A computer network with SCADA and case tools for on-line process control in greenhouses.

Climate control computers in greenhouses are used to control heating and ventilation, supply water and dilute and dispense nutrients. They integrate models into optimally controlled systems. This paper describes how information technology, as in use in other sectors of industry, is applied to greenhouse control. The introduction of modern software and hardware concepts in horticulture adds power and extra oppurtunities to climate contol in greenhouses.     

Application of ISFETs in closed-loop systems for greenhouses.

In horticulture, growing in artificial substrates such as rockwool is more and more considered to be a sound alternative to growing in soil. This development enables the opportunity to create closed-loop systems which lower the waste of raw materials and reduce pollution of the environment. Applying closed-loop systems needs precise knowledge of the composition of the recirculating nutrient solution. This paper presents basic principles of a measuring system, which can monitor continuously the concentration of nutrients in water. The system is based on ion-selective field effect transistors (ISFETs). By appropriate calibration, a high accuracy is achieved for pH and potassium measurements in the nutrient solution. An accuracy of better than 10% (mMol/l) has been achieved.     

Measurements of trace contaminants in closed-type plant cultivation chambers.

Trace contaminants generated in closed facilities can cause abnormal plant growth. We present measurement data of trace contaminants released from soils, plants, and construction materials. We mainly used two closed chambers, a Closed-type Plant and Mushroom Cultivation Chamber (PMCC) and Closed-type Plant Cultivation Equipment (CPCE). Although trace gas budgets from soils obtained in this experiment are only one example, the results indicate that the budgets of trace gases, as well as CO2 and O2, change greatly with the degree of soil maturation and are dependent on the kind of substances in the soil. Both in the PMCC and in the CPCE, trace gases such as dioctyl phthalate (DOP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), toluene and xylene were detected. These gases seemed to be released from various materials used in the construction of these chambers. The degree of increase in these trace gas levels was dependent on the relationship between chamber capacity and plant quantity. Results of trace gas measurement in the PMCC, in which lettuce and shiitake mushroom were cultivated, showed that ethylene was released both from lettuce and from the mushroom culture bed. The release rates were about 90 ng bed-1 h-1 for the shiitake mushroom culture bed (volume is 1700 cm3) and 4.1 approximately 17.3 ng dm-2 h-1 (leaf area basis) for lettuce. Higher ethylene release rates per plant and per unit leaf area were observed in mature plants than in young plants.     

Design of Switching Regulator with Combined FM and On-Off Control

The design and implementation of a switching regulator incorporating a high-frequency series-resonant converter and a combined FM and on-off feedback control is presented. The combined FM and on-off control results in a better conversion efficiency and a wider range of operational input voltage and output current. A 22.5 V, 50 W experimental regulator has been built to demonstrate the practicality of the circuit and its high efficiency, typically 92 to 96 percent, depending on the input and loading conditions.     

Time-dependent dynamical behavior of surface tension on rotating fluids under microgravity environment

Time dependent evolutions of the profile of free surface (bubble shapes) for a cylindrical container partially filled with a Newtonian fluid of constant density, rotating about its axis of symmetry, have been studied. Numerical computations of the dynamics of bubble shapes have been carried out with the following situations: (1) linear functions of spin-up and spin-down in low and microgravity environments, (2) step functions of spin-up and spin-down in a low gravity environment, and (3) sinusoidal function oscillation of gravity environment in high and low rotating cylinder speeds. The initial condition of bubble profiles was adopted from the steady-state formulations in which the computer algorithms have been developed by Hung and Leslie/1/, and Hung et al./2/     

Reduction of aliasing ambiguities through phase relations

A method for digital determination of a single frequency from a sine wave sampled at less than the Nyquist rate is discussed. The method makes use of phase shift information to eliminate the aliasing ambiguity. Multiple sampled data are required to eliminate ambiguity completely. Computer modeling using simulated data corrupted by uncorrelated Gaussian noise was used to verify the approach. The results demonstrate that the frequency of an input sine wave can be correctly identified. This approach can be applied to electronic warfare (EW) receivers to increase their input bandwidth     

Low observable target motion analysis using amplitude information

In conventional passive and active sonar system, target amplitude information (AI) at the output of the signal processor is used only to declare detections and provide measurements. We show that the AI can be used in passive sonar system, with or without frequency measurements, in the estimation process itself to enhance the performance in the presence of clutter where the target-originated measurements cannot be identified with certainty, i.e., for “low observable” or “dim” (low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)) targets. A probabilistic data association (PDA) based maximum likelihood (ML) estimator for target motion analysis (TMA) that uses amplitude information is derived. A track formation algorithm and the Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB) in the presence of false measurements, which is met by the estimator even under low SNR conditions, are also given. The CRLB is met by the proposed estimator even at 6 dB in a cell (which corresponds to 0 dB for 1 Hz bandwidth in the case of a 0.25 Hz frequency cell) whereas the estimator without AI works only down to 9 dB. Results demonstrate improved accuracy and superior global convergence when compared with the estimator without AI. The same methodology can be used for bistatic radar     

A study of biohazard protection for farming modules of lunar base CELSS.

For the Closed Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) of a manned lunar base which is planned to be built on the moon early in the 21st century, several proposed programs exist to grow vegetables inside a farming module. At the 40th IAF (Malaga, 1989) the author et al presented a proposal for supplying food and nutrients to a crew of eight members, a basic concept which is based on growing four kinds of vegetables. This paper describes measures for biohazard protection in farming modules. In this study, biohazard protection means prevention of the dispersion of plant diseases to other plant species or other portions of farming beds.     

Catalytic wet-oxidation of human wastes produced in space: the effects of temperature elevation.

The filtrate of non-catalytical wet-oxidation sewage sludge was wet-oxidized again at 290 degrees C and 300 degrees C with a Ru-Rh catalyst. At each temperature, repeated batch tests were carried out. Both oxidation and denitrification efficiency of organic matter in the raw material were studied. In the 16 times batch tests at 300 degrees C, high and stable oxidation occurred. 98.0% of organic carbon in the raw material was oxidized and 98.3% of organic nitrogen was denitrified. At 290 degrees C, though high and stable denitrification occurred, oxidation did not occur highly and stably. A catalytic wet-oxidation system studied at 300 degrees C will be useful as a waste management system for a human life support system, where almost all food is resupplied from the earth. This system can prevent organic waste accumulation in the life support system.