Vol 11, No 2 (2023): July - December

Objective: To develop a system in the field of medicine that allows to identify patients by making use of security for NFC cards based on blockchain. Methodology: A study of the physical characteristics of NFC cards was carried out to design an external security system, supported by the decentralization of the blockchain, which allows the use of these cards in a field that handles highly sensitive information, such as medicine, in order to take advantage of the practicality of NFC technology when identifying patients in a hospital without exposing their medical history. Results: It was appreciated that the blockchain offers a lot of advantages in the field of security, but these advantages come with a decompensation in the times of writing new blocks and reading previous blocks. Conclusions: A system supported on a centralized and decentralized part provides greater security, however, a decentralized system such as the blockchain comes with a decompensation in terms of writing speed and, above all, reading speed.

Objective: Estimate the energy available for electricity production from biogas obtained from landfill waste using the LandGEM model adapted to the local conditions of Monteria, Colombia. Methodology: For this purpose, information on the loma grande landfill located in the city of Monteria, waste volumes, climate, and waste composition from 2016 to 2028, obtained through databases and other studies, was used to apply the LandGEM model to power generation in biogas composition. Results: it was observed that only for the year 2022 the amount of methane calculated is 9,984,000 m3/year and with this the total estimated energy is 268,4968 MWh, which could supply the requirements of the Loma grande sanitary landfill. Conclusion: The study predicts that these assessment models can be used to plan landfill gas energy production, and thus, take advantage of unproductive land ownership that would normally be used as a landfill and that was previously created for non-destructive polluting materials.

Objective: Teach the operation of the Summit platform and the Powerball robot manipulator. Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) is a quite common and interesting problem in mobile robotics. It is the basis of safe autonomous navigation of mobile robots and the entrance to new combined applications with a manipulator for instance. Methodology: In order to find a solution to the SLAM problem, the ROS middleware and the MRPT were selected. Autonomous navigation was tested using two methods, the MRPT navigation ROS package, which is a reactive navigation method based on Trajectory Parameter Space (TP-Space) transformations, and the ROS navigation stack, a standard for differential drive and holonomic wheeled robots. Results: To validate the advantages and disadvantages of both approaches, a mobile robot with strong kinematic constraints (Ackermann-steering-type) known as Summit was used. As an additional work, an application using the mobile robot Summit and a robotic manipulator (Powerball) was carried out, with the intention of picking and placing objects of the mobile robot, a widely spread application among service robotics, especially, in the area of industrial logistics. Conclusions: Finally, it is concluded that with the tests carried out with the robot, it was possible to demonstrate autonomous navigation, using the two
mentioned methods.

Objective: The objective of this research was to determine the effect of the casabe production process on the final characteristics of the product. For this purpose, three small family businesses were chosen from Ciénaga de Oro, Córdoba (Colombia). Methodology: Physicochemical and textural characterization of the casabe produced was carried out. Descriptive analysis of the texture was performed with a trained panel of tasters, evaluating attributes of hardness, fracturability, crispness, and cohesiveness. Instrumental analyses of texture were conducted with a texture analyzer to determine hardness and fracturability. Results: The results revealed differences between the artisan casabe in terms of physicochemical characteristics (moisture and carbohydrates), sensory texture, and instrumental texture (hardness). No correlation could be established between the texture data evaluated instrumentally and sensorially. The differences in the characteristics of the casabe produced in the small family business are due to the discrepancy between the production processes, giving each casabe specific qualities. Conclusions: casabe can be defined as a hard and fractured product when consumed. These attributes can be considered the primary tool when determining quality as they are important characteristics of consumer acceptance. However, instrumental texture  (hardness and fracturability) does not correlate with sensory texture.

Objective: To determine the conditions for image acquisition in urban areas to detect solid waste using artificial vision techniques. Methodology: Two urban areas were selected, characterization parameters were defined and color segmentation and cascade detector techniques were applied. Finally, the efficiency of the applied residue detection techniques was evaluated. Results: In the characterization parameters for heights of 1.5 m and 0.5 m, inclination angles of 60° and 20°, brightness levels between 300 to 1800 Lux, the accuracy of the color segmentation technique was obtained with values from 71 % to 96 %, while the accuracy of the cascade detector technique had values from 70 % to 96 %. Conclusions: It was determined that, both for the performance of the color segmentation technique and for the cascade detector technique, the characterization parameter that most affected the efficiency is the tilt angle, obtaining an average accuracy of 92.25 % and 94 % for an angle of 20°, while, at an angle of 60° the average accuracy was 73 % and 76.75 %.

Objective: To evaluate the efficiency of fumigation methods against Black Sigatoka in banana plantations that contribute to sustainable territorial development in the department of Magdalena, Colombia. Methodology: The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methodology was used considering five criteria: cost, coverage, environmental impact, efficacy and precision, safety and health. Four experts in the following areas were consulted: Phytopathologist, farmer, farm administrator, public and environmental health specialist, to obtain their opinion on the importance of each of the criteria and to identify each fumigation method in relation to these. Results: A hierarchical list of fumigation methods is established, based on the aforementioned criteria, identifying that the drone is the ideal fumigation method to achieve the objective with 62.41%, followed by manual equipment with 21.45%, and finally aerial fumigation with 16.14%. Likewise, it was identified that cost is not a relevant criterion in fumigation compared to the health of farmers, environmental impact and effectiveness. Conclusions: The AHP methodology is valid for identifying the hierarchical list of fumigation methods, allowing this work to justify the decision to select the most appropriate one and to know the importance of each criterion in this selection. In addition, the use of drones as a fumigation method for controlling Black Sigatoka in banana plantations is recommended as it is the most effective and sustainable method in terms of environmental impact and safety and health of people.

Objective: Propose a mobile system so that citizens can report the trees affectations in the urban environment, facilitating the management of the entities in charge of the tree resource control and care. Methodology: The research was done under the qualitative approach, applying the Design Thinking method to guarantee a people-centered solution. The software engineering process was carried out under the Rational Unified Process framework. Results: A technological solution represented by the documentation and a software product was built. The documentation contains the business model, system requirements, and architectural decisions. The software product is a mobile system that meets the established requirements. Conclusion: The tests carried out allow us to conclude that the developed system intuitively guides the citizen, to generate the tree affectations report in the city perimeter, and the environmental control institutions to facilitates the registration and follow-up of the attention given to the citizen report.

Objective: Compare Li-Ion battery degradation models based on NAR, NARX and ANFIS neural networks. Methodology or method: Neuronal networks NARX and ANFIS were used to model the degradation of the Li-Ion battery. Neural networks trained in Matlab with three different datasets, each dataset represents a different battery and contains charge and discharge cycles in the form of voltage and current curves, at the end of charge-discharge cycle the dataset contains battery capacity. NARX and ANFIS networks are compared to each other to determine which has a lower average quadratic error (MSE). Results: The best model that was achieved is represented in a NARX network (MSE = 3.01x10^-5) with a single layer of fifteen neurons and two predecessor data both at the input and the output. Conclusions: In the end it is concluded that NARX neuronal networks reproduce more loyalty the behavior of battery degradation for the first one hundred cycles of use, compared to models based on ANFIS systems. In contrast the ANFIS models have greater loyalty, after the first one hundred cycles, than the NAR and NARX models

Objective: to determine the acoustic conditions in the learning units of the National Institute of Professional Technical Training of Ciénaga, Magdalena. Methodology: it is a descriptive study for this purpose, 6 learning units were taken with greater exposure to interior and exterior noise, in which a type I sound level meter was used to take 3 measurements in each unit during the three days in which the activities are carried out. academic. Results: acoustic parameters such as background noise, equivalent sound level (Leq), reverberation time, as a consequence, it was determined that 100% of the analyzed units present reverberation times and background noises above the allowed values. It was determined that there are poor acoustic conditions and sound comfort in the units of learning, because they present high reverberations, high levels of background noise and low acoustic insulation in their partitions.

Objective: To propose as a contribution the specification of a set of guidelines and criteria to accompany the processes of design, construction and evaluation of educational online resources. Considering that current accessibility standards focus mainly on the design of web applications, the hypothesis is that the defined guidelines and criteria will be useful to improve the quality of educational resources from an accessibility perspective. Methodology: Four methodological phases were defined, considering Pratt's iterative research pattern, which consists of four phases: observation of the application, identification of the problem, development of the solution and testing of the solution. The methodology focused on the characterization of the Colombian accessibility standard NTC 5854; the design of accessibility guidelines and criteria for the area of educational online resources; the implementation of an inspection tool based on the defined criteria; and the evaluation of the accessibility of a mathematics educational online resource, through the use of the implemented tool. Results:  A total of 26 accessibility guidelines were obtained, discriminated according to the 4 accessibility principles as follows: perceptible: 8, understandable: 9, operable: 6, robust: 3. Conclusions: The guidelines designed, and the criteria defined from them proved to be useful in the evaluation of an online mathematics resource and are intended to serve as a reference at the academic level as a guide for the design of educational resources that can benefit a larger number of students.

Objective: To characterize the microplastics of sediments and water samples from the Molino River in the Urban Zone of the Municipality of Popayán, Cauca. Methodology: Sediment and water samples were collected at three stations on the banks of the Molino River as it passes through the urban perimeter of the municipality of Popayán and transported for laboratory analysis, extracting microplastics by implementing filtration and density separation activities, ending with inspection and counting by microscopy. Results: Plastic particles were determined in all samples, stipulating their morphological classification and their quantity in units of MP/L and MP/Kg for water and sediments, respectively. Conclusions: A total of 4186 MP/L and 62763 MP/Kg were identified. The anthropic influence acted as a main determinant in the concentration of these polymers and their respective morphological percentages, as well as in their classification, which was mostly secondary.

Objective: Carry out a study on environmental management from compliance with regulations in the mining of alluvial materials in the department of La Guajira, Colombia. Methodology or method: The methodology implemented was descriptive and explanatory, with a non-experimental approach. As for the population of this study, it is made up of the Agregom Ltda, Agregados Rio Negro and Orión Asfaltos y Concretos S.A.S. mines, which are producers and marketers of alluvial materials for construction; Regarding the information gathering process, an instrument was used which has environmental management as a nominal variable focused on 2 dimensions and 10 indicators, in a complementary way structured field visits were developed. The validity and reliability of the study is subject to the criteria of expert authors in environmental regulations as a management tool. Results: It was obtained as a result that the companies dedicated to the exploitation of alluvial materials degrade the environmental factors of air, water, soil, atmosphere, fauna and flora in direct relation to the breach of Colombian environmental regulations required by the Regional Autonomous Corporation of La Guajira. Conclusions: The organizations lack strategic plans focused on environmental management measures, which prevents the consolidation of environmentally sustainable mining in the department.

Objective: To develop an evolutionary algorithm that relies on networks of the Barabási–Albert type to direct the interaction between individuals in a population to deal with the travel agent problem. The proposed algorithm produces better results compared to traditional approaches. Methodology: The proposed algorithm combines an evolutionary computing strategy with networks of the Barabási–Albert type to solve the travel agent problem (TSP). In this proposal, the crossing of the population is represented as complex networks in the following way: a graph represents the group of solutions, where the vertices (nodes) represent the individuals or population of solutions, and the edges (links) represent the connections between individuals (solutions). Therefore, to improve the solutions, links are created between the existing nodes of the population through a Barabási–Albert network structure. The proposed algorithm obtains better results than those produced by the traditional evolutionary algorithm. Results: An experiment was carried out to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithm and the traditional algorithm. The TSP was employed to examine the algorithm's convergence and execution time reduction compared to the conventional approach. Conclusions: The results show that scale-free complex networks yield superior average outcomes compared to the traditional evolutionary algorithm. This way, the preferential attachment mechanism of the Barabási–Albert model influences individual crossovers, enhancing the performance of the evolutive algorithm.

Objective: Define the foundations for the implementation of the innovation system and the creation of the R&D&i unit at LIQUITECH SAS. Method: A mixed-methods approach was implemented using an action-research focus, allowing for direct intervention at LIQUITECH SAS. Qualitative and quantitative methods were combined: the former were used to analyze internal processes and organizational culture, while the latter helped measure the impact of the implementation and gather objective data. Results: The company improved research-related indicators, surpassing the baseline in strategy (5.25), processes (5.78), and organization (6.50), with a notable performance in articulation (6.86). However, although progress was made in learning (5.71), it still slightly lags behind the sector average (5.79). Conclusions: The need to integrate strategy and culture into innovation at LIQUITECH SAS is evident, emphasizing the pursuit of funding and strengthening alliances. These actions are crucial for improving the company's competitiveness and sustainability.