The LabVIEW FPGA platform is based on graphical programming approach, which makes easy the FPGA programming and the I/O interfacing. The LabVIEW FPGA significantly improves the design productivity and helps to reduce the time to market. On the other hand, traditional FPGA platform is helpful to get an efficient/optimized design by providing control over each bit using HDL programming languages. This work utilized traditional as well as LabVIEW FPGA platforms to get an optimized high speed design of AES (Advanced Encryption Standard). The AES is considered to be a secure and reliable cryptographic algorithm that is used worldwide to provide encryption services, which hide the information during communication over untrusted networks, like Internet. Here, AES core is proposed to secure the communication between ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) and control station in a marine environment; but this core can be fit in any other high speed electronic communications. This work provides encryption of 128-bytes, 256-bytes and 512-bytes set of inputs (individually and simultaneously) using a 128-bit key. In case of simultaneous implementation, all the above mentioned set of inputs is encrypted in parallel. This simultaneous implementation is resulted in throughput of Gbps range.

Objective. To revise the current juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) International League of Associations for Rheumatology (ILAR) classification criteria with an evidence-based approach, using clinical and routine laboratory measures available worldwide, to identify homogeneous clinical groups and to distinguish those forms of chronic arthritis typically seen only in children from the childhood counterpart of adult diseases. Methods. The overall project consists of 4 steps. This work represents Step 1, a Delphi Web-based consensus and Step 2, an international nominal group technique (NGT) consensus conference for the new provisional Pediatric Rheumatology International Trials Organization JIA classification criteria. A future large data collection of at least 1000 new-onset JIA patients (Step 3) followed by analysis and NGT consensus (Step 4) will provide data for the evidence-based validation of the JIA classification criteria. Results. In Step 1, three Delphi rounds of interactions were implemented to revise the 7 ILAR JIA categories. In Step 2, forty-seven questions with electronic voting were implemented to derive the new proposed criteria. Four disorders were proposed: (a) systemic JIA; (b) rheumatoid factor–positive JIA; (c) enthesitis/spondylitis-related JIA; and (d) early-onset antinuclear antibody–positive JIA. The other forms were gathered under the term “others.” These will be analyzed during the prospective data collection using a list of descriptors to see whether the clustering of some of them could identify homogeneous entities. Conclusion. An international consensus was reached to identify different proposed homogeneous chronic disorders that fall under the historical term JIA. These preliminary criteria will be formally validated with a dedicated project.

Distributed energy trading among energy prosumers (i.e., energy producers that also consume energy) is expected to bring significant cost benefits for the participating actors. In terms of the system architecture, physical grouping into microgrids (MG) can be further enhanced by communication infrastructure that provides support for flexible organization of prosumers into virtual MGs. However, how to manage prosumers using communication infrastructure is not widely investigated. In this paper, we propose a virtual MG architecture induced by communication constraints and consider its impact on total costs of energy trading. More precisely, we refine the distributed energy trading model considered in the recent literature with additional communication constraints and investigate impact of the resulting virtualized MG architecture on the overall energy trading costs. We show by simulations that there indeed exists an optimal energy trading architecture that achieves minimum possible energy trading cost, for any given model parameters.

Introduction: The most common mental disorders in elderly, beside dementia, are depression and anxiety, which are important public health problem, although they are diagnosed and treated in under 20% of the population. Mental health care for elderly is one of the indicators of quality or omissions in the health system of a country. Aim: The aim of the study was to examine the incidence of depression and anxiety among the elderly in the Livno area. Material and methods: Across-sectional study was carried out in the Livno area through June 2017 on a sample of 100 respondents (N=100). Inclusion criteria: age over 65 years. Exclusion criteria: persons with malignancy, persons with psychiatric diagnosis or dementia. Research tools used: Questionnaire on sociodemographic status and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Self Evaluation Scale (HAD). Results: More than 90% of the respondents of both genders were estimated to be borderline depressed or depressed. There was a higher incidence of depression among male respondents, and anxiety among female respondents. Probably and borderline anxiety is recorded in 84% of respondents, which exceed the results of all available literature data. Religious habits have no influence on the occurrence of depression but there is a connection between prayer and anxiety occurrence. Conclusion: This research has established an extremely high incidence of depression and anxiety among the elderly in the Livno area. The results of the available studies indicate significantly lower rates of occurrence than in the tested sample. Socioeconomic status did not prove to be a significant predictor of the occurrence of these disorders.

This paper proposes a method for the scaled bilateral teleoperation with continuously variable position and force scaling. In the proposed method, the controller is reformulated to synchronize the forces and velocities which provides the operator with the ability to change the scaling gains during operation. For the derivation of the controller, exponentially decaying error dynamics are preferred over the assumption of disturbance compensation with Disturbance Observers (DOB). Following the mathematical derivation, the algorithm is tested on a setup containing single DOF master and slave robots with the ability of giving force feedback to the operator. In order to provide a complete analysis, several different sets of experiments are made with sinusoidal velocity and force scales having different amplitudes and frequencies. Experiment results illustrate the successful tracking responses and stable operation of the proposed control scheme for the continuously varying velocity and force scales.

This paper presents a controller structure for the continuous and robust modification of motion for multi body systems encountering contact with an environment during free motion. The presented algorithm relies on the reformulation of the position tracking error with a term proportional to the reaction force. With the proposed method, fusion of the position and the force controllers can be achieved which provide the robot with certain level of compliance. The derivation of the proposed method is followed by experiments made on a pantograph mechanism actuated by direct drive linear motors. The results obtained from the experiments illustrate the success of the proposed control architecture in providing a natural behavior for the robotic systems working in constrained environments.

This article gives an overview of TSO-DSO data exchanges when face the challenges posed by distributed energy resources and flexibility services in the distribution grid. Roles of TSOs and DSOs in the coordinated power system architecture are explained and use cases for TSO-DSO data exchange are provided. ICT architecture that supports data exchange in the coordinated power system is presented, with commonly used protocols. Additionally, the application of Internet of Things architecture is presented as a technology enabler for TSO-DSO data exchange in the near future. This paper is based on the H2020 TDX-ASSIST (www.tdx-assist.eu) deliverable D1.1 “TSO-DSO state of the art”.

A fuzzy formula does not necessarily follow from a set of fuzzy formulas. In the case when fuzzy formulas and fuzzy dependencies are mutually identified, the corresponding equivalent statement has an obvious meaning. An affirmative statement, however, rises the question of automatization. In our earlier research, we offered an efficient algorithm based on application of selected fuzzy logic operators and resolution principle. In this paper we prove that those ingredients of the algorithm that explicitly depend on the choice of fuzzy implication operator, hold also true for the class of g-generated fuzzy implications.

* Correspondence: sabina.seric-haracic@vfs.unsa.ba

BACKGROUND MS symptoms affect many functional domains. Knowing the specific impact of symptoms on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is vital for successful disease and symptom management in MS. We aimed at investigating how specific MS symptoms contribute to the disease burden in individuals and from a population perspective. METHODS We included 855 Swiss Multiple Sclerosis Registry participants with a relapsing-remitting form (RRMS) or a progressive form (PMS). HRQoL was measured with the EuroQol 5-Dimension EQ-5D-index and EQ-Visual Analogue Scale (EQ-VAS) on 0-100% scales. Their associations with 20 symptoms, socio-demographic and clinical information were explored in median regression models, stratified by RRMS and PMS. RESULTS We included 611 participants with RRMS and 244 with PMS. In RRMS, gait (-6.5%) and balance problems (-5.1%) had the largest EQ-5D-index reductions, and were also important at the population level (frequencies 45% and 52%). Fatigue, depression, and spasticity (frequencies 74.1%, 31%, 38%) also contributed to the population disease burden. In PMS, spasticity, paralysis, and bowel problems had the largest impact on EQ-5D-index, both at the individual and population levels. The largest impact on EQ-VAS at population level was associated in RRMS with balance problems, depression, dizziness, and spasticity, while in PMS with weakness, pain, and paralysis. CONCLUSIONS While HRQoL at population level is most affected by balance problems, spasticity, and depression in RRMS, the biggest HRQoL losses in PMS are caused by spasticity, paralysis, weakness, and pain. Many symptoms with the largest effects in individuals substantially contribute to the population disease burden.