scholarly journals Flow. A Socially Responsible 3D Printed One-Handed Recorder

Author(s):  
Javier Esclapés ◽  
Almudena Gómez ◽  
Ana Ibañez

The recorder is one of the most common instruments used during primary school in the formal education system in the EU. However, there are a percentage of students with only one functional hand. The existing one-handed recorders available for them to be able to play and perform in the same way as their peers are expensive and difficult to use. This study’s purpose is to document the development of Flow—a low cost one-handed recorder as well as the user’s assessment of the psychosocial benefits of the recorder. The methods used for fabrication were 3D modelling and additive manufacturing (AM) technology or 3D printing using the technique of stereolithography, and for the assessment of the product, the Psychosocial Impact of Assistive Devices Scale (PIADS) questionnaire was distributed to 20 primary school users. The results show that the use of resins and Stereolithography is appropriate for wind instruments providing quality and strength at a fair price. Flow also proved to have a positive impact on the users and their inclusion in school. The main conclusions of this study underscore the adequacy of using AM for adaptations required for people with disabilities and the positive psychosocial benefits generated by the use of Flow in children.

Optics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 228-235
Author(s):  
Rosa Ana Pérez-Herrera ◽  
Santiago Tainta ◽  
Cesar Elosúa

The idea of utilizing game elements in non-gaming situations has sparked a lot of attention in recent years, especially in topics such as education and training. Game-based techniques appear to be an increasing trend in a wide range of learning areas, including health, social policy, and engineering, among others, not only in primary school but also in higher formal education. Using this methodology, the learning process becomes more stimulating while also reaching a competitive level in some circumstances. In the present work, the authors propose a new gamification strategy based on an escape-room in which all the puzzles to be passed are related to the area of optics and photonics and use readily available or low-cost equipment. The major field of application of this novel teaching strategy will be the practical section of a course, that is usually carried out in a laboratory, and will be aimed at both undergraduate and master’s degree students. A coevaluation method is also proposed where the rest of the students will provide valuable feedback to each one of their colleagues and to the instructor.


TAPPI Journal ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 17-25
Author(s):  
JUNMING SHU ◽  
ARTHAS YANG ◽  
PEKKA SALMINEN ◽  
HENRI VAITTINEN

The Ji’an PM No. 3 is the first linerboard machine in China to use multilayer curtain coating technology. Since successful startup at the end of 2011, further development has been carried out to optimize running conditions, coating formulations, and the base paper to provide a product with satisfactory quality and lower cost to manufacture. The key challenges include designing the base board structure for the desired mechanical strength, designing the surface properties for subsequent coating operations, optimizing the high-speed running of the curtain coater to enhance production efficiency, minimizing the amount of titanium dioxide in the coating color, and balancing the coated board properties to make them suitable for both offset and flexographic printing. The pilot and mill scale results show that curtain coating has a major positive impact on brightness, while smoothness is improved mainly by the blade coating and calendering conditions. Optimization of base board properties and the blade + curtain + blade concept has resulted in the successful use of 100% recycled fiber to produce base board. The optical, mechanical, and printability properties of the final coated board meet market requirements for both offset and flexographic printing. Machine runnability is excellent at the current speed of 1000 m/min, and titanium dioxide has been eliminated in the coating formulations without affecting the coating coverage. A significant improvement in the total cost of coated white liner production has been achieved, compared to the conventional concept of using virgin fiber in the top ply. Future development will focus on combining low cost with further quality improvements to make linerboard suitable for a wider range of end-use applications, including frozen-food packaging and folding boxboard.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merel van der Stelt ◽  
Martin P. Grobusch ◽  
Abdul R. Koroma ◽  
Marco Papenburg ◽  
Ismaila Kebbie ◽  
...  

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 1977
Author(s):  
Ricardo Oliveira ◽  
Liliana M. Sousa ◽  
Ana M. Rocha ◽  
Rogério Nogueira ◽  
Lúcia Bilro

In this work, we demonstrate for the first time the capability to inscribe long-period gratings (LPGs) with UV radiation using simple and low cost amplitude masks fabricated with a consumer grade 3D printer. The spectrum obtained for a grating with 690 µm period and 38 mm length presented good quality, showing sharp resonances (i.e., 3 dB bandwidth < 3 nm), low out-of-band loss (~0.2 dB), and dip losses up to 18 dB. Furthermore, the capability to select the resonance wavelength has been demonstrated using different amplitude mask periods. The customization of the masks makes it possible to fabricate gratings with complex structures. Additionally, the simplicity in 3D printing an amplitude mask solves the problem of the lack of amplitude masks on the market and avoids the use of high resolution motorized stages, as is the case of the point-by-point technique. Finally, the 3D printed masks were also used to induce LPGs using the mechanical pressing method. Due to the better resolution of these masks compared to ones described on the state of the art, we were able to induce gratings with higher quality, such as low out-of-band loss (0.6 dB), reduced spectral ripples, and narrow bandwidths (~3 nm).


HardwareX ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. e00214
Author(s):  
David T. McCarthy ◽  
Baiqian Shi ◽  
Miao Wang ◽  
Stephen Catsamas
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  

Author(s):  
Romain Nicot ◽  
Edwige Hurteloup ◽  
Sébastien Joachim ◽  
Charles Druelle ◽  
Jean-Marc Levaillant

Polymers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 2518
Author(s):  
Nunzio Cennamo ◽  
Lorena Saitta ◽  
Claudio Tosto ◽  
Francesco Arcadio ◽  
Luigi Zeni ◽  
...  

In this work, a novel approach to realize a plasmonic sensor is presented. The proposed optical sensor device is designed, manufactured, and experimentally tested. Two photo-curable resins are used to 3D print a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor. Both numerical and experimental analyses are presented in the paper. The numerical and experimental results confirm that the 3D printed SPR sensor presents performances, in term of figure of merit (FOM), very similar to other SPR sensors made using plastic optical fibers (POFs). For the 3D printed sensor, the measured FOM is 13.6 versus 13.4 for the SPR-POF configuration. The cost analysis shows that the 3D printed SPR sensor can be manufactured at low cost (∼15 €) that is competitive with traditional sensors. The approach presented here allows to realize an innovative SPR sensor showing low-cost, 3D-printing manufacturing free design and the feasibility to be integrated with other optical devices on the same plastic planar support, thus opening undisclosed future for the optical sensor systems.


Author(s):  
Steven Masiano ◽  
Edwin Machine ◽  
Mtisunge Mphande ◽  
Christine Markham ◽  
Tapiwa Tembo ◽  
...  

VITAL Start is a video-based intervention aimed to improve maternal retention in HIV care and adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) in Malawi. We explored the experiences of pregnant women living with HIV (PWLHIV) not yet on ART who received VITAL Start before ART initiation to assess the intervention’s acceptability, feasibility, fidelity of delivery, and perceived impact. Between February and September 2019, we conducted semi-structured interviews with a convenience sample of 34 PWLHIV within one month of receiving VITAL Start. The participants reported that VITAL Start was acceptable and feasible and had good fidelity of delivery. They also reported that the video had a positive impact on their lives, encouraging them to disclose their HIV status to their sexual partners who, in turn, supported them to adhere to ART. The participants suggested using a similar intervention to provide health-related education/counseling to people with long term conditions. Our findings suggest that video-based interventions may be an acceptable, feasible approach to optimizing ART retention and adherence amongst PWLHIV, and they can be delivered with high fidelity. Further exploration of the utility of low cost, scalable, video-based interventions to address health counseling gaps in sub-Saharan Africa is warranted.


Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 572
Author(s):  
Mads Jochumsen ◽  
Taha Al Muhammadee Janjua ◽  
Juan Carlos Arceo ◽  
Jimmy Lauber ◽  
Emilie Simoneau Buessinger ◽  
...  

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) have been proven to be useful for stroke rehabilitation, but there are a number of factors that impede the use of this technology in rehabilitation clinics and in home-use, the major factors including the usability and costs of the BCI system. The aims of this study were to develop a cheap 3D-printed wrist exoskeleton that can be controlled by a cheap open source BCI (OpenViBE), and to determine if training with such a setup could induce neural plasticity. Eleven healthy volunteers imagined wrist extensions, which were detected from single-trial electroencephalography (EEG), and in response to this, the wrist exoskeleton replicated the intended movement. Motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) elicited using transcranial magnetic stimulation were measured before, immediately after, and 30 min after BCI training with the exoskeleton. The BCI system had a true positive rate of 86 ± 12% with 1.20 ± 0.57 false detections per minute. Compared to the measurement before the BCI training, the MEPs increased by 35 ± 60% immediately after and 67 ± 60% 30 min after the BCI training. There was no association between the BCI performance and the induction of plasticity. In conclusion, it is possible to detect imaginary movements using an open-source BCI setup and control a cheap 3D-printed exoskeleton that when combined with the BCI can induce neural plasticity. These findings may promote the availability of BCI technology for rehabilitation clinics and home-use. However, the usability must be improved, and further tests are needed with stroke patients.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document