Metal-insulator Transition (MIT) Materials for Biomedical Applications

Transitional metal oxides get considerable interest in electronics and other engineering applications over few decades. These materials show several orders of magnitude metal-insulator transition (MIT) triggered by external stimuli. Bio-sensing using Vanadium dioxide (VO2), a MIT material is largely unexplored. In this short article, we investigate the VO2 based thermal sensor performance for measuring the biomolecule concentration. Active sensing layer is chromium and niobium co-doped VO2 as it shows 11.9%/°C temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) with practically no thermal hysteresis. Our study demonstrated that VO2 based microsensors can be used to measure the biomolecule concentrations, which produce temperature changes in the mK range. For 1mK change in temperature, the maximum detection voltage is near 0.4V

Calibration and Implementation of Heat Cycle Requirement of MQ-7 Semiconductor Sensor for Detection of Carbon Monoxide Concentrations

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a prevalent and widely distributed air pollutant. Its detection and control in residential and industrial environments are essential in order to avoid potentially severe health consequences in people. The aim of this study was to conduct an air quality assessment by measuring CO concentrations using the MQ-7 Semiconductor Sensor. The MQ-7 sensor is a commonly accessible and cost-effective sensor with specific heating needs. The objectives of the study are to provide a method for implementing heater cycle requirements, equipment-less calibration, and the derivation of a formula for measuring CO concentrations in parts per million (ppm). A procedure for calibrating gas sensors is discussed, which involves measuring the sensing resistance and calculating the resistance ratio. The resistance ratio is then used to calculate the target gas concentration in ppm using a formula derived with the aid of Microsoft Excel, such that it represents the original CO characteristic curve provided in the sensor datasheet with greater accuracy. An N-channel MOSFET and Pulse Width Modulated (PWM) voltage were used to get the required heater voltage levels. The methodology developed for calibrating and deriving the equation to determine the target gas concentration can be used for any MQ semiconductor sensor and does not require any special equipment.

Building energy metering and environmental monitoring - A state-of-the-art review and directions for future research

Buildings are responsible for 40% of global energy use and contribute towards 30% of the total CO2 emissions. The drive to reduce energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions from buildings has acted as a catalyst in the increasing installation of meters and sensors for monitoring energy use and indoor environmental conditions in buildings. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art in building energy metering and environmental monitoring, including their social, economic, environmental and legislative drivers. The integration of meters and sensors with existing building energy management systems (BEMS) is critically appraised, especially with regard to communication technologies and protocols such as ModBus, M-Bus, Ethernet, Cellular, ZigBee, WiFi and BACnet. Findings suggest that energy metering is covered in existing policies and regulations in only a handful of countries. Most of the legislations and policies on energy metering in Europe are in response to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), 2002/91/EC. However, recent developments in policy are pointing towards more stringent metering requirements in future, moving away from voluntary to mandatory compliance. With regards to metering equipment, significant developments have been made in the recent past on miniaturisation, accuracy, robustness, data storage, ability to connect using multiple communication protocols, and the integration with BEMS and the Cloud – resulting in a range of available solutions, selection of which can be challenging. Developments in communication technologies, in particular in low-power wireless such as ZigBee and Bluetooth LE (BLE), are enabling cost-effective machine to machine (M2M) and internet of things (IoT) implementation of sensor networks. Privacy and data protection, however, remain a concern for data aggregators and end-users. The standardization of network protocols and device functionalities remains an active area of research and development, especially due to the prevalence of many protocols in the BEMS industry. Available solutions often lack interoperability between hardware and software systems, resulting in vendor lock-in. The paper provides a comprehensive understanding of available technologies for energy metering and environmental monitoring; their drivers, advantages and limitations; factors affecting their selection and future directions of research and development – for use a reference, as well as for generating further interest in this expanding research area

Application framework for wireless sensor networks [thesis]

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are based on innovative technologies that had revolutionized the methods in which we interact with the environment; i.e., through sensing the physical (e.g., fire motion, contact) and chemical (e.g., molecular concentration) properties of the natural surroundings. The hardware in which utilized by WSNs is rapidly evolving into sophisticated platforms that seamlessly integrate with different vendors and protocols (plug-n-play). In this thesis, we propose a WSN framework which provides assistance with monitoring environmental conditions; we focus on three main applications which include: a. Air-quality monitoring, b. Gas-leak detection, and c. Fire sensing. The framework involves four specifications: 1. Over the air programming (OTAP), 2. Network interconnections, 3. Sensors manageability, and 4. Alarm signaling. Their aim is to enhance the internetwork relations between the WSNs and the outside-world (i.e., main users, clients, or audience); by creating a medium in which devices efficiently communicate, independent of location or infrastructure (e.g., Internet), in order to exchange data among networked-objects and their users. Therefore, we propose a WSN-over-IP architecture which provides several renowned services of the Internet; the major functionalities include: live-data streaming (real-time), e-mailing, cloud storage (external servers), and network technologies (e.g., LAN or WLAN). WSNs themselves operate independently of the Internet; i.e., their operation involve unique protocols and specific hardware requirements which are incompatible with common network platforms (e.g., within home network infrastructure). Hybrid technologies are those which support multiple data-communication protocols within a single device; their main capabilities involve seamless integration and interoperability of different hardware vendors. We propose an overall architecture based on hybrid communication technology in which data is transmitted using three types of protocols: 802.11 (Wi-Fi), 802.15.4 and Digimesh (WSN)

HADES: a Hybrid Anomaly Detection System for Large-Scale Cyber-Physical Systems

Smart cities rely on large-scale heterogeneous distributed systems known as Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). Information systems based on CPS typically analyse a massive amount of data collected from various data sources that operate under noisy and dynamic conditions. How to determine the quality and reliability of such data is an open research problem that concerns the overall system safety, reliability and security. Our research goal is to tackle the challenge of real-time data quality assessment for large-scale CPS applications with a hybrid anomaly detection system. In this paper we describe the architecture of HADES, our Hybrid Anomaly DEtection System for sensors data monitoring, storage, processing, analysis, and management. Such data will be filtered with correlation-based outlier detection techniques, and then processed by predictive analytics for anomaly detection

Low cost integration of IoT technologies for building automation

Internet of Things (IoT) envisages a reality in which people and objects are interconnected in such a way that a series of services, previously unthinkable, become real. The impact of IoT technologies is already tangible in industry, particularly under the Industry 4.0 initiative, but yet far to be fully exploited in other areas, such as building automation. This paper highlights the importance of using IoT and other emergent technologies to develop building automation applications that serves as base in smart cities, particularly supporting the interoperability among home automation solutions provided by different manufacturers. For this purpose, a low cost IoT enabler solution for building automation is presented, based on the use of cyber-physical systems, as backbone to integrate different IoT technologies and building automation technologies. The proposed approach was successfully implemented in an open space laboratory.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

YA-DA: YAng-Based DAta Model for Fine-Grained IIoT Air Quality Monitoring

With the development of industrialization, air pollution is also steadily on the rise since both industrial and daily activities generate a massive amount of air pollution. Since decreasing air pollution is critical for citizens' health and well-being, air pollution monitoring is becoming an essential topic. Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) research focuses on this crucial area. Several attempts already exist for air pollution monitoring. However, none of them are improving the performance of IoT data collection at the desired level. Inspired by the genuine Yet Another Next Generation (YANG) data model, we propose a YAng-based DAta model (YA-DA) to improve the performance of IIoT data collection. Moreover, by taking advantage of digital twin (DT) technology, we propose a DT-enabled fine-grained IIoT air quality monitoring system using YA-DA. As a result, DT synchronization becomes fine-grained. In turn, we improve the performance of IIoT data collection resulting in lower round-trip time (RTT), higher DT synchronization, and lower DT latency.Comment: This paper has been accepted at the 4th Workshop on Future of Wireless Access and Sensing for Industrial IoT (FUTUREIIOT) in IEEE Global Communications Conference (IEEE GLOBECOM) 202

Visualization System of Energy-saving for Smartification in Urban and building planning

13301甲第5699号博士（工学）金沢大

Utilizing industry 4.0 on the construction site : challenges and opportunities

In recent years a step change has been seen in the rate of adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies by manufacturers and industrial organisations alike. This paper discusses the current state of the art in the adoption of industry 4.0 technologies within the construction industry. Increasing complexity in onsite construction projects coupled with the need for higher productivity is leading to increased interest in the potential use of industry 4.0 technologies. This paper discusses the relevance of the following key industry 4.0 technologies to construction: data analytics and artificial intelligence; robotics and automation; buildings information management; sensors and wearables; digital twin and industrial connectivity. Industrial connectivity is a key aspect as it ensures that all Industry 4.0 technologies are interconnected allowing the full benefits to be realized. This paper also presents a research agenda for the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies within the construction sector; a three-phase use of intelligent assets from the point of manufacture up to after build and a four staged R&D process for the implementation of smart wearables in a digital enhanced construction site