Buele, Jorge
Thumbnail Image
Preferred name
Buele, Jorge
Main Affiliation
Ambato
Email
jorgebuele@uti.edu.ec
ORCID
Scopus Author ID
57200380202

Research Output

Filters
Reset filters

Settings
Now showing 1 - 10 of 56
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Effects of a dual intervention (motor and virtual reality-based cognitive) on cognition in patients with mild cognitive impairment: a single-blind, randomized controlled trial

2024 , Buele, Jorge , Avilés-Castillo, Fátima , Carolina Del-Valle-Soto , Varela Aldas, José , Guillermo Palacios-Navarro

Abstract Background The increase in cases of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) underlines the urgency of finding effective methods to slow its progression. Given the limited effectiveness of current pharmacological options to prevent or treat the early stages of this deterioration, non-pharmacological alternatives are especially relevant. Objective To assess the effectiveness of a cognitive-motor intervention based on immersive virtual reality (VR) that simulates an activity of daily living (ADL) on cognitive functions and its impact on depression and the ability to perform such activities in patients with MCI. Methods Thirty-four older adults (men, women) with MCI were randomized to the experimental group (n = 17; 75.41 ± 5.76) or control (n = 17; 77.35 ± 6.75) group. Both groups received motor training, through aerobic, balance and resistance activities in group. Subsequently, the experimental group received cognitive training based on VR, while the control group received traditional cognitive training. Cognitive functions, depression, and the ability to perform activities of daily living (ADLs) were assessed using the Spanish versions of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-S), the Short Geriatric Depression Scale (SGDS-S), and the of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL-S) before and after 6-week intervention (a total of twelve 40-minutes sessions). Results Between groups comparison did not reveal significant differences in either cognitive function or geriatric depression. The intragroup effect of cognitive function and geriatric depression was significant in both groups (p < 0.001), with large effect sizes. There was no statistically significant improvement in any of the groups when evaluating their performance in ADLs (control, p = 0.28; experimental, p = 0.46) as expected. The completion rate in the experimental group was higher (82.35%) compared to the control group (70.59%). Likewise, participants in the experimental group reached a higher level of difficulty in the application and needed less time to complete the task at each level. Conclusions The application of a dual intervention, through motor training prior to a cognitive task based on Immersive VR was shown to be a beneficial non-pharmacological strategy to improve cognitive functions and reduce depression in patients with MCI. Similarly, the control group benefited from such dual intervention with statistically significant improvements. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT06313931; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06313931.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Prototype System of Geolocation Educational Public Transport Through Google Maps API

2020 , Salazar F.W. , Naranjo-Ávalos H. , Buele, Jorge , Pintag M.J. , Buenaño É.R. , Reinoso C. , Urrutia-Urrutia P. , Varela Aldas, José

Urban traffic complications in most underdeveloped countries and congestion in all metropolitan areas has become a daily problem with a difficult solution. Disorganized mobility of drivers and pedestrians along with the increase in travel time, non-compliance with schedules, air pollution and intolerable sound levels, have harmful effects on human health. Therefore, this research describes a geolocation system of urban transport through a mobile application developed on the Xamarin platform. Drivers send the latitude and longitude points when starting a route, this data will be sent to the SQL SERVER online database server, using the SmarterASP.NET platform. By developing the geolocation system in ASP.NET, the coordinates are available to users in an interval of 5 s. The developed interface shows a location map, where the route in real time is presented. It also shows the administration of users, drivers, buses, assignment of routes, assignment of buses and registration of static routes. Being a prototype system, the university transport system has been taken as an object of study to corroborate its correct operation with the respective experimental tests. Satisfaction surveys have also been carried out on a group of 300 people, among students and university teachers and their validation is carried out through the Technological Acceptance Model (TAM). To interpret the results, Kendall Tau-b correlation analysis was used, obtaining positive correlation values with a high significance value. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Virtual goniometer using 3 space mocap sensors for lower limbs evaluation

2020 , Buele, Jorge , Pilatásig, M. , Angueta, H. , Ruales, María Belén , Varela Aldas, José

The deterioration of motor skills in lower limbs represents a reduction in people’s quality of life. This paper presents a virtual goniometer developed by the 3 Space Mocap sensors and Unity 3D software. The system shows lower limbs angles in real-time. This system helps physiatrists determine the movements of hip and knee and was compared with a goniometer to corroborate the system performance. To validate this prototype, comparative tests are carried out present a standard deviation of 1.86° and 2.12° in the left hip and knee respectively. Therefore, it confirms to be a reliable proposal for physical evaluations of lower limbs. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Vehicle locking system using an electronic breathalyzer and notification by mobile communication

2020 , Brito, G. , Salazar, F.W. , Lema, E.O. , Sánchez, A.P. , Pérez, H.V. , Buele, Jorge

This paper presents the implementation of a prototype to lock/unlock the vehicle ignition system. It involves the adaptation of an opto-isolated relay, which has been equipped with a wireless interface of the MQTT protocol. The relay activation is controlled by an embedded board Raspberry Pi 3; it acts as the main unit of the proposed system. The executed control actions are given depending on the information received by radiofrequency from an implemented electronic breathalyzer. This device evaluates the alcohol level and humidity in the driver's breath using the MQ-3 and DHT11 sensors. In addition, a mobile communication platform compatible with Android smartphones is provided to inform the enabling/disabling of the vehicle's ignition system, its geographical location by GPS coordinates and a front facial photograph of the driver. All these features are incorporated by a wireless local network (WiFi) for the elements that make up the prototype. This work also presents the transmission of information to mobile terminals compatible with the Telegram instant messaging system through the UMTS network. In order to validate this proposal, the corresponding tests are carried out and their comparison with a commercial device. © 2020 American Scientific Publishers.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Sustainable Development in Higher Education Curricula for Software Engineering Chairs

2023 , León Toro, Jenny Marcela , Buele, Jorge , Camino-Morejón V.M. , Ayala-Chauvin, Manuel Ignacio

Nowadays, society demands that high quality teaching practices must be part of the curriculum in higher education institutions. The interdisciplinarity view of the contents taught has made the technical aspects of engineering merge with social, cultural, and economic nuances. In this sense, the new generations of students show their interest in learning and carrying out activities that contribute to sustainability, for this reason, the inclusion of ecological themes in the subjects of computer science and software career is required. A bibliographical analysis was carried out that allowed recognition of main concepts and methodologies applied to the subject. As a result of them, an adjustment of chairs is presented allowing integrating conventional teaching with the new trends of green technology. Reforms were implemented from introductory courses to theoretical knowledge of green software, to the development of web applications with the same approach. In the same way, it involves the management of computer projects, modeling, monitoring, and optimization of resources, and green evaluation. According to the socio-educational model, the articulation between technology and sustainability will allow managing software projects that provide real solutions to problems in context. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

System for Monitoring and Warning of the Ultraviolet Radiation Index: A Study Case in Ecuador Elementary Schools

2020 , Buele, Jorge , Chango F.I. , Chango M.L.Á. , Santamaría M. , Varela Aldas, José

Solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation has increased in recent years due to ozone layer depletion and in Ecuador in particular, due to its geographical position and the height of its cities. Prolonged sun exposures in childhood increase the risk of causing malignant effects on the skin and eyes, such as squamous cell carcinoma, melanoma and cataracts. For this reason, this document describes the design of a device based on UV optical sensors that allows determining the existing radiation index. As a processing unit there is the Raspberry Pi 3B+ embedded board and to display the data physically there are LED panels. The storage of information is done through a database managed by MySQL and also implemented on the board. The levels of the ultraviolet radiation index (UVI) are presented through a graphical user interface (GUI) in real time, which also allows generating a report in a.csv file. Functional tests were carried out in the central courtyard of two educational units, to raise awareness among parents and authorities on the adoption of preventive measures that avoid possible damage to the skin of children when carrying out outdoor activities. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Perceptions and Dispositions of Parents and Teachers Toward Technological Learning Communities

2023 , Núñez-Hernández C. , Buele, Jorge

The search for strategies to improve students’ academic performance is increasingly common in education. Parents’ participation and teachers’ attention are key factors in forming a learning community. This article presents the results of a survey in which relevant statistical data was obtained. A significant association (p = 0.571) was found between the frequency with which parents help their children understand school content and their willingness to be part of a learning community, representing 40.65% of the population. In addition, it was found that 66.67% of parents frequently meet with their children’s teachers because they often solve the children’s doubts. Regarding the attention of teachers, it was evidenced that 64.71% of parents who meet very frequently with teachers do so with those who very frequently resolve children’s doubts effectively, which shows a correlation significant (p = 0.467). Finally, the relationship between the degree of mastery of teachers in learning management platforms and their participation in forming learning communities was analyzed. A significant correlation (phi = 0.321) was found between the degree of mastery of teachers in these platforms and their participation in the formation of learning communities, with 28.24% of teachers having sufficient mastery and 20.61% of those with a moderate domain. These findings highlight the importance of parent-teacher collaboration in fostering a culture of learning in school and improving student academic achievement. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2023.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Virtual environment application that complements the treatment of dyslexia (VEATD) in children

2020 , Buele, Jorge , López, V.M. , Varela Aldas, José , Soria, A. , Palacios-Navarro, G.

The educational disorders that children present at an early age can cause them to not fully develop throughout their lives. In this research work a 3D virtual system that allows the child who has been diagnosed with dyslexia to complement the exercises performed in a conventional therapy is described. To achieve this an application was developed, the app consists of two games (each with three levels of difficulty), and that are part of the rehabilitation program. In each of these games virtual objects are combined with auditory messages to provide the user with an immersive experience, and to train more than one sense at a time. In the first game task, the activity asks the children to correctly locate the syllables that compose a word and for the second activity the children will listen to a word, after the games asks the children to select the correct word. This tool has been tested by a group of children (eight), with ages ranging from 8 to 12 years old, whose development can be supervised at home by their parents, since it is an intuitive and easy to use interface. The results obtained are stored in a database and in this way the medical specialist can monitor the progress of the child throughout his treatment. For the validation of this proposal the SUS usability test was used. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Monitoring System for Physical Water Quality Parameters and Automatic Control for Chlorine Dosing in a Aerator Treatment Plant

2021 , Balarezo J.C. , Buele, Jorge , Naranjo-Avalos H. , Castillo F. , Vargas W.G. , Salazar F.W.

This work proposes the development and creation of an automatic monitoring and control system for the dosage of chlorine in the water treatment plant, purifying the vital liquid and avoiding the distribution and consumption of water contaminated by microorganisms. This is achieved by monitoring the physical parameters through the data sent by wireless sensors, acquiring them in a database, sending the data in real time to a web server, where they can be visible to the public, and generating automatic control in Based on the data obtained, this occurs in a water treatment pools. For this, a Raspberry Pi board is used, it acts as a data store, two Arduino Mega, acting as control nodes, a LAN server, and a PID control for the automatic control of chlorine dosage, thus achieving precautionary that the water is disinfected from any microorganism present. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.

View
No Thumbnail Available
Publication

Development of a WBGT Index Meter Based on M5Stack Core2

2022 , Varela Aldas, José , Buele, Jorge , Mosquera H. , Palacios-Navarro G.

Environmental working conditions are of crucial importance for job performance. Thus, thermal comfort helps the human body to withstand long working hours without stress. There are several indicators of heat stress, but one of the most complete is the WBGT (Wet Bulb Globe Temperature) index, which considers 3 temperatures to determine the heat stress index, the dry bulb temperature, the wet-bulb temperature, and the temperature of radiation. For this reason, this document describes the process of building a low-cost heat stress meter. Two DHT22 sensors and M5Stack Core2 controller are used that includes a screen for the presentation of the information. The user interface includes buttons for changing the view type to show indoor or outdoor results, as well as the battery level. In addition, all this information is sent to the IoT platform of ThingSpeak through internet access using WiFi communication, this information can be displayed graphically from a web browser and from anywhere in the world. The data are compared with a commercial meter to validate this prototype, obtaining an error of less than 5% and no significant differences were found. In this way, it is possible to offer equipment for industrial solutions, but at a fraction of its cost. © 2022, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

View