scholarly journals Portable and Low-Cost Respirometric Microsystem for the Static and Dynamic Respirometry Monitoring of Compost

Sensors ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (19) ◽  
pp. 4132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliette F. Bermudez ◽  
Juan F. Saldarriaga ◽  
Johann F. Osma
Keyword(s):  
Laboratory Test ◽  
Organic Waste ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Electronic System ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Hierarchical Analysis ◽  
Standard Laboratory ◽  
The Cost

Composting is considered an option for the disposal of organic waste; however, the development of portable and low-cost systems for its monitoring is of high interest. Therefore, in this study, respirometric microsystems were designed and tested including two integrated oxygen sensors for the measurement of compost samples under static and dynamic conditions with high portability and ease of use. The cost of each sensor was calculated as 2 USD, while the cost of the whole respirometric microsystem was calculated as 6 USD. The electronic system for real-time monitoring was also designed and implemented. The designed systems were tested for over 6 weeks for the determination of compost quality using real samples. The respirometric microsystem was compared to a commercial respirometry system and a standard laboratory test using hierarchical analysis which included costs, portability accuracy, analysis time, and integration of new technologies. The analysis showed a global score of 6.87 for the respirometric microsystem compared to 6.70 for the standard laboratory test and 3.26 for the commercial system.

scholarly journals Scaffolding e-voting in developing countries

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marija Maletić ◽  
Dušan Barać ◽  
Vuk Rakočević ◽  
Tamara Naumović ◽  
Artur Bjelica
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Electronic System ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Election Process ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Voting System ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Voting Model

Research question: This paper discusses e-voting as an integral part of e-government in developing countries. E-voting enables automation of casting and counting votes. Motivation: The main goal was to investigate the readiness of both the public sector and citizens for switching from common “paper” voting method to electronic system-based voting. In order to improve democracy and trust in the election process (IDEA, 2011), the e-voting system should be reliable, accurate and secure (Mauw, Verschuren, & de Vink, 2007). The example that should be followed is the Estonian e-voting system (Drechsler, 2004). Idea: We proposed a comprehensive e-voting model that includes five components: e-voting services, IT infrastructure, participants’ registration, components integration and a system for counting and reporting. Security is the most important issue that should be overcome by using the cryptographic protocols. Reliability and availability of the e-voting system should not be neglected, and it should be able to save all verified casted votes. Data: In order to examine the readiness and awareness of e-voting potentials in a developing country, we conducted a survey that included 152 persons from three different groups: individuals, legal entities and e-government employees. Tools: In order to establish relationships among opinions of the three groups of respondents to the survey that was conducted, a comparative analysis was performed. For this purpose the questions were divided into four categories. Findings: As it was expected, the study results have showed that survey participants find security, lack of qualified staff and mistrust of the older generations towards new technologies as the crucial issues in developing and implementing the e-voting model. Based on the responses the cost reduction, ease of use and efficiency improvement are recognized as categories that could be realized by implementation of the e-voting system. Contribution: The results show the respondents’ opinion regarding the e-voting system introduction as a legitimate voting tool. It can reduce abuse, voting costs and manual errors.

scholarly journals Design and Adoption of Low-Cost Point-of-Care Diagnostic Devices: Syrian Case

Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 882
Author(s):  
M. Munzer Alseed ◽  
Hamzah Syed ◽  
Mehmet Cengiz Onbasli ◽  
Ali K. Yetisen ◽  
Savas Tasoglu
Keyword(s):  
Civil Wars ◽  
Healthcare Workers ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Efficient Solutions ◽  
Humanitarian Crises ◽  
Technology Experience ◽  
The Cost

Civil wars produce immense humanitarian crises, causing millions of individuals to seek refuge in other countries. The rate of disease prevalence has inclined among the refugees, increasing the cost of healthcare. Complex medical conditions and high numbers of patients at healthcare centers overwhelm the healthcare system and delay diagnosis and treatment. Point-of-care (PoC) testing can provide efficient solutions to high equipment cost, late diagnosis, and low accessibility of healthcare services. However, the development of PoC devices in developing countries is challenged by several barriers. Such PoC devices may not be adopted due to prejudices about new technologies and the need for special training to use some of these devices. Here, we investigated the concerns of end users regarding PoC devices by surveying healthcare workers and doctors. The tendency to adopt PoC device changes is based on demographic factors such as work sector, education, and technology experience. The most apparent concern about PoC devices was issues regarding low accuracy, according to the surveyed clinicians.

A comparative study of qualitative immunochemical screening assays for the combined measurement of T-2/HT-2 in cereals and cereal-based products

2011 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 385-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Meneely ◽  
F. Ricci ◽  
S. Vesco ◽  
M. Abouzied ◽  
M. Sulyok ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sample Preparation ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
The Other ◽  
Accuracy And Precision ◽  
Cost Implications ◽  
Electrochemical Array ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Preparation Techniques ◽  
Speed Of Analysis

Many different immunochemical platforms exist for the screening of naturally occurring contaminants in food from the low cost enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) to the expensive instruments such as optical biosensors based on the phenomenon of surface plasmon resonance (SPR). The primary aim of this study was to evaluate and compare a number of these platforms to assess their accuracy and precision when applied to naturally contaminated samples containing HT-2/T-2 mycotoxins. Other important factors considered were the speed of analysis, ease of use (sample preparation techniques and use of the equipment) and ultimately the cost implications. The three screening procedures compared included an SPR biosensor assay, a commercially available ELISA and an enzymelinked immunomagnetic electrochemical array (ELIME array). The qualitative data for all methods demonstrated very good overall agreements with each other, however on comparison with mass spectrometry confirmatory results, the ELISA and SPR assay performed slightly better than the ELIME array, exhibiting an overall agreement of 95.8% compared to 91.7%. Currently, SPR is more costly than the other two platforms and can only be used in the laboratory whereas in theory both the ELISA and ELIME array are portable and can be used in the field, but ultimately this is dependent on the sample preparation techniques employed. Sample preparative techniques varied for all methods evaluated, the ELISA was the most simple to perform followed by that of the SPR method. The ELIME array involved an additional clean-up step thereby increasing both the time and cost of analysis. Therefore in the current format, field use would not be an option for the ELIME array. In relation to speed of analysis, the ELISA outperformed the other methods.

scholarly journals An IoT Smart Broiler Farming Model for Low Income Farmers

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 95
Author(s):  
Hazael Phiri ◽  
Douglas Kunda ◽  
Jackson Phiri
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Cost Model ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Climate Control ◽  
Proposed Model ◽  
Zigbee Protocol ◽  
Gsm Network ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Broiler House

<p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-US">The coming of Internet of things (IoT) brings opportunities for the deploying of wireless sensor networks. One area of deployment is smart poultry farming to improve the quality and security of chicken varieties that include broilers. The quality of broilers produced is dependent on the environment in which the broilers are kept. In addition, the revenue of the farmer is guaranteed if theft of stock is prevented. The current methods farmers use are labour intensive and time consuming as they are manual. Leveraging the features of IoT and sensors can help to monitor the environment and ensure adverse conditions are reported for farmers to take action before they harm the livestock. Incorporating intruder detection when monitoring conditions in the environment can also prevent stock theft and that can increase the income obtained by farmers. For such a system to be widely adopted by low income farmers, the cost should be low compared commercially available climate control systems that are meant for commercial farmers. The system should also provide ease of use for less technically skilled farmers, reduce the time taken by farmers to take action in controlling theft and conditions in the environment and be accessible from any location other than the broiler house. In this paper, we propose a low-cost model that can be used to monitor conditions in the environment of a broiler house and send the values to the farmer in real-time. The proposed model is based on open source microcontrollers, ZigBee protocol, GSM network, mobile applications and cloud computing. </span></p>

Development of a Low Cost Device for Measuring Solar Irradiance

2012 ◽  
Vol 457-458 ◽  
pp. 1377-1382
Author(s):  
Yu Jie Chen ◽  
Cong Hu ◽  
Yi Ze Sun ◽  
Zhuo Meng
Keyword(s):  
Solar Irradiance ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Short Circuit Current ◽  
Solar Irradiation ◽  
Photoelectric Cell ◽  
Cost System ◽  
Different Temperatures ◽  
The Cost

For a determination of the system’s efficiency and decrease the cost, a low cost system for measuring solar irradiance is designed. By analyzing the influence of solar irradiance and temperature to solar cell, we have found that in case of different temperatures the variation of short-circuit current (Isc) in function of solar irradiation incident (E) is always linear. Then the read-out circuitry is designed to measure and convert the signal which is detected by the photoelectric cell and thermocouples. At last, the software is developed to compensate the temperature and make sure the device work normally. The results of detecting the system show that it’s effective and reliable.

Traditional Models Used in Evaluation of Requests for Credit Card and Alternatives (AHP)

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-136
Author(s):  
Agerti Galo
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Credit Card ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Credit Cards ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Hierarchical Analysis ◽  
Human Judgment ◽  
Analysis Process ◽  
Approval Rating ◽  
Increasing Demand

Abstract Thousands of people are applying for credit cards in the bank now days. Bank department that deals with credit cards is impossible to evaluate all multiple applications. Therefore they used automatic procedures based on computer and statistical models to assess the credit card requirements. The approval rating of applications until recently was based on human judgment that deals with ‘is persons evaluating applications. Recently the increasing demand for credit cards brought the necessity of evaluation models. The models used are a synthesis of highly complex mathematical analysis. These models are too difficult to understand as well as their application upon field requires users who have a certain level of education. Deficiencies and difficulties in using of them make the users to look at alternative models which are acceptable and easily accessible. Hierarchical analysis process (AHP) is a model that meets the needs for decision-making but also ease of use from that who owns the model makes it more attractive. Using AHP by banks in their decision-making needs would bring them a low cost and it would be highly efficient.

scholarly journals Development and Validation of an Autonomous System for Measurement of Sunshine Duration

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (16) ◽  
pp. 4606
Author(s):  
Álvaro B. da Rocha ◽  
Eisenhawer de M. Fernandes ◽  
Carlos A. C. dos Santos ◽  
Júlio M. T. Diniz ◽  
Wanderley F. A. Junior
Keyword(s):  
Sunshine Duration ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Electronic System ◽  
Operational Amplifiers ◽  
Solar Panels ◽  
Calculation Methods ◽  
Contrast Method ◽  
Microcontroller Unit ◽  
Development And Validation

This paper presented an autonomous electronic system for sunshine duration (SD) monitoring based on the contrast method and developed to operate on a horizontal surface. The prototype uses four photoresistors arranged at 90° in a 20 mm diameter circumference separated by a shading structure used to create a shadow pattern on the detection element. Photoresistors are inserted in individual signal conditioning circuits based on the association between Wheatstone bridges and operational amplifiers to provide an analog signal to the microcontroller unit. The determination of SD occurs through the implementation of fuzzy logic with numerical calculation methods to estimate the probability (f) of solar disk obstruction and estimate SD values. The system does not require additional adjustments after installation or use of energy sources for operation due to the use of an internal battery with charge recovery by solar panels. Experimental results of the proposed system were validated with the ones provided by a government meteorology station. Statistical analysis of the results showed a confidence index (c) greater than 90%, with a precision of 94.26%. The proposed system is a feasible low-cost solution to the available commercial systems for the measurement of sunshine duration.

scholarly journals HYDRA: Introducing a Low-Cost Framework for STEM Education Using Open Tools

Electronics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (24) ◽  
pp. 3056
Author(s):  
Georgios Tsalmpouris ◽  
George Tsinarakis ◽  
Nikolaos Gertsakis ◽  
Savvas A. Chatzichristofis ◽  
Lefteris Doitsidis
Keyword(s):  
Stem Education ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Low Complexity ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Modular System ◽  
Sensors And Actuators ◽  
Embedded Devices ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Educational Framework ◽  
The Cost

STEM education is of paramount importance, especially in the lower levels of education, and it has been proven beneficial for students in many ways. Although there are various tools available, there are significant drawbacks mainly related to the cost and the ease of use. In this study, we introduce a new low-cost educational framework oriented toward elementary and secondary educational needs. The proposed system exploits open tools and low-cost devices. The system’s core is based on the popular Arduino microcontroller, a low-cost device supported by a large community. The overall system was designed and developed, providing an expandable, modular system of low complexity suitable for students with no or low prior knowledge in related subjects, among others, to programming, embedded devices, sensors and actuators, as well as robotics. Our scope was to provide a system with a small learning curve. Practically, this makes it possible in a short amount of time for the students to perform appealing yet straightforward tasks which will boost their self-confidence and creativity, improve their technical skills and simultaneously provide a system with several capabilities usable in different kinds of projects. The introduced system was tested through a preliminary study using flow theory in a team of 68 students of the three last grades in an elementary school in Greece.

scholarly journals Design of a Low Cost Switching Board Enabling a Reconfigurable Remote Experiment

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
Abderrahmane Adda Benattia ◽  
Mohamed Moussa ◽  
Abdelhalim Benachenhou ◽  
Abdelhamid Mebrouka
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Practical Work ◽  
Circuit Board ◽  
Raspberry Pi ◽  
Measurement Instruments ◽  
Hardware Platform ◽  
Hardware Configuration ◽  
Spi Bus ◽  
The Cost

<p class="0abstract">Most of currently remote laboratories implementations include interactive experimentation. In this case, students use real devices and equipment to perform real experiments, which need some flexibility of interaction with the hardware platform. The hardware platform is composed of a Raspberry Pi as a lab server, a switching board (SB), a practical work circuit board and some measurement instruments. The SB is used to make configuration of experimentation by establishing connection between the practical work circuit and measurement instruments. During the experimentation process, students change the setup using a web page. In the background, the hardware configuration is realized using SB, which is controlled by the lab server. The purpose of this work is to develop a new SB in order to provide more possibilities, interaction flexibility with the hardware platform, ease of use, improve performance in response time and finally reduce the cost of the hardware. The SB is based on switches instead of relays. This board can be plugged directly on a Raspberry Pi to facilitate the assembly. It extends the “SPI” bus in order to control some electronic components such as digital potentiometers. Its use is illustrated with a circuit with multiple combinations.</p>

scholarly journals Point-of-Care Testing for Infectious Diseases: Past, Present, and Future

2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (8) ◽  
pp. 2313-2320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas R. Kozel ◽  
Amanda R. Burnham-Marusich
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Ease Of Use ◽  
Lateral Flow Immunoassay ◽  
Point Of Care Testing ◽  
Resource Limited Settings ◽  
Resource Limited ◽  
Potential Use

ABSTRACT Point-of-care (POC) diagnostics provide rapid actionable information for patient care at the time and site of an encounter with the health care system. The usual platform has been the lateral flow immunoassay. Recently, emerging molecular diagnostics have met requirements for speed, low cost, and ease of use for POC applications. A major driver for POC development is the ability to diagnose infectious diseases at sites with a limited infrastructure. The potential use in both wealthy and resource-limited settings has fueled an intense effort to build on existing technologies and to generate new technologies for the diagnosis of a broad spectrum of infectious diseases.

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