My student Javier Bravo Acedo disserted his Telematics BSc thesis

🎓 Bachelor’s Thesis Defense – Javier Bravo Acedo

On Thursday, July 3, 2025, my student Javier Bravo Acedo defended his Bachelor’s Thesis titled “Sistema de diagnóstico precoz de afecciones cutáneas” (Early Diagnosis System for Skin Conditions)—a technically solid, socially engaged, and highly commendable final project that earned the top grade of Outstanding (10/10) from the examining committee, along with a nomination for Honors Distinction (Matrícula de Honor).

Javier’s work addresses a growing challenge in public health: limited access to timely dermatological diagnosis. Using a distributed client-server architecture, he designed and implemented a proof-of-concept system capable of analyzing skin images in real time. The system employs YOLOv8 for object detection, integrated into a clean Python backend using Flask and SQLAlchemy with SQLite, and a lightweight frontend built with HTML5, JavaScript, WebRTC for camera access, and PicoCSS for styling.

What stands out in this project is not just the technical stack, but the care taken to bring everything together into a complete, usable solution. The interface guides users through identification (via DNI), image capture, automated analysis, and the scheduling of specialist appointments. Javier also implemented multilingual support and a thoughtful approach to data handling for health records.

To improve diagnostic performance, he applied transfer learning with pre-trained YOLOv8 models, supported by a diverse dataset of annotated dermatological images. The evaluation phase included precision-recall analysis, F1 confidence curves, and normalized confusion matrices—providing clear evidence of the system’s effectiveness across different conditions, lighting, and skin types.

Beyond the implementation, what made this work special was Javier’s sustained attention to real-world relevance. He considered accessibility, healthcare system integration, sustainability, and even the potential environmental impact of reducing unnecessary patient travel. His conclusions tie the system’s impact to several UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities).

It’s been a true pleasure to supervise Javier throughout this project. He approached the problem with rigor, creativity, and a strong sense of purpose. The result is a system that doesn’t just work—it speaks to how technology can serve public good when built thoughtfully.

Congratulations, Javier — well earned!