Manual fruit picking is labor-intensive and can damage fruit. Fully mechanized picking is efficient, but it also risks fruit damage. Therefore, semi-automated tools are needed to improve bitter orange picking. This paper presents a smart manual picker designed to facilitate picking while predicting fruit maturity based on picking force as well as various chemical and physical parameters using machine learning (ML). The study methodology consists of five stages: (1) manufacturing the smart picker, (2) picking 50 bitter orange samples, (3) measuring the characteristics of the bitter oranges in the laboratory, (4) training different ML models, and (5) identifying the most accurate model for predicting fruit maturity. The results indicate that

Influence of combined square nozzle with helical tape inserted in a constant heat flux tube on heat transfer enhancement for turbulent airflow for Reynolds number ranging from 7000 to 14500 were investigated experimentally. Three different pitch ratios for square nozzle (PR = 5.8, 7.7 and 11.6) according to three different numbers of square nozzle (N = 3, 4 and 5) and constant pitch ratios for helical tape were used. The results observed that the Nusselt number and friction factor for combination with winglets were found to be up to 33.8 % and 21.4 %, respectively higher than nozzle alone for pitch ratio PR=5.8. The maximum value of thermal performance for using combination with winglets was about 1.351 for pitch ratio= 5.8. Nusselt numb

Multipoint forming process is an engineering concept which means that the working surface of the punch and die is produced as hemispherical ends of individual active elements (called pins), where each pin can be independently, vertically displaced using a geometrically reconfigurable die. Several different products can be made without changing tools saved precious production time. Also, the manufacturing of very expensive rigid dies is reduced, and a lot of expenses are saved. But the most important aspects of using such types of equipment are the flexibility of the tooling. This paper presents an experimental investigation of the effect of three main parameters which are blank holder, rubber thickness and forming speed th

One hundred isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were obtained from patients admitted to Baghdad hospitals, Iraq during the period between May 2018 until July 2018. These isolates were distributed as 15 isolates from blood, 25 isolates from urinary tract infections, 10 isolates from sputum, 12 isolates from wounds, 15 isolates from ear infections, 15 isolates from bronchial wash of patients suffering from respiratory tract infections in addition to 8 isolates from cystic fibrosis patients. The isolates were initially identified by culturing on MacConkey agar, blood agar and P. aeruginosa agar then diagnosed by performing some morphological and biochemical tests. The second diagnosis was done by API 20E system followed by Vitek 2 compact syste

This study is to investigate the possibility of using activated carbon prepared from Iraqi date-pits (ADP) which are produced from palm trees (Phoenix dactylifera L.) as low-cost reactive material in the permeable reactive barrier (PRB) for treating lead (Pb⁺²) from the contaminated groundwater, and then compare the results experimentally with other common reactive materials such as commercial activated carbon (CAC), zeolite pellets (ZP). Factors influencing sorption such as contact time, initial pH of the solution, sorbent dosage, agitation speed, and initial lead concentration has been studied. Two isotherm models were used for the description of sorption data (Langmuir and Freundlich). The maximum lead sorp

Signature verification involves vague situations in which a signature could resemble many reference samples or might differ because of handwriting variances. By presenting the features and similarity score of signatures from the matching algorithm as fuzzy sets and capturing the degrees of membership, non-membership, and indeterminacy, a neutrosophic engine can significantly contribute to signature verification by addressing the inherent uncertainties and ambiguities present in signatures. But type-1 neutrosophic logic gives these membership functions fixed values, which could not adequately capture the various degrees of uncertainty in the characteristics of signatures. Type-1 neutrosophic representation is also unable to adjust to various

Proteus mirabilis isolates have been intensively researched for their capacity to cause urinary tract infections (UTIs) and their swarming motility, although little is known about this phenomenon. Probiotic Lactobacillus species, which are beneficial bacteria, are being studied worldwide as therapeutic and preventative agents against bacterial infections. This study investigated Lactobacillus supernatants as a potential new treatment against Proteus mirabilis. In addition to testing their antimicrobial and anti-swarming activities, the research also aimed to understand the genetic mechanisms behind the observed phenotypic changes. Methods. A total of 150 urine specimens were collected from UTI patients at various hospitals in Baghdad. Dire

To assess the biochemical, mechanical and structural characteristics of retained dentin after applying three novel bromelain‑contained chemomechanical caries removal (CMCR) formulations in comparison to the conventional excavation methods (hand and rotary) and a commercial papain‑contained gel (Brix 3000). Seventy‑two extracted permanent molars with natural occlusal carious lesions (score > 4 following the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS‑II)) were randomly allocated into six groups (n = 12) according to the excavation methods: hand excavation, rotary excavation, Brix 3000, bromelain‑contained gel (F1), bromelain‑chloramine‑T (F2), and bromelain chlorhexidine gel (F3). The superficial and deepe

In subterranean coal seam gas (CSG) reservoirs, massive amounts of small-sized coal fines are released during the production and development stages, especially during hydraulic fracturing stimulation. These coal fines inevitably cause mechanical pump failure and permeability damage due to aggregation and subsequent pore-throat blockage. This aggregation behavior is thus of key importance in CSG production and needs to be minimized. Consequently, such coal fines dispersions need to be stabilized, which can be achieved by the formulation of improved fracturing fluids. Here, we thus systematically investigated the effectiveness of two additives (ethanol, 0.5 wt % and SDBS, 0.001 and 0.01 wt %) on dispersion stability for a wide range of condit