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To accurately predict and monitor an individual’s health, accurate information on the changing patterns of the individual’s physiological signals is required. In this study, obesity parameters were analyzed using regression analysis based on the physiological signals of individuals who performed continuous exercise. To this end, three healthy adult subjects participated in the experiment, and their health management was analyzed by monitoring changes in health information parameters while they performed continuous exercise with daily activities over a long period of time. Subjects’ exercise parameters included heart rate were collected through smart watches, and their specified obesity parameters were measured using a smart scale. The analysis results showed that weight and body fat decreased and muscle composition increased in conjunction with the amount of exercise for two subjects who performed continuous exercise while conducting daily activities. For one subject who did not perform any specific exercise, however, the weight and body muscle rate tended to increase slightly and the body fat rate tended to decrease slightly. It was found that continuous exercise improved the subjects’ ability to adapt to exercise, thereby increasing Max BPM and reducing weight. Performing continuous exercise while conducting daily activities appears to improve physical measures of health, as it decreases weight and body fat rate and increases body muscle rate. Health management analysis based on the physiological data collected from smart devices is expected to play a role in keeping the human body healthy.

In this study, a multi-sensor data fusion system using a load cell and vision sensor was considered in the development of a flatfish classifier for systematic fish management in aquaculture. In the single-sensor measurement method, each sensor has disadvantages. A load cell shows high performance in the measurement of adult fish, but the measurement of fry is affected significantly due to water weight (water weight disturbance). A vision sensor shows high performance in the measurement of fry, but the movement of fish (movement disturbance) affects the accurate measurement of adult fish. Therefore, in this study, these disturbances were compensated for using a datafusion algorithm, of which the performance was evaluated by a comparison between single sensor measurements and multi-sensor data fusion results.

This paper proposes the use of a gyrostabilizer to improve the response performance of an unmanned underwater vehicle navigated by a quadrant detector (QD) in shallow water docking operations under the influence of ocean disturbances. Reference tracking and disturbance attenuation were investigated with and without delayed response from the gyroscope. The control methodologies examined are combinations of forward Riccati and passive control, forward Riccati and proportional-derivative (PD) control, and forward Riccati and penalty function control. Forward Riccati control is applied to the yaw-pitch dynamics for command tracking, while gyro-dynamics control for disturbance attenuation is achieved using passive, PD, and penalty function controls. Overall, the forward Riccati and penalty function control method showed desired performance because the gyro-precession workspace was maintained within actuation limits while operating within a region of dominant precession spin or control.

New Jersey (NJ) residents in some areas may be exposed to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) due to PFAS contamination of public drinking water. This contamination stems from industrial discharges and the use of aqueous film-foaming foams at military bases and commercial airports for drills and locations where fires occurred. Exposure to PFAS has raised significant public health concerns due to its persistence both in the environment and human body. The potential toxicity of these chemicals may pose risks to human health. Statewide biomonitoring data is needed to establish a baseline of exposure and to identify the subpopulations at risk. The NJ Department of Health (NJDOH) conducted a statewide NJ Biomonitoring (NJBM) study for PFAS utilizing a cost-effective sampling approach, i.e. acquiring remnant sera from both clinical laboratories and blood banks across NJ. This convenience sampling approach was adopted as an alternative to a costly and labor-intensive probability-based population sampling. One thousand and thirty human sera were collected from NJ adults between 20 and 74 years of age from 2016 to 2018, with additional information of county, sex, and age. The serum collection was demographically and geographically dispersed across four seasons. Twelve PFAS analytes were measured for the specimens collected. The data were post-stratified by county, sex, and age groups (20–39, 40–59, and 60–74 years old). Stratified individual sample weights were developed and used to estimate population means, compare least-squared mean differences, and examine contributing variables. Geometric means (GMs) and percentiles with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of the target analytes are presented, providing preliminary baselines of the statewide PFAS exposure for NJ adults. PFOA, PFNA, PFHxS, and PFOS were selected for in-depth analyses because their GMs were greater than 0.5 ng/mL and they were detected over 99% in study population. Subjects from this study had higher serum levels of PFOA, PFNA, and PFHxS compared to the general U.S. population reported by the latest National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES in 2015–2016). However, the distributions of PFOA, PFNA, PFHxS, and PFOS across sex and age groups were consistent with the patterns found in NHANES, i.e. all differed by sex and age group. Further sex and age stratification showed significantly lower concentrations of the 4 analytes in younger females (20–59 years old) than in older females (60–74 years old) and males (20–74 years old). Future research is needed to identify PFAS exposure sources and to develop effective intervention strategies. Continuing PFAS biomonitoring using population sampling is recommended for tracking trends and better identifying subpopulations at risk.

Background: Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), are ubiquitous pollutants associated with adverse health outcomes. High PFAS levels have been demonstrated among career firefighters; less is known about PFAS levels among volunteer firefighters who comprise two-thirds of US firefighters. Methods: Volunteer fire department members completed a survey and provided blood samples. We calculated geometric means and 95% CIs for PFAS reported by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). We compared PFAS distribution and levels among non-Hispanic white adult male study participants to those in the 2015–2016 and 2017–2018 NHANES cycles. We assessed associations between PFAS serum levels and years of firefighting controlling demographics and occupation using linear regression. Results: Participant’s average age was 46.6 years (sd. 17.1). Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoA) was detected in almost half study but

The body weight support (BWS) system that allows a patient to support his or her body weight in step-wise fashion, depending on their physical condition, is an important intervention that assists individuals with gait disabilities in their gait rehabilitation. In this paper, we measured human body signals in order to verify a rehabilitation system using active harness that we developed for gait and balance training based on ceiling-rail platform. 20 healthy participants were performed to conduct daily activities related to lower limbs. They did a kind of motions related to daily life (Normal Walking, Stand-to-Sit, and Stair Walking Down) according to variation of body weight support rates (0%, 30%, 50% of subject’s body weight). The effectiveness of the weight supporting on healthy people is analyzed by the muscular activities and foot pressure distribution. In normal walking, the decrease of fore-foot pressure, lateral soleus muscle and biceps femoris muscle were remarkable. The result of stand-to-sit results motion indicated that the rearfoot pressure and tibialis anterior muscle activities exceptionally decreased according to body weight support. The stair walking down results indicate the marked drop of fore-foot pressure and rectus femoris muscle activities. Based on these results, a function of weight supporting is very helpful to improve the gait ability of people with gait disorder.

This paper presents a wireless active finger rehabilitation method controlled magnetic forces within a three-axis coil system. The three-axis coils enhanced degree of freedom in hand positioning. The developed system includes three magnets for controlling one finger within the coil, thus, providing external force to the finger without the use of a complex mechanical structure. The proposed method is simple in configuration and operates wirelessly by magnetic interaction. The system generates three magnetic forces for flexion and extension of the finger. The proposed method can be used regardless of the position of the hand in the system. The combined influence of the three magnetic forces used to generate flexion and extension of the finger was verified through experimental analysis.

This study was to provide independent exercise loads in rowing exercise machine, on the improvement of muscle strength imbalance. We recruited twenty four subjects who exhibited one side's muscle strength is bigger in more of greater than 20% than other on one side. One group was dominant left side and the other group was dominant right side. Subjects performed the rowing exercise in electric load deviation rowing machine (Robo.gym, Humonic Co., Ltd, Daegu, Korea). The exercise was progressed to four sets a day including twenty five repetitions per set, and three days a week, for a total of eight weeks. Measurements consist of evaluation of muscular activity, joint torque in the elbow, shoulder. Exercise load deviation adapted that difference value of muscle strength between left and right side arms multiply 1RM% and its plus 1-RM 75% in each side. The result showed that the level of muscle imbalance significantly decreased in shoulder and elbow joint by adapting exercise load deviation. We found out that exercise load deviation provided to the positive effect both muscle strength and endurance at the same time. As a result of this study, rowing exercise using the exercise load deviation is effective in improving muscle strength imbalance.

Objective In this paper, we investigated the recovery of the lactate level, muscular fatigue, and heart rate recovery (HRR) with respect to whole body vibration (WBV) during the rest stage after a gait exercise. Methods A total of 24 healthy subjects with no medical history of exercise injury participated. The participants were divided into a training group with vibration during rest and a control group with the same conditions but without vibration. The subjects performed a gait exercise with a slope of 15% and velocity of 4 km/h to consume 450 kcal in 30 min. Then, they rested on a vibrating chair or on a chair without vibrations for 30 min. The vibration protocol consists of a frequency of 10 Hz and amplitude of 5 mm. To estimate the recovery effect, we measured the lactate levels in blood, spectral edge frequency (SEF) of MVIC, and HRR before, immediately after exercise, and after rest. Results The results showed that the lactate level in the training group decreased more (93.8%) than in the control group (32.8%). Also, HRR showed a similar trend with a recovery of 88.39% in the training group but 64.72% in the control group. We considered that whole-body vibrations during rest would help remove lactic acid by improving the level of lactic acid oxidation with stimulated blood vessels in the muscles and by helping to maintain blood flow. Also, WBV would lead to compensation to actively decrease the fast excess post-exercise oxygen consumption from blood circulation. Conclusions We suggest that whole-body vibrations during rest can provide fast, efficient fatigue recovery as a cool down exercise for women, the elderly, and patients without other activity after intense exercise.

Elevated perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) levels, one of many manmade per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), were detected in public water systems/private wells in New Jersey communities. Interventions to end exposure through drinking water were carried out from 2014 to 2016. To evaluate the effectiveness of interventions, a community biomonitoring study was conducted for the communities between 2017 and 2020. A convenience sampling design was used with 120 participants in Year 1 between ages of 20–74 who consumed PFNA-contaminated water. Three blood samples, one year apart, were drawn from each participant and completed for 99 participants. Separated serum samples were measured for 12 PFAS including PFNA. Questionnaires were administered to collect information on demographics and potential sources. Drinking water and house dust collected at the first visit were analyzed for 14 PFAS including PFNA. The PFNA sera levels (Year 1) found 84 out of 120 (70%) participants were higher than the 95th percentile of a nationally representative sample of US adults (NHANES2015-16). Current drinking water and house dust were not significant contributing sources for the study participants. On average, PFNA sera levels were 12 ± 16% (Year 2) and 27 ± 16% (Year 3) lower than the level measured in Year 1 (p 95th percentile of NHANES2015-16) with controlling for physiological covariates. The decline in adult serum PFNA levels seen in the years following a community drinking water intervention suggests the intervention effectively reduced PFNA exposure via drinking water.

This study intends to develop a system for managing the health of the spinal joints of elderly people who mainly live on Korean floor heating (Ondol). The spine health management system consists of a seat cushion-type posture balance device that can measure the sitting posture, an application for smart devices capable of real-time collection of posture balance data, and a database server for analysis and visualized feedback of the data. Each force signal measured with the four load cells installed in posture balance device is wirelessly transmitted to an Arduino-based Android application, and the center of pressure (COP) value of the sitting position is analyzed using the four load cell data. To test the usability of the spinal health management system, the COP values of front, back, left and right torso tilts of healthy adults in a sitting position were measured with the posture balance device and 3D motion analysis program (Visual 3D, USA). After that, the COP values were compared and analyzed. As a result of the analysis, the COP direction data (front, back, left and right) measured with the posture balance device exactly matched the direction analyzed by the 3D motion analysis system.

This study shows the improvement of muscle activity and muscle strength imbalance in the lower extremities through independent exercise loads in vibration platform. Twenty females of age 20 participated in this study. The subjects were divided into WBV group, with more than 10% of muscle strength imbalance between left and right the lower extremities, and control group, with less than 10% of muscle strength imbalance between left and right the lower extremities. As the prior experiment showed, different exercise postures provide different muscular activities. As a result, the highest muscular activity was found to be in the low squat posture. Therefore, the LS posture was selected for the exercise in this experiment. Vibration intensities were applied to dominant muscle and non-dominant muscle, and the vibration frequency was fixed at 25Hz for the WBV group. The control group was asked to perform the same exercise as the WBV group, without stimulated vibration. This exercise was conducted for a total of 4 weeks. As a result, the WBV group which showed an average deviation of 16% before the experiment, tended to decrease approximately to 5%. In this study, vibration exercise using load deviation is shown to be effective in improving the muscle strength imbalance.

BACKGROUND Lower back pain has a lifetime prevalence of 80% for people in a modern society, and in recent years, spinal stabilization movement has been highlighted as a method to treat lower back pain and an unbalanced position. OBJECTIVE The objectives of this study were to assess the trunk muscle activities in accordance with the tilt angles (10∘, 20∘, 30∘, 40∘) during trunk tilt exercises with a 3D dynamic exercise device. METHODS Active tilt mode (a self-generated active movement in the angle and direction steered by the user) was used in this study. The rotation capability enabled the investigation of the anterior (A), anterior right (AR), right (R), posterior right (PR), posterior (P), posterior left (PL), left (L), and anterior left (AL) tilt directions. EMG signals of the trunk (3 global muscles: rectus abdominis, RA, external obliques, EO, latissimus dorsi, LD, and 1 local muscle: multifidus, MF) muscles were obtained. RESULTS The MF muscle activity was higher while the anterior tilt was maintained, and the abdominal muscle activity was higher while the posterior tilt was maintained. Also, as the tilt angle increased, the activity of the muscles opposite the tilt direction increased. CONCLUSIONS The results indicate that to maintain equilibrium through posture stabilization during whole body tilting, the human body maintains a proper interaction among the body segments as well as between the body and the execution environment. Moreover, stability is maintained through the co-contraction of antagonistic and agonistic muscles. In future studies, it will be important to conduct research on improving imbalance in the trunk muscles.

This study intended to identify the effect of the long time whole body vibration exercise on the muscle function and postural balance. The twenties subjects in young people were recruited, and they were classified into WBV and Non-WBV groups. The vibration exercise was conducted 30 minutes a day for 4 days a week for a total 8 weeks, and the vibration protocol were 25Hz frequency and 5mm amplitude. To verify the muscle function according to the long time vibration exercise, the isokinetic muscle function of the knee joint torque was evaluated, while the total work of maximal peak torque to evaluate the enhancement effect of muscular strength, as well as the average power, angle to peak torque, and acceleration time to evaluate the muscular reaction, was analyzed. Also, changes in COP were measured and analyzed to research the functional change of the postural balance. As a result of the experiment, the Non-WBV group did not show changes in the muscular function and postural balance function, while the WBV group showed increased muscular function by 29.11%(maximal peak torque: 17.91%, total work: 26.78%, average power: 39.11%, angle to peak torque: 25.21%, acceleration time: 36.51%), and increased postural balance function by 64.76%.

This paper deals with the problem of accurately tracking a single target, which has various trajectories, moving through the environment of underwater wireless sensor networks (UWSNs). This paper addresses the issues of estimating the states of the target, improving energy efficiency by using a distributed architecture. Each underwater wireless sensor node composing the UWSNs is battery-powered, so the energy conservation problem is a critical issue. This paper provides algorithms increasing the energy efficiency of each sensor node by using the proposed Wake-Up/Sleep (WUS) scheme. An interacting multiple model (IMM) filter is applied to the proposed distributed architecture in order to cope with a target maneuver. Simulation results illustrate the performance of the proposed tracking filter according to the various target maneuver patterns.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate muscle function and basal physical fitness in relation to muscle balance pattern using rowing machines. Twenty four subjects participated in this study, using three different rowing machines. Rowing exercises were performed for twenty-five times a set, four sets a day, 3 days a week, for 8 weeks. Biodex system 3(Biodex Medical Systems Co., New York, USA) was used to measure joint torques in the elbow, shoulder, lumbar and knee of subjects, for analyzing muscle function. The evaluation of basal physical fitness included body composition, muscle strength, muscle endurance, muscle reaction, agility, flexibility and explosive power. Before the experiment, significant differences of joint torques in the elbow, shoulder, lumbar and knee were present between subjects in the group. After the rowing exercise, significant improvement in every joint was witnessed. All aspects of basic fitness increased significantly, and the most improvement was observed in muscle strength from the joint torque results. As shown in the following results, every joint it was evident to have improved by more than 30% with the use of dependent load deviation type over the previously used water load method. This means that it is more effective for enhancing muscle strength and endurance to keep the muscle balance using dependent load deviation. The human body maintains motor coordination of muscle contraction during exercise. The muscle balances in the upper-lower and left-right arms could assist with effective activation of motor coordination. In this paper, an exercise method using dependent load deviation was demonstrated to be more efficient for improving muscle imbalance and strengthening muscles.

The objectives were to assess the trunk and leg muscle activities during the trunk tilt exercise by a 3D dynamic exercise device capable of active and passive movements, to study the evaluation of Root Mean Squire (RMS), and to investigation the influence of the trunk positions on these muscle activities. Eighteen healthy volunteers were selected. None of the subjects had any history of lumber and trunk muscle problems. Rotation capability was enabled for the investigation of A (anterior), R (right), P (posterior), L (left), AR (anterior right), AL (anterior left), PR (posterior right), PL (posterior left) tilt directions. EMG signals of trunk (rectus abdominis, external obliques, latissimus dorsi, erector spinae) muscles and leg (rectus femoris, Biceps femoris, Tibialis Anterior, gastrocnemius) muscles were taken out. Root Mean Squire (RMS) values were calculated. The results of this study indicate that different exercise patterns can be applied depending on the exercise types, which are appropriate and necessary to each user. We believe that the human body can be maintained in equilibrium through the interaction between the position and movement execution of the human body, contributing to the improvement of body balance control. Further quantitative data collection and analysis related to the development of various spinal stabilization exercise programs is required. In the near future, we will conduct a study concerning the effects of trunk tilt exercise in active and passive modes on the strength of the tilting muscles and postural balancing ability.

This paper presented the 8-weeks training effects of training system based on an unstable platform and a visual interactive system for improving the ability of postural control. To confirm the effects of the training, fifteen elderly volunteers took part in a series of balance training using this system. Fifteen elderly volunteers as the control group compared with the training group. To evaluate the effects of the training, the relevant parameters such as the time of timed up and go (TUG) test, the transfer limits of the different directions, the sway path of center of pressure (COP), and the root mean square (RMS) of COP in anteroposterior (AP) direction and mediolateral (ML) direction, concentric isokinetic strength of ankle and knee joints were measured from pre-training to post-training. The results showed that the training system could successfully assess the gradual improvement of the postural control capability of the volunteers in the system and showed a possibility of improving balance capability of the volunteers. Moreover, the significant improvement in the postural capability of the elderly suggested that the elderly could benefit more from the training using the system for the improvement of the ability of postural control.

The effect of stent design parameters such as porosity, pore density, number of strands, and strut angle to the artery were studied in vitro using particle image velocimetry (PIV). Five mesh stents were implanted into a sidewall aneurysm model. The flow features in a sidewall aneurysm silicone phantom model were investigated at a Reynolds number of 300. It was found that the lowest porosity stent had the best value for velocity and vorticity reduction in an aneurysm pocket. The stent with higher pore density had a tendency to decrease the mean and maximum velocities, but it was not superior to the effects of porosity. In addition, investigation of the evaluation system confirmed that higher stent strut angles to the parent artery had a tendency to lower mean velocity, as shown by PIV and CFD. However, this effect was relatively smaller compared to porosity and pore density. Our evaluation system suggested the best combinations of parameters for the development of an ideal stent would be lower porosity, higher pore density, and higher strut angle. The results obtained in this study indicated that our evaluation system could be useful for various purposes related to evaluation of endovascular interventional devices.

In this study, a multidirectional posture and motion evaluation tool system using a camera-based vision system was developed. By installing a camera on the top, back, left, and front of the system, kinematical information of the participant was collected and analyzed on the sagittal, coronal, and transverse planes. A dedicated color light-emitting diode (LED) marker was developed for increasing recognition rate of marker. Based on LabVIEW, images collected from four cameras were printed on one screen, and the detection angle of each marker was calculated using the cosine second law. To evaluate the performance of this system, a motion analysis experiment was performed on 20 office workers in Jeonju area. The reliability was measured using POFOMO, Dartfish and the results were compared. The comparison results indicate that the concurrent validities of the two results for the knee angle, left shoulder, and right shoulder were highly correlated as [Formula: see text], 0.988, and 0.991, respectively. Because the POFOMO image analysis tool in the present system reduces the analysis time and involves a simpler measurement procedure than that of Dartfish, this system can be used as an effective device for measuring the posture alignment of the human body.

In this paper, we are interested in the characteristics of a knee joint when the knee extension motion was assisted by a powered knee orthosis using a muscular stiffness force feedback. For this purpose, we developed the powered knee orthosis with an artificial pneumatic actuator, which is intended for the assistance and the enhancement of muscular activities of lower limbs. The objective of this study was to confirm the effectiveness of the powered knee orthosis that generated a knee extension torque in the motion related to a knee joint. Twenty healthy subjects participated in this study and their lower limb muscular activities were measured to identify the effectiveness of the powered knee orthosis during sit-to-stand (STS) and squat motion. The muscular activities between with and without assistance of knee extension motion were compared and analyzed for the assistance characteristics of the powered knee orthosis. To generate the knee extension torque, the knee orthosis was controlled using muscular stiffness force (MSF) feedback that is controlled by muscular activities of the vastus intermedius muscle that mainly related to the knee extension motion. For analysis of muscular activities, the surface electromyography of the muscles related to the knee extension motion, i.e., RF, vastus lateralis, vastus medialis and vastus intermedius muscles in lower limbs of the right side were recorded and biodex dynamometer was used to measure the maximal concentric isokinetic strength of the knee extensors. The experimental result showed that muscular activities in lower limbs with the assistance of the powered knee orthosis was reduced by 25.62% in rectus femoris muscle and 29.82% in biceps femoris muscle, respectively and knee extension torque of an knee joint wearing knee orthosis was increased by 17.68% in averaged peak torque. Based on the effectiveness of the powered knee orthosis, weaken elder people may have benefited from the knee extension motion augmented by the powered knee orthosis during activity of daily living, e.g., stair ascent.

The purpose of this study was to verify the effect on improvement of muscle strength unbalance according to load deviation protocol during whole body vibration exercise. Seventeen female volunteers (age 22±3 years, height 160±4.9 cm, weight 49±.8 kg) participated in this experiment. The subjects performed squat exercise in WBV platform. Exercise were performed five set a day including 15 time a set, three days a week, and during 4 weeks. Vibration stimulus was 25Hz as frequency and intensity was dominant leg 1mm and non-dominant leg 4mm. The results in WBV group showed that the differences of peak torque in 16% were getting decreasing significantly after 4 weeks from 16.2% to 5.2%. This result means that WBV with load deviation protocol could provide muscle strength exercise for muscle strength balance. Our study found out that WBV of load deviation protocol could provide muscle strength exercise for improving muscle imbalance.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of indoor horse riding exercise equipment on the young people in their twenties. We classified the effects into flexibility, muscle strengthening, and muscular reaction. Subjects performed horse riding exercise using SRider (Neipplus Co. & Chonbuk National Univ, Korea) that we developed. Twenty male and twenty female subjects were included and they had no experience with horse riding as an exercise and no medical history of falling. Exercise was performed for 45 min a day and 3 days a week during 8 weeks in a constant temperature and humidity environment. Once a week, we conducted the bodyeffect measurements. We measured forward trunk flexion and backward trunk extension to verify the improvement of flexibility. We also measured lumbar joint torque using the BIODEX System3 to verify the improvement of muscle strength and reaction. Our results of flexibility showed that values of forward trunk flexion and backward trunk extension after the exercise were higher than those before the exercise. It also presented that the stimulated three-dimensional movement of the horse riding exercise activated joints and muscles not usually used. Besides, the continuous movement of horse riding can reduce muscle tonus and relax stiff muscles. The muscle strengthening and muscular reaction results showed that peak lumbar joint torque after the exercise was higher than that before the exercise. We found that the horse riding exercise using indoor equipment improved flexibility, muscle strength, and muscular reaction. Moreover, we hope that this work will help us understand the exercise characteristic of this equipment.

This study investigated the effect of whole-body vibration on muscle function and muscular reaction in the knee joint. We recruited thirty healthy subjects and divided them into a training group, who experienced whole-body vibration, and a control group, who did not. The training group performed whole-body vibration exercises for 30 min per day, 3 days a week, for 8 weeks. We measured knee joint torque to estimate muscle strength and reaction, using BIODEX System 3. Knee joint peak torque and total work performed increased significantly in the training group, and muscle acceleration time decreased. These results suggest that stimulation by whole-body vibration can improve muscle strength and reaction by improving muscle tone and increasing blood temperature and flow speed in muscular fiber. Our results also indicate that 4 weeks of exercise with whole-body vibration is required to improve the reaction response, and six weeks to improve strength.

The Interest in disease prevention and rehabilitation is increasing depending on increase of patients with spinal. This is being developed using the spine stabilization device is being studied. So far studies have only evaluated the effect on trunk stabilization exercises but analysis of human movement patterns for active movement and passive movement did not. We assessed the muscle activity of trunk and leg muscle during passive and active tilt mode on eight tilt directions at tilt angle of 30° using 3-D dynamic postural balance training system. We performed experimental study on the muscular activities of trunk muscle about rectus abdominis, external obliques, latissimus dorsi, erector spinae, and leg muscle about rectus femoris, Biceps femoris, Tibialis Anterior, gastrocnemius. As a result, muscle activation was different depending on the direction of movement and pattern. The results indicate that various patterns of spinal stabilization exercise system could be applied to an effective training of chronic low back pain patients.

It is necessary to develop a rehabilitation robot for the assistance of movement of the ankle joint and the enhancement of ankle muscular activities during walking for the elderly. A powered ankle exoskeleton with an artificial pneumatic muscle has been designed to provide powered assistance in the plantarflexion motion of the ankle joint. The objective of this study was to confirm the effectiveness of the powered ankle exoskeleton for the plantarflexion torque of the ankle joint. Fifteen healthy and fifteen elderly people used a wearable ankle exoskeleton during the plantarflexion motion of the ankle joint. Participants were assessed with three parameters to confirm the effectiveness of the system: a) maximal voluntary isokinetic plantarflexion torque using a Biodexdynamometer, b) muscular activities of the lower limbs, c) correlation of the agonist muscle and plantar torque during plantarflexion motion of the ankle joint. The assistance of the plantarflexion motion of the ankle joint is determined by the plantarflexion torque of the artificial pneumatic muscle of the powered ankle exoskeleton, and the assistant timing was decided the detection of subject’s movement intention that they did plantarflexion motion of the ankle joint. We developed a muscular stiffness force sensor to detect the activation of the soleus muscle for feed-forward control of the ankle exoskeleton. The experimental results show that the muscular stiffness force of the soleus muscle with feed-forward control was decreased, and the plantarflexion torque of the ankle joint while only wearing the ankle exoskeleton was decreased, but the plantarflexion torque with feed-forward control was increased. The amount of increasing with feed-forward control is higher than that of decreasing only wearing the exoskeleton. Based on the effectiveness of the system with the healthy participants, the elderly may have benefited from the plantarflexion motion augmented by the powered ankle exoskeleton.

Introduction. Ambient and traffic-related air pollution has been linked to exacerbation of asthma in adults and children. Our community-academic partnership is evaluating the effects of diesel emis...

In this study, we proposed the most efficient driving posture based on the analysis of quantitative muscular strength and fatigue degree according to posture. Since driving include complicated actions required by a variety of ability and cause by extremes concentration or strain, drivers tend to feel tired easily. However, drivers can't recognize the fatigue degree by themselves. Moreover, the method for measuring the quantitative fatigue degree exactly is quite difficult to be secured. 9 professional bus drivers were participated. We analyzed the quantitative legs' muscular strength when operating each pedal. And then we also analyzed the muscular strength and muscular fatigue degree according to driving pattern during bus driving. Therefore, we suggested the most efficient driving posture.

The purpose of this study was to verify the validation of effect on improvement of muscle strength unbalance according to exercise load deviation during rowing exercise. We performed evaluation of muscular activity and joint torque before the test. We recruited twenty subjects who one side`s muscle strength is bigger in more 20% than other side. Subjects divided two groups. One is dominant left side and the other was dominant right side. Subjects performed rowing exercise in electric load deviation rowing equipment (Robo.gym, Humonic Co., Ltd., Daegu, Korea). Exercise performed four sets a day including 25 times a set, and three days a week. Measurements consist of evaluation of muscular activity and joint torque. Exercise load deviation adapted that different value of muscle strength in both arms multiplied 1RM% and added 1RM 50%. The results in adapted load deviation showed that the differences of maximal peak torque in 22.75% were getting increase significantly during exercise in 5.72%. This interpreted that rowing exercise with loading deviation types could provide muscle strength and muscular endurance exercise in same time for balance. Our study found out that loading deviation could provide muscle strength and muscular endurance exercise for improving muscle unbalance.

A modified variable structure interacting multiple model (M-VSIMM) estimator for complex hybrid maneuver target tracking is presented. The M-VSIMM could potentially be applied to fire control systems (FCS) used on warships. Target model groups were designed using 3D dimensional dynamic target models. Optimal model group selection logic was proposed, contrary to the activation and termination logic in the original VSIMM. The system will respond faster with optimal model group selection logic. After performing simulations, the tracking performances of the Kalman, α-β(-γ), VDIE, IMM and M-VSIMM filters were compared under various maneuvering conditions.

This paper presents a study involving prediction of a complicated maneuvering target, with the aim of improving the tracking performance of a fire control system (FCS). In this study, we predict the position of a complicated maneuvering target 5 s in advance using the information up to the current time. Because of the large error caused by the complicated maneuvers and the long prediction time interval, the mechanical system of the fire control system will take a heavy load. In order to cope with this problem, several approaches to decreasing the prediction error have been proposed including the prediction algorithms based on the multiple model(MM) filter, interacting multiple model (IMM) filter, and variable dimension with input estimation (VDIE) filter. Finally, comparative simulation results are presented to verify the performance of the filters.

We were investigating the muscle strength and aerobic function effect on the aged according to active and passive load using compact cycle system. We recruited twenty old participants and they performed shoulder rotating, upper cycling and lower cycling exercise. We measured the muscular activity, respiratory gas analysis and body heat. The result of muscular activity showed that the passive load could cause muscular activity at 15.4–65.9% compared to active load. We thought that the passive exercise could provide the prevention of spasticity and maintain effect of remaining muscle function in the elderly by caused muscular activity over 50%. The result of oxygen consumption showed that it is the active exercise that used the bigger oxygen consumption at 42.4% during lower cycling. We thought that the active exercise used the big muscles of lower limbs including trunk muscles during lower cycling. The result of body temperature showed that it rises with increase in oxygen consumption and heart rate, and it increased the bigger for lower cycling. The foundation of this study could apply to fundamental research for developing exercise load of indoor rehabilitation exercise system with convenience and easy use to the elderly.

In this paper, an overload detecting algorithm for an excavator is presented. The proposed overload detecting algorithm is based on the time series analysis especially correlation function. The main purpose of this paper is to prevent damage or crack from the fatigue loaded on an excavator in advance. Generally, the larger data, the longer processing time, and the amount of the data used in this paper are also large, especially every sampling period, 1600 data are gathered and calculated. So this paper focuses on minimizing the number of required sensors by using the correlation function. From the cross correlation function, similar pattern sensors are eliminated and dissimilar pattern sensors are considered, and from the auto correlation function, the overload can be detected. To prove the efficiency of the proposed overload detecting algorithm, this paper shows the computer simulation results.

This paper presents the design of hardware platform, which is a test bed for the navigation system and hovering type AUV (Autonomous Underwater Vehicle) under the OCP (Open Control Platform). The developed AUV test bed consists of two hulls, four thrusters, and the navigation system which uses a SBC2440II with IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit). And the SMC (Sliding Mode Control) is chosen for the diving and steering control of the AUV. This paper uses ACE/TAO RTEC (Real-Time Event Channel) as a middleware platform in order to control and communicate in the developed AUV test bed. In this paper, two computers are used and each of them is dedicated for the specific purpose, the first computer is used as the SMC module and the middleware platform for the ACE/TAO RTEC and the second computer is used for the sensor controller. We analyze the performance of the AUV test bed under the OCP.

Currently several kinds of sensor localization methods have been developed for terrestrial wireless sensor networks. This study, in order to extend the field to underwater environments, a localization technique is studied for UWSNs (Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks). In underwater environments, RF (Radio Frequency) signal is not suitable for underwater usage because of extremely limited propagation. Because of that reason UWSNs should be constituted with acoustic modems. But, to realize underwater application, we can borrow many design principles from ongoing research for terrestrial environments. So, in this paper we introduce the modified localization algorithm using ToA method which is based on the terrestrial research. First of all, we study the localization techniques for terrestrial environments where we investigate possible methods to underwater environment. And then the appropriate algorithm is presented in the underwater usage. Finally the proposed underwater based localization algorithm is evaluated by using computer.

This paper deals with the problem of localizing sensors based on time of arrival (ToA) method and tracking a target moving through the environment of underwater sensor networks (USNs). ToA method for localizing sensors is the most simple and intuitive algorithm applicable for USNs. In this paper, ToA-based sensor localization system in USNs is proposed, which consists of ToA-based distance estimation, position computation using trilateration, and localization algorithm using recursive position estimation (RPE). By using the localized underwater sensor information, distributed Kalman filter (DKF) can estimate the state of target on valid sensor platforms. Simulation results illustrate the performance of the proposed distributed tracking filters.

This research was performed to assess the effects of angled whole body vibration on muscle activity of the lower limbs, by examining adults in their twenties during squat exercises, taking into account two variables of exercise intensity (vibration frequency and gradient). Twenty healthy males in their twenties with previous experience of more than 6 month's weight training and no past medical history were included in this study. The experiment was performed by participating in squat exercises which consisted of 3 sets (1 set = 5 seconds x 3 repetitions of exercise), and the muscle activities of the Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis, Vastus Medialis were measured with variation in the gradients of 0°, 10°, and 20°, and vibration frequencies of 20, 30, and 40 Hz. At 30 and 40 Hz, the vastus lateralis showed the highest change in muscle activity, while activity of the vastus medialis also increased significantly. Analysis of muscle activity according to the gradient showed a significant increase of the vastus lateralis at 20°, while the highest muscle activity at 20° was observed for the vastus medialis. In comparison of the change in lower limb muscle activity according to simultaneous stimulation, at a gradient of 10°, high activity was shown in muscle, while at 20°, high muscle activities were produced at 40 Hz in the vastus lateralis, 40 Hz in the rectus femoris, and both 30 and 40 Hz in the vastus medialis.

The aim of this study is to verify the effect of indoor horse riding exercise on basal physical exercise and lumbar muscular function. The subjects included were 20 healthy females, who participated in the horse riding exercise using SRider (Rider Co. & ChonbuK National Univ, Korea) for 30 minutes per day, 3 days per week, over a period of 8 weeks. The subjects were divided into 4 groups as follows, with 10 subjects in each group: Postural Balance Exercise mode (PBE), Abdomen Exercise mode (ADE), Whole body Exercise mode (WBE), and Multiple Exercise (MTE). Isokinetic muscular function test was performed before and after the horse riding exercise, to assess the effect of horse riding on basal physical exercise and lumbar muscular function. The test result on basal physical exercise and isokinetic muscular function showed improvements with variable degree in the back muscle strength, maximum joint torque, total work, and muscular acceleration time. The result signifies that the horse riding is an antagonistic exercise mainly performed on waist and abdomen area, and the machine induces persistent muscle contraction and causes myotonic induction enhancing the muscle strength. Indoor horse riding exercise proved its effectiveness for senior or the disabled people who need muscle exercises but have difficulties performing outdoor activities.

In this study, we assessed indoor horse riding exercise's effects on basal physical exercise and activities of daily living (ADL) function using horse riding equipment, involving elderly test subjects (in their sixties). The participants were 20 people with no impediment to activity. They participated in experiments that lasted 60 min per day, 3 days per week, over 8 weeks, using the "SRider" (Rider Co. and Chonbuk National University Korea).We measured trunk flexion, sit-up, whole-body reaction, leg strength, and maximal oxygen uptake as basal physical fitness parameters. Also, 3-m gait, single stance with eyes open, and single stance with eyes closed, as ADL functions, were estimated once per month. The leg strength and whole body reaction result were significantly higher than before the exercise program. Moreover, the results of the 3-m walking ability alone increased significantly among the ADL functions. These findings indicate that the horse riding exercise may activate continuous muscular contraction, maintaining the tonus of the muscles. The continuous movement of horse riding could be lead to isometric muscle contraction in the lower limbs. These results suggest that the horse riding exercise develops muscle power and muscle reactions with exercise.

This study was performed to assess the improvement of muscle strength imbalance in the lower limbs using a four point weight bearing reduction system with a two-belt treadmill. Participants, each having differences in muscle function of the left and right legs of over 20%, were divided into two groups of ten. The participants were involved in experiments progressing 40 minutes per day, 3 days per week, during a period of 4 weeks. The maximal peak torque and average power were measured for testing joint torque in the hip, knee and ankle. The results showed the improvement of muscle imbalance as assessed by the maximal muscle strength was the most effective in the hip joint, while the improvement of muscular reaction was the most effective in the knee joint. We suggest that the method of weight bearing reduction could be sufficient to reduce muscle imbalance in the lower limbs.

This study investigated the characteristics of dynamic postural responses when subjects attempted to maintain an upright standing position on a support plate during continuous sinusoidal perturbation in the anterior-posterior direction. Fif- teen healthy young subjects participated in the experiment. Body movement patterns during the perturbation were captured and analyzed using a 3D motion analysis system (APAS 3D motion analysis, Ariel Dynamics Inc.). Seven markers were at- tached on the subject's body to measure and analyze the motion patterns. The markers were positioned at the head, chest, hip, right knee, left knee, right ankle, and left ankle. Five different frequencies of motion were applied to the support surface: 0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 Hz with a 4-cm path of motion at the base. The experiments measured dynamic postural responses in a condition were subjects had their eyes open. The results showed that the median frequency of the knee and ankle increased in all frequency bands. Following an increase in the frequency of the perturbation, the postural control strategy was changed from the ankle strategy to a combined strategy. These experimental results could be applied to the dynamic postural training for the elderly and to rehabilitation training for patients to improve their ability for postural control.

A new training system that can adjust training intensity and indicate the center pressure of a subject was proposed by applying controlled electric current to the Magneto-Rheological damper. The experimental studying on the muscular activities were performed in lower extremities during maintaining and moving exercises, which were processed on an unstable platform with Magneto rheological dampers and recorded in a monitor. The electromyography (EMG) signals of the eight muscles in lower extremities were recorded and analyzed in certain time and frequency domain. Muscles researched in this paper were rectus femoris (RF), biceps femoris (BF), tensor fasciae latae (TFL), vastuslateralis (VL), vastusmedialis (VM), gastrocnemius (Ga), tibialis anterior (TA), and soleus (So). Differences of muscular activities during four moving exercises were studied in our experimental results. The rate of the increment of the muscular activities was affected by the condition of the unstable platform with MR dampers, which suggested the difference of moving exercises could selectively train each muscle with varying intensities. Furthermore, these findings also proposed that this training system can improve the ability of postural balance.

A new, passive particle deposition air sampler, called the Einstein-Lioy Deposition Sampler (ELDS), has been developed to fill a gap in passive sampling for near-field particle emissions. The sampler can be configured in several ways: with a protective hood for outdoor sampling, without a protective hood, and as a dust plate. In addition, there is an XRF-ready option that allows for direct sampling onto a filter-mounted XRF cartridge which can be used in conjunction with all configurations. A wind tunnel was designed and constructed to test the performance of different sampler configurations using a test dust with a known particle size distribution. The sampler configurations were also tested versus each other to evaluate whether or not the protective hood would affect the collected particle size distribution. A field study was conducted to test the sampler under actual environmental conditions and to evaluate its ability to collect samples for chemical analysis. Individual experiments for each configuration demonstrated precision of the sampler. The field experiment demonstrated the ability of the sampler to both collect mass and allow for the measurement of an environmental contaminant i.e. Cr(6+). The ELDS was demonstrated to be statistically not different for Hooded and Non-Hooded models, compared to each other and the test dust; thus, it can be used indoors and outdoors in a variety of configurations to suit the user's needs.

The growing interests in underwater wireless sensor networks(UWSNs) for a wide variety of purposes from Tsunami monitoring to commercial oilfield exploration projects have been encouraging. This paper deals with the problem of accurately tracking a single target moving through UWSNs employing acoustic sensors. This paper addresses the issues of estimating the target position, improving energy efficiency by applying a Kalman filter in a distributed architecture. Each underwater wireless sensor nodes composing the UWSNs is battery-powered, so the energy conservation problem is a critical issue. This paper provides an algorithm which increases energy efficiency of each sensor through a wake-up/sleep(WuS) and a valid measurement selecting(VMS) scheme. Simulation results illustrate the performance of the tracking filter according to the sensor node displacement and sensor detecting area.

In this paper, an overload detecting algorithm for an excavator is presented. The proposed overload detecting algorithm is based on the time series analysis especially moving window method and correlation function. The main purpose of this paper is to prevent damage or crack from the fatigue in advance. In this paper 16 channel sensor data are considered and each sensor frequency is 100 Hz and sampling period is lsec. So every sampling period 1600 data are gathered and computed, and the larger data, the longer process time. So this paper focuses on 2 topics. One is to short the process time. The other is to minimize the number of required sensors. To short the process time, this paper uses the moving window method. From the moving window method only data within each moving window are considered, so process time and process burden is shortened. And to minimize the number of required sensors, this paper uses the correlation function. From cross correlation function similar pattern sensors are eliminated and dissimilar pattern sensors are considered. And from using auto correlation function each dissimilar pattern sensor data are investigated to check overload or not. To prove the efficiency of the proposed overload detecting algorithm, this paper shows the computer simulation results.