MEASUREMENT OF WIND POWER AND ENERGY USING AN ANEMOMETER WITHOUT MOVING PARTS

The paper deals with the application of a newly developed anemometer without moving parts. It is digitized and has built-in electronics that convert the vibrations of two aluminum fixed frames into two digital signals: one, which shows the strength (speed absolute value)) of the wind, and the other, which shows its direction. Both of these signals are used to calculate wind power and energy. Earlier works have shown that the two-bit stochastic digital measurement method overcomes (eliminates) the problem of the offset of the analog adder. The authors of this paper apply this idea to the digital output of the sensor, where the role of the offset of the analog adder is taken over by the integral nonlinearity of the digital output of the anemometer. The first step in this direction is digitally dithering the sensor output. This principle is presented in detail, as well as a rough estimate of the accuracy gain in measuring wind energy. The obtained result shows that the accuracy in measuring wind energy is not worse than the limit accuracy in the case of a cup anemometer that generates sinusoidal voltage.

PRELIMINARY DESIGN OF ANALOG DISCRETE UNIFORM NOISE GENERATOR

The paper presents the basic idea of ​​the construction of an analog discrete uniform noise generator. The source of noise is a carbon resistor, the noise is linearly strongly amplified and limited to around zero. The probability density function (PDF) of the carbon resistor thermal noise in that region is square. By narrowing the symmetric allowable gap (interval) around zero, PDF of the noise approaches a uniform distribution. The factor of deviation from the uniform distribution is correctly and precisely defined. This quantity has been shown to be practically negligible. In addition, the paper discusses the application of the proposed ditheter noise, both in the two-bit and in the multi-bit stochastic digital measurement method (SDMM). It has been shown that noise is more suitable for application in multi-bit SDMM, because it is less sensitive to deviations from the uniform distribution. Commercially available track-and-hold circuits provide at least an order of magnitude wider bandwidth of the described generator compared to the standard solution that uses numerical random number generator and a corresponding D/A converter. However, the realization of such a generator requires hard engineering work, and therefore goes beyond the scope of this paper.

Health Care Technologies and Nursing Care

Background: The Evaluation of Health Technologies is a multidisciplinary activity that systematically, transparent, impartial, effectively summarizing the safety, clinical efficacy and effectiveness, cost, cost-effectiveness, organizational mplications, social consequences, legal, ethical and organizational considerations of the application of a health technology The Evaluation of Health Technologies has significantly improved the decision-making process. To evaluate the reliability of technological measuring devices used in patient care. Methods: This study is a descriptive and observational study. The research was conducted between December 2019-April 2020 in Mardin Province hospitals. The population of the study consisted of 245 patients who were hospitalized in the clinics of these hospitals, over the age of 18 and 65 years agreed to participate in the study. The data were collected through a questionnaire. Descriptive statistics (number, percentage and average) were used to evaluate the data. In order to conduct the study, written permission was obtained from the relevant institutions, ethics committee permission from the university and written consent from the individuals participating in the study. Results: The average age of the patients participating in the study was 42 years, and 35.1% were male, 64.9% were female, 82.0% were married and 69.4% were literate or primary school graduates. It was determined that 45% of the patients had at least one chronic disease and 38% of them used medication continuously. While the mean hunger blood glucose levels of the patients participating in the study were 128 mg / dl in measurements with the glucometer device, blood glucose laboratory levels obtained from the vein were found to be 122 mg / dl. Pulses of the patients were found to be 85 / min on average with a pulse oximeter device, and 87 / min on average in measurement by palpation from the artery method. While the temperature measurement average values of the patients were found to be 36.6 ° C with the forehead non-contact measurement device, the average temperature was found to be 35.7 ° C with the armpit digital measurement device. Conclusion: The use of technology in nursing care applications is an indispensable element. However, for the safe use of technological devices in nursing care, it is extremely important to measure the measurement devices used correctly. Significant differences were detected in the blood glucose levels measured with the glucometer device. We can say that there is a difference in thermometers, but pulse oximetry devices measure safely. More comprehensive research is recommended on this subject.

AR Gauge Scanner Mobile Application

This paper showcases an innovative mobile application powered by IR4.0 technologies including augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI). The purpose of this application is to enable digital transformation of analog gauges, digitize their measurements, automate historical data storage, visualize trends, and provide useful information about the gauge to the operator. Utilizing this application will replace the current practice of manual recording of readings in order to reduce human errors as well as promote operational efficiency. With this application, the operator simply points the mobile device's camera towards the gauge and the image is converted to a digital measurement using computer vision algorithms. The digitized readings are sent to a remote database for recordkeeping and data analytics. In order to identify which gauge is being scanned, which is necessary for proper recordkeeping, the application detects a unique QR-code tag attached to the gauge. Additionally, the application utilizes AR technology to overlay gauge specific information (such as gauge type, safe operating range, fluid type, etc.) along with the digitized reading. Visualization of historical readings is another feature in the application that assists the operator in trend monitoring and decision making. Preliminary tests for the prototype application were carried out in a laboratory environment to demonstrate the working principle of this application. Although the technology is in its early stages of development, it shows promising results in terms of accuracy and speed of the computer vision algorithms to detect and digitize the analog gauges. The historical data recorded by the application can also be accessed via the control room using a web interface, where information from various gauges can be retrieved and visualized for analysis and monitoring. Overall, the presented application integrates computer vision and augmented reality to provide an effective solution for digitizing analog gauges while promoting digital transformation efforts within the industry.

Automated Analysis of the Two-Minute Walk Test in Clinical Practice Using Accelerometer Data

One of the core problems for people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) is the impairment of their ability to walk, which can be severely restrictive in everyday life. Therefore, monitoring of ambulatory function is of great importance to be able to effectively counteract disease progression. An extensive gait analysis, such as the Dresden protocol for multidimensional walking assessment, covers several facets of walking impairment including a 2-min walk test, in which the distance taken by the patient in two minutes is measured by an odometer. Using this approach, it is questionable how precise the measuring methods are at recording the distance traveled. In this project, we investigate whether the current measurement can be replaced by a digital measurement method based on accelerometers (six Opal sensors from the Mobility Lab system) that are attached to the patient’s body. We developed two algorithms using these data and compared the validity of these approaches using the results from 2-min walk tests from 562 pwMS that were collected with a gold-standard odometer. In 48.4% of pwMS, we detected an average relative measurement error of less than 5%, while results from 25.8% of the pwMS showed a relative measurement error of up to 10%. The algorithm had difficulties correctly calculating the walking distances in another 25.8% of pwMS; these results showed a measurement error of more than 20%. A main reason for this moderate performance was the variety of pathologically altered gait patterns in pwMS that may complicate the step detection. Overall, both algorithms achieved favorable levels of agreement (r = 0.884 and r = 0.980) with the odometer. Finally, we present suggestions for improvement of the measurement system to be implemented in the future.

A Guide to Standardizing Digital Calibration and Measurement Capabilities

Demand for transparent digital measurement data exchange and processing continues to grow in the metrology industry. Automated data processing, however, requires metadata to adequately describe and identify the information content. In metrology, the measurand description comprises the fundamental metadata that associates meaning with measurement data. Measurement information exists in many metrological documents, including calibration certificates and instrument specifications, but in the international quality infrastructure (IQI), CMC1 descriptions define all approved and accredited measurands. These CMCs appear atthe IQI’s apex in the BIPM2 KCDB3 and throughout the IQI in official accreditation scopes and unaccredited measurement capability statements. In the current state of the art, metrology experts develop CMCs primarily as free-form text that often lacks full information, requires subject-matter experts to interpret correctly, hinders machine processing, and does not lend itself to contextual or semantic search on CMC technical characteristics of interest: uncertainty, range, or even the specific measurand. This paper describes a measurand taxonomy structure suitable for use as CMC metadata and provides a procedure and examples for developing the metadata taxons to standardize CMCs in human- and machine-readable formats.

Reducing the manual length setting error of a passive Gough-Stewart platform for surgical template fabrication using a digital measurement system

As recently demonstrated, a passive Gough-Stewart platform (a.k.a. hexapod) can be used to create a personalized surgical template to achieve minimally invasive access to the cochlea. The legs of the hexapod are manually adjusted to the desired length, which must be read off an analog scale. Previous experiments have shown that manual length setting of the hexapod’s legs is error-prone because of the imprecise readability of the analog scale. The objective of this study is to determine if integration of a linear encoder and digitally displaying the measured length help reduce the length setting error. Two experiments were conducted where users set the leg length manually. In both experiments, the users were asked to set the leg length to 20 nominal values using the whole setting range from 0 mm to 10 mm. In the first experiment, users had to rely only on the analog scale; in the second experiment, the electronic display additionally showed the user the actual leg length. Results show that the mean length setting error without using the digital display and only relying on the analog scale was (0.036 ± 0.020) mm (max: 0.107 mm) in contrast to (0.001 ± 0.000) mm (max: 0.002 mm) for the experiment with the integrated digital measurement system. The results support integration of digital length measurement systems as a promising tool to increase the accuracy of surgical template fabrication and thereby patients’ safety. Future studies must be conducted to evaluate if integration of a linear encoder in each of the six legs is feasible.

Analysis of Deformation and Stresses of a Lightweight Floor System (LFS) under Thermal Action

The lightweight floor system (LFS) with a heating coil is one of many types of radiant heating systems. It differs from most of the others, as it has a much higher thermal efficiency at low flow temperature. To verify whether adhesive mortars can safely connect the ceramic floor with the insulating substrate, the deformations and stresses values of all light system layers under thermal action should be checked and compared to their maximum strengths. For this purpose, an LFS test field was conducted using the strain gauges and digital measurement techniques, and floor displacements and deformations were determined. The results obtained from the tests were confirmed by finite element method calculations. It was also found that the stress of each floor component was much lower than their strength. This proves that the LFS with a heating coil, without metal lamellas, meets the safety regulation for use. The results of the analysis can be useful in the design of heated/cooled LFSs.

Novel Digital Measurement Technique to Analyze the Palatine Suture Expansion after Palatine Rapid Maxillary Expansion Technique

The aim of the study was to validate a novel digital measurement method to quantify the volume of the midpalatal suture after rapid maxillary expansion (RME). Material and methods: Eight patients with maxillary skeletal transverse deficiency were submitted to palatine suture expansion using the McNamara orthodontic appliance during a period of nine months. After 30 days of treatment, all patients were exposed postoperatively to a cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scan. Afterwards, the scans were uploaded into the three-dimensional orthodontic-planning software to allow the volumetric assessment of the palatine suture expansion through palatine rapid maxillary expansion using a McNamara appliance. The repeatability was analyzed by repeating twice the measures by a single operator and reproducibility was analyzed by repeating three times the measures by two operators, and Gage R&R statistical analysis was performed. Results: The expansion of the midpalatal suture by means of the rapid maxillary expansion technique, in terms of digital volume measurement, showed a repeatability value of 0.09% and between the two operators a reproducibility value of 0.00% was shown. Conclusions: The novel measurement technique demonstrated a high repeatability and reproducibility rate for volume assessment of the palatine suture expansion through palatine rapid maxillary expansion technique.