Bridges Structural Health Monitoring and Deterioration Detection Synthesis of Knowledge and Technology

INE/AUTC 10.0

Fish tracking technology development. Phase 1 project definition desk study

The document reports on Phase 1 of a definition study to appraise the options to develop fish tracking equipment, in particular tags and data logging systems in order to improve the efficiency of the Environment Agency's tracking studies and to obtain a greater understanding of fish biology. Covered in this report are radio telemetry, audio telemetry, High Resolution Position Fixing, data storage and archival tags and other fish tracking systems such as biosonics

LSA field test

After almost four years of endurance testing of photovoltaic modules, no fundamental life-limiting mechanisms were identified that could prevent the twenty-year life goal from being met. The endure data show a continual decline in the failure rate with each new large-scale procurement. Cracked cells and broken interconnects continue to be the principal causes of failure. Although the modules are more adversely affected physically by hot, humid environments than by cool or dry environments there are insufficient data to correlate failure with environment. There is little connection between the outward physical condition of a module and changes in its electrical performance

Assessing the Current and Future Risk of Overheating in London’s Care Homes: The Effect of Passive Ventilation

The warming climate causes adverse effects on thermal comfort and health, especially for vulnerable older adults. This study assesses the current and future risk of summertime overheating in London’s care homes and explores the potential of passive ventilation on reducing these risks. Analysis is based on temperature monitoring of two care settings and on thermal simulation models of future conditions with and without passive ventilation strategies. Results show high overheating exposures for both care homes, with temperatures averaging 31-35 0C by 2050. Passive ventilation can substantially reduce these exposures, but a successful approach depends on time of day, duration and window characteristics. Dynamic window opening based on lower outdoor temperatures and indoor temperature exceedance of 22 0C is the most beneficial approach for both settings now and in the future. The study demonstrates the effectiveness of affordable building adaptations for reducing heat stress in senior care homes

Fish tracking technology development. Phases 1 and 2, project definition desk study and equipment

The document reports on the major findings from a definition study to appraise the options to develop fish tracking equipment, in particular tags and data logging systems, in order to improve the effeciency of the Agency tracking studies and to obtain a greater understanding of fish biology. The definition study was in two parts. The first, Phase 1, collated and evaluated all the known tracking systems that may be suitable for studies of fish which are either produced commercially or have been constructed for specific in-house studies. Phase 2 was an evaluation of all the tracking equipment considered to merit further investigation in Phase 1. The deficiencies between existing and required technologies to improve the efficiency of Agency's tracking studies and to obtain a greater understanding of fish biology are also identified

Index to NASA Tech Briefs, 1975

This index contains abstracts and four indexes--subject, personal author, originating Center, and Tech Brief number--for 1975 Tech Briefs

The StormCast API. Specification of software interfaces in StormCast 2.1

This report presents the software architecture in the StormCast meteorological workbench. The focus is on the software interfaces in StormCast version 2.1. For each layer in the architecture the functionality, the call structure, the interfaces, the event diagrams and test data are described. In addition, further works are discussed. The identication of software interfaces are based on the StormCast prototype implementations and evaluations. The motivation is to derive an application program interface (API) to StormCast

The cold driver: Driving performance under thermal stress

Exposure to cold environments can impact complex task performance and increase cognitive and physiological error in response to thermal stress. Critically, the task of driving a vehicle requires the use of calibrated mental and physical actions to be conducted safely without error. Few studies have examined the effects of cold stress on driving performance and none have explored the potential for advanced driver safety systems to detect error. Active vehicle safety systems which monitor dangerous driving behavior due to drowsiness have been researched and developed, though technology associated with thermal stressed driving error is unexplored. The current study examined the effects of cold stress by way of skin cooling on driving simulator performance and evaluated vehicle behavior metrics for possible dangerous driving detection systems by analyzing behaviors. The presence of lateral lane position variability and velocity variability are of particular interest when speculating detection technology in literature. Forty-four healthy young adults (20 males and 24 females, age 19.97 ± 2.98 years, 4.06 years of driving experience) participated in either a thermal neutral or cooled condition. Cold stress was indexed using skin temperature, core temperature, and subjective cold perception. Participants drove through a simulated track which incorporated vehicle following, stop signs, and curved sections of road. Additional tasks incorporating dexterity and psychomotor vigilance were also used to account for physical and cognitive decrements. The results of the current study found that while the skin cooling methodology was effective in eliciting a behavioral response to the cold, physiological decrements were not observed in the cold condition. Skin temperatures from multiple locations and subjective comfort were significantly lower in the cold condition while core temperature, arm dexterity, and psychomotor vigilance were unaffected. Results from the driving simulator found no difference in lateral lane deviation or vehicle velocity across the track, suggesting traditional drowsy driving detection technology based on these metrics may not be feasible. However, the simulator task did show that participants who had higher subjective ratings of cold followed lead vehicles closer and started to brake later. Participants in the cold condition followed the lead car 22% (0.82 seconds) closer and started braking 20% (2.35 seconds) later when presented with a stop sign during the following task. The current results suggest that drivers exposed to cold environmental conditions are more likely to display aggressive driving behavior

Development of a wearable global positioning system for place and health research

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>An increasing number of studies suggest that characteristics of context, or the attributes of the places within which we live, work and socialize, are associated with variations in health-related behaviours and outcomes. The challenge for health research is to ensure that these places are accurately represented spatially, and to identify those aspects of context that are related to variations in health and amenable to modification. This study focuses on the design of a wearable global positioning system (GPS) data logger for the purpose of objectively measuring the temporal and spatial features of human activities. Person-specific GPS data provides a useful source of information to operationalize the concept of place.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We designed and tested a lightweight, wearable GPS receiver, capable of logging location information for up to 70 hours continuously before recharging. The device is accurate to within 7 m in typical urban environments and performs well across a range of static and dynamic conditions.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>Rather than rely on static areal units as proxies for places, wearable GPS devices can be used to derive a more complete picture of the different places that influence an individual's wellbeing. The measures are objective and are less subject to biases associated with recall of location or misclassification of contextual attributes. This is important for two reasons. First, it brings a dynamic perspective to place and health research. The influence of place on health is dynamic in that certain places are more or less relevant to wellbeing as determined by the length of time in any location and by the frequency of activity in the location. Second, GPS data can be used to assess whether the characteristics of places at specific times are useful to explaining variations in health and wellbeing.</p