München, Techn. Univ., Diss., 2004.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006.

The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the impact of closed landfill Jezera on groundwater quality and environment of its surroundings. The data from the monitoring of the groundwater were analyzed as part of the thesis. Data were evaluated by their arrangement, comparison with legislation limits and commenting trends of pollutant concentrations in time. Carried out research found out the concentration of majority monitored pollutants is decreasing over time, except particular group of substances, especially heavy metals group, whose values are constant over time. Based on learned data, it is possible to claim that carried out landfill protection and its surrounding area was successful. Due to the lucrative locality and increasing pressure on installation of development, it is necessary to consider further observation of groundwater quality in the area and modify the scope of the observed substances according to the assessment carried out.

This thesis aims to draft technology and its practical verification for online monitoring of people in closed buildings (hospitals, hospices, ...). The technology will be based on WiFi triangulation and evaluated self-designed device. In the practical part will be tested reliability, accuracy and economic comparison with alternative technologies.

No description available.

The aim of this work was to design long-term monitoring of vegetation and environmental factors which would document the effect of the planned revitalization of Hučina brook floodplain. In order to monitor the dynamics of plant communities the system of permanent plots have been designed and established. Visual estimation of cover or graphical methods were proposed for the monitoring of the development of the moss and herb layers. The method of basal cover is considered best for the monitoring of the development of the tree layer. Mapping of plant communites should be made in the form of direct mapping. The monitored water characteristics should include the groundwater level, water conductivity and pH. Beneficial additional measurement comprise estimation of total NH4+, PO43-, NO32-, SO42-, Mg2+, Ca2+, total Fe, K+, Na+, humic acids and total organic carbon (TOC). The important soil characteristics include actual soil moisture content (Wmom), the maximum capillary capacity (MKK), water-holding capacity (RVK24), bulk density, porosity and soil organic matter. In addition to the monitoring design, this work brings data on vegetation composition gathered by direct mapping and measurement of the breast height diameter of trees.

Diabetes mellitus is one of the metabolic disorders prevailing all the over world. About 381.8 million people are affected by diabetes mellitus (DM) during 2013 and it is estimated to increase to 80% by 2035. Nephropathy, retinopathy, neuropathy and cardiovascular diseases are common complications arise in the patients suffering from diabetes Type I and Type II. Continuous monitoring of glucose will give greater clinical acumen on glucose metabolism of patients than conventional intensified glucose monitoring. It benefits patients to plan their meals and insulin dosages to prevent hypo-and hyperglycemia. Diabetes is a major cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Chronic kidney disease increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). CVD and CKD are strongly intertwined. Urea and potassium are the major markers used in the diagnosis of chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease, respectively. Continuous monitoring of urea and potassium will help to initiate appropriate medical intervention to decelerate the progression of chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease. Conventional invasive blood withdrawal procedure has potential risks like infection, pain and discomfort to the patients. Moreover, invasive techniques deter periodic blood sampling as it requires for frequent vascular puncturing. At present, no medical device is available for continuous monitoring of blood analytes non-invasively. Present investigations aim at developing a non-invasive technique for monitoring blood analytes (glucose, urea and potassium) which have great potential to use as a point of care diagnostics. Interstitial fluid bathes the cells of the body and it is ultrafiltrate of plasma. It contains ions like potassium, sodium, etc., and neutral molecules like glucose, urea, etc. Analytes (glucose, urea and potassium) level in interstitial fluid equilibrates with blood with lag time of 0 – 15 minutes. Reverse iontophoresis is a process in which a small current is applied through the skin to enable the transdermal extraction of interstitial fluid. Reverse iontophoresis is a non-invasive method and it is suitable for developing an integrated system to extract and analyze the extracted analyte. It enables frequent analyte sampling in high risk patients like elderly and paediatric with more comfort than conventional methods. In the present work, investigations are conducted on non-invasive monitoring of blood glucose, urea and potassium using reverse iontophoresis (RI). As part of experimental investigations, in vitro models are developed. In vitro investigations are conducted to optimize the reverse iontophoresis parameters current density and time of extraction. With these optimized parameters, the in vivo investigations are conducted on human subjects. A dedicated instrumentation suitable for extraction of analytes is developed. Screen printed electrochemical glucose sensors suitable for revere iontophoresis applications are developed using mediated carbon ink. Glucose oxidase is immobilized on screen printed sensor using cross linking method. Electrochemical and material characterization studies are conducted on the developed sensors. The obtained results confirm that the suitability of developed sensor can be used for serum glucose measurement as well as for reverse iontophoresis. Screen printed potentiometric urea biosensors are also developed to monitor the blood urea level non-invasively using reverse iontophoresis. The extraction and sensing system consists of a reverse iontophoresis electrodes, a working electrode, and a reference electrode. Unease enzyme is immobilized in the polypyrrole matrix on the working electrode using cyclic voltammetry. The electrochemical and material characterizations are conducted on screen printed sensors. The sensitivity, selectivity and sensing range of sensors show that they have a potential application in reverse iontophoresis applications. The in vitro models are used to evaluate the developed (urea and glucose) sensors. They are further validated by this conducting the clinical investigations on 15 human subjects. A correlation between blood analyte (glucose and urea) level and transdermally extracted analytes (glucose and urea) is established. It is attempted to integrate both the sensors (glucose and urea) and evaluated their performance on human subjects. The effect of potassium present in the stratum corneum of skin during reverse iontophoresis is investigated by conducting in vivo studies on human subjects. Tape stripping technique is used to detect the presence of potassium in stratum corneum. Reverse iontophoresis investigations with and without passive diffusion are also conducted to analyze the effect of potassium in stratum corneum. Skin impedance is measured during reverse iontophoresis in order to study the effect of reverse iontophoreteic current on skin properties. The clinical investigations are conducted on human subjects to validate the performance of the developed sensors (glucose and urea) with the approval of Institute Human Ethical Committee (IHEC), IISc, Bangalore. Non-invasive monitoring of blood analytes (glucose and urea) on human subjects is successfully demonstrated with the indigenously developed sensors through reverse iontophoresis.

Due to a globally aging population, there is a growing demand for smart home technology which can serve to monitor the health and safety of adults. Therefore, sleep monitoring has emerged as a crucial tool to improve the health and autonomy of adults. While polysomnography (PSG) is an effective and accurate tool for sleep monitoring, it is obtrusive as the user must wear the instruments during the experiment. Therefore, there has been a growing interest in deploying unobtrusive sleep monitoring devices, specifically for long-term patient monitoring. This thesis proposes multiple algorithms applicable to unobtrusive pressure sensitive sensor arrays in order to assess sleep quality. These algorithms can be listed as adaptive movement detection, sensor data fusion and bed occupancy detection. This thesis also investigates long-term sleep pattern changes from previously recorded data. The methods developed in the thesis can be of interest for future clinical remote patient monitoring systems.

Thesis (MTech (Electrical Engineering))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011 / The purpose of this thesis was to design and develop a measurement system that would allow accurate measurement of individual cell voltages in a series cell stack. The system was initially proposed to be used in conjunction with an active cell balancer. This would allow for the efficient equalising of cells as well as provide detailed information on the cell stack and how the stack operates over time. Having a system that measures voltages accurately, with which the active cell balancer can be controlled would allow for peak cell lifetime and performance. Current battery management systems are large, complex and inefficient and a new way of battery management had to be investigated. To accurately measure individual cells in a series stack, the high common mode voltage must be negated. Different techniques that are currently used to create galvanic isolation were reviewed; circuits were designed and were simulated to find the most suitable design. The traditional methods used to create galvanic isolation did not provide adequate results. The methods were too inefficient and not accurate enough to be used. The methods that had the required accuracy were too complicated to connect in a useable system. This led to the investigation of integrated circuits created to measure voltages in large cell stacks. An integrated circuit from Linear Technology was chosen and a system was built. A system was thus designed that fulfilled the most desirable design specifications while delivering excellent results. The system allowed accurate, individual voltages to be measured in the presence of high common mode voltages. Accuracies and measurement time were well below the required system specification. Power consumption was high, but different component choice will lower power consumption to within specification. Excellent results were obtained overall with most, although not all results well below the design specifications. By including current measurements, as well as other technologies such as wireless communication, USB connectivity and a better data processor, this system will be at the forefront of current battery management technology.

Thesis (MTech (Electrical Engineering))--Peninsula Technikon, Cape Town,1996 / The Southern Nylon Spinning plant, at South African Nylon Spinners in Bellville - Cape Town - South Africa, is one of the oldest on the site and a need arose to upgrade the existing method used in speed monitoring in this particular plant. This system was unable to produce alarms on speed limits being exceeded (i.e. on under-speed or over-speed). There was no alarm logging or historical trending. Manual records on speed were either incomplete or non-existent. Thus the purpose of this study was to investigate the existing speed monitoring system and implement a suitable computerised method of speed monitoring.