Wearable Online Freezing of Gait Detection and Cueing System.

This paper presents a real-time wearable system designed to assist Parkinson's disease patients experiencing freezing of gait episodes. The system utilizes advanced machine learning models, including convolutional and recurrent neural networks, enhanced with past sample data preprocessing to achieve high accuracy, efficiency, and robustness. By continuously monitoring gait patterns, the system provides timely interventions, improving mobility and reducing the impact of freezing episodes.

Unlocking the power of socially assistive robotic nurses in hospitals through innovative living lab methodology.

Pilot 5 utilizes AI and robotics to develop a robotic nurse assisting hospital staff in response to workforce shortages and rising care demands due to an aging population. This project aims to optimize resources, reduce errors, and improve patient satisfaction through personalized care. The Living Lab approach was implemented to split the study into sprints.

LiDAR-Based Maintenance of a Safe Distance between a Human and a Robot Arm.

This paper demonstrates the capabilities of three-dimensional (3D) LiDAR scanners in supporting a safe distance maintenance functionality in human-robot collaborative applications. The use of such sensors is severely under-utilised in collaborative work with heavy-duty robots. However, even with a relatively modest proprietary 3D sensor prototype, a respectable level of safety has been achieved, which should encourage the development of such applications in the future.

Human Gait Activity Recognition Machine Learning Methods.

Human gait activity recognition is an emerging field of motion analysis that can be applied in various application domains. One of the most attractive applications includes monitoring of gait disorder patients, tracking their disease progression and the modification/evaluation of drugs. This paper proposes a robust, wearable gait motion data acquisition system that allows either the classification of recorded gait data into desirable activities or the identification of common risk factors, thus enhancing the subject's quality of life.

Capturing Conversational Gestures for Embodied Conversational Agents Using an Optimized Kaneda-Lucas-Tomasi Tracker and Denavit-Hartenberg-Based Kinematic Model.

In order to recreate viable and human-like conversational responses, the artificial entity, i.e., an embodied conversational agent, must express correlated speech (verbal) and gestures (non-verbal) responses in spoken social interaction.

A Pot-Like Vibrational Microfluidic Rotational Motor.

Constructing a micro-sized microfluidic motor always involves the problem of how to transfer the mechanical energy out of the motor. The paper presents several experiments with pot-like microfluidic rotational motor structures driven by two perpendicular sine and cosine vibrations with amplitudes around 10 μm in the frequency region from 200 Hz to 500 Hz. The extensive theoretical research based on the mathematical model of the liquid streaming in a pot-like structure was the base for the successful real-life laboratory application of a microfluidic rotational motor.

Preparation and Characterisation of Waste Poultry Feathers Composite Fibreboards.

The growth of poultry meat production is increasing industrial waste quantities every year. Feathers represent a huge part of the waste, and international directives and restrictions prevent landfilling of such biodegradable materials with high burning values. Furthermore, with their unique properties, poultry waste feathers are already a reliable resource for many byproducts, such as keratin extraction, fibres, hydrogel production, etc.

A Microfluidic Rotational Motor Driven by Circular Vibrations.

Constructing micro-sized machines always involves the problem of how to bring the energy (electric, magnetic, light, electro wetting, vibrational, etc.) source to the device to produce mechanical movements. The paper presents a rotational micro-sized motor (the diameter of the rotor is 350 µm) driven by low frequency (200-700 Hz) circular vibrations, made by two piezoelectric actuators, through the medium of a water droplet with diameter of 1 mm (volume 3.

From municipal/industrial wastewater sludge and FOG to fertilizer: A proposal for economic sustainable sludge management.

After a ban on the depositing of untreated sludge in landfills, the sludge from municipal and industrial water-treatment plants can be regarded as a problem. Waste products of the water treatment process can be a problem or an opportunity - a source for obtaining raw materials. In the European Union, raw sludge and fats, oil and grease (FOG) from municipal and industrial wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) cannot be deposited in any natural or controlled environment.

Major improvements of quartz crystal pulling sensitivity and linearity using series reactance.

This paper presents a new method of substantially improving frequency pullability and linearity using reactance in series with an AT fundamental crystal operated with a series load capacitance in the range of 3 to 50 pF and frequencies in the range of 3.5 to 21 MHz. The research describes high quartz pullability and linearity by varying the load capacitance.