driving speed sprayer, we developed a positioning algorithm and an autonomous driving-based spraying algorithm by using two low-cost global navigation satellite system (GNSS) modules and a low-cost motion sensor. In order to provide stable navigation solutions from the autonomous driving hardware despite disturbances from the electromagnetic field generated by the spraying device, the proposed positioning algorithm, a moving baseline (MB) real-time kinematic (RTK)/motion sensor-integrated positioning algorithm, was developed using a loosely coupled extended Kalman filter. To compare the yaw estimation performance provided by the MB RTK positioning technique, yaw was calculated by post-processing with two types of positioning algorithms: the MB RTK/motion sensor-integrated positioning algorithm and the GNSS RTK/motion sensor-integrated positioning algorithm. In the static test, the precision of the yaw provided by the MB RTK/motion sensor-integrated positioning algorithm was 0.14°, but with the GNSS RTK/motion sensor-integrated positioning algorithm, the precision of the yaw was 4.53°. The static test results confirmed that the proposed positioning algorithm using the yaw provided by the MB RTK positioning technique based on two GNSS modules for measurement, precisely estimated the yaw even when the spray engine was operating. To perform autonomous driving and spraying, an autonomous driving-based spraying algorithm was developed using the MB RTK/motion sensor-integrated positioning algorithm. As a result of two performance tests based on the proposed algorithm in an orchard, autonomous driving and spraying were stably performed according to the set autonomous driving route and spraying method, and the root mean square (RMS) of the path-following error was 0.06 m.

Performance Evaluation of an Autonomously Driven Agricultural Vehicle in an Orchard Environment.

To address the problems of inefficient agricultural production and labor shortages, there has been active research to develop autonomously driven agricultural machines, using advanced sensors and ICT technology. Autonomously driven speed sprayers can also reduce accidents such as the pesticide poisoning of farmers, and vehicle overturn that frequently occur during spraying work in orchards. To develop a commercial, autonomously driven speed sprayer, we developed a prototype of an autonomously driven agricultural vehicle, and conducted performance evaluations in an orchard environment. A prototype of the agricultural vehicle was created using a rubber-tracked vehicle equipped with two AC motors. A prototype of the autonomous driving hardware consisted of a GNSS module, a motion sensor, an embedded board, and an LTE module, and it was made for less than $1000. Additional software, including a sensor fusion algorithm for positioning and a path-tracking algorithm for autonomous driving, were implemented. Then, the performance of the autonomous driving agricultural vehicle was evaluated based on two trajectories in an apple farm. The results of the field test determined the RMS, and the maximums of the path-following errors were 0.10 m, 0.34 m, respectively.

Association between health insurance status and transfer of patients with return of spontaneous circulation after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

AIM: To explore the factors related to the probability of inter-hospital transfer to a heart attack centre in patients with return of spontaneous circulation after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in the Republic of Korea. METHODS: This cross-sectional observational study used data from a Korean national emergency medical service OHCA database for cases between 2015 and 2017. Adult OHCA patients with a presumed cardiac origin who initially presented at a non-heart-attack centre were included in the analysis. The main exposure variable was health insurance type (national health insurance versus medical aid), which was used as a proxy measure of individual socioeconomic status. The primary outcome was emergency department disposition (transfer to a heart attack centre versus no transfer). A multivariate logistic analysis using propensity score matching was conducted. We also analysed the associations between patient transfer and neurologic recovery as well as survival to discharge. RESULTS: Of 7804 eligible OHCA patients, 1804 23.0%) were transferred to a heart attack centre. Patients on medical aid were less likely to be transferred (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 0.75; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59-0.95 in a matched cohort) compared with patients with national health insurance. Transfer to a heart attack centre was significantly associated with a lower risk of death (adjusted OR, 0.38; 95% CI, 0.33-0.45) and better neurologic recovery (adjusted OR, 0.46; 95% CI, 0.38-0.56). CONCLUSION: Socioeconomic status appears likely to influence the probability of transfer to a heart attack centre after resuscitation.

Association between lactate clearance during post-resuscitation care and neurologic outcome in cardiac arrest survivors treated with targeted temperature management.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated the association between lactate clearance or serum lactate levels and neurologic outcomes or in-hospital mortality in cardiac arrest survivors who were treated with targeted temperature management (TTM). METHODS: A retrospective analysis of data from cardiac arrest survivors treated with TTM between 2012 and 2015 was conducted. Serum lactate levels were measured on admission and at 12, 24, and 48 hours following admission. Lactate clearance at 12, 24, and 48 hours was also calculated. The primary outcome was neurologic outcome at discharge. The secondary outcome was in-hospital mortality. RESULTS: The study included 282 patients; 184 (65.2%) were discharged with a poor neurologic outcome, and 62 (22.0%) died. Higher serum lactate levels at 12 hours (odds ratio [OR], 1.157; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.006 to 1.331), 24 hours (OR, 1.320; 95% CI, 1.084 to 1.607), and 48 hours (OR, 2.474; 95% CI, 1.459 to 4.195) after admission were associated with a poor neurologic outcome. Furthermore, a higher serum lactate level at 48 hours (OR, 1.459; 95% CI, 1.181 to 1.803) following admission was associated with in-hospital mortality. Lactate clearance was not associated with neurologic outcome or in-hospital mortality at any time point after adjusting for confounders. CONCLUSION: Increased serum lactate levels after admission are associated with a poor neurologic outcome at discharge and in-hospital mortality in cardiac arrest survivors treated with TTM. Conversely, lactate clearance is not a robust surrogate marker of neurologic outcome or in-hospital mortality.

Relationship between age and outcomes of comatose cardiac arrest survivors in a setting without withdrawal of life support.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Previous studies on the relationship between age and outcomes after cardiac arrest were performed in settings where the majority of patients died after the withdrawal of life support (WLS). We examined the association between age and outcomes of comatose cardiac arrest survivors in a setting where WLS was not performed. METHODS: This single-centre retrospective observational study included adult comatose cardiac arrest survivors treated with targeted temperature management. In Korea, WLS is not permitted unless the patient is pronounced brain-dead. The primary outcome was poor neurologic outcome at hospital discharge, defined as Cerebral Performance Categories scores of 3-5. The secondary outcomes were in-hospital and six-month mortalities. RESULTS: A total of 534 patients were analysed. In multivariate analysis, age was not associated with in-hospital mortality (odds ratio [OR], 1.01; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.99-1.02), but it was independently associated with neurologic outcome at hospital discharge (OR, 1.03; 95% CI, 1.02-1.05) and six-month mortality (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.03-1.07). When age was categorised into 10-year intervals, age groups less than 61-70 years had significantly lower OR for poor neurologic outcome compared with the reference group (61-70 years), while the OR for poor neurologic outcome in age groups greater than 70 years did not differ from that in the reference group. CONCLUSION: In a setting where WLS is not performed, we found that age was not associated with in-hospital mortality but was independently associated with neurologic outcome at hospital discharge and six-month mortality.

Medium to Long Range Kinematic GPS Positioning with Position-Velocity-Acceleration Model Using Multiple Reference Stations.

In order to obtain precise kinematic global positioning systems (GPS) in medium to large scale networks, the atmospheric effects from tropospheric and ionospheric delays need to be properly modeled and estimated. It is also preferable to use multiple reference stations to improve the reliability of the solutions. In this study, GPS kinematic positioning algorithms are developed for the medium to large-scale network based on the position-velocity-acceleration model. Hence, the algorithm can perform even in cases where the near-constant velocity assumption does not hold. In addition, the estimated kinematic accelerations can be used for the airborne gravimetry. The proposed algorithms are implemented using Kalman filter and are applied to the in situ airborne GPS data. The performance of the proposed algorithms is validated by analyzing and comparing the results with those from reference values. The results show that reliable and comparable solutions in both position and kinematic acceleration levels can be obtained using the proposed algorithms.

Tetra-µ-benzoato-bis-[(6-methyl-quino-line)-copper(II)].

In the title compound, [Cu(2)(C(7)H(5)O(2))(4)(C(10)H(9)N)(2)], the paddle-wheel-type dinuclear complex is constructed by four bridging benzoate groups and two terminal 6-methyl-quinoline ligands. The asymmetric unit contains one-half of the whole mol-ecule, and there is an inversion center at the mid-point of the Cu⋯Cu bond. The octa-hedral coordination of each Cu atom, with four O atoms in the equatorial plane, is completed by the N atom of the 6-methyl-quinoline mol-ecule [Cu-N = 2.212 (2) Å] and by another Cu atom [Cu⋯Cu = 2.6939 (13) Å]. The Cu atom lies 0.234 Šout of the plane of the four O atoms. The molecular packing is stabilized by one intramolecular C-H⋯O as well as C-H⋯π and π-π interactions.