Developments and Advances in Defense and Security

Business Intelligence (BI) over the years, has achieved a strong impact within the business world, especially when it comes to gaining knowledge for making strategic decisions. This impact has been successfully in other contexts. However, only exist some examples in Latinamerica (Costa Rica), have started to use BI for the Cybersecurity context, being a strange when several authors have considered this relationship as a global trend. Our objective is to investigate if this trend is happening in Ecuador. For which, we propose to carry out a survey to professionals in the industry and professors in the academy. The results obtained show that the majority of Ecuadorian companies, use BI only to improve their competitiveness, but without considering cybersecurity context, despite being aware of the high risk. The industry, academia and country must enter a stage of reflection of the application of BI in Cybersecurity.

The aim of this study has been to establish a Cybersecurity and Cyber defense model in Ecuador, based on the comparison of the worldwide situation status. Therefore, we performed a descriptive research, which has been related to the metrics and indicators of the countries with greater relevance in such areas, which have been considered as important by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). Subsequently, we applied an incremental methodology in order to perform the comparative analysis. The main findings demonstrate that G8 countries appear or be the most prepared and mature in Cybersecurity/Cyber defense and Cyberwar. This has been also evidenced about countries with high technological level and which historically have maintained warlike conflicts. The final exposed results according to the Cybersecurity pillars of the ITU, yielded details of the relevant points and evidenced that on a global scale the United States and France are the most outstanding countries, which has led to propose a model to follow for Ecuador, which represents a country that still allows great opportunities for growth and improvement in this topic.

The evolution of information and communications technology (ICT) as well as cyberspace, walks along with collateral hazards. These need to be managed, in order to minimize the affecting impacts on information, which often appear to be vital for the operability of nations. The fulfillment of such risk reduction has been achieved with the development of worldwide, well known and widespread regulations, rules, manuals, guides and procedures for good Cybersecurity practices. Its impact has been significant in the construction of national policies within each country, due to its influence beyond the borders and the needed international cooperation for its elaboration. However, the current study presents a description, scope and coverage of both the standardization organizations as well as standards and specifications related to Cybersecurity, in order to establish a guide for researchers and information security specialist in the protection of assets and information of companies. Furthermore, it also demonstrates a systematic non-experimental field research that considered Ecuadorian institutions and companies to identify the current status of their adoption. Finally, the obtained results allow the applicability of standards, in order to protect enterprise information, which in turn will be able to serve in the future as input for the definition of national policies in such context.

The current study presents mathematical models of an aircraft, which has been considered as a mass subjected to different forces, performed in classical physics. The main objective is to design algorithms, used to simulate the flight of an aircraft and to create an interactive simulator based on mathematical models. For this purpose, the different forces that the mass of the aircraft has been subjected to in the air have been analyzed and interpreted numerically, in order to generate a mathematical model that makes it possible to reproduce the flight of an airplane within a simulation software developed with Unity. Finally, the performance of the algorithms within Unity’s game engine has been evaluated, before and after using threads in order to be able to conduct communication and evaluate the data transmission analysis.

The present project implements an application for the search, recognition and monitoring of people based on artificial vision algorithms. The OpenCV libraries are used to process the images, which were obtained from a conventional IP video surveillance camera. This type of cameras can be used in different environmental conditions (high, medium and low lighting) and up to an effective distance of 70 m. In the detection and search phase, cascade classifiers are used with local binary patterns LBP (Local Binary Patterns). Subsequently, in the follow-up phase, a tracking algorithm is implemented, addressed only to the person detected through kernelized correlation filters KCF (Kernelized Correlation Filters), so that the objective is not lost. A graphical interface was developed in the Qt Software which allows an easy use of the application. The average effectiveness of the algorithm is 90% in different environments and places by mitigating the different luminosity changes.

Previous studies have suggested that cybersickness could occur among users that interact with simulators, HMDs, or 3D technology. In the military sphere, this also is affecting due to use of different simulators in which the personnel is being trained. This situation could limit the learning and performance during the training. In this work, we propose an approach to developing a VR-system with visual and postural stimulation. The objective is to assess the symptoms associated to cybersickness in military personnel and determine if these symptoms could be mitigated with previous training using two types of HMDs. Assessment methods will include two questionnaires (SSQ and PQ), the head tracking, and time task. Also, we will compare two experimental conditions (Walking-Condition and Sitting-Condition). Our work will contribute to the occupational safety and health of military personnel, and guarantee an effective training in the different simulators according to their missions by mitigation of incidents.

Internet of Things (IoT) is growing every day since it has allowed the interconnection of different devices existent in smart environments e.g. home environment, and because it has allowed improving or supporting different services such as physical security, energy consumption management, entertainment among others. The smart home environment, also known as Smart Home Automation Systems (SHAS), has properly attacked and solved the domestic needs of families around the world. However, in spite of having a protocol stack architecture to govern the rules of communication and exchange of information, the security and privacy requirements have been displaced to a second place. For this reason, this paper surveys several previous works from the security perspective with the purpose of providing the most important approaches in this field. Additionally, this work provides recommendations and best practices from different security perspectives.

This project aims to develop a bicycle mobility promotion program and studies to improve urban life through intervention in urban planning and the development of intelligent territories based on bicycle lending systems with the ability to collect statistical information from mobility and other parameters of interest for sustainability and health. The aim is to achieve a long-term operation of the biciLAB under the auspices of the universities and local entities linked to its application within the scope of public policy.

Sustained globalization by digital technologies has dramatically increased the capacity of the capitalist environment, putting at risk the preservation of cultural and community identities, interfering with their ability to act and adapt in a sustainable way to their environments. This paper presents a sustainable management strategy for the promotion of territorial economic development initiatives for artisanal fishing cooperatives of the province of Santa Elena, so that it can be effectively constituted as a political strategy for the country’s development, seeking not only macroeconomic goals for stability and productivity excellence, but also socio-economic goals aimed at preserving natural resources, the redistribution of social wealth and the reduction of social inequalities.

This research is intended to contribute to the design of control algorithms for static cameras and drones. These were modelled on the quadcopter Parrot Bebop 2 by using the communication software Robot Operating System ROS to provide data and recognize different drone stages (landed, on flight, and its maneuvers: yaw, throttle, roll, pitch). The controller was developed after conducting several tests regarding the ideal distance for effective drone operations which include image processing for target detection or tracking in real time. This study also analyzes the benefits on the implementation of this technology in the Ecuadorian Armed Forces for surveillance and reconnaissance operations. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the use of drones in aspects of national security would have a positive impact because it allows to reduce costs as well as to optimize human resources in military operations.

Dementia being a syndrome caused by a brain disease of a chronic or progressive nature, in which the irreversible loss of intellectual abilities, learning, expressions arises; including memory, thinking, orientation, understanding and adequate communication, of organizing daily life and of leading a family, work and autonomous social life; leads to a state of total dependence; therefore, its early detection and classification is of vital importance in order to serve as clinical support for physicians in the personalization of treatment programs. The use of the electroencephalogram as a tool for obtaining information on the detection of changes in brain activities. This article reviews the types of cognitive spectrum dementia, biomarkers for the detection of dementia, analysis of mental states based on electromagnetic oscillations, signal processing given by the electroencephalogram, review of processing techniques, results obtained where it is proposed the mathematical model about neural networks, discussion and finally the conclusions.

This document establishes the considered procedures for UAV - F communication system’s flight tests, considering the compliance with the requirements of international standards showing the results of applying those procedures. In the paper there is a description of the aircraft’s communications system as the starting point of analysis. The tests were done considering each of the airworthiness requirements of the communications system to establish the way for data gathering. It is also described the related procedures and test parameters which allow to develop a new system as described in the general methodology. The outcomes of this work demonstrated the system’s ability to extend the communication to the compliance of the USAR of the STANAG4701 standard of NATO, in order to establish procedures for validation and certification of an “in development” aircraft and to build communication over obstacles.

This work shows a methodology to determine the sample size required to define a propagation model adjusted to a specific and uncharacterized jungle region, based on the Longley Rice (L-R) propagation model. The analysis is performed in the HF frequency band and using high performance military tactical communication equipment. Initially, a simulation of the telecommunications system to be implemented were developed using the Radio Mobile platform. Subsequently, through the field measurements done insitu, we estimated the interval of confidence to get an accurate model and the data size to get such interval. The research includes a set of meteorological measurements to validate and characterize the environment under which the optimization is going to be applied. The results obtained yields a set of protocols for determining propagation models to be used on voice, video and data transmission in hostile and uncharacterized areas.

There are a wide range of ambient noise sources within the underwater acoustics. Acoustic noise can vary over time in intensity and spectral composition, depending on environmental conditions. In passive sonar detection the target of interest is surrounded by several noises, environmental and other radiated noise from other sources. The acoustic detection systems in underwater warfare are important for ships and submarines that have acoustic sensors to determine the presence of any contact. The lack of information on the noise that disrupts the acoustic detection sensors and interferes with the recognition, possibly mask the contacts endangering the surface and submarine operations. In order to solve this problem, it is fundamental to develop an information system model that allow the identification of the signals of interest and classify the targets.

Mindfulness training (MT) programs are, apart from curative MT programs (e.g., PTSD treatment), not yet widely offered in the military. However, military (wo)men, who are often exposed to extremely stressful situations, might benefit from the “preventive” effects of MT (e.g., stress-reduction, enhanced wellbeing, increased military resilience and situational awareness). In order to meet busy military operational schedules, the current research investigates the potential effects of an economic, low-dose, self-training mindfulness intervention (i.e., 10-day Mindfitness training) in a Dutch military sample (N = 173) that was subdivided into an intervention- and a waitlist-control group. By using a pre-/post-test design, the effects of our MT on mindfulness, stress, wellbeing, working memory capacity, and situational awareness were explored. Concluding from a multivariate analysis of covariance, the intervention had a negative effect on stress, and a positive effect on mindfulness, wellbeing and (self-rated) situational awareness. These results indicate the need to further explore the potential benefits of implementing (both extensive and low-dose) MT programs in other domains.

This article relies on documentary and empirical data to carry out a critical analysis of the military contract model of the Portuguese Armed Forces and the incentive scheme that supports them. Theoretical and practical shortcomings, as well as measures to mitigate its negative effects are identified when analyzing the dimensions – recruitment, retention, and reintegration – and how they affect the citizens who enlist on a temporary basis. This research intersects three perspectives of analysis: macro-level (external context), meso-level (organizational context), and micro-level (individual perspective). The study used a qualitative research strategy (Bryman, 2012; Creswell, 2013) and a case study research design (Yin, 2014). The results show that there are shortcomings in the military’s ability to recruit and retain contract military personnel, which indicates that the model should be revised and the incentive scheme that supports it should be updated.

The evolution of the international regime for the oceans use, was materialized in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which regulates sovereignty and rights over maritime spaces and its resources. This paper analyses the historical stages established by Keohane and Nye (1988), under the conceptual view proposed by Hobbes in Chap. 13 of Leviathan, regarding the natural condition of men and the anarchic state of nature similar to war. According to Hobbes, a government or a common power would avoid anarchy and conflict. However, after the UNCLOS was established, disputes arose in the process of defining maritime zones and boundaries between neighboring coastal states, expecting to obtain more resources and spaces at sea. Thus, conflict may be diminished in the presence of a common power represented by an international regime or authority, but not completely eliminated. That is man’s nature.

General Carl Von Clausewitz, based his work “On War” on the lessons obtained from the Napoleonic Wars; defining in this work the denominated “Trinity of Clausewitz”: Town, Government and Armed Forces. The purpose of this paper is to analyze if this theory is still valid and to demonstrate whether the conceptual applicability in the process of planning and development of the naval power of a State. The problem is approached from the context of the Grand Strategy and the Maritime Strategy, based on the Trinitarian theory of Clausewitz. The aim is to visualize the relationship that exists between this conception and the theories that sustain the development of naval power and the design of forces. The argumentation of this research was developed through the analytical-deductive method, describing Clausewitz’s theory about war, and then interpreting what concerns the development or planning of forces, thus having the elements to correlate to determine the validity and incidence of “The Trinity of Clausewitz” in the development of Naval Power.

The current research, analyses the importance of a maritime vision of geopolitics for the South American coastal countries. A bibliographical research was conducted which included national, regional and international authors, that served to evidence the way geopolitics was originally conceived, its evolution and the need for changes in its approach. It was analyzed, the threats that States would face in the future, such as the lack of food, energy and water, as well as the existence of maritime interests that could supply them. The importance of the maritime vision of geopolitics focuses on the conjugation of elements mentioned before and allows determining that given the future conditions, this geopolitical approach is fundamental for the States, in which the maritime consciousness is one of the essential elements for its construction. In order to reach the different levels of maritime awareness, it is necessary a system involving all actors linked to the maritime sphere, to coordinate and plan all actions leading to achieve that maritime interests are appropriately sized and constituted in the essence of a national development with international vision.

The current system of international regimes has made cooperation between States possible, appealing to rational self-interest and the compatibility of complementary interests, fundamentally in the field of world economy. However, these multilateral institutions have suffered serious ethical questions because the benefits they have produced for the global south have been marginal. As a result, these countries have sought to create their own institutional spaces to cooperate, especially in the field of science, technology and innovation (STI). This article attempts to recover the conceptual proposals of Professor Robert O. Keohane about the ethical value of international cooperation within the system of current regimes, extrapolating into the domains of international cooperation in STI to identify the biggest challenges for the global south; and, thus, try to understand the motivations and efforts that the countries of the South have made to achieve fairer institutional cooperation spaces based on South-South cooperation (SSC), under the aegis of the UN.

This research focuses on integral security, being a subject of global interest that covers all the contexts and that depends mainly on two elements, as is the state and the society, for that reason, one investigates the current situation of integral security of the artisanal fishermen of the fishing ports of the canton of Salinas. For this study, a quantitative approach and descriptive research was used, concluding the existence of a low integral security that the artisanal fishermen have, specifically the human and social insecurity due to the piracy and the lack of social security originated by the lack of policies and support from state and local public institutions, and in the absence of ethical values and behaviors of society.

Coastal sea areas, both the water column and the sea bottom, are very attractive and important for the power industry, fisheries, tourism etc., but also for the State armed services due to the strategic importance of open sea waters in the National Defence Doctrine. Free access to this area is very important to the Command of the Polish Army, which sees the build-up of the sea bottom with industrial objects (offshore wind farms) as a significant impediment to the fulfilment of defence tasks. At the same time, there is a high interest of the industry to locate wind farms in the sea resulting in significant tension between the industrial investors and the armed forces. The Authors think that it is possible to link the different concepts of using these sea areas by giving the status of a multifunctional installation to selected elements of offshore wind farm structures. Analysis indicates that it is possible not only to resolve the problems but also to generate new solutions of a hitherto unachievable quality.

We conducted computationally a parametric study to investigate the horseshoe vortex suppression due to a boundary-layer flow past a wing of finite span by a leading-edge strake. Both boundary-layer flows over a flat and curved wall were explored. In total, 48 cases were studied for various strake geometries. The Spalart-Allmaras model (1-equation model) is employed for the turbulence effect. The computational results show that different ratios lead to different flow development. Some of them can effectively suppress the horseshoe vortex. The detailed flow fields near the leading edge of the wing and the wake development are also investigated for different cases.

In semi-displacement vessels, the reinforced fiberglass composite superstructure, or FRP, is one of the best construction options due to its low weight, shape, and surface finish. A problem with the FRP composite material lies in the joint with the steel hull due to the lack of adherence in the joint between the deck and the superstructure’s FRP panels. This research presents a solution for hybrid joints between the deck and the FRP superstructure using a steel tubular structure and laminates with Isoftalic Resin. The design shear stress for the lamination of this hybrid joint has been considered to be 4.55 MPa, according to the recommendation of Lloyd’s Register. The analysis initially makes an estimate of the reactions at the hybrid joint based on a 36.80-m ship and then performs a critical layer analysis with the finite elements method. This is followed by an analysis of possible hybrid joints to find the best option for a construction that fulfills design stress. The final hybrid joint presents better results and consists of ASTM B53 steel tubes, Sch40, and uses vertical tubes 2 in. in diameter and 60 cm in height as well as two longitudinal tubes of 1 in. in diameter at 30 cm and 60 cm from the deck, respectively.

In educational institutions, the use of technology to develop academic and administrative activities is increasing. Different mobile devices allow users to perform common tasks quickly and easily. The constant growth of technologies promotes new educational paradigms that integrate diverse learning styles with communication networks and information technologies. The teaching and learning process has undergone modifications and must be coupled to the new digital era. Self-learning through information networks and the use of software allows the creation of new and innovative educational pervasive environments. Playability in education is presented as a didactic resource, which promotes and elevates the students’ cognitive and communicative abilities. The proposed system will provide means to aid teaching, making learning more dynamic, and the student environment automated, interactive and motivating. Due to the interoperability of the system, it can be distributed to a larger number of educational institutions, which can be used, thus enhancing the academic landscape.

A virtual system for teaching - learning is presented using a haptic device, to improve the skills in children in initial education. Two interactive games were created using Unity 3D software. The first allows identifying the primary colors and notions of space. The second identifies the geometric figures as circle, triangle, square and rectangle. Both games has visual, auditory and strength feedback, which allows performing the tasks correctly. The outcomes allow evaluating the children learning process in initial education in a qualitative way by a educator.

The present study determined the level of knowledge and use of the different Web 2.0 tools, in order to enhance the application of these in the learning process for candidate officers of the Ecuadorian Navy. The information was obtained through an online survey where Web 2.0 questions were addressed to a sample of 128 candidates from first to fourth year. The analysis of this result shows the acceptance of these tools by students, highlighting the convenience of generating academic activities through the use of web 2.0 tools and improving collaborative and autonomous performance and learning capacity.

The Ecuadorian Navy, in order to fulfill the duties established in the Constitution and the Nation’s Security Plan, requires new generations of Officers with updated knowledge not only in academic fields but also in technological devices which influence processes for decision-making on naval units. This challenge is one of the objectives of the Naval Officers School and The Armed Forces University (ESPE) which offer majors in Naval Sciences and Naval Logistics. For this reason, the curriculum redesign was necessary to include technological components in the syllabi in order to guarantee Officers capable of facing combat threats and social challenges of this century. The technological component is the fundamental part for the development of subjects related to the Naval Officer’s occupation in virtual and simulated environments. The application of Learning and Knowledge Technologies (LKT) in addition to the Empowerment and Participation Technologies (EPT) allow naval students to apply accurate decisions in the Nation’s Defense area.

The use of Information and Communication Technologies, ICT, as a way to generate better learning experiences by increasing student motivation in a constructivist framework, is one of the objectives to be reached by educational institutions in the current times, from which military education does not take distance, something in which the use of Information and Communication Technologies can help, being more than the use of simulators or a slide presenter. In Ecuador, the level of ICT integration in education is not high, which is reflected in military education, for which a referential model is proposed.

The methods used by a teacher to improve the learning process, allow applying techniques that analyze the interrelations in small groups and in this way, overcome the weaknesses generated by the lack of group dynamism. In this article, the objective was to know the interrelations generated by popularity, authority, positive leadership and the complement that is the grouping of different people. For this purpose, an online sociometric test was applied to 93 students of the Business Administration Career from Peninsula de Santa Elena University-Ecuador, using a software called sociometric classroom to analyze the results. The results showed that empathy and sympathy are drivers of the searching for improvement in a group sub-structures. On the other hand, the test allowed the selection of leaders, who were students with a greater number of votes, popularity and a high academic performance.

The paper presents a general approach to assess knowledge integration as a basis to evaluate the performance of transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches with respect to their knowledge integration capacity. The method is based on the development of Interdisciplinary-glossaries as tools for the elucidation of the conceptual networks involved in interdisciplinary studies. Such ID-glossaries are used as proxies of the corresponding knowledge integration, which is measured through the structural analysis of the co-occurrence network of terms. This approach is applied to an ID-glossary devoted to the general study of information, called glossariumBITri. The results show the capacity of the approach to detect integration achievements, challenges and barriers. Its qualitative nature is complemented by an enhanced methodology in which both the diversity of disciplines and the knowledge integration can be measured in a bi-dimensional index. To that purpose each contribution to the target ID-glossary is identified by the knowledge domains involved (using a set of knowledge domains adapted from the higher categories of the Universal Decimal Classification), while the integration is measured in terms of the small-world coefficient of the co-occurrence of terms.

Unmanned aircraft vehicles applications are directly related to payload installed. Electro-optical/infrared payload is required for law enforcement, traffic spotting, reconnaissance surveillance and target acquisition. A commercial off-the-shelf electro-optical/infrared camera is presented as a case study for the development of interface to control the UAV payload. Based on an architecture proposed, the interface shows the information from the sensor and combines data from UAV systems. The interface is validated in UAV flight tests. The software interface enhances the original performance of the camera with a fixed-point automatic tracking feature. Results of flight tests present the possibility to adapt the interface to implement electro-optical cameras in different aircrafts.

The problem of navy personnel incurring in disciplinary actions has major consequences in the productivity and motivation of these individuals for getting the job done. Leaving it unsolved may negatively affect their careers, working environments, peers, families and in some cases the Navy’s reputation. The implementation of data mining is widely considered as a powerful instrument for acquiring new knowledge from a pile of historical data, which is normally left unstudied. The main purpose of this paper is to use a data-driven approach to generate a descriptive model aimed at discovering knowledge, insights and interesting patterns in the personnel misconduct. The results reveal promising insights, hence the reliability of this work as a decision making and decision support tool.

Ammunition control systems have been in constant scientific evolution, with special emphasis on the operation and maintenance of weapons resources. However, even the studies regarding the control tests, minimization of the impact and instability of the ammunition are very limited. Determine the behavior of the ammunition when it is stored in the different ones in the different armories of the Armed Forces of Ecuador in the different regions of Ecuador. Evaluation of various functionality protocols of the powder magazines, management protocols and operation of ammunition. It was possible to better establish the probability of the state in which the facilities where the ammunition is stored based on the study variables can be found. The study allows the Armed Forces of Ecuador to take corrective and predictive measures to improve security and storage conditions immediately.

Ammunition and explosives, due to their intrinsic nature, generate a potential risk of damage to the surrounding environment, and are also highly valued by illegal armed groups and criminals. In order to prevent a new accidental explosion from affecting the civilian population and at the same time preserve state assets in the best possible way, the Joint Staff Command of the Armed Forces is executing an investment project, which is being progressively complemented with technical standards of integral security (physical security, safety and occupational health); which will allow an effective and safe management of the ammunition and explosives of the three branches of the Armed Forces. After the explosion occurred in the north of Quito at the end of 2011, the need arose that this technical scientific knowledge of protection transcends the military institution and be disseminated to other public and private institutions that manufacture, handle and store ammunition and explosives, in order to protect the health and integrity of those who effectively manipulate them, protect third parties from possible harm and prevent their illegal removal.