Design and analysis of a novel tri-band flower-shaped planar antenna for GPS and WiMAX applications

This paper presents the design of a tri-band flower-shaped planar monopole antenna operating at three frequencies i.e. 1.576 GHz (GPS), 2.668 GHz and 3.636 GHz (Mobile WiMAX). The radiating element of the antenna is backed by a 1.6 mm thicker FR-4 substrate having a dielectric constant of 4.3. The substrate is backed by a truncated ground plane. The antenna is fed through a 50 Ω microstrip line. The flower shape of the radiating element is derived from the basic circular shape by introducing in it rounded slots of various radii. The upper part of the antenna is flower-shaped while the lower part comprises a microstrip feed line and two branches, each having two ‘leaves’ at the end. The leaves and branches contribute in the impedance matching of the lower (1.576 GHz) and middle (2.668 GHz) frequency bands. The antenna gives an acceptable simulated efficiency >70% in the three frequency bands. Suitable gains of 1.63, 2.59 and 3.23dB are obtained at 1.576 GHz, 2.668 GHz and 3.636 GHz, respectively. The antenna matched with a VSWR<1.2 in the three frequency bands. The prototype of the antenna is fabricated and tested in the laboratory, and good agreement in simulated and measured results is achieved. The proposed design is a visually appealing and may find uses as an external antenna in GPS and WiMAX applications

Design and SAR analysis of wearable antenna on various parts of human body, using conventional and artificial ground planes

This paper presents design and specific absorption rate analysis of a 2.4 GHz wearable patch antenna on a conventional and electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) ground planes, under normal and bent conditions. Wearable materials are used in the design of the antenna and EBG surfaces. A woven fabric (Zelt) is used as a conductive material and a 3 mm thicker Wash Cotton is used as a substrate. The dielectric constant and tangent loss of the substrate are 1.51 and 0.02 respectively. The volume of the proposed antenna is 113×96.4×3 mm3. The metamaterial surface is used as a high impedance surface which shields the body from the hazards of electromagnetic radiations to reduce the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR). For on-body analysis a three layer model (containing skin, fats and muscles) of human arm is used. Antenna employing the EBG ground plane gives safe value of SAR (i.e. 1.77W/kg2W/kg). The efficiency of the EBG based antenna is improved from 52 to 74%, relative to the conventional counterpart. The proposed antenna can be used in wearable electronics and smart clothing

Reproducibility and stability of the immature platelet fraction using Sysmex XN-10

The Immature Platelet Fraction (IPF) is an indicator of thrombopoiesis which is a useful parameter in thrombocytopenia. It demonstrates compensatory mechanisms in production of platelets, but currently not implemented in routine clinical practice. The aim of this study was to establish the reproducibility and stability of IPF, for both percentage (%-IPF) and absolute (A-IPF) measurements. Material/methods: A total of 71 samples, of which 45 for reproducibility and 26 for stability analysis, were assayed for full blood count using the Sysmex XN-10 analyser at room temperature (RT:19–25 °C). For reproducibility analysis, IPF measurements were analysed 11 times by different appraisers using the same sample, while for stability analysis, IPF was measured over fourteen hourly-intervals up to 24 h (n = 21) and then separately extended beyond the point of stability to 72 h (n = 5). Reproducibility analysis of %-IPF and A-IPF (n = 45) showed very reliable results, with the range of mean CV% values between 1.25–8.90% and 1.70–9.96%, respectively. On the other hand, overall, stability analysis of %-IPF and A-IPF (n = 21) at RT over 24 h showed reliable results, with pooled mean CV% values of 1.32% and 1.43%, respectively, with no significant difference between %-IPF and A-IPF (p = 0.767 and p = 0.821). All %-IPF and A-IPF values had exceeded the set acceptance criterion of stability (CV% ≥ 10.0%) before 72 h. Overall, %-IPF and A-IPF reproducibility and storage at RT for 24 h predominantly demonstrates the suitability of their usage for testing on the Sysmex XN-series analysers.</p