Environmental Barriers and Functional Outcomes in Patients with Schizophrenia in Taiwan: The Capacity-Performance Discrepancy

Environmental factors are crucial determinants of disability in schizophrenic patients. Using data from the 2014–2018 Certification of Disability and Care Needs dataset, we identified 3882 adult patients (46.78% females; age, 51.01 ± 13.9 years) with schizophrenia. We found that patients with severe schizophrenia had lower capacity and performance than those with moderate schizophrenia. The chances of having an access barrier to environmental chapter 1 (e1) products and technology in moderate schizophrenic patients and in severe schizophrenic patients were 29.5% and 37.8%, respectively. Logistic regression analyses demonstrated that the performance score was related to accessibility barriers in the categories described in e1, with adequate fitness of models in category e110 for personal consumption, e115 for personal usage in daily living activities, and e120 for personal outdoor and indoor mobility and transportation. Furthermore, the capacity-performance discrepancy was higher in moderate schizophrenic patients with accessibility barriers in the e110, e115, and e120 categories than that in moderate schizophrenic patients without accessibility barriers. However, severe schizophrenic patients with category e120 accessibility barriers were prone to a lower discrepancy, with institutional care a potentially decreasing factor. In conclusion, providing an e1 barrier-free environment is necessary for patients with schizophrenia to decrease their disability.

Book review: Devesh Kapur and Madhav Khosla (Eds.), Regulation in India: Design, Capacity, Performance

Devesh Kapur and Madhav Khosla (Eds.), Regulation in India: Design, Capacity, Performance (New Delhi: Bloomsbury, 2019), 407 pp. ₹739. ISBN 978-93-88630-66-5.

Effect of the APD Receiver’s Tilted Angle on Channel Capacity for Underwater Wireless Optical Communications

This paper focuses on investigating the effect of the receiver’s tilted angle on the channel capacity of an underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) system, in which an avalanche photodiode (APD) detector is adopted as the receiver. Under the non-negativity, peak power, and average power constraints, the lower bounds on the capacity of UWOC are derived in detail according to different average-to-peak power ratios. With modeling achieving the maximum of the lower bounds of the capacity as an optimization object, we prove that the proposed optimization issue is in fact a simple convex optimization about the tilted angle of the APD receiver, and then present related theoretical solution for it. Both theoretical analysis and simulation results show that by appropriately tilting the receiver, we can significantly enhance the final capacity performance of the UWOC with APD receiver.

Is Depression or Apathy Playing a Key Role in Predicting Financial Capacity in Parkinson’s Disease with Dementia and Frontotemporal Dementia?

(1) Background: Depression and apathy both affect cognitive abilities, such as thinking, concentration and making decisions in young and old individuals. Although apathy is claimed to be a “core” feature of Parkinson’s disease (PD) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), it may occur in the absence of depression and vice versa. Thus, the aim of this study is to explore whether depression or apathy better predict financial capacity performance in PD and FTD as well as in nondemented participants. (2) Methods: Eighty-eight participants divided into three groups (PD, FTD and non-demented participants) were examined with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Legal Capacity for Property Law Transactions Assessment Scale (LCPLTAS)—Full and short form. The Geriatric Depression Scale informant version (GDS-15) and the Irritability-Apathy Scale (IAS) we completed by caregivers. (3) Results: The results indicated that both PD and FTD patients’ general cognitive functioning and financial capacity performance is negatively influenced by apathy and not by depression. (4) Conclusions: Differences in financial capacity performance indicate that apathy should not be disregarded in clinical assessments. Further studies on larger PD and FTD populations are necessary in order to investigate the decisive role of mood factors on financial capacity impairment.

A study of the applications of a spring-assisted modular and reconfigurable robot for safe robot operation

A novel spring-assisted modular and reconfigurable robot (SA-MRR) has been recently developed at our laboratory to reinforce its performance, and to enable safe and dexterous operations in human environments. A power spring is inserted between the brake rotor and the motor shaft through a decoupling bearing. With the spring engaged, the working range of the joint is mechanically limited for safe operations, and such a limited working range can be established at any joint position. The safety aspect of the SA-MRR is investigated by operating the robot in a limited workspace created by activating the spring. The trajectory tracking capability of the SA-MRR is explored by comparing trajectories followed by a conventional MRR and SA-MRR in a restricted workspace, while lifting a heavy payload. Trajectory tracking is performed with various payloads to demonstrate the SA-MRR’s superior payload handling capacity performance due to addition of the spring-generated moment. These algorithms have been implemented on a 3-DOF SA-MRR and numerical simulations have been carried out to investigate the improved tracking accuracy and safety features due to addition of the spring-brake system.

A study of the applications of a spring-assisted modular and reconfigurable robot for safe robot operation

A novel spring-assisted modular and reconfigurable robot (SA-MRR) has been recently developed at our laboratory to reinforce its performance, and to enable safe and dexterous operations in human environments. A power spring is inserted between the brake rotor and the motor shaft through a decoupling bearing. With the spring engaged, the working range of the joint is mechanically limited for safe operations, and such a limited working range can be established at any joint position. The safety aspect of the SA-MRR is investigated by operating the robot in a limited workspace created by activating the spring. The trajectory tracking capability of the SA-MRR is explored by comparing trajectories followed by a conventional MRR and SA-MRR in a restricted workspace, while lifting a heavy payload. Trajectory tracking is performed with various payloads to demonstrate the SA-MRR’s superior payload handling capacity performance due to addition of the spring-generated moment. These algorithms have been implemented on a 3-DOF SA-MRR and numerical simulations have been carried out to investigate the improved tracking accuracy and safety features due to addition of the spring-brake system.