Board Area Research Articles

Increase Power Density and Simplify Designs Using 3-D SiP Modules

Abstract Today, designers are demanding an overall form-factor reduction to save board space, increase functionality, and allocate more circuit board real estate toward end-user applications – all with less space allocated to power management where not just the X–Y shrink but the 3D volumetric shrink is required. For example, in today's Telecommunications Cloud Infrastructure systems, board space and power density are challenging particularly in power supply designs where several high-current point-of-load rails are present. End equipment such as enterprise servers and switches, workstations, base stations, network attached storage, FPGA testers, network testers, and other test and measurement equipment employ several high-current CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, and DDR memory – all of which need high power, while the available board area is steadily decreasing. This paper will discuss volumetric co-design methodology and packaging construction trade-offs for 3D SiP power modules and also introduce the straddle mounted inductor assembly technique. Also provided are details around the SiP eco-system, co-design, construction, materials, and circuit topology.

Health care experiences of mothers of children with bronchiectasis in Counties Manukau, Auckland, New Zealand

BackgroundBronchiectasis is a worsening public health problem in New Zealand. This study aimed to explore the health care experiences of mothers of children with bronchiectasis in the Counties Manukau District Health Board area of Auckland, New Zealand.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were undertaken with ten mothers of children with bronchiectasis. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.ResultsFive themes emerged: 1) Searching for answers, describing mothers’ search for a diagnosis; 2) (Dis)empowerment, describing mothers’ acquisition of knowledge, leading to empowerment; 3) Health care and relationships, describing the impact of relationships on the mother’s health care experiences; 4) A juggling act, describing the challenges of juggling health care with school, work and family; 5) Making it work, describing how mothers overcome barriers to access health care for their child.ConclusionsThe health provider-parent relationship was crucial for fostering positive health care experiences. Mothers’ acquisition of knowledge facilitated empowerment within those relationships. Additionally, mothers’ perceptions of the quality and benefit of health services motivated them to overcome barriers to accessing care. Study findings may help to improve health care experiences for parents of children with bronchiectasis if identified issues are addressed.

Intention, beliefs and mood assessed using electronic diaries predicts attendance at cardiac rehabilitation: An observational study

BackgroundCardiac rehabilitationis effective in promoting physical/psychological recovery following acute coronary syndrome. Yet, rates of attendance at outpatient cardiac rehabilitation by eligible patients are low. ObjectivesThis study examined the determinants of attendance at outpatient cardiac rehabilitation in acute coronary syndrome patients following discharge until cardiac rehabilitation commencement. DesignA weekly electronic diary measured cardiac-related cognitions and mood and examined their relation to attendance at outpatient cardiac rehabilitation. SettingsThree United Kingdom National Health Service secondary care settings in two Health Board areas in Scotland. ParticipantsAcute coronary syndrome patients were recruited from March 2012 to June 2013 prior to hospital discharge. Of 488 eligible patients referred for cardiac rehabilitation, 214 consented. MethodsConsecutive patients completed a pre-hospital discharge questionnaire targeting age, diagnosis, social class and smoking history. Acute coronary syndrome patients then completed a weekly electronic diary from the first week of discharge until the start of cardiac rehabilitation. Multilevel structural equation models estimated the effects of initial, i.e. baseline and rate of change in cardiac-related cognition and mood on attendance. Intention to attend cardiac rehabilitation was reflected, log transformed, reported thereafter as “do not intend”. The role of “do not intend” was explored as a mediator of the relationship between cardiac-related cognition and mood on attendance. Results166 participants provided, on average, 5 weeks of diary entries before cardiac rehabilitation commenced. High intention (i.e. low “do not intend”) to attend CR and its rate of increase over time predicted attendance. Low negative emotional representation, high perceived necessity, high confidence in maintaining function, low negative affect, and high positive affect following discharge predicted attendance at cardiac rehabilitation. The rate of change in cardiac-related mood and these cognitions was not predictive. Baseline and rate of change in “do not intend” entirely mediated relationships between a) perceived necessity, b) negative affect and attendance at cardiac rehabilitation. ConclusionsNegative affect in the first weeks following discharge represents the key challenge to a patient maintaining their intention to attend cardiac rehabilitation. Intervention to improve attendance should focus on improving intention to attend following discharge and during recovery by improving patient understanding of cardiac rehabilitation and reducing negative affect.

Adapting the Quality Maternal and Newborn Care (QMNC) Framework to evaluate models of antenatal care: A pilot study.

BackgroundRecent evidence indicates that continuity models of maternity care result in improved clinical and psychosocial outcomes, but their causal mechanisms are poorly understood. The recent Lancet Series on Midwifery’s Quality Maternal and Newborn Care Framework describes five components of quality care and their associated characteristics. As an initial step in developing this Framework into an evaluation toolkit, we transformed its components and characteristics into a topic guide to assess stakeholder perceptions and experiences of care provided and received. The main purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of this process.MethodsWe conducted twelve focus groups in two Scottish health board areas with 13 pregnant women, 18 new mothers, 26 midwives and 12 obstetricians who had experience of a range of different models of maternity care. Transcripts were analysed using a six-phase approach of thematic analysis. We mapped the identified themes and sub-themes back to the Framework.ResultsThe emerging themes and sub-themes demonstrated the feasibility of using the QMNC framework as a data collection tool, and as a lens for analysing the data. Of the four emerging themes, only Organisation Culture / Work Structure’ mapped directly to a single Framework component. The others—‘Relationships’; ‘Information and support’; and ‘Uncertainty’–mapped to between two and five components, illustrating the interconnectedness of the Framework’s components. Some negative sub-themes mirrored positive Framework characteristics of care. Some re-phrasing and re-ordering of the topic guides in later focus groups ensured we could cover all aspects of the Framework adequately.ConclusionAdapting the Quality Maternal and Newborn Care Framework enabled us to focus on aspects of care which worked well and which didn’t work well for these key stakeholders. Identifying ‘what works for whom and why’ in different models of care is a necessary step in reinforcing and replicating the most effective models of care.

Trends and inequalities in the burden of mortality in Scotland 2000-2015.

BackgroundCause-specific mortality trends are routinely reported for Scotland. However, ill-defined deaths are not routinely redistributed to more precise and internationally comparable categories nor is the mortality reported in terms of years of life lost to facilitate the calculation of the burden of disease. This study describes trends in Years of Life Lost (YLL) for specific causes of death in Scotland from 2000 to 2015.MethodsWe obtained records of all deaths in Scotland by age, sex, area and underlying cause of death between 2000 and 2015. We redistributed Ill-Defined Deaths (IDDs) to more exact and meaningful causes using internationally accepted methods. Years of Life Lost (YLL) using remaining life expectancy by sex and single year of age from the 2013 Scottish life table were calculated for each death. These data were then used to calculate the crude and age-standardised trends in YLL by age, sex, cause, health board area, and area deprivation decile.ResultsBetween 2000 and 2015, the annual percentage of deaths that were ill-defined varied between 10% and 12%. The proportion of deaths that were IDDs increased over time and were more common: in women; amongst those aged 1–4 years, 25–34 years and >80 years; in more deprived areas; and in the island health boards. The total YLL fell from around 17,800 years per 100,000 population in 2000 to around 13,500 years by 2015. The largest individual contributors to YLL were Ischaemic Heart Disease (IHD), respiratory cancers, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), cerebrovascular disease and Alzheimer’s/dementia. The proportion of total YLL due to IHD and stroke declined over time, but increased for Alzheimer’s/dementia and drug use disorders. There were marked absolute inequalities in YLL by area deprivation, with a mean Slope Index of Inequality (SII) for all causes of 15,344 YLL between 2001 and 2015, with IHD and COPD the greatest contributors. The Relative Index of Inequality (RII) for YLL was highest for self-harm and lower respiratory infections.ConclusionThe total YLL per 100,000 population in Scotland has declined over time. The YLL in Scotland is predominantly due to a wide range of chronic diseases, substance misuse, self-harm and increasingly Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Inequalities in YLL, in both relative and absolute terms, are stark.

Service provision in Scotland for people with an intellectual disability who have, or are at risk of developing, dementia.

This research aimed to identify current national provision by health services in Scotland in relation to proactive screening and reactive assessment for people with an intellectual disability in Scotland who have, or are at risk of developing, dementia. Staff from 12 intellectual disability services, representing the 11 health board areas in Scotland, completed an online questionnaire which asked about proactive screening and reactive assessment for people with intellectual disability who had, or were at risk of developing, dementia as well as suggested areas for improvement. All of the areas provided services for people with intellectual disability who have, or are at risk of developing, dementia, but differed as to whether this was reactive, proactive or both. Nine services offered intervention following diagnosis. The most common elements used across both proactive screening and reactive assessment were conducting a health check, using a general dementia questionnaire designed for people with an intellectual disability and direct assessment with the person. Clinical psychology and community learning disability nurses were the professions most likely to be involved routinely in both proactive screening and reactive assessments. The psychometric properties of the most commonly used assessments of cognitive and behavioural functioning were mixed. The areas of improvement suggested by practitioners mainly related to ways of improving existing pathways. This research represents the first step in providing an overview of service provision in Scotland. There was some inconsistency in relation to the general and specific components which were involved in proactive screening and reactive assessment. Implications for service provision are discussed.

A family for the holidays: delineating the hospitality needs of European parents with young children

PurposeWhere tourism research related to families holidaying with young children in coastal mass tourism destination is scant, this paper aims to explore accommodation constraints and needs of European parents who holiday with young children.Design/methodology/approachFourteen in-depth interviews were conducted with parents of young children who have just completed their family vacation in the island of Sardinia, Italy by positioning the interviewer at the boarding area of the Olbia Costa Smeralda airport.FindingsThe analysis returned five key themes: location of accommodation, quality of interactions, child-friendly amenities, safety and family-oriented programmes.Originality/valueWithin these five themes, seven new attributes were identified and contribute to the current literature on accommodation preferences of parents travelling with young children. The findings also suggest that this is a distinct segment within family tourism and should not be treated homogeneously with families with older or adult children. Finally, the data highlight the distinctions between Asian and Western parents in terms of their accommodation needs.

Decision-Making under Criteria Uncertainty

Uncertainty is an essential part of a decision-making procedure. The paper deals with the problem of decision-making under criteria uncertainty. In this context, decision-making under uncertainty, types and conditions of uncertainty were examined. The decision-making problem under uncertainty was formalized. A modification of the mathematical decision support method under uncertainty via ontologies was proposed. A critical distinction of the developed method is ontology usage as its base elements. The goal of this work is a development of a decision-making method under criteria uncertainty with the use of ontologies in the area of multilayer board designing. This method is oriented to improvement of technical-economic values of the examined domain.

Service user preferences for diabetes education in remote and rural areas of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland.

Diabetes prevalence in Scotland is 5.3%, with type 2 diabetes accounting for 86.7% of all cases in the National Health Service Highlands health board area and 85.7% in the Western Isles. Structured education is a key component in the management of this chronic disease. However, current group session models are less feasible in lower-population non-urban environments due to distance, participant numbers and access to appropriately trained healthcare professionals. Group sessions may also be a less attractive option in small communities, where people tend to have close day-to-day personal contact. This study assesses the access and delivery preferences of remote and rural service users in the Highlands and Western Isles to structured diabetes education programs. The study used a mixed methods approach of focus groups and questionnaires with people with type 2 diabetes in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Both modes of participation were designed to explore perception of diabetes knowledge, diabetes education and use of technology. One-to-one delivery was the delivery method of choice; however, there was a preference for a digital approach over group education sessions. Service users expressed a strong desire to be able to learn at their own pace, when and where they wanted to, and with no requirement to travel. To address these requirements an online resource, providing access to both learning sessions and trusted sources of information, was the preferred mode of delivery. People with type 2 diabetes living in remote and rural areas of the Scottish Highlands and Islands who already use the internet are receptive to the use of digital technology for delivery of diabetes education and are interested in learning more about management of their condition through this medium. They believe that a technology approach will provide them with more control over the pace of learning, and where and when this learning can take place.

Vivaldi Antenna With Pattern Diversity for 0.7 to 2.7 GHz Cellular Band Applications

This letter describes a planar ultrawideband Vivaldi antenna for base-station pattern diversity applications. It is designed to cover most of the cellular and LTE bands, a very wide frequency range from 0.7 to 2.7 GHz. It is formed by two adjacent Vivaldi tapered slots with a rotated angle of 29° between them. The antenna is miniaturized by sharing some common structure and cutting the noncritical board area. It is designed step by step from a single Vivaldi element with a microstrip line feeding to a dual-slot pattern diversity radiator with uniform radiation patterns. It is fabricated and tested inside a near-field chamber. The radiation performance, including both in-phase and 180° out-of-phase differential feeding cases, is verified by simulation as well as experiment. The measured results show good agreement with the simulation. It could be useful for base station and other smart array systems.

A Compact Reconfigurable NRI-TL Metamaterial Phase Shifter for Antenna Applications

This communication presents a compact reconfigurable phase shifter based on negative-refractive-index transmission-line (NRI-TL) metamaterial unit cells. Two interswitchable NRI-TL metamaterial unit cells are collocated within the same board area, and can be reconfigured based on the biasing polarity of embedded p-i-n diodes to provide two discrete phase states. The p-i-n diodes are located on the shunt branches of the metamaterial line in order to reduce losses in the direct signal path. Design limitations in terms of return loss and insertion loss are discussed in relation to the two phase states. A proof-of-concept module with a size of $17.8 \times 21.6~ \text {mm}^{2}$ is designed at 1 GHz, with measured insertion phases of −14.5° and +58.5° in the two phase states leading to a differential phase shift of 73°, while exhibiting insertion losses of 1.43 and 0.89 dB, respectively. The combined bandwidth for which the reflection coefficient in both states remains simultaneously below −10 dB is 0.46 GHz (46%), from 0.83 to 1.29 GHz.

Kiwifruit yield estimation using image processing by an Android mobile phone

Advanced electronic technology makes mobile phone suitable for image processing technology on fruit yield estimation. A new method was proposed to estimate yield of kiwifruit orchard via image processing using an Android mobile phone. Image processing was used to select significant color channels and their threshold for segmentation, generate binarized image, and remove noise. A fruit-counting algorithm was developed to calculate the number of kiwifruit by identifying the number of fruit calyxes. Image area was estimated by the pixels proportion of a reference board hung under the canopy. Finally, yield was calculated by multiplying the proportion of the image in three-dimensional space with the number of kiwifruit in an image and the kiwifruit orchard area. Under natural conditions, the performance of the fruit counting algorithm software was validated with 100 kiwifruit images. The proposed method achieved a good precision and recognition ratio of 76.4%. Results showed the pixels area of the reference board could be correctly detected. It is reliable to estimate the yield of kiwifruit orchard by recognizing the number of kiwifruit and the area of the reference board. The results indicated that the approach could be utilized to estimate the fruit yield of a kiwifruit orchards, which is valuable information to forecast yield, and plan harvest schedules.

Evaluation of Humidity Control Ceramic Board Using Gypsum Binder

Active clay, bentonite and zeolite were used as porous materials for humidity controlling ceramic boards. The specific area and the pore volume of active clay were higher than bentonite and zeolite. The flexible strength of the gypsum board decreased with an increasing amount of porous material, and the flexible strength was lowest when active clay with a higher specific surface area than others porous materials was added. The specific surface area and total pore volume of ceramic boards containing porous material were highest at 102.25 m2/g, 0.142 cm3/g, respectively, when the active clay was added. In addition, as the amount of added porous materials increased, the specific surface area and total pore volume of the ceramic board increased, but the average pore diameter decreased. The addition of s porous materials with a high specific area and a large pore volume improved the moisture absorptive and desorptive performance of the ceramic board. Therefore, in this experiment, the moisture absorptive and desorptive properties were the best when active clay was added. Furthermore, as the amount of added porous materials increased, the moisture absorptive and desorptive properties improved. When 70 mass% of active clay was added to α-type gypsum, the hygroscopicity was the highest, about 300 g/m2, in this experiment.

A Hybrid Switched-Capacitor Battery Management IC With Embedded Diagnostics for Series-Stacked Li–Ion Arrays

This paper presents a small form factor dc–dc converter that can be used in a ladder architecture to provide state-of-charge equalization for large-scale lithium-ion arrays. A resonant switched-capacitor converter is implemented in a 180-nm bulk CMOS process that uses a merged-interleaving architecture to affect two-phase interleaving with only a single inductor. The approach has the advantage of reducing passive component volume for a given efficiency and voltage ripple constraint. A bidirectional current-mode control scheme is outlined that uses regulated zero-current switching and partial zero-voltage switching. The design also supports electrochemical diagnostic functions through a fully digital spectroscopic perturbation of cell current. Cell voltage and current are digitized through 10-b SAR analog to digital converters (ADCs), filtered and decimated for off-chip impedance extraction. The converter achieves 94.8% conversion efficiency in 1:1 balancing mode with a total board area less than 1 cm2, and supports bidirectional power transfer >3.7 W.

Design and implementation of a reconfigurable mixed-signal SoC based on field programmable analog arrays * * Project supported by the National High Technology and Development Program of China (No. 2012AA012303).

This work presents a reconfigurable mixed-signal system-on-chip (SoC), which integrates switched-capacitor-based field programmable analog arrays (FPAA), analog-to-digital converter (ADC), digital-to-analog converter, digital down converter , digital up converter, 32-bit reduced instruction-set computer central processing unit (CPU) and other digital IPs on a single chip with 0.18 μm CMOS technology. The FPAA intellectual property could be reconfigured as different function circuits, such as gain amplifier, divider, sine generator, and so on. This single-chip integrated mixed-signal system is a complete modern signal processing system, occupying a die area of 7 × 8 mm 2 and consuming 719 mW with a clock frequency of 150 MHz for CPU and 200 MHz for ADC/DAC. This SoC chip can help customers to shorten design cycles, save board area, reduce the system power consumption and depress the system integration risk, which would afford a big prospect of application for wireless communication.

Breastfeeding initiation: An in-depth qualitative analysis of the perspectives of women and midwives using Social Cognitive Theory

Objectiveto explore women's and midwives’ expectations, knowledge and experiences of breastfeeding initiation using Social Cognitive Theory. Designa qualitative study using focus group discussions and individual interviews. Breastfeeding initiation was defined for this study as a process within the first 48hours after birth. Data were analysed using qualitative inductive analysis then further deductive analysis using Social Cognitive Theory (SCT). Setting and participantsa purposefully selected sample of primigravid antenatal and postnatal women (n=18) and practising midwives (n=18) from one Health Board area in Scotland. Findingsattachment of the baby to the breast at birth was hindered by sleepy babies and the busy unfamiliar hospital environment. These resulted in mothers struggling to maintain their motivation to breastfeed and to develop low self-efficacy. Instinctive attachment was rare. Midwives who considered it was normal for babies to be sleepy and unable to attach or feed at birth did not facilitate instinctive baby behaviour. Midwives sometimes experienced lack of autonomy and environmental circumstances that made women centred care difficult. Furthermore caring for high numbers of women, dependent on their help, resulted in reduced self-efficacy for providing effective breastfeeding support. Key conclusionsinterviewing both women and midwives specifically about initiation of breastfeeding has allowed for deeper insights into this critical period and enabled a comparison between the data obtained from mothers and midwives.The findings suggest that instinctive attachment is not an expectation of either mothers or midwives and results in a loss of breastfeeding confidence in both. Implications for practiceto facilitate initiation there is a need for more research to develop appropriate maternal and midwifery skills, and make changes to the cultural environment in hospitals. Social Cognitive Theory could be used as a framework in both the antenatal and immediate postnatal period to develop strategies and materials to increase women's and midwives’ self-efficacy specifically in initiation.

Shielding Effectiveness Simulation of SMT EMI Gaskets Utilizing ANSYS HFSS

Abstract As more components populate smaller board areas, the risk of unwanted coupling between components increases. Shielding and radiated emissions tests outlined by IEEE standards such as IEC 61000-4-21 and ASTM4935D identify measurement techniques to quantify shielding effectiveness. In a PCB topology, shields enclose components to create a Faraday cage, but necessitate a method to ground and fasten the shield to the PCB. Typical methods include the use of gaskets, sealants and clips. This paper reviews a gasket methodology and validates a parameterized ANSYS HFSS simulation with the measured relationship between gasket configuration and shielding effectiveness. Surface mount, rectangular, compressible gaskets manufactured by W.L. Gore & Associates, Inc. are used in several configurations to shield a PCB radiator. Radiated emissions measurements are performed in an ETS-Lindgren reverberation chamber to evaluate shielding effectiveness for each configuration. ANSYS HFSS, a full wave Finite Element Method (FEM) electromagnetic simulation solver, is used to simulate each geometric configuration and is verified with measured results.

Effects of microstructure on acoustical insulation of gypsum boards

This paper focusses on the understanding of microstructural effects related to sound transmission loss and critical frequency of gypsum boards. The determination of the critical frequency, through measurements of the mass per unit area, thickness and Young's modulus, indicates that a microstructure exhibiting large gypsum crystals with prismatic shapes obtained by addition of citric acid, yields a value (for example: ≅ 3700 ± 360Hz for 1.5 mass% of citric acid additive, board thickness: 14mm) well beyond the sensitive frequency range of human hearing (350–1500Hz). Concerning the sound transmission loss, acoustic insulation can be significantly improved by both increasing (i) the mass per unit area of the gypsum board, (ii) the thickness and (iii) the loss factor. A sandwich panel consisting of an assembly of two individual gypsum boards prepared with citric acid combined with a glass wool core of 50mm in thickness shows very promising insulating performances. This result has been predicted theoretically with a transfer matrix method.

Improving preconception health and care: a situation analysis

BackgroundThe purpose of this situation analysis was to explore the views of health and non-health professionals working with women of childbearing age on current and future delivery of preconception care in one National Health Service (NHS) Board area in Scotland.MethodsThe situation analysis was undertaken using a mixed methods approach. Six focus groups were conducted organised by profession – general practitioners (GPs), practice nurses, health visitors, family nurses, guidance teachers and youth workers. Existing evidence of effective preconception care interventions informed focus group guides. A survey was undertaken with community pharmacists which provided qualitative data for analysis. Focus group transcripts were analysed by two researchers using a thematic analysis approach.ResultsThere was lack of awareness of preconception health and its importance amongst the target group. Levels of unplanned pregnancy hampered efforts to deliver interventions. Professional knowledge, capacity and consistency of practice were viewed as challenges, as was individual compliance with preconception care advice. Improvement requires multifaceted action, including ensuring the school curriculum adequately prepares adolescents for future parenthood, increasing awareness through communication and marketing, supporting professional knowledge and practice and capitalising on existing opportunities for preconception care, and ensuring services are equitable and targeted to need.ConclusionsDelivery of preconception care needs to be improved both before and between pregnancies to improve outcomes for women and infants. Action is required at individual, organisational and community levels to ensure this important issue is at the forefront of preventative care and preventative spending.

A compact Class D RF power amplifier for mobile nuclear magnetic resonance systems.

A 20 MHz Class D amplifier with an output of 100 W of RF power has been developed. The compact size printed circuit board area of 50 cm2 and efficiency of 73% make it suitable for mobile nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) systems. Test results show that the rise and ring down times of the amplifier are less than 0.2 μs, and it is capable of producing constant amplitude pulses as short as 2 μs. Experiments using a Carr Purcell Meiboom Gill pulse sequence with a NMR MOUSE sensor confirm that the Class D amplifier is suitable for mobile NMR applications.