Life-Assessment for Thin Flexible Batteries Under U-Flex-to-Install and Dynamic Folding

The growing need for wearable devices, fitness accessories and biomedical equipment has led to the upsurge in research and development of thin flexible battery research and development. The current state of art wearable electronics products being developed in several fields require installation of power sources in different configurations and at times require the battery to undergo mechanical folding during product operation. This requires the product batteries to robustly withstand the imposed mechanical stresses during use along with the other desirable characteristics attributed to the power source such as high C-rate capability, high capacity and low capacity degradation rate. Works that explore the effects of static and dynamic folding on li-ion power sources is limited and oftentimes doesn’t adhere to definite test protocols resulting in non-standardized experimental data that can’t be applied to real-life product scenarios. Specifically, the effect of fold diameter on the battery state of health degradation when subjected to both static and dynamic folding is not yet completely explored. Present study aims to address this gap in the literature by investigating the effect of varying the fold diameter is both static (U-flex-to-install) and dynamic (dynamic U-fold) tests. Four different values of fold diameters have been chosen for experimentation and to study its effect during the aforementioned tests. Multiple samples have been tested for a given test condition so as to generate high fidelity data. Ultimately, a regression model developed previously has been augmented with the results generated in the current study.

Design of a Portable Electrocardiogram (ECG) for the Prevention of Cardiac Anomalies in Health Campaigns in Peru

Cardiac complications are caused by an unbalanced diet, the consumption of alcohol, smoking tobacco, in addition to the excess of polluting gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), among other gases that are harmful to the human body, due to these types of problems, they arise more frequently in people, which lead to heart problems at an early age. An optimal prevention of these cardiac abnormalities is necessary using an Electrocardiogram (ECG), by using this equipment it is possible to detect the cardiac anomalies that the person may have, thus giving early prevention for cardiac abnormalities that may be occurring in the patient. The design of a low-cost ECG will be considered using the AD8232 module, which allows recording the electrical activities of the heart, obtaining an ECG using the Arduino, in addition the Bluetooth module will send the data collected from the ECG from a patient to a cellphone which will store this information, to be later analyzed by a cardiologist. This paper is intended for use in health campaigns, given that according to the Pan American health organization, 70% of deaths in the world are due to heart problems, due to this figure, it is expected to reduce the rate with early prevention, which consists of the implementation of this biomedical equipment in health campaigns that will have the basic functionalities for the analysis of the electrocardiogram and that is low cost compared to biomedical equipment currently that provide the same functionalities.

Effect of U-Flex-to-Install and Dynamic U-Flexing On Li-Ion Battery SOH Degradation Subjected to Varying Fold Orientations, Folding Speeds, Depths of Charge, C-Rates and Temperatures

The demand for wearable consumer electronics, fitness accessories and biomedical equipment has led to the growth research and development of thin flexible batteries. Wearable equipment and other asset monitoring applications require conformal installation of power sources on non-planar surfaces. For power sources in wearable electronics, durability to sustain repetitive mechanical stresses induced by human body motion is paramount along with the usual desirable power source characteristics. Previous research documenting the reliability of statically and dynamically folded power sources is scarce and does not follow standardized test protocols. Particularly, the use of manual stressing for mechanical folding of the power sources instead of a mechanical test setup is a key shortcoming in existing literature. Data is lacking on battery life cycling and in-situ mechanical stress-testing of the power sources including their impact of performance and reliability. Present study aims to overcome these deficiencies by testing a commercial Li-ion power source under static as well as dynamic folding. Furthermore, the fold-orientation and its fold-speed are varied to evaluate the effect of different mechanical stress topologies on the power source. Finally, a regression model was developed to capture the effect of these use parameters on battery capacity degradation.

Effect of Deploying Biomedical Equipment Technician on the Functionality of Medical Equipment in the Government Hospitals of Rural Nepal

Background: Medical equipment plays a crucial role in the provision of quality healthcare services, despite this more than 50% of equipment in developing countries are non-functioning due to a lack of appropriate human resources to maintain. To address this problem some government hospitals of Nepal have deployed a mid-level technical cadre called 'Biomedical Equipment Technician' (BMET). This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of deploying a BMET on the functionality of medical equipment in government hospitals of rural Nepal.Methods: We used a mixed-methods approach with a comparative research design. A comprehensive range of 2189 pieces of medical equipment at 22 hospitals with and without BMET were observed to assess their functional status. Medical equipment were stratified into 6 categories based on department and T-tests were conducted. We collected qualitative data from 9 BMETs, 22 medical superintendents, and 22 health staff using semi-structured interviews and focus-group discussions. Thematic content analysis was conducted to explore how the BMET's work was perceived.Findings: The quantity of non-functional devices in hospitals without BMETs was double that of hospitals with BMETs (14% and 7% respectively, p<0.005). Results were similar across all departments including General (16% versus 3%, p=0.056), Lab (15% versus 7%, p<0.005) and Operation Theater (14% versus 5%, p<0.005). Hospitals with BMETs had fewer overall non-functional devices requiring simple or advanced repair compared to hospitals without BMETs [3% versus 7% (p<0.005) simple; 4% versus 6% (p < 0.005) advanced]. In our qualitative analysis, we found that BMETs were highly appreciated by hospital staff. Hospital workers perceived that having a BMET on staff, rather than twice-yearly visits from central-level maintenance technicians, is an effective way to keep medical equipment functional. However, without a favorable working environment, the BMET alone cannot perform optimally. Conclusions: Having a BMET at a rural government hospital has a substantial positive effect on the functional status of medical devices at the hospital. BMETs should be deployed at all rural hospitals to increase the functionality of medical devices, thereby improving the working environment and quality of health services provided.

IoMT-based biomedical measurement systems for healthcare monitoring: a review

<p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-US">Biomedical measurement systems (BMS) have provided new solutions for healthcare monitoring and the diagnosis of various chronic diseases. With a growing demand for BMS in the field of medical applications, researchers are focusing on advancing these systems, including Internet of Medical Things (IoMT)-based BMS, with the aim of improving bioprocesses, healthcare systems and technologies for biomedical equipment. This paper presents an overview of recent activities towards the development of IoMT-based BMS for various healthcare applications. Different methods and approaches used in the development of these systems are presented and discussed, taking into account some metrological aspects related to the requirement for accuracy, reliability and calibration. The presented IoMT-based BMS are applied to healthcare applications concerning, in particular, heart, brain and blood sugar diseases as well as internal body sound and blood pressure measurements. Finally, the paper provides a discussion about the shortcomings and challenges that need to be addressed along with some possible directions for future research activities.</span></p>