194 research outputs found
Spectral and time-frequency domains features for quantitative lower-limb rehabilitation monitoring via wearable inertial sensors
Inertial data represent a rich source of clinically relevant information which can provide details on motor assessment in subjects involved in a rehabilitation process. Thus, a number of metrics in the spectral and time-frequency domain has been considered to be reliable for measuring and quantifying patient progress and has been applied on the 3D accelerometer and angular rate signals collected on one impaired subject with knee injury through a wearable wireless inertial sensing system developed at the Tyndall National Institute. The subject has performed different activities evaluated across several sessions over time. Data show that most of the studied features can provide a quantitative analysis of the improvement of the subject along rehabilitation, and differentiate between impaired and unimpaired limb motor performance. The work proves that the studied features can be taken into account by clinicians and sport scientists to study the overall patients' condition and provide accurate clinical feedback as to their rehabilitative progress. The work is ongoing and additional clinical trials are currently being planned with an enhanced number of injured subjects to provide a more robust statistical analysis of the data in the study
Antenna development for wearable wireless sensing systems
Embedded wireless sensor network (WSN) systems have been developed and used in a wide
variety of applications such as local automatic environmental monitoring; medical applications analysing
aspects of fitness and health energy metering and management in the built environment as well as traffic
pattern analysis and control applications. While the purpose and functions of embedded wireless sensor
networks have a myriad of applications and possibilities in the future, a particular implementation of
these ambient sensors is in the area of wearable electronics incorporated into body area networks and
everyday garments. Some of these systems will incorporate inertial sensing devices and other physical
and physiological sensors with a particular focus on the application areas of athlete performance
monitoring and e-health.
Some of the important physical requirements for wearable antennas are that they are light-weight, small
and robust and should also use materials that are compatible with a standard manufacturing process such
as flexible polyimide or fr4 material where low cost consumer market oriented products are being
produced. The substrate material is required to be low loss and flexible and often necessitates the use of
thin dielectric and metallization layers. This paper describes the development of such a wearable, flexible
antenna system for ISM band wearable wireless sensor networks. The material selected for the
development of the wearable system in question is DE104i characterized by a dielectric constant of 3.8
and a loss tangent of 0.02. The antenna feed line is a 50 Ohm microstrip topology suitable for use with
standard, high-performance and low-cost SMA-type RF connector technologies, widely used for these
types of applications. The desired centre frequency is aimed at the 2.4GHz ISM band to be compatible
with IEEE 802.15.4 Zigbee communication protocols and the Bluetooth standard which operate in this
band
A review of activity trackers for senior citizens: research perspectives, commercial landscape and the role of the insurance industry
The objective assessment of physical activity levels through wearable inertial-based motion detectors for the automatic, continuous and long-term monitoring of people in free-living environments is a well-known research area in the literature. However, their application to older adults can present particular constraints. This paper reviews the adoption of wearable devices in senior citizens by describing various researches for monitoring physical activity indicators, such as energy expenditure, posture transitions, activity classification, fall detection and prediction, gait and balance analysis, also by adopting consumer-grade fitness trackers with the associated limitations regarding acceptability. This review also describes and compares existing commercial products encompassing activity trackers tailored for older adults, thus providing a comprehensive outlook of the status of commercially available motion tracking systems. Finally, the impact of wearable devices on life and health insurance companies, with a description of the potential benefits for the industry and the wearables market, was analyzed as an example of the potential emerging market drivers for such technology in the future
Vibration characterisation for fault detection and isolation in linear synchronous motor based conveyor systems
Linear synchronous motor (LSM) based transport systems are increasingly deployed in automated manufacturing environments. The aim of the study is to establish the feasibility of employing low power and low-cost vibration sensing cyber physical systems to perform near real-time fault detection and isolation for passive LSM vehicles. Empirical data capture was conducted on an LSM test-bed where vehicle velocity was varied to determine how changes in velocity would impact the vibration profile of the LSM vehicle. The recorded data was analyzed, and peak accelerations were examined for each of the velocities under study. Frequency domain analysis was conducted on the collated accelerometer data and frequencies of interest were identified. The findings are shown to concur with the manufacturer's operating specifications (0-30 Hz). A relationship between LSM vehicle speed and vibration frequency was established. The results presented provide the basis for the establishment of low-cost condition based preventative maintenance, deployed to a LSM based transport system for high volume manufacturing
A review of physical activity monitoring and activity trackers for older adults
The objective assessment of physical activity levels through wearable inertial-based motion detectors for an automatic, continuous and long-term monitoring of people in free-living environments is a well-known research area in literature. However, their application to older adults can present particular constraints. This paper reviews the methods of measuring physical activity, adoption of wearable devices in older adults, describes and compares existing commercial products encompassing activity trackers tailored for older participants
On the use of Wireless Sensor Networks in Preventative Maintenance for Industry 4.0
The goal of this paper is to present a literature study on the use of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) in Preventative Maintenance applications for Industry 4.0. Requirements for industrial applications are discussed along with a comparative of the characteristics of the existing and emerging WSN technology enablers. The design considerations inherent to WSNs becoming a tool to drive maintenance efficiencies are discussed in the context of implementations in the research literature and commercial solutions available on the market
THAWS: automated wireless sensor network development and deployment
This research focuses on the design and implementation of a tool to speed-up the development and deployment of heterogeneous wireless sensor networks. The THAWS (Tyndall Heterogeneous Automated Wireless Sensors) tool can be used to quickly create and configure application-specific sensor networks. THAWS presents the user with a choice of options, in order to characterise the desired functionality of the network. With this information, THAWS generates the necessary code from pre-written templates and well-tested, optimized software modules. This is then automatically compiled to form binary files for each node in the network. Wireless programming of the network completes the task of targeting the wireless network towards a specific sensing application. THAWS is an adaptable tool that works with both homogeneous and heterogeneous networks built from wireless sensor nodes that have been developed in the Tyndall National Institute
Multiradio sensing systems for home area networking and building management
Many WSN systems use proprietary systems so interoperability between different devices and systems can be at best difficult with various protocols (standards based and non-standards based) used (ZigBee, EnOcean, MODBUS, KNEX, DALI, Powerline, etc.). This work describes the development of a novel low power consumption multiradio system incorporating 32-bit ARM-Cortex microcontroller and multiple radio interfaces - ZigBee/6LoWPAN/Bluetooth LE (Low Energy)/868MHz platform. The multiradio sensing system lends itself to interoperability and standardization between the different technologies which typically make up a heterogeneous network of sensors for both standards based and non-standards based systems. The configurability of the system enables energy savings, and increases the range between single points enabling the implementation of adaptive networking architectures of different configurations. The system described provides a future-proof wireless platform for Home Automation Networks with regards to the network heterogeneity in terms of hardware and protocols defined as being critical for use in the built environment. This system is the first to provide the capability to communicate in the 2.4GHz band as well as the 868MHz band as well as the feature of multiboot capability
Multiradio, multiboot capable sensing systems for home area networking
The development of Wireless Sensor Networking technology to deploy in smart home environments for a variety of applications such as Home Area Networking has been the focus of commercial and academic interest for the last decade. Developers of such systems have not adopted a common standard for communications in such schemes. Many Wireless Sensor Network systems use proprietary systems so interoperability between different devices and systems can be at best difficult with various protocols (standards based and non-standards based) used (ZigBee, EnOcean, MODBUS, KNX, DALI, Powerline, etc.). This work describes the development of a novel low power consumption multiradio system incorporating 32-bit ARM-Cortex microcontroller and multiple radio interfaces - ZigBee/6LoWPAN/Bluetooth LE/868MHz platform. The multiradio sensing system lends itself to interoperability and standardization between the different technologies, which typically make up a heterogeneous network of sensors for both standards based and non-standards based systems. The configurability of the system enables energy savings, and increases the range between single points enabling the implementation of adaptive networking architectures of different configurations. The system described provides a future-proof wireless platform for Home Automation Networks with regards to the network heterogeneity in terms of hardware and protocols defined as being critical for use in the built environment. This system is the first to provide the capability to communicate in the 2.4GHz band as well as the 868MHz band as well as the feature of multiboot capability. A description of the system operation and potential for power savings through the use of such a system is provided. Using such a multiradio, multiboot capable, system can not only allow interoperability across multiple radio platforms in a Home Area Network, but can also increase battery lifetime by 20 – 25% in standard sensing applications
Wearable inertial sensors as a tool for quantitative assessment of progress during rehabilitation
Biomechanics analysis is frequently used in both clinical and sporting practice in order to assess human motion and performance of defined tasks. Whilst camera-based motion systems have long been regarded as the ‘Goldstandard’ for quantitative movement-based analysis, their application is not without limitations as regards potential sources of variability in measurements, high costs, and practicality of use for larger patient/subject groups. Another more practical approach, which presents itself as a viable solution to biomechanical motion capture and monitoring in sporting and patient groups, is through the use of small-size low-cost wearable Micro-ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMs)- based inertial sensors. The clinical aim of the present work is to evaluate gait during rehabilitation following knee injuries and to identify gait abnormalities through a wireless inertial sensing system. This system was developed at the Tyndall National Institute to meet clinician-defined needs, and is able to provide a complete biomechanics assessment without the constraints of a motion capture laboratory. The derived motion parameter outcomes can be analyzed by clinicians and sport scientists to study the overall patients’ condition and provide accurate medical feedback as to their rehabilitative progress. Detection of atypical movement characteristics is possible by comparing the performance and variability in motion characteristics in the patient’s affected and unaffected lower-limbs. The work is ongoing, and to date the system has been tested on only one impaired subject, additional clinical trials are currently being planned with an enhanced number of injured subjects. This will provide a more robust statistical analysis of the data in the study. The present feasibility study proved that inertial sensors can be used for a quantitative assessment of knee joint mobility, and gait mechanics during the rehabilitation program of injured subjects and can provide valuable information to clinical experts as regards patient rehabilitation
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