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In 1937, the Swedish palynologist Gunnar Erdtman (1897–1973) mounted two adapted vacuum cleaners atop an ocean-going liner and set out to obtain air samples as he crossed the Atlantic Ocean. The devices were able to capture samples of airborne pollen which were related to air volume and distance from land. The results of this investigation are still cited in the scientific literature, but a study of publications demonstrates that the ocean study had land-based antecedents. Furthermore, archival investigation reveals the background to such studies, including the technical plans for Erdtman's 'aerosol collector', records of raw data from the voyage, draft portions of the key publication, photographs and the precise location of the land-based equipment. A storage loft in the Swedish Museum of Natural History in Stockholm has been found to house a surviving aerosol collector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method of producing nitrogen-alloyed steel is considered. The nitrogen alloying technologies based on the use of nitrided ferromanganese and nitrogen purge gas are analyzed and compared to choose the most effective one for the TAGMET conditions. To produce SA 20A steel with a regulated nitrogen content (100–300 ppm), it is proposed to purge metal with nitrogen and argon during treatment in a ladle furnace and during and after degassing. Proprietary software controlling the purging of steel with nitrogen and argon from the control panel of the ladle furnace and the vacuum degassing unit has been developed. This ensured effective control of the nitriding process and achievement of the required nitrogen content in steel. Changing over from alloying with nitrided ferromanganese to purging with nitrogen gas made it possible to eliminate the pyroelectric effect and to reduce the secondary oxidation and contamination of steel with non-metallic inclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Robotic vacuum cleaners are a prime example of home automation and a rich source of information about how people experience it. On the basis of a 3-week diary study, this article compares householders' user experience (UX) of robotic vacuum cleaners with their UX of three types of manual vacuum cleaner. The main finding is that robotic vacuum cleaners are inferior in use, yet transform vacuuming. While their inferiority is about their pragmatic qualities, their transformative power relates to their autonomy, agency and hedonic qualities. This contradictory UX involves that robotic vacuum cleaners perform worse or not at all on seven out of nine surfaces and, at the same time, appear to escalate cleanliness standards. The transformation of household chores such as vacuuming is ongoing and calls for further research on engineering and merging the pragmatic and hedonic aspects of UX. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While using automatic vacuum cleaners, users found dissatisfaction namely dust problem, obstacle problem, and narrow space problem. Therefore, the problems in this automatic vacuum cleaner must be fixed so that it can maximize user productivity. The methods that researchers will use to carry out this research include the participatory ergonomic which is a method for translating consumer needs into an optimal and solutive products by gain aspirations from users and stakeholders. The next method is Maynard Operation Sequence Technique which is a predetermined motion time method that aims to determine the standard time for doing work. There are also participatory usability and ergonomics methods that help this research. For the dust problem, researchers have looked for a solution to the problem, namely by adding SLAM and Artificial Intelligence logarithms to the automatic. For the narrow space problem, researchers have designed different nozzles for the automatic to use. For this exact problem, researchers have added a crevice nozzle to the automatic so that the automatic can insert suction in narrow areas such as the back of cupboards. Researchers created this feature so that users no longer need to bother cleaning dust from sofas, tables and other items in the user’s room.

Competing Interests: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: [Nino Fijačko is a member of the ERC BLS Science and Education Committee. Robert Greif is ERC Director of Guidelines and ILCOR, and ILCOR Task Force chair for Education Implementation and Team. The others have declared no conflicts of interest.].

Our regional burns service has gained experience in managing paediatric hand friction burns due to vacuum cleaners (VC). We aimed to evaluate our 10 year experience managing these injuries as well as reviewing national data trends in order to identify those at risk of injury.Materials and Methods: A International Burns Injury Database (IBID) request was made to review the number of burn injuries recorded due to Vacuum cleaner injuries (VCIs). In addition, a local IBID request was made to identify the number of burn injuries managed within our regional burns service.Results: We identified 288 VCIs which have increasingly occurred in England and Wales between 1996-2020 and 32 children who sustained these injuries within our regional burns service. A general theme from both national and local data highlighted that these injuries occurred in males (78%, n=25) with a mean age of 20 months (9 months-4.5 years) affecting children's hands (94%). In 25 cases (78%) these injuries involved an interphalangeal joint. 85% (n = 27) of injuries were deep dermal/full thickness with eleven children (34%) undergoing surgical excision and skin grafts.Discussion: Significant paediatric burn injuries can be sustained from VCs. Greater awareness is indicated for these injuries and legislation should be considered in order to improve the safety of vacuum cleaners. International burn societies are urged to collect data of these injuries in order to co-ordinate improved prevention strategies and change within the VC industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vacuum cleaner is known as a proper way to remove settled dust or aerosols from surfaces to protect building occupants against abiotic and biological particles. In fact, the act of vacuuming the surface re-suspends a significant amount of dust and aerosols in the air. The other source of abiotic and biological particles could be the bag of cleaner and the motor of vacuum cleaner. The bag of the cleaners is the reservoir for microorganisms where they can grow, reproduce and become bio-aerosolized in case of penetration through the cleaner filtration system. Micro-organisms can disseminate from the bag, spread in the system and capture on the final filtration system where overshoot airflow can re-entrain the bioaerosol in the breathing zone which will cause catastrophe for all, especially those who are suffering from allergic and infectious diseases. The motor, due to arcing/abrasion of carbon, emits a significant number of nanoparticles, which can target our cardiovascular and respiratory organs. This review presents a summary of studies on vacuum cleaner and its effect on indoor air quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise produced by a vacuum cleaner is highly unpleasant and may cause hearing damage if exposed to it for a long period. Thus, this study aims to identify the noise source of household vacuum cleaner and provide a solution to reduce its noise level. The commercial household vacuum cleaner is used in this study to reflect the actual noise level of the household appliance. Two noise source identification methods are used. First, the overall Sound Pressure Level (SPL) of the vacuum cleaner is measured using six units of microphone that installed in a hemisphere setup. Microflown scan and paint are further used to identify the noise source within the vacuum cleaner. Few materials are selected, and their acoustic properties are measured. The selected materials are 300 gsm flax, 1000 gsm flax, and 1300 gsm kenaf. The materials are used as sound-absorbing materials and as filters in the vacuum cleaner. The measurement is then repeated to compare the effectiveness of the proposed materials in reducing noise on the vacuum cleaner. Results indicate that 1000 gsm flax shows better performance in noise reduction compared to the other two materials. Vacuum cleaner with 1000 gsm flax as a sound-absorbing material reduced the overall SPL by 6.08%.

This study focuses on multi-criteria decision-making theory to pick vacuum cleaner available in the Indian market. The choice of a vacuum cleaner for the customer is an intricate decision-making, the problem involving multiple conflicting criteria such as the cost of the vacuum cleaner, dust bag capacity, power consumption, and so on. The simple methodology based on the Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution method is presented to choose a vacuum cleaner. Based on data collection, eight different companies/brands are considered with 26 diverse models. The ranks of the different alternatives obtained with Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution method are presented. The result reveals that the alternative Karcher WD 3.200 comes out to be the first choice, followed by Karcher WD 4.200 and Eureka Forbes Sensi. This approach based upon multi-criteria decision-making is very beneficial for retailer and wholesalers to help consumers/customers for purchasing their product/item or the consumer itself can make use of this simple methodology. The established proof-of-concept could be further used in the different domains of engineering, science, and management, wherein the decision-making could be biased and vague. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Employed for the first time in 1986, DNA profiling is nowadays established as one of the most widely used forensic techniques worldwide. However, until today, no efficient sampling technique existed to collect DNA from human skin cells from a large area, not to say from the floor of an entire room. This has been extremely unfortunate, as there is enormous forensic potential in these DNA traces from the ground to provide clues as to who has been present at a particular location, i.e. at the crime scene. By desquamation, humans loose several millions of skin cells per day, everywhere they stand, sit or walk; and they can do little about it. We developed a fast and simple method by which we can make use of all those lost skin cells. We use a vacuum cleaner equipped with a specialized filter cartridge to sample the ground. Fragmentation of the filter membrane and subsequent parallel processing of the filter fragments, using a modified Chelex® 100 extraction protocol, significantly reduce the complexity of the dust mixture. In this way, a large number of interpretable major contributor DNA profiles can be generated from individuals who have been present on the sampled surface. Overall, at least 38 % of the generated DNA profiles from all sampled test areas fulfilled the criteria for submission of single major contributor profiles to the Swiss DNA database. As demonstrated through a mock crime scene scenario simulating an indoor stabbing event, the perpetrator's DNA could be found on the floor even after a very short stay in the room of less than one minute. Furthermore, already the first application of the method at a real crime scene led to relevant case information for the police. Given its large investigative potential, we recommend Total Human DNA Sampling as a helpful complemental forensic tool to conventional DNA trace collection in major crimes. • First DNA sampling method for large areas. • High percentage of database suitable DNA profiles through subsampling. • DNA profiles correspond with the presence of individuals on the sampled areas. • Detection of suspect DNA is possible after a very short stay in the room. • Total Human DNA Sampling recommended as standard for major crimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Modern households are becoming more automated thereby delivering convenience and reducing time spent on house chores. While vacuum cleaners have made home cleaning easier, they are largely noisy and bulky for everyday use. It is therefore s ine qua non to improve the technology of vacuum cleaning to reduce these deficiencies. Here, we report the development of a compact and efficient vacuum cleaner robot for potential office and home use. The developed robot is disk-shaped, equipped with vacuuming and cleaning technology and controlled by Arduino mega microcontroller. It sucks dirt via a retractable dustbin on top of which a cooling fan is mounted, and two sweepers each driven by a 3 V DC motor. The robot navigates via two motor shield controlled rear wheels and a front caster wheel which also governs its turning. Four ultrasonic sensors, placed at 90° apart, detect obstacles and subsequently help the robot navigate. The robot is powered by 3 batteries (28.8 V DC), rechargeable via an embedded AC-DC adapter. It is 12 cm wide and 9 cm tall making it easy for maneuvering its environment. Because of the light weight battery, cardboard based dustbin and small blower used, its weight is about 1.5 kg. The total current consumed is ∼1102 mA. When fully charged, a 2200 mAh-capacity battery works continuously for two hours and cleans floor efficiently. With this capability, the device will be deployed for office and home use thereby making cleaning a fully autonomous duty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first Oregon case of New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase-1 (NDM-1)-producing Escherichia coli was reported during November 2013. Epidemiologic investigation revealed only local outpatient medical care and no travel outside Oregon for both the patient and his household contact. Environmental sampling discovered a matching isolate from the patient’s household vacuum cleaner, suggesting environmental persistence.