Development of a 4-DoF Active Upper Limb Orthosis

In this paper, the designs and manufacturing process of a powered upper limb orthosis are presented. The orthosis is an exoskeleton worn on one arm by the user and fixed to the trunk. The orthosis’ architecture, design, and manufacturing process are presented and discussed. Estimations of the ranges of movement related to daily living activities are presented. The preliminary tests to verify the functionality of the design show encouraging results

Evolution of the Illegal Substances Market and Substance Users' Social Situation and Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the measures taken for tackling it had the potential to lead to deep modifications in the supply of illegal drugs and to impact substance users' health and social situation. To investigate this, we used mixed methods, i.e., quantitative data collected with a brief questionnaire from substance users receiving opioid agonist treatment in a treatment centre in Switzerland (N = 49), and qualitative data obtained using semi-structured phone interviews among a sub-group of participants (N = 17). We repeated data collection twice over four weeks to investigate trends over time (N = 51 and 14 at wave 2). Findings consistently showed the limited impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the illegal substance market. Over the two waves, the supply, price and purity of three main illegal substances did not significantly vary. Substance use was estimated as usual by most, trending toward a decrease. The impact of the pandemic on participants' social situation and health was appraised as low to medium. Nevertheless, a minority of participants reported higher impact and multivariate analyses showed a more important impact for those who were female, younger, and not using multiple substances. This process was implemented quickly and provided an understanding of the short-term impact of the pandemic on drug markets and users

Le marché des stupéfiants dans le canton de Vaud. Partie 1 : les opioïdes

Le projet « Structure et produits du marché des stupéfiants » (MARSTUP) est né d'une volonté de collaboration de trois Instituts de recherche lausannois qui travaillent depuis de nombreuses années sur la question des stupéfiants : Addiction Suisse, l'Ecole des sciences criminelles (ESC) de l'Université de Lausanne et l'Institut universitaire de médecine sociale et préventive (IUMSP) du CHUV. Tous trois ont pris conscience de l'intérêt d'étudier cette dimension souvent ignorée de la problématique des stupéfiants. L'objectif de la collaboration est de développer une compréhension de la structure et de l’organisation du marché des stupéfiants qui puisse contribuer à l'amélioration des politiques publiques et à promouvoir des débats plus factuels à ce sujet. Il s'agit aussi de développer un outil de monitorage qui permette de suivre l’évolution temporelle de ce marché. Le canton de Vaud a accepté de cofinancer ce projet et un groupe d'accompagnement, formé de professionnels de la santé publique et de la sécurité, a été constitué. Le projet a été divisé en trois parties successives: le marché des opioïdes, celui des stimulants et celui des cannabinoïdes. Chacun fait l'objet d'une analyse de marché à quatre niveaux: les produits proposés, les volumes consommés, la structure et organisation du marché, et sa valeur. Les données utilisées comprennent des enquêtes et statistiques existantes, ainsi que de nouvelles études, notamment des entretiens auprès des professionnels concernés par ce marché et avec des usagers de stupéfiants. Les analyses des eaux usées et celles du contenu résiduel des seringues usagées ont aussi été intégrées dans le projet. Il s'agit de la première étude interdisciplinaire de ce type en Suisse. Le présent rapport – le premier du projet – porte sur le marché des opioïdes

A procedure for the fatigue life prediction of straight fibers pneumatic muscles

Different from the McKibben pneumatic muscle actuator, the straight fibers one is made of an elastomeric tube closed at the two ends by two heads that ensure a mechanical and pneumatic seal. High stiffness threads are placed longitudinally into the wall of the tube while external rings are placed at some sections of it to limit the radial expansion of the tube. The inner pressure in the tube causes shortening of the actuator. The working mode of the muscle actuator requires a series of critical repeated contractions and extensions that cause it to rupture. The fatigue life duration of a pneumatic muscle is often lower than traditional pneumatic actuators. The paper presents a procedure for the fatigue life prediction of a straight-fibers muscle based on experimental tests directly carried out with the muscles instead of with specimens of the silicone rubber material which the muscle is made of. The proposed procedure was experimentally validated. Although the procedure is based on fatigue life duration data for silicone rubber, it can be extended to all straight-fibers muscles once the fatigue life duration data of any material considered for the muscles is known

Analysis of residual content of used syringes collected from low threshold facilities in Lausanne, Switzerland.

For the first time in Switzerland, an analysis of residual contents from used syringes collected from low threshold facilities was performed. This preliminary study is part of a wider project aiming to understand patterns of injecting drug use over time. Among the 100,000 syringes exchanged annually by the ABS foundation (Accueil Bas Seuil), 113 were collected following a purposive sampling method and analysed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Four syringes (4% of the sample population) contained no substances take into consideration the limit of the method. Cocaine was the most commonly observed compound and was detected in 77 syringes (68%), whilst users reported syringes with cocaine among those analysed in this study. Heroin was detected in 49 syringes (43%) and reported by 53 users returning syringes; midazolam was detected in 31 syringes (27%) and reported as the medicine Dormicum(®) in 22 occurrences. No new or unusual illicit drug was detected in the sample. The results show the presence of cocaine in more than half of the sample, an absence of new or unusual illicit drugs, as well as very few traces of methadone, which suggests that this substitution drug is rarely injected. This preliminary study also demonstrates the potential of this developed methodology for monitoring purposes. An ongoing and more systematic approach could allow to detect modifications in drug use patterns among the target population as well as the appearance of new and hazardous substances. Such systematic and timely results could allow an adaptation of harm reduction interventions

Curve Negotiation: Identifying Driver Behavior Around Curves with the Driver Performance Database

Approximately one quarter of all accidents outside city limits occur while driving around curves, where assistance systems could prevent the driver from negotiating curves with excessive speed. This study argues that the parameterizing of a Driving Assistant System could be realized with data from realistic, noncritical driving behavior offered by Naturalistic Driving Studies. The Driver Performance Database presented in this study provides a tool for observing normal, noncritical driving behavior. The Database contains results from road tests with an instrumented vehicle that were carried out on public road traffic on a predetermined route, which was precisely measured in advance. In addition to vehicle state parameters, we also collected data concerning the driving environment and physiological information. With the Driver Performance Database it is possible to generate different facets of human driving behavior in a descriptive and normative way, which is illustrated by driver behavior in curve negotiation

Curve Negotiation: Identifying Driver Behavior Around Curves with the Driver Performance Database

Approximately one quarter of all accidents outside city limits occur while driving around curves, where assistance systems could prevent the driver from negotiating curves with excessive speed. This study argues that the parameterizing of a Driving Assistant System could be realized with data from realistic, noncritical driving behavior offered by Naturalistic Driving Studies. The Driver Performance Database presented in this study provides a tool for observing normal, noncritical driving behavior. The Database contains results from road tests with an instrumented vehicle that were carried out on public road traffic on a predetermined route, which was precisely measured in advance. In addition to vehicle state parameters, we also collected data concerning the driving environment and physiological information. With the Driver Performance Database it is possible to generate different facets of human driving behavior in a descriptive and normative way, which is illustrated by driver behavior in curve negotiation

Identifying and prioritising services in European terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems

Ecosystems are multifunctional and provide humanity with a broad array of vital services. Effective management of services requires an improved evidence base, identifying the role of ecosystems in delivering multiple services, which can assist policy-makers in maintaining them. Here, information from the literature and scientific experts was used to systematically document the importance of services and identify trends in their use and status over time for the main terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems in Europe. The results from this review show that intensively managed ecosystems contribute mostly to vital provisioning services (e.g. agro-ecosystems provide food via crops and livestock, and forests provide wood), while semi-natural ecosystems (e.g. grasslands and mountains) are key contributors of genetic resources and cultural services (e.g. aesthetic values and sense of place). The most recent European trends in human use of services show increases in demand for crops from agro-ecosystems, timber from forests, water flow regulation from rivers, wetlands and mountains, and recreation and ecotourism in most ecosystems, but decreases in livestock production, freshwater capture fisheries, wild foods and virtually all services associated with ecosystems which have considerably decreased in area (e.g. semi-natural grasslands). The condition of the majority of services show either a degraded or mixed status across Europe with the exception of recent enhancements in timber production in forests and mountains, freshwater provision, water/erosion/natural hazard regulation and recreation/ecotourism in mountains, and climate regulation in forests. Key gaps in knowledge were evident for certain services across all ecosystems, including the provision of biochemicals and natural medicines, genetic resources and the regulating services of seed dispersal, pest/disease regulation and invasion resistance

Structural and chemical investigations of adapted Siemens feed rods for an optimized float zone process

The optimization of the float zone process for industrial application is a promising way to crystallize high purity silicon for high efficiency solar cells with reduced process costs. We investigated two differently produced Siemens rods which should be used as feed material for the float zone process. The aim is to identify and to improve material properties of the feed rods which have a high impact to the float zone process. We show here microstructural and chemical analysis comparing feed rods manufactured under standard conditions and under float zone adapted conditions. To resolve the growth behavior of the grains SEM/EBSD mappings are performed at different positions. TEM analyses are used to investigate the interface region between the mono- and the multicrystalline silicon within the Siemens feed rod. Additionally, drilled cores are cut out from the feed rods containing the region of the slim rod. Afterwards, the drilled cores are crystallized with the float zone process. Finally, carbon and oxygen measurements with FT-IR spectrometry on different positions of the crystallized drilled cores of the Siemens feed rods show the influence of the slim rod material to the float zone process

Influence of slim rod material properties to the Siemens feed rod and the float zone process

The identification and understanding of material properties influencing the float zone process is important to crystallize high purity silicon for high efficiency solar cells. Also the knowledge of minimal requirements to crystallize monocrystalline silicon with the float zone process is of interest from an economic point of view. In the present study, feed rods for the float zone process composed of a central slim rod and the deposited silicon from the Siemens process are investigated. Previous studies have shown that the slim rod has a significant impact on the purity and suitability for further crystallization processes. In particular, contaminations like substitutional carbon and the presence of precipitates as well as the formation of oxide layers play an important role and are investigated in detail. For this purpose different slim rod materials were used in deposition and float zone crystallization experiments. Samples were prepared by cross sectioning and core drilling of Siemens rods, which were recrystallized with the float zone process. Recrystallized drilled cores are analyzed with FT-IR spectrometry concerning the carbon and oxygen content. To estimate the grain growth behavior on the slim rod surface in dependence of the used slim rod material, EBSD mappings inside a SEM are performed on squared and circular slim rods. TEM analysis was used to investigate the presence of an oxide layer at the interface between slim rod and deposited polycrystalline silicon. Additionally the influence of a nitrogen-containing gas atmosphere during the slim rod pulling is investigated by IR microscopy and ToF-SIMS regarding Si3N4 precipitation