Real-time Survey Research Articles

Wireless self-powered sensor networks driven by triboelectric nanogenerator for in-situ real time survey of environmental monitoring

Reusing waste materials to create energy harvester will not just reduce the environmental pollution, but also generate renewable electricity by scavenging environmental energy to power wireless electronic devices, which will make our life more environmental friendly. In this study, we first turn waste milk carton into fully packaged arc-shaped triboelectric nanogenerator (AS-TENG) which can scavenge both wind and water flow energy for long-term wireless environmental monitoring. In general, the milk carton is laminated (from inside out) with a layer of polyethylene (PE), a layer of aluminum (Al) foil and a pulp layer. Such laminated material is suitable as the electrical unit of the AS-TENG. The arc-shaped design of AS-TENG is implemented to disrupt the flow, leading to vortex induced vibration, and thus contact electrification of the AS-TENG results in power generation. By optimizing the structural parameters systematically, the AS-TENG achieves an instantaneous peak voltage of 600 V, and a current of 40 μA. Moreover, a self-powered wireless environmental monitoring system using AS-TENG as power supply is developed for in-situ real time water quality (pH value) monitoring and landslide early warning in natural environment. This study provides solid progress toward the practical applications of TENGs in environmental monitoring.

MODERNIZATION OF THE ESTONIAN NATIONAL GNSS REFERENCE STATION NETWORK

The first GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) CORS (Continuously Operating Reference Station) in Estonia became operational in 1996. Starting from 2008 four Estonian CORS are incorporated into the EPN (EUREF Permanent GNSS Network). During the years 2014-2015 modernization of the GNSS CORS in Estonia was carried out. Currently the total number of the resulting ESTPOS reference stations is 28. These ESTPOS stations were interconnected to the I order national geodetic network by a special GNSS campaign in 2017. The maintenance and compilation of the ESTPOS based research products is explained. Aspects of the ESTPOS usage, including also the real time surveys, are discussed. Comparisons with SWEPOS (Swedish national GNSS CORS) and FinnRef (Finnish national GNSS CORS) networks indicate possibilities for further ESTPOS developments.

P124: The Ottawa Chest Pain Rule would increase stretcher capacity if implemented for cardiac chest pain patients

Introduction: Reducing the number of patients requiring cardiac monitoring would increase system capacity and improve emergency department (ED) patient flow. The Ottawa Chest Pain Rule helps physicians identify chest pain patients who do not require cardiac monitoring and is based on a ‘normal or non-specific’ ECG and being pain-free on initial physician assessment. Our objective was to measure the impact that the implementation of this decision rule would have on cardiac monitoring bed utilization in adult EDs in Calgary. Methods: A convenience sample of patients was prospectively obtained at each of the four Calgary adult emergency sites. All patients presenting with the Canadian Triage Acuity Scale chief complaint of “cardiac pain”, or “chest pain with cardiac features” were captured for inclusion in the study. Real time interviews and survey assessments were conducted with the primary nurse and physician involved in each patient’s care. Results: A total of 61 patients were captured by the study. Physicians identified cardiac as the primary rule-out pathology in 51% of these patients. The average Heart Score of all study patients was 4.2, and 30% of patients were ultimately admitted. Physicians believed that 39% of the 61 patients needed cardiac monitoring, while primary nurses believed that 59% needed monitoring. Of the 61 patients, 59% were triaged to areas providing cardiac monitoring. The application of the Ottawa Rule would have allowed 47% of patients triaged to cardiac monitoring to be taken off cardiac monitoring. This would translate to a total of greater than 74 hours saved or a reduction of 30% of the total cardiac monitored patient time. Conclusion: The Ottawa rule appears to be a low-risk emergency department flow intervention that has the potential to help reduce resource utilization in emergency departments. This change may result in increased emergency department capacity and improved overall patient flow. This simple rule based only on ECG findings and absence of chest pain can easily be applied and implemented without increasing physician workload or increasing risk to patients.

A novel auditing procedure for an oral chemotherapy process improvement project.

164 Background: A process to standardize ordering, documentation, and administration of inpatient oral chemotherapy was implemented at the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System. The process requires oncology clinician review and endorsement of inpatient oral chemotherapy drug orders via an oral chemotherapy note within the electronic health record. Pharmacists are instructed to reject oral chemotherapy drug orders that lack this required documentation. A novel auditing procedure was established in order to track adherence to these new requirements and provide real time and adaptable feedback to front-line staff critical to the project’s success. Methods: To support continuous quality improvement (QI) with this project, an auditing tool was developed in REDCap, a secure, web-based data management application. The auditing tool was originally developed as a traditional web-based data collection instrument with the primary purpose of tracking performance. By utilizing more advanced features offered by the REDCap platform, the auditing tool generated automated follow-up surveys to pharmacists involved in non-adherent outlier cases. The survey solicited information on the root cause of non-adherence, and based on the end-user response, provided adaptable continuing education tailored to this root cause. Results: Between June and September 2015, a total of 67 orders for oral chemotherapy were audited. Compliance with process improvement requirements was noted in 58%, 100%, 78%, and 93% of cases in June, July, August, and September, respectively. Outlier surveys were sent to 12 pharmacists in the non-adherent cases; of 11 responses, the most common response reflected an unfamiliarity with the process. Following targeted education, through September 2015, no single pharmacist has been involved in more than one non-adherent case. Conclusions: The novel auditing tool supported the continuous quality improvement process by engaging front-line staff, generating automated and real time surveys for outlier responses, and providing targeted and personalized education aimed at resolving the root cause in non-adherent cases. As such, it can be applied towards any REDCap QI projects.

Establishing a Mobile Environmental Survey System for Real-Time Emergency Response

After the 9/11 incident, the needs of environmental survey mobility were increased because the time and place of terrorism attacks are more unpredictable than traditional radiological and nuclear accident. In recent years, more and more attention has been paid to the radiation protection of the survey workers in the field. The Institute of Nuclear Energy Research has established a Mobile Environmental Survey System (MESS) for real time emergency response by using network communication. The system consists of three major functional components: the mobile units, the management center, and the work stations. The system can display real time survey data on an electric map collected by the survey workers from the remote field to improve the environmental survey mobility. The system can also send the survey workers messages/warnings according to geographic information and the location of the mobile unit to keep them from unnecessary radiation exposure that may be an effective way to the goal of "as low as reasonably achievable" for environmental surveys. MESS has been adopted as an essential tool for emergency response in Taiwan. The application experience of MESS in the relative exercises will be discussed in this paper.

SPECTROSCOPY AND PHOTOMETRY OF CATACLYSMIC VARIABLE CANDIDATES FROM THE CATALINA REAL TIME SURVEY

The Catalina Real Time Survey (CRTS) has found over 500 cataclysmic variable (CV) candidates, most of which were previously unknown. We report here on followup spectroscopy of 36 of the brighter objects. Nearly all the spectra are typical of CVs at minimum light. One object appears to be a flare star, while another has a spectrum consistent with a CV but lies, intriguingly, at the center of a small nebulosity. We measured orbital periods for eight of the CVs, and estimated distances for two based on the spectra of their secondary stars. In addition to the spectra, we obtained direct imaging for an overlapping sample of 37 objects, for which we give magnitudes and colors. Most of our new orbital periods are shortward of the so-called period gap from roughly 2 to 3 hours. By considering the cross-identifications between the Catalina objects and other catalogs such as the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, we argue that a large number of cataclysmic variables remain uncatalogued. By comparing the CRTS sample to lists of previously-known CVs that CRTS does not recover, we find that the CRTS is biased toward large outburst amplitudes (and hence shorter orbital periods). We speculate that this is a consequence of the survey cadence.

Membrane-based microchannel device for continuous quantitative extraction of dissolved free sulfide from water and from oil

Underground fluids are important natural sources of drinking water, geothermal energy, and oil-based fuels. To facilitate the surveying of such underground fluids, a novel microchannel extraction device was investigated for in-line continuous analysis and flow injection analysis of sulfide levels in water and in oil. Of the four designs investigated, the honeycomb-patterned microchannel extraction (HMCE) device was found to offer the most effective liquid–liquid extraction. In the HMCE device, a thin silicone membrane was sandwiched between two polydimethylsiloxane plates in which honeycomb-patterned microchannels had been fabricated. The identical patterns on the two plates were accurately aligned. The extracted sulfide was detected by quenching monitoring of fluorescein mercuric acetate (FMA). The sulfide extraction efficiencies from water and oil samples of the HMCE device and of three other designs (two annular and one rectangular channel) were examined theoretically and experimentally. The best performance was obtained with the HMCE device because of its thin sample layer (small diffusion distance) and large interface area. Quantitative extraction from both water and oil could be obtained using the HMCE device. The estimated limit of detection for continuous monitoring was 0.05μM, and sulfide concentrations in the range of 0.15–10μM could be determined when the acceptor was 5μM FMA alkaline solution. The method was applied to natural water analysis using flow injection mode, and the data agreed with those obtained using headspace gas chromatography-flame photometric detection. The analysis of hydrogen sulfide levels in prepared oil samples was also performed. The proposed device is expected to be used for real time survey of oil wells and groundwater wells.

(P2-26) EMS-Assessed Mass Casualty Incident: A Pilot Surveillance

Background Recently the number of disaster and mass casualty incident (MCI) is increasing in Korea, but there have been few administrative reports or technical reports for disaster and MCI. An ad hoc basis data collection method is usually incomplete and outdated. This study was conducted to investigate the new surveillance system composed of EMS based real time survey and medical records based in-depth survey.MethodsA retrospective review was conducted of the 119 fire department call center database and ambulance running sheets in one metropolitan city. The data on all transported patients with non-medical reasons (fire, rescue and others) between May 2006 and December 2008 was reviewed. We selected all data from the accidents which had more than 2 casualties to exam the feasibility and conducted in-depth surveillance based on medical records.ResultsThe total number of accidents was 2,027 with 2,625 patients. The number of accidents which had more than 2 patients was 307 (total 898 patients) and more than 6 patients was 19 (total 176 patients). Among the “MCI” events, 15 cases were traffic accidents (125 patients, 71.0%), 4 cases were fire (51 patients, 29%). Total 142 medical records (80.7%) were reviewed. Admission rate was 32.4% (46 patients) and overall mortality was 3.5% (5 patients).ConclusionThis nationwide public EMS system could contribute to the establishment of the systematic disaster database.

A new biogenic sulfide chemical sensor for marine environmental monitoring and survey

A new convenient sulfide electrochemical sensor for marine environmental in-situ monitoring and real time survey was developed. The new sensor based on a solid Ag2S membrane electrode has outstanding chemical sensitivity and stability. It responds to the activity of sulfide ions according to a Nernstian slope of −31mV/decade. The sensor can be used to determine the total concentration of sulfides (C T) by calibrating the pH value of the solution to a standard pH. The practical measurement range for total sulfide concentration is 0.1–10 mg/L in seawater. The sensor has a very low potential drift (<4 mV) during two months in 0.1 mg/L sulfide seawater. This paper describes the preparation of the sensitive membrane and some main properties of the sensor.

Distribution of mercury in the atmosphere over Idrija, Slovenia

Idrija mine, the second largest mercury mine in the world, was in use since 1490. More than 107 000 tons of Hg were produced in its five centuries of history until 1990 when production was reduced to a few hundred kilos per year. The average recovery rate of mercury has been estimated to 73%; much of the remaining 27% was dissipated into the environment. In spite of present minimal levels of production, and only a few days of smelter operation per year, a real time survey with a mercury Zeeman analyser in a car showed relatively high mercury concentrations in the air. Amounts of 300--4000 ng Hg m-3 have been found around both the major sources of mercury vapour, the smelter and mine ventilation shaft -- while the amounts at the Old Place, at the City Museum, and near the Nikova-Idrijca confluence are of the order of 50 ng m-3. Polluted air will be transported from those sources to a degree which depends on the weather conditions, mainly the direction and intensity of the wind. The high mercury contents in the air are not only due to anthropogenic sources (smelter and the ventilation shaft, dumps and smelter slag used in construction), but may also partly be natural as in the Pront area, where the outcropping bedrock contains native mercury.

Feedback forecasting games: An overview

AbstractThe range and rationales for forecasting schemes involving feedback are surveyed. Classic Delphi schemes involve an iterated exchange of information between a small group of experts in the pursuit of efficiencies arising from the ‘collective mind’. In other applications the event or state to be forecast may itself depend upon the forecast, and feedback forecasting schemes can be derived to allow for such reflexivity. Most situations of informational feedback are at least implicitly informational or predictive games, and a recognition of this character may help in understanding the possible or likely outcomes, including their social desirability. Various informational transfer devices such as real time surveys may speed up the process of feedback.

A combined real time wide energy range neutron dosimeter and survey meter for high neutron dose rates with Si surface barrier detectors

The development of a flat response small size, real time neutron dosimeter and ratemeter for the energy range of about 1 eV to 14 MeV is presented. This dosimeter is adequate for measuring neutron dose equivalent of 3 mRem up to 100 Rem and dose rates of 300 mRem/h to 50 Rem/h or more. The dosimeter consists of four Si surface barrier detectors. 10B radiators are placed in front of three of the detectors and a polyethylene radiator is placed in front of the fourth one. The 10B pellets are used for dose equivalent measurements in the energy range 1 eV to ∼ 1 MeV. The polyethylene radiator, made in two parts having thicknesses of 10 and 100 mg/cm 2 in an area ratio of 8 to 1, flattens the response to ±40% in the energy range 1–14 MeV. The signal-to-background ratio for different Si surface barrier detectors and for 10B polyethylene radiators was investigated. This dosimeter can give a rough estimation of the neutron spectrum by separating the total dose equivalent into 1 eV to ∼ 30 keV, 30 keV to ∼ 1 MeV and 1–14 MeV components.

Heave-roll-pitch correction for hydrographic and multi-beam survey systems

Abstract The development of a new generation of Hydrographic and Bathymetric Survey Systems by the U.S. National Ocean Survey (NOS), is described. New Instrumentation in the form of Multi-Beam Swath Sonars, Heave-Roll-Pitch (HRP) Instrumentation, and power computer systems have been merged to provide a quantum step forward in bathymetric and hydrographic survey techniques. These new systems provide the capability to achieve 100 percent bottom coverage as compared to the 2–5 percent coverage typically achieved by conventional narrow beam survey techniques. Two Bathymetric Swath Survey Systems (BS 3 ) are now under development and approaching operational status within NOS. One utilizes the General Instrument Corporation BO'SUN Sonar as its principal sensor and is optimized for mapping water depths from 20 to 300 fathoms. BO'SUN/BS 3 has been in use for over a year on the NOAA Ship “Davidson” in Alaska and West Coast waters. The second system utilizes the General Instrument Corporation SEABEAM Sonar as its principal sensor. This sonar is designed for deep ocean mapping. SEABEAM/BS 3 is currently undergoing grooming and initial sea trials on board the NOAA Ship “Surveyor”. Functionally, the two systems are very similar. They both employ similar computer hardware and software. Software has been developed that automates the real time survey data acquisition and control as well as the post time processing and production of bottom maps. These systems, when fully groomed and operational, will provide a new dimension to hydrographic and bathymetric Surveys. Results to date have shown a significant improvement in the accuracy and completeness of survey data as compared to more conventional techniques.