Davide Brunelli

Amirhossein Moallemi, Alessio Burrello, Davide Brunelli et al.

Modern real-time Structural Health Monitoring systems can generate a considerable amount of information that must be processed and evaluated for detecting early anomalies and generating prompt warnings and alarms about the civil infrastructure conditions. The current cloud-based solutions cannot scale if the raw data has to be collected from thousands of buildings. This paper presents a full-stack deployment of an efficient and scalable anomaly detection pipeline for SHM systems which does not require sending raw data to the cloud but relies on edge computation. First, we benchmark three algorithmic approaches of anomaly detection, i.e., Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Fully-Connected AutoEncoder (FC-AE), and Convolutional AutoEncoder (C-AE). Then, we deploy them on an edge-sensor, the STM32L4, with limited computing capabilities. Our approach decreases network traffic by $\approx8\cdot10^5\times$ , from 780KB/hour to less than 10 Bytes/hour for a single installation and minimize network and cloud resource utilization, enabling the scaling of the monitoring infrastructure. A real-life case study, a highway bridge in Italy, demonstrates that combining near-sensor computation of anomaly detection algorithms, smart pre-processing, and low-power wide-area network protocols (LPWAN) we can greatly reduce data communication and cloud computing costs, while anomaly detection accuracy is not adversely affected.

Pietro Tosato, David Macii, Daniele Fontanelli et al.

This paper presents the design and the implementation of a servo-clock (SC) for low-cost Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs). The SC relies on a classic Proportional Integral (PI) controller, which has been properly tuned to minimize the synchronization error due to the local oscillator triggering the on-board timer. The SC has been implemented into a PMU prototype developed within the OpenPMU project using a BeagleBone Black (BBB) board. The distinctive feature of the proposed solution is its ability to track an input Pulse-Per-Second (PPS) reference with good long-term stability and with no need for specific on-board synchronization circuitry. Indeed, the SC implementation relies only on one co-processor for real-time application and requires just an input PPS signal that could be distributed from a single substation clock.

Alessandro Avi, Andrea Albanese, Davide Brunelli

Tiny machine learning (TinyML) in IoT systems exploits MCUs as edge devices for data processing. However, traditional TinyML methods can only perform inference, limited to static environments or classes. Real case scenarios usually work in dynamic environments, thus drifting the context where the original neural model is no more suitable. For this reason, pre-trained models reduce accuracy and reliability during their lifetime because the data recorded slowly becomes obsolete or new patterns appear. Continual learning strategies maintain the model up to date, with runtime fine-tuning of the parameters. This paper compares four state-of-the-art algorithms in two real applications: i) gesture recognition based on accelerometer data and ii) image classification. Our results confirm these systems' reliability and the feasibility of deploying them in tiny-memory MCUs, with a drop in the accuracy of a few percentage points with respect to the original models for unconstrained computing platforms.

Tim Sziburis, Markus Nowak, Davide Brunelli

This work presents the design, implementation and validation of learning techniques based on the kNN scheme for gesture detection in prosthetic control. To cope with high computational demands in instance-based prediction, methods of dataset reduction are evaluated considering real-time determinism to allow for the reliable integration into battery-powered portable devices. The influence of parameterization and varying proportionality schemes is analyzed, utilizing an eight-channel-sEMG armband. Besides offline cross-validation accuracy, success rates in real-time pilot experiments (online target achievement tests) are determined. Based on the assessment of specific dataset reduction techniques' adequacy for embedded control applications regarding accuracy and timing behaviour, Decision Surface Mapping (DSM) proves itself promising when applying kNN on the reduced set. A randomized, double-blind user study was conducted to evaluate the respective methods (kNN and kNN with DSM-reduction) against Ridge Regression (RR) and RR with Random Fourier Features (RR-RFF). The kNN-based methods performed significantly better (p<0.0005) than the regression techniques. Between DSM-kNN and kNN, there was no statistically significant difference (significance level 0.05). This is remarkable in consideration of only one sample per class in the reduced set, thus yielding a reduction rate of over 99% while preserving success rate. The same behaviour could be confirmed in an extended user study. With k=1, which turned out to be an excellent choice, the runtime complexity of both kNN (in every prediction step) as well as DSM-kNN (in the training phase) becomes linear concerning the number of original samples, favouring dependable wearable prosthesis applications.

Andrea Albanese, Yanran Wang, Davide Brunelli et al.

The development of safe and reliable autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles relies on the ability of the system to recognise and adapt to changes in the local environment based on sensor inputs. State-of-the-art local tracking and trajectory planning are typically performed using camera sensor input to the flight control algorithm, but the extent to which environmental disturbances like rain affect the performance of these systems is largely unknown. In this paper, we first describe the development of an open dataset comprising ~335k images to examine these effects for seven different classes of precipitation conditions and show that a worst-case average tracking error of 1.5 m is possible for a state-of-the-art visual odometry system (VINS-Fusion). We then use the dataset to train a set of deep neural network models suited to mobile and constrained deployment scenarios to determine the extent to which it may be possible to efficiently and accurately classify these `rainy' conditions. The most lightweight of these models (MobileNetV3 small) can achieve an accuracy of 90% with a memory footprint of just 1.28 MB and a frame rate of 93 FPS, which is suitable for deployment in resource-constrained and latency-sensitive systems. We demonstrate a classification latency in the order of milliseconds using typical flight computer hardware. Accordingly, such a model can feed into the disturbance estimation component of an autonomous flight controller. In addition, data from unmanned aerial vehicles with the ability to accurately determine environmental conditions in real time may contribute to developing more granular timely localised weather forecasting.

Mattia Sartori, Chetna Singhal, Neelabhro Roy et al.

The miniaturisation of sensors and processors, the advancements in connected edge intelligence, and the exponential interest in Artificial Intelligence are boosting the affirmation of autonomous nano-size drones in the Internet of Robotic Things ecosystem. However, achieving safe autonomous navigation and high-level tasks such as exploration and surveillance with these tiny platforms is extremely challenging due to their limited resources. This work focuses on enabling the safe and autonomous flight of a pocket-size, 30-gram platform called Crazyflie 2.1 in a partially known environment. We propose a novel AI-aided, vision-based reactive planning method for obstacle avoidance under the ambit of Integrated Sensing, Computing and Communication paradigm. We deal with the constraints of the nano-drone by splitting the navigation task into two parts: a deep learning-based object detector runs on the edge (external hardware) while the planning algorithm is executed onboard. The results show the ability to command the drone at $\sim8$ frames-per-second and a model performance reaching a COCO mean-average-precision of $60.8$. Field experiments demonstrate the feasibility of the solution with the drone flying at a top speed of $1$ m/s while steering away from an obstacle placed in an unknown position and reaching the target destination. The outcome highlights the compatibility of the communication delay and the model performance with the requirements of the real-time navigation task. We provide a feasible alternative to a fully onboard implementation that can be extended to autonomous exploration with nano-drones.

Luca Santoro, Matteo Nardello, Davide Brunelli et al.

Determining assets position with high accuracy and scalability is one of the most investigated technology on the market. The accuracy provided by satellites-based positioning systems (i.e., GLONASS or Galileo) is not always sufficient when a decimeter-level accuracy is required or when there is the need of localising entities that operate inside indoor environments. Scalability is also a recurrent problem when dealing with indoor positioning systems. This paper presents an innovative UWB Indoor GPS-Like local positioning system able to tracks any number of assets without decreasing measurements update rate. To increase the system's accuracy the mathematical model and the sources of uncertainties are investigated. Results highlight how the proposed implementation provides positioning information with an absolute maximum error below 20 cm. Scalability is also resolved thanks to DTDoA transmission mechanisms not requiring an active role from the asset to be tracked.

Anas Osman, Usman Abid, Luca Gemma et al.

Recent advances in state-of-the-art ultra-low power embedded devices for machine learning (ML) have permitted a new class of products whose key features enable ML capabilities on microcontrollers with less than 1 mW power consumption (TinyML). TinyML provides a unique solution by aggregating and analyzing data at the edge on low-power embedded devices. However, we have only recently been able to run ML on microcontrollers, and the field is still in its infancy, which means that hardware, software, and research are changing extremely rapidly. Consequently, many TinyML frameworks have been developed for different platforms to facilitate the deployment of ML models and standardize the process. Therefore, in this paper, we focus on bench-marking two popular frameworks: Tensorflow Lite Micro (TFLM) on the Arduino Nano BLE and CUBE AI on the STM32-NucleoF401RE to provide a standardized framework selection criterion for specific applications.

Luca Santoro, Davide Brunelli, Daniele Fontanelli

Navigation in an unknown environment without any preexisting positioning infrastructure has always been hard for mobile robots. This paper presents a self-deployable ultra wideband UWB infrastructure by mobile agents, that permits a dynamic placement and runtime extension of UWB anchors infrastructure while the robot explores the new environment. We provide a detailed analysis of the uncertainty of the positioning system while the UWB infrastructure grows. Moreover, we developed a genetic algorithm that minimizes the deployment of new anchors, saving energy and resources on the mobile robot and maximizing the time of the mission. Although the presented approach is general for any class of mobile system, we run simulations and experiments with indoor drones. Results demonstrate that maximum positioning uncertainty is always controlled under the user's threshold, using the Geometric Dilution of Precision (GDoP).

Tim Sziburis, Markus Nowak, Davide Brunelli

This work has been conducted in the context of pattern-recognition-based control for electromyographic prostheses. It presents a k-nearest neighbour (kNN) classification technique for gesture recognition, extended by a proportionality scheme. The methods proposed are practically implemented and validated. Datasets are captured by means of a state-of-the-art 8-channel electromyography (EMG) armband positioned on the forearm. Based on this data, the influence of kNN's parameters is analyzed in pilot experiments. Moreover, the effect of proportionality scaling and rest thresholding schemes is investigated. A randomized, double-blind user study is conducted to compare the implemented method with the state-of-research algorithm Ridge Regression with Random Fourier Features (RR-RFF) for different levels of gesture exertion. The results from these experiments show a statistically significant improvement in favour of the kNN-based algorithm.

Andrea Albanese, Matteo Nardello, Davide Brunelli

Artificial intelligence has smoothly penetrated several economic activities, especially monitoring and control applications, including the agriculture sector. However, research efforts toward low-power sensing devices with fully functional machine learning (ML) on-board are still fragmented and limited in smart farming. Biotic stress is one of the primary causes of crop yield reduction. With the development of deep learning in computer vision technology, autonomous detection of pest infestation through images has become an important research direction for timely crop disease diagnosis. This paper presents an embedded system enhanced with ML functionalities, ensuring continuous detection of pest infestation inside fruit orchards. The embedded solution is based on a low-power embedded sensing system along with a Neural Accelerator able to capture and process images inside common pheromone-based traps. Three different ML algorithms have been trained and deployed, highlighting the capabilities of the platform. Moreover, the proposed approach guarantees an extended battery life thanks to the integration of energy harvesting functionalities. Results show how it is possible to automate the task of pest infestation for unlimited time without the farmer's intervention.

Enrico Tabanelli, Davide Brunelli, Andrea Acquaviva et al.

Non-Intrusive Load Monitoring (NILM) enables the disaggregation of the global power consumption of multiple loads, taken from a single smart electrical meter, into appliance-level details. State-of-the-Art approaches are based on Machine Learning methods and exploit the fusion of time- and frequency-domain features from current and voltage sensors. Unfortunately, these methods are compute-demanding and memory-intensive. Therefore, running low-latency NILM on low-cost, resource-constrained MCU-based meters is currently an open challenge. This paper addresses the optimization of the feature spaces as well as the computational and storage cost reduction needed for executing State-of-the-Art (SoA) NILM algorithms on memory- and compute-limited MCUs. We compare four supervised learning techniques on different classification scenarios and characterize the overall NILM pipeline's implementation on a MCU-based Smart Measurement Node. Experimental results demonstrate that optimizing the feature space enables edge MCU-based NILM with 95.15% accuracy, resulting in a small drop compared to the most-accurate feature vector deployment (96.19%) while achieving up to 5.45x speed-up and 80.56% storage reduction. Furthermore, we show that low-latency NILM relying only on current measurements reaches almost 80% accuracy, allowing a major cost reduction by removing voltage sensors from the hardware design.

Daniele Facinelli, Matteo Larcher, Davide Brunelli et al.

This paper addresses the problem of target detection and localisation in a limited area using multiple coordinated agents. The swarm of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) determines the position of the dispersion of stack effluents to a gas plume in a certain production area as fast as possible, that makes the problem challenging to model and solve, because of the time variability of the target. Three different exploration algorithms are designed and compared. Besides the exploration strategies, the paper reports a solution for quick convergence towards the actual stack position once detected by one member of the team. Both the navigation and localisation algorithms are fully distributed and based on the consensus theory. Simulations on realistic case studies are reported.