The objective of this thesis research is to develop microelectronic acoustic technology towards biosensor applications. The development of a simple and robust resonator that employs simple microelectronic fabrication techniques for its construction could provide the foundation for a cost-effective sensor platform. Subsequent development of an appropriate surface chemistry treatment would functionalize the resonator as a biosensor. Implementation of this design in an array configuration allows for the development of ligand microarrays, which subsequently allows for multi-ligand recognition signatures as well as testing redundancy. The applications for such a tool extend to a myriad of applications, but the focus of this research is to develop this technology towards an early cancer detection capability. Specifically, I develop a solidly-mounted resonator with thin-film ZnO as my active piezoelectric layer. These resonators undergo an extensive development process to arrive at a final device design and are fully characterized throughout by X-ray diffraction and scattering analysis. Employing silane chemistry, these resonators are functionalized as immunosensors by covalently binding antibodies to the surface of the device. The quality of the surface chemistry is fully assessed using water contact angle, atomic force microscopy and confocal laser scanning microscopy. Functionalized biosensors are then used to quantify the concentration of known proteins marker in both a purified medium and a physiologically-relevant medium.

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Inserting fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) strips into pre-cut grooves in the surface of masonry walls is an emerging technique for the retrofit of unreinforced masonry (URM) structures. This method, known as near surface mounting (NSM), provides significant advantages over externally bonded FRP strips in that it has less of an effect on the aesthetics of a structure and can sustain higher loading before debonding. As this technique is relatively new, few studies into the behaviour of masonry walls strengthened using this technique have been conducted. A combined experimental and numerical program was conducted as part of this research project to study the in-plane shear behaviour of masonry wall panels strengthened with NSM carbon FRP (CFRP) strips. In this project the FRP strips were designed to resist sliding along mortar bed joints and diagonal cracking (through mortar joints and brick units). Both of these failure modes are common to masonry shear walls. Different reinforcement orientations were used, including: vertical; horizontal; and a combination of both. The first stage of the project involved characterising the bond between the FRP and the masonry using experimental pull tests (18 in total). From these tests the bond strength, the critical bond length and the local bond-slip relationship of the debonding interface was determined. The second stage of the project involved conducting diagonal tension/shear tests on masonry panels. A total of four URM wall panels and seven strengthened wall panels were tested. These tests were used to determine: the effectiveness of the reinforcement; the failure modes; the reinforcement mechanisms; and the behaviour of the bond between the masonry and the FRP in the case of a panel. The third stage of the project involved developing a finite element model to help understand the experimental results. The masonry was modelled using the micro-modelling approach, and the FRP was attached to the masonry model using the bond-slip relationships determined from the pull tests. Reinforcement schemes in which vertical FRP strips were used improved the strength and ductility of the masonry wall panels. When only horizontal strips were used to reinforce a wall panel, failure occurred along an un-strengthened bed joint and the increase in strength and ductility was negligible. The vertical reinforcement prevented URM sliding failure by restraining the opening (dilation) of the sliding cracks that developed through the mortar bed joints. The finite element model reproduced the key behaviours observed in the experiments for both the unreinforced and FRP strengthened wall panels. This model would potentially be useful for the development of design equations.

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Inserting fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) strips into pre-cut grooves in the surface of masonry walls is an emerging technique for the retrofit of unreinforced masonry (URM) structures. This method, known as near surface mounting (NSM), provides significant advantages over externally bonded FRP strips in that it has less of an effect on the aesthetics of a structure and can sustain higher loading before debonding. As this technique is relatively new, few studies into the behaviour of masonry walls strengthened using this technique have been conducted. A combined experimental and numerical program was conducted as part of this research project to study the in-plane shear behaviour of masonry wall panels strengthened with NSM carbon FRP (CFRP) strips. In this project the FRP strips were designed to resist sliding along mortar bed joints and diagonal cracking (through mortar joints and brick units). Both of these failure modes are common to masonry shear walls. Different reinforcement orientations were used, including: vertical; horizontal; and a combination of both. The first stage of the project involved characterising the bond between the FRP and the masonry using experimental pull tests (18 in total). From these tests the bond strength, the critical bond length and the local bond-slip relationship of the debonding interface was determined. The second stage of the project involved conducting diagonal tension/shear tests on masonry panels. A total of four URM wall panels and seven strengthened wall panels were tested. These tests were used to determine: the effectiveness of the reinforcement; the failure modes; the reinforcement mechanisms; and the behaviour of the bond between the masonry and the FRP in the case of a panel. The third stage of the project involved developing a finite element model to help understand the experimental results. The masonry was modelled using the micro-modelling approach, and the FRP was attached to the masonry model using the bond-slip relationships determined from the pull tests. Reinforcement schemes in which vertical FRP strips were used improved the strength and ductility of the masonry wall panels. When only horizontal strips were used to reinforce a wall panel, failure occurred along an un-strengthened bed joint and the increase in strength and ductility was negligible. The vertical reinforcement prevented URM sliding failure by restraining the opening (dilation) of the sliding cracks that developed through the mortar bed joints. The finite element model reproduced the key behaviours observed in the experiments for both the unreinforced and FRP strengthened wall panels. This model would potentially be useful for the development of design equations.

Zugl.: Aachen, Techn. Hochsch., Diss., 2007.

Submitted by Patricia Figuti Venturini (pfiguti@anhembi.br) on 2018-10-17T14:15:14Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Felipe Servilha Moreno.pdf: 3335435 bytes, checksum: 145a8c05a54a0fe851645612ac3962d4 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Patricia Figuti Venturini (pfiguti@anhembi.br) on 2018-10-17T18:36:07Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Felipe Servilha Moreno.pdf: 3335435 bytes, checksum: 145a8c05a54a0fe851645612ac3962d4 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Patricia Figuti Venturini (pfiguti@anhembi.br) on 2018-10-17T18:37:54Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Felipe Servilha Moreno.pdf: 3335435 bytes, checksum: 145a8c05a54a0fe851645612ac3962d4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-10-17T18:38:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Felipe Servilha Moreno.pdf: 3335435 bytes, checksum: 145a8c05a54a0fe851645612ac3962d4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-02-27 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The technological evolution of HMDs is responsible for making devices available that are lighter, cheaper and more operational, as well as being aware of the risks of cybersicness. Cybersickness involves a range of symptoms similar to those of motion sickness, which affects a significant number of users and is currently regarded as one of the main obstacles to virtual reality helmets in the market. The focal point of this dissertation is on merging the fields of knowledge of Neuroscience and Games Design as a strategy for mitigating the symptoms of cybersickness. It sets out the results obtained from an experiment carried out with two groups of volunteers – heavy and low users of games for HMDs. These results underpin the sensory rearrangement theory and point out the kind of design choices that can trigger the symptoms of cybersickness. As a result, it is becoming possible to design games by predicting the design decisions required to overcome the problem of this malady. / A evolução tecnológica dos HMDs é responsável por disponibilizar aparelhos mais leves, baratos e funcionais, bem como pela visibilidade do cybersickness. O cybersickness consiste em um conjunto de sintomas semelhantes à cinetose, que afeta um percentual expressivo dos usuários e se configura atualmente como um dos maiores impeditivos à consolidação dos capacetes de realidade virtual no mercado. Esta dissertação enfoca a cooperação entre os campos de conhecimento da Neurociência e do Design de Games como estratégia à redução dos sintomas do cybersickness. Apresenta e discute resultados obtidos em experimento realizado com dois grupos de voluntários, heavy user e low user de jogos para HMDs. Tais resultados reforçam a teoria do rearranjo sensorial e apontam as escolhas de design que desencadearam os sintomas de cybersickness. Com isso, passa a ser possível ao designer de games antever decisões projetuais capazes de contribuir à superação do cybersickness.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-12-23T13:53:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Marcelo Borjaille Lima.pdf: 798361 bytes, checksum: 390f0f5564bc81315e64b0626f3a736b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-08-17 / The eletrocardiographic test has been used for diagnosis of cardiac arrhythmias and heart disease in horses, as well as performance evaluation and early diagnosis of worsening of athletic performance of various modalities. The activity of mounted police requires that animals are trained for long hours at walk and trotting, thus monitoring of these animals for underlying cardiac diseases that may affect their performance is of great value. In this study from 78 animals of the regiment of mounted Military Police Patrol of Espirito Santo State, Brazil, were divided into groups according to age and underwent electrocardiographic examination, followed by analyses of durations and amplitudes of the waves and QRS. There was statistical difference in T+ wave amplitude which was correlated to animals growth. These horses did not show any arrhythmias at rest, while the most common was the sinus rhythm / O exame eletrocardiográfico tem sido utilizado para o diagnóstico de arritmias e doenças cardíacas em equinos, bem como na avaliação do desempenho atlética e diagnóstico precoce da queda de performance em diversas modalidades. A atividade de policiamento montado requer que os animais estejam aptos a trabalhar ao passo e trote durante horas para atuação da sua função. Portanto, o monitoramento destes animais quanto a doenças cardíacas é importante. Desta forma, 78 animais do regimento de polícia montada do Estado do Espírito Santo, Brasil foram separados em grupos de acordo com a idade e submetidos ao exame eletrocardiográfico para analise das durações e amplitudes de ondas e complexos do traçado. Foi observada diferença estatística somente na amplitude da onda T+ relacionadas com o passar da idade dos animais. Os equinos, em repouso, não apresentam arritmias, sendo o ritmo sinusal o mais comum

Virtuell verklighet (VR) har under de senaste åren fått en uppsving i popularitet. Rörelsesjuka i VR har länge varit ett problem och är idag fortfarande ett stort hinder för kommersiell succé. Detta arbete ämnar till att implementera stöd för Oculus Rift i programmet Configura, och utvärdera navigering med handkontroll i en VR-miljö. Fokuset ligger på att hitta lämpliga gång- och rotationshastigheter för effektiv navigering med handkontroll, och effekten hastigheterna har på rö- relsesjuka. En användarstudie genomfördes där personer testade olika gång- och rotationshastigheter i olika tester med ökande svårighetsgrad i navigering. Resultaten från användarstudien visar på att i alla hastigheter upplevde testpersonerna allvarliga symptom av rörelsesjuka. Det fanns även indikationer att användare med lägre hastigheter presterar bättre. / Virtual Reality (VR) have risen in popularity during the last years. Motion sickness however have been a big problem and still is an obstacle for commercial success. This thesis work aims to implement VR-support in the space planning program Configura, and evaluate navigation with a controller in a VR-environment. The focus of this study is to find suitable walking and rotational speeds for effective navigation with a controller, and the effects different speeds have on motion sickness. A user study was preformed where users tested different speeds in tests with an increasingly difficulty in navigation. The results from the study shows that people had severe symptoms of motion sickness in all speeds. There were also indications that lower speeds made people perform better.

Videoconferencing is one of the most common telepresence methods today and educational videos is rising in popularity among distance learners. Traditional videoconferencing is unable to convey gestures and mutual eye contact between participants. This study aim to propose a Virtual Reality telepresence solution using game engines. A literature study confirmed the effectiveness achieved in VR is comparable to the effectiveness in face-to-face meetings. The suggested solution implements whiteboard functionality from a real-life perspective, confirming it is possible to include new functionality and directly transfer old functionality to the VR system from the communication systems today. The system was evaluated based on the response time, packet loss, bandwidth, frame rate and through user tests. The evaluation shows it is possible to design a telepresence system with VR capable of passing the Turing Test for Telepresence. The participants of the user tests did not experience discomfort and they were positively inclined to the telepresence system. Though, discomfort may emerge if the VR character is used with a common office workstation. Future studies in this topic would involve modifications of the third person camera, making the head's rotation follow the direction of the camera view and implementing movable eye pupils on the VR character using the upcoming eye-tracking accessory.

Title: Analysis of the activities of the mounted police in the Czech Republic and municipal mounted police in Prague. Objectives: Comparison of selection and training of police horse. Comparison of hippologic activities of the mounted police and municipal mounted police in Prague. Data analysis of activities of the mounted police since 2015 till 2019. Patrol analysis activity of the municipal mounted police in Prague in 2019 and comparison with the mounted police patrol activity in the Czech Republic. Methods: Data collection from the head of the mounted police of the Czech Republic in Prague and the head of the municipal mounted police in Prague. Study of available literature and subsequent research. Data analysis from Czech police was divided according to the types of interventions, locations and frequency for every single year. The data comparison with the municipal mounted police in Prague was based on frequency of patrol activities in 2019. Results: Result is comparison of hippologic activities of mounted police and municipal mounted police in Prague. Differences in selection and training of horses by mounted police and municipal mounted police in Prague. Comparison of frequency and types interventions by mounted police since 2015 till 2019. Differences in patrol activities for the mounted...

Suffering from a hearing impairment or deafness has major consequences on the individual's social life. Today, there exist various aids, but there are some challenges with these, like availability, reliability and high cognitive load when the user trying to focus on both the aid and the surrounding context. To overcome these challenges, one potential solution could make use of a combination of Augmented Reality (AR) and speech-to-text systems, where speech is converted into text that is then presented in AR glasses. However, in AR, one crucial problem is the legibility and readability of text under different environmental conditions. Moreover, different types of AR-glasses have different usage characteristics, which implies that a certain type of glasses might be more suitable for the proposed system than others. For speech-to-text systems, it is necessary to consider factors such as accuracy, latency and robustness when used in different acoustic environments and with different speech audio.  In this master thesis, two different AR-glasses are being evaluated based on the different characteristics of the glasses, such as optical, visual and ergonomic. Moreover, user tests are conducted with 23 normal hearing individuals to evaluate the legibility and readability of text under different environmental contexts. Due to the pandemic, it was not possible to conduct the tests with hearing impaired individuals. Finally, a literature review is performed on speech-to-text systems available on the Swedish market.   The results indicate that the legibility and readability are affected by several factors, such as ambient illuminance, background properties and also how the text is presented with respect to polarity, opacity, size and number of lines. Moreover, the characteristics of the glasses impact the user experience, but which glasses are preferable depends on the individual's preferences.   For the choice of a speech-to-text system, four speech-to-text APIs available on the Swedish market were identified. Based on our research, Google Cloud Speech API is recommended for the proposed system. However, a more extensive evaluation of these systems would be required to determine this. / Speech-to-Text System using Augmented Reality for People with Hearing Deficits