Search

At an estimated cost of $8 billion annually in the United States, revision surgeries to total joint replacements represent a substantial financial burden to the health care system and a tremendous mental and physical burden on patients and their caretakers. Fixation failures, such as implant loosening, wear, and mechanical instability of the poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) cement, which bonds the implant to the bone, are the main causes of long-term implant failure. Early and accurate diagnosis of cement failure is critical for developing novel therapeutic strategies and reducing the high risk of a misjudged revision. Unfortunately, prevailing imaging modalities, notably plain radiographs, struggle to detect the precursors of implant failure and are often interpreted incorrectly. Our prior work has shown that the modification of PMMA bone cement with low concentrations of conductive fillers makes it piezoresistive and therefore self-sensing. When combined with a conductivity imaging modality such as electrical impedance tomography (EIT), it is possible to monitor load transfer across the PMMA using cost-effective, physiologically benign, non-contact, and real-time electrical measurements. Despite the ability of EIT for monitoring load transfer across self-sensing PMMA bone cement, it is unable to accurately characterize failure mechanisms. Overcoming this challenge is critical to the success of this technology in practice. Therefore, we herein expand upon our previous results by integrating machine learning techniques with EIT for cement condition characterization with the goal of establishing the feasibility of even off-the-shelf machine learning algorithms to address this important problem. We survey a wide variety of different machine learning algorithms for application to this problem, including neural networks on voltage readings of an EIT phantom for tracking the spatial position of a sample, specifying defect orientation within a sample, and classifying defect types, including cracks and delaminations. In addition, we explore the utilization of principal component analysis (PCA) for pre-treating impedance signals in each of these problems. Within the tested algorithms, our results show clear advantages of neural networks, support vector machines, and K-nearest neighbor algorithms for interpreting EIT signals. We also show that PCA is an effective addition to machine learning. These preliminary results demonstrate that the combination of smart materials, EIT, and machine learning may be a powerful instrumentation tool for diagnosing the origin and evolution of mechanical failure in joint replacements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Glenn Research Center (GRC) is well recognized for its contributions toward development of advanced materials and structures for aerospace propulsion and power systems. The Structures and Materials Division conducts research across a broad range of technical areas relevant to the agency's future aeronautics and space mission requirements. This paper will introduce the technical areas of strategic importance in the Structures and Materials Division today and briefly address some of the specific research activities within these areas. A broad look at how the research areas of emphasis have evolved over time, beginning in the early 1940s when the GRC was first formed, will be discussed. Examples of some of the more notable research accomplishments and their impact on the aerospace industry over this time period will be included. A discussion of the division's planned technical directions believed to be required to meet the longer-term national aeronautics and space exploration goals will also be addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The technical textiles industry in the USA and the EU is growing. As we advance into the knowledge age, objects and material technology will disappear into our material environment, turning unintelligent objects into active and intelligent participants in our lives. As much of our environment is made up from textile materials, they will be the targets of smart engineering. The future of smart textiles will rely on the convergence of electrochemistry and textiles in order to process electronic polymers into fibres and fabrics. The integration of smart functionality into clothing and other textile products will radically change the culture surrounding these products, fundamentally altering people’s relationships with them and the way they use them. Smart functionality will also have an impact on the way products are designed and the materials developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1993 the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recognized that smart materials and structures technology provides a specific opportunity for many technological breakthroughs. A two-phased, 8-year program was initiated to develop new, affordable smart materials and structures and to demonstrate performance gains achievable in system applications. The Smart Materials and Structures Demonstration Program was initiated to achieve cultural goals as well as technological goals. Indeed, in several designs the actuators were the structures and vice versa.

Focuses on the application of smart materials in the United States. Consideration of piezoelectric ceramics as the most widely used smart materials; Integration of smart packs or patches for emerging commercial markets; Features of Smart House automation system developed by Anderson electronic Inc.

Recently, there have been numerous deadly gas and oil pipeline explosions in the United States, resulting in extensive investigations based on corrosion and aged foundations. Superhydrophobic coatings are being developed using smart nano-based materials to act as protection layers on the surface of metallic parts against mechanical aggressors, corrosion, and fouling agents. These coatings have proven to be ideal candidates to protect steel pipelines, recently gaining much popularity. This review paper provides a comprehensive and critical assessment of the newly developed superhydrophobic coatings for steel pipelines, with a focus on their applications in the oil and gas industries. At first, the basic concept of wettability is introduced and the physical models governing the different kinds of wettability conditions are derived and explained. Then, various methods used to synthesize superhydrophobic coatings on steel substrates and recent findings from research work on different coating fabrication methods are discussed. Current applications of these developed superhydrophobic coatings for corrosion prevention, deicing, and anti-biofouling, among other treatments, within the last five years and their future trends are also extensively discussed. Based on the literature, of all the methods used for fabricating superhydrophobic coatings for steel pipelines, spraying is the most versatile and widely used. This method provides facile and economically viable mass fabrication of coatings on various steel substrates with desired microstructures. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) are reported to be very resistant to microorganisms when used to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces. Also, shape-memory polymers have recently been incorporated in the fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces for self-healing functionality. Image 1 • Steel pipelines are used in the transportation of many oil and gas industries. • Steel pipelines are exposed to severe internal and external environmental conditions. • Corrosion in pipelines has economical and safety implications in oil and gas industry. • Superhydrophobic coatings are developed using smart nanobased materials for protection. • These coatings are proven to be ideal candidates to protect steel pipelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction : The aim of this study was to characterize perceptions of wearable and smart home technologies of older women using semi-structured interviews. Methods and Procedures : Participants (n = 10) were shown two wearable sensors and a smart home sensor. All participants were 60 years of age or older with the exception of one participant (ages: 57-70,average age: 64.6 years). Sensor function and placement were explained. Participants were asked questions about technology, perceptions of sensors, and thoughts about the use of these types of sensors. Interview transcripts were analyzed to identify themes related to technology acceptance, perceived usefulness, and privacy issues. Main Outcome and Results : Participants perceived wearable and smart home sensors as acceptable for personal activity data collection. In general, wearable sensors were perceived as more useful than smart home sensors because most participants had high levels of activities outside their homes. Participants had few concerns about data sharing. Privacy issues related to perceived risk for break-ins or unwanted disclosure of activity levels. Conclusion : Given the higher proportion of women over men in the older adult population, and some of the aging-related health risks that women face, it is important to understand older women's perceptions of different types of sensor technologies.

The article offers information on the research conducted by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to develop an efficient and quieter helicopters in the U.S. Researchers believed that their goal can be achieved by using rotor blades made with piezoelectric materials that flex when subjected to electrical fields. They spent a decade experimenting with smart material actuated rotor (SMART) technology and result shows that it can reduce by half the amount of noise it produces.

Focuses on advances in smart materials research at the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Speeding of progress in applications ranging from aerospace to consumer products; Designing of macrofiber piezoceramic composites for automated manufacturing; Provision of displacements needed for active control of structural shapes.

Fecal incontinence is an unresolved problem, which has a serious effect on patients, both physically and psychologically. For patients with severe symptoms, treatment with an artificial anal sphincter could be a potential option to restore continence. Currently, the Acticon Neosphincter is the only device certified by the US Food and Drug Administration. In this paper, the clinical safety and efficacy of the Acticon Neosphincter are evaluated and discussed. Furthermore, some other key studies on artificial anal sphincters are presented and summarized. In particular, this paper highlights that the crucial problem in this technology is to maintain long-term biomechanical compatibility between implants and surrounding tissues. Compatibility is affected by changes in both the morphology and mechanical properties of the tissues surrounding the implants. A new approach for enhancing the long-term biomechanical compatibility of implantable artificial sphincters is proposed based on the use of smart materials.

Michigan-based solid oxide fuel cell developer Adaptive Materials Inc has been awarded $1 million to conduct a manufacturing research project for the US Army. The work will focus on determining the cost-effectiveness of manufacturing fuel cell components for use in the Army''s Man Transportable Robotic System (MTRS). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The DuPont/SFC Smart Fuel Cell team has won the US Department of Defense''s Wearable Power Prize competition, with a $1 million prize. The US/German team won by building the lightest wearable system that provided an average of 20 W of power for more than 96 h and weighed less than 4 kg (8.8 lb), attached to a standard military vest. Michigan-based Adaptive Materials Inc was awarded $500 000 for second place, while SFC and its Virginia-based partner Capitol Connections LLC won third prize, worth $250 000, with the Jenny 600S system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]