We developed an open platform (UECS-Pi) that complies with application communication protocol version 1.00-E10 of the Ubiquitous Environmental Control System (UECS) and works on the single-board computer Raspberry Pi. When using a basic package to implement a general-purpose measurement and control function, it was possible to create a node in a short period. In addition, we created an open source software development kit that enables the addition of user-original functions. We created an outside air measurement node and a complex control node using UECS-Pi, and conducted a verification test for 3 months in a tomato greenhouse. We evaluated the period needed to create the nodes, as well as the cost and availability of these nodes to test the utility of the software. The results showed that it was possible to create a low-cost and workable UECS node with this system. In addition, the new platform has the advantage of being open source so that users would not have to be locked in to any particular vendor or product.

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A Java class library was developed to construct a Ubiquitous Environment Control System (UECS), and the developed system was used to control the environment in a greenhouse using information communication. The library was able to implement the UECS communication protocol, so a developer could write a program without referring to the complicated communication protocol. Specifically, we created a program for operating a ventilation fan using data on air temperature that was received automatically via a local area network. In this case, only 45 lines of programming were needed, just 3.6% of the the number that would be needed to create an equivalent program without the library. Java programs can run on a variety of platforms, so the scope of the library’s application is wide. In addition, both the development of UECS devices and construction of UECS systems will be facilitated through the use of this library.

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The Arduino platform is suitable for the development of Ubiquitous Environmental Control System (UECS) nodes. However, its network capacity must be investigated to improve its reliability in practical use. In this study, we tested the UDP packet-receiving capacity of multiple combinations of Arduino platforms running on 16 MHz ATmega CPU and Ethernet communication shields. Test results showed that the mounted Ethernet controller was the primary determinant of packet-receiving capacity. The maximum receiving capacities for 200-byte UDP packets on W5100 and W5500 Ethernet controllers were 327 and 576 packets/second, respectively. Stress on the HTTP server response or on communication with an SHT75 humidity and temperature sensor lowered packet receiving capacity. Therefore, if a rapid response is required on a node, high-load processing must be eliminated. We estimated that the tested capacity of any Arduino platform was sufficient to control a small- or medium-scale greenhouse. In addition, if the packet communication area is adequately controlled, an Arduino platform could be employed in large-scale greenhouses. Sending packets to unused ports at an interval of 1,152 packets/second had no effect on receiving capacity, indicating that a method that would allow more nodes to coexist by isolating port assignments would be beneficial.

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A wastewater treatment system in a food processing factory equipped with oil-separation technology for the treatment of wastewater (Naoetsu-Yushi Co., Ltd) was evaluated by using material and energy flow and water quality analyses. The levels of n-hexane extract content, Biochemical oxygen demand, and Suspended solids in the final effluent from the factory were lower than standard values. Total nitrogen in the effluent was 19.5–24.7 mg/L, and total phosphorus 18.7–20.0 mg/L. Emissions reductions were estimated to be 6.59×10² kg-CO₂/day in the factory from the collection of 1.21×10³ kg-CO₂/day from the floated oil in the wastewater treatment facility and 5.94×10² kg-CO₂/day from the collected oil in the oil-separation equipment. The installation of the oil separation process contributed to improving the capacity of the wastewater treatment system and to reducing CO₂ emissions through the collection and use of both the floated oil in the wastewater treatment facility and the collected oil from the oil-separation equipment.

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Paddy production in Japan is currently undergoing a transition, moving away from the former acreage reduction policies of the 1970s to improve the sector’s efficiency and competitiveness. Meanwhile, agricultural production corporations and the adoption of information and communications technology (ICT) and good agricultural practices (GAP) have been steadily increasing over last decades. This study aims to identify the determinants of paddy yield measured by IT combine within large-scale farms. The sample includes 351 paddy fields from a farm corporation scaled over 113 hectares, located in the Kanto Region of Japan. The candidate determinants include the continuous variables of field area and condition evaluation scores, transplanting or sowing time, and amount of nitrogen, as well as stage-specific growth indicators for chlorophyll contain, number of panicles, plant height, and leaf plate value. Meanwhile, three discrete variables including variety, cultivation method, and soil type are also adopted. Empirical analysis is conducted using a multivariate linear regression, with logarithmic transformations of the continuous variables. Of the continuous variables, transplanting or sowing time is identified as possessing the largest absolute standardized regression coefficient, and thus be the most important determinant. The negative coefficient indicates that earlier transplanting or sowing benefits vegetative growth, thus panicle number and plant height in heading stage, which are identified as positively significant together with field area, and amount of nitrogen. Of the discrete determinants, Akidawara is measured as a productive variety; while the well-drained and submerged direct sowing methods are identified as negatively affecting the yield.

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In this paper, we evaluated adaptation problems to general natural language processing (NLP) when applied to online vegetable- product reviews. Some keywords (nouns, verbs, and adjectives) extracted from vegetable- product reviews did not adequately represent their concepts because of generally low accuracy related to chunking, synonyms, a lack of applicable target nouns, and negative concepts. We proposed concept extraction methods based on NLP to solve these problems, including (1) morpheme analysis by reference to an additional custom dictionary; (2) combination of the verb “する” with the preceding noun; (3) acquisition of negative meaning, conversion of the auxiliary verb “ぬ” to the verb “無い” or the suffix “ない”, combination of the prefix “無”, “不”, “低”, “未”, or “非” with the following noun or adjective, and a combination of the suffix “ない” with the preceding adjective or verb; (4) synonym substitution; and (5) identification of target nouns that have related adjectives.

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