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A toilet set with UVC LEDs radiating 275 nm for sterilization is presented. A visible indication and a proximity detection to warn and protect users from being hurt by the UVC radiation are also included. The sterilization of the toilet seat begins whenever the toilet lid lays down well on the seat. The condition is detected and confirmed by a coordination of a reed switch and a power magnet. The sterilization will last for an expected time, six minutes in a prototype toilet set. If it is interrupted, the proposed safety measures will take over the operation of the sterilization.

Developing visible-light communication (VLC) with easy-to-use circuit modules in order to be integrated with consumer electronics could facilitate VLC technology adopted in more wireless applications for home. The study first implements functions of lighting for reading and data transmitting with a white organic light-emitting diode (OLED) panel. A method to keep the two functions implemented on the same lighting panel from interfering with each other is proposed and investigated. For data transmission, an optical receiver working with the OLED-based data transmitter to organize an optical channel is also proposed with a cost-effective approach based on a mature infrared receiver module. Under the recommended illuminance of 500 lux for reading and office work, home devices can receive codes in 2404 bps with the low-cost and convenient optical channel.

A convenient and economical optical channel for wireless control in the space for residents is carried out with the beam from light-emitting diodes (LEDs) while they are working for illumination. In theory, optical wireless technology can be implemented with lower cost and consumes lower power than those done by radio. However, optical communication is usually found applied in infrared. In the study, the white light of a LED lamp with the intensity for home illumination is considered to build an optical channel for wireless control of home devices. To be convenient and economical, the mature infrared technology is employed. Although data bits can only move within the channel in 2500 bps at most, the hardware to receive them is compact and cheap enough to be included in consumer electronics.

Although the amount of cooking fumes can be estimated based on the output of the piezoelectric transducer, a proper translation from the response of the transducer to the exhaust rate remains to be implemented. In this paper, a smart translation method is used to generate a ventilating signal for the release of cooking fumes based on the output of a piezoelectric transducer. The start and end states of the fume release were computed according to the temporal variation of the output of the piezoelectric transducer, as determined with four successive samples. These detected states were mapped to a 1-bit digital ventilating signal, which then controlled the exhaust fan. Results from a demonstrated range hood system showed that the proposed method enhances the detection of cooking fumes and provides an effective control of the exhaust fan

Opening windows is frequently done to refresh the indoor air for the occupants. To maintain the cleanliness and freshness of the indoor air, more outdoor air is needed. But its high temperature and humidity are harmful to the thermal comfort of the indoor environment. Therefore, determining the amount of outdoor air allowed to enter the room is very important for the optimum conditioning of the indoor air. The ASHRAE comfort charts indicate the percentage of subjects feeling comfortable during various combinations of dry-bulb temperature, humidity, and air movement. A set of mathematical expressions were proposed to model the charts in order to calculate the comfort degree of the outdoor air automatically with its temperature and humidity. In this paper, the measurement of temperature and humidity was completed by a self-developed digital method. Besides, the comfort level of the sampled air was also simultaneously determined by this digital method based on the mathematical model of comfort charts. The system implemented based on our method is portable. This will let us make good use of the outdoor air and controll the ventilation machine more effectively.

The exhaust fan in a kitchen range hood is required to generate an adequate suction flow to eliminate the especially high levels of cooking contaminants in Chinese kitchens. Reducing the range hood noise and its power consumption down to an acceptable level is an important issue. In this paper, a low-cost smart range hood system is proposed. A sensitive piezoelectric transducer senses the level of the cooking contaminants and the output regulates the speed of the exhaust fan. Under several cooking conditions, the speed of the exhaust fan, its noise level, and the power consumption were examined. Results showed that the noise level and power consumption can be markedly reduced with the transducer and the control circuit. The average noise level is 65.66 dB and the power consumption 123.97 W, both lower than those of the conventional range hood system, which are 72 dB and 216 W, respectively.

Owing to AC LED can be driven directly without any AC to DC converter, the volume and the cost of AC LED can be reduced. Avoiding the power conversion loss, AC LED can have lower energy consumption and higher luminous efficiency than DC LED does. Because of high brightness, low power consumption and long lifetime, LED has been used as a lighting device and is expected to replace the high power-consuming incandescent and fluorescent lamps in the 21th century, in consequence the white light AC LED is a better choice for general illumination in the future. In this study, a white light AC LED smart lighting system equipped with visible light time-division multiplexing optical communication for free space is proposed. In the system, the timing to transmit data is synchronized with the period of the AC power on the wall, in order to keep the transmitted optical signal in an enough level. As a result, the time-division multiplexing optical communication by AC LED lighting is achieved.

The work attempts to reduce the power consumption of a personal computer (PC)-based server of an Internet-based data acquisition system using a novel server agent. An Internet-based data acquisition system requires at least one PC as the central server. The system needs to be run for a long time. If few data are transferred, the server stays at an almost idle state. However, keeping the server running without doing anything wastes power. Reducing this unnecessary power consumption by a PC-based server and further reducing the power consumption of an entire system are the goals of this work. This work is based on a microcontroller-based device. The novel microcontroller-based device in this work is called a Server Agent. This agent receives data from clients while the original PC-based server is off. After the amount of data transferred exceeds a certain limit, the Server Agent powers on the PC-based server and dumps the data to the PC-based server. The Server Agent will power off the PC-based server again once all data are dumped. The power consumed by the Server Agent is

Aim. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of protocol-directed sedation propofol vs. midazolam by nurses in intensive care on efficacy, haemodynamic stability and patient satisfaction. Background. Protocols represent one method potentially to reduce treatment delays and ensure that medical care is administered in a standardised manner. Propofol and midazolam are often used for sedation in intensive care units. Method. A randomised, prospective cohort study and data were collected in 2003. The subjects were randomised either into propofol (n = 32) or into midazolam (n = 28) group. Efficacy of sedation, haemodynamic stability, pulse oximetry saturation, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE II score), weaning time from mechanical ventilation, duration of mechanical ventilation, length of stay at intensive care unit, sedative drugs cost and patient satisfaction were measured. Results. The nursing staff were able to maintain patients at Ramsay sedation scale (RSS) 3–4 during the sedative period. The efficacy of sedation was 74·2% and 66·9% of time in propofol and midazolam group respectively. Both sedatives reduced the arterial blood pressure and heart rate, but did not alter haemodynamic stability. The mean score of satisfactory sedation was not significantly different between the two groups (propofol: 11·4 SEM 0·2 vs. midazolam: 11·5 SEM 0·7). Conclusion. Protocol-directed sedation with propofol vs. midazolam by nurses were similar in quality during the sedative period. Relevance to clinical practice. This sedation practice for titration of propofol and midazolam by nurses was of similar quality and able to achieve an appropriate depth of sedation during the sedative period. Furthermore, they should provide care for patients’ needs during the sedative period.