Equipping a construction helmet with a sensor can detect the onset of carbon monoxide poisoning

Jason B. Forsyth is placing a wearable computer system for carbon monoxide detection on a helmet.


Researchers have urged the use of a wearable computing system installed in a helmet to protect construction workers from carbon monoxide poisoning, a serious lethal threat in this industry.

This award will be presented at the August 17-21, 2013 Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Conference on Automation Science and Engineering .

Carbon monoxide poisoning is a significant problem for construction workers in both residential and industrial settings. The danger exists because the exhaust from gasoline-powered hand tools can quickly build up in enclosed spaces and easily overcome the tool's users and nearby co-workers.

In the paper, the researchers explained how they integrated a pulse oximetry sensor into a typical construction helmet to allow continuous and noninvasive monitoring of workers' blood gas saturation levels. The results of their study showed that a user of this helmet would be warned of impending carbon monoxide poisoning with a probability of greater than 99 percent.

The award-winning research and resulting paper was written by Jason B. Forsyth of Durham, N.C., and a Ph.D. candidate in computer engineering, his adviser Thomas L. Martin, professor of electrical and computer engineering, Deborah Young-Corbett, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering and a member of the Myers-Lawson School of Construction, and Ed Dorsa, associate professor of industrial design.

Ten Virginia Tech students participated in the study conducted on the university campus. They mimicked simple tasks of construction workers.

To show the feasibility of monitoring for carbon monoxide poisoning without subjecting the users to dangerous conditions, the researchers used a prototype for monitoring the blood oxygen saturation. The difference for monitoring for oxygen and for carbon monoxide differs only in the number of wavelengths of light employed, so if this monitoring proved feasible, then the monitoring for carbon monoxide would be feasible as well.

They selected a helmet for the installation of a wearable computer because they needed a design that could be worn year round which ruled out seasonal clothing such as overalls or coats. They also wanted a design that was socially acceptable, and one that struck a balance between comfort, usability, and feasibility.

"This helmet is only a first step toward our long-term vision of having a network of wearable and environmental sensors and intelligent personal protective gear on construction sites that will improve safety for workers," according to their report. "While this helmet targets carbon monoxide poisoning, we believe there are compelling opportunities for wearable computing in reducing injuries due to falls, electrocution, and particulate inhalation, as well as workers on foot being struck by vehicles."

Martin is a past recipient of both the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, both furthering his research in the design of electronic textiles and "smart" clothes.

Young-Corbett is working in a new field of engineering known as Prevention through Design or PtD. This optimal method of preventing occupational illnesses, injuries, and fatalities is to "design out" the hazards and risks; thereby, eliminating the need to control them during work operations. She is also the associate director of the Center for Innovation in Construction Safety and Health Research of the Institute of Critical Technology and Applied Science at Virginia Tech.

Dorsa has a National Science Foundation funded studio in interdisciplinary product development, working with faculty from the College of Engineering and the College of Business' Department of Marketing. In 2005, Design Intelligence chose him as one of the 40 most admired industrial design faculty in the U.S. 

Referensi: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130817205511.htm 

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At long last: Concrete that's nearly maintenance-free

Engineering students put another layer of the concrete composite over the sensors. Students were patching a large crack in the driveway of a UWM parking lot with the product from funded research in Sobolev's lab.

To Scott Muzenski, the large crack that weather and wear had caused in the driveway of a parking structure at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) presented an opportunity to test his research.

Muzenski, a civil engineering graduate student, had been working on a new kind of high-performance concrete created in the lab of associate professor Konstantin Sobolev. Their cement composite is a durable, water-resistant and malleable paving material with such a high level of "crack control" that the researchers estimate it has a service life of 120 years or more.

To compare, the average life span of concrete roads in Wisconsin falls in the 40-50-year range, with up to 10 percent of reinforced bridge decks needing replacement after 30 years.

In August, a crew of 25 students joined Muzenski in patching the driveway using the unique material. Then, in order to track whether the material was indeed holding up better than ordinary concrete, they gave the 4-by-15-foot slab the ability to monitor its own performance.

About an inch below the surface, the students embedded electrodes in this 'smart' concrete that are linked to a data acquisition system located behind an adjacent retaining wall. "This is going to tell us whether water is getting into the material and how deep it goes," says Muzenski. "It also detects the presence of chloride ions within the material, and senses load and stress as vehicles pass over it."

Later this year when the software is completed, the real-time data will be fed wirelessly to an online repository.

We'll be able to observe the performance of concrete as it happens, in real time" says Sobolev.

The slab project will confirm two important features of this hybrid concrete, called a Superhydrophobic Engineered Cementitious Composite (SECC): its superior durability and its "smart" capability.

The science of cracks

The researchers point to two reasons they believe their SECC is a superior material. First, it contains compounds that make the material nearly waterproof.

As Sobolev squeezes an eyedropper of water over a small piece of the hybrid concrete, the liquid beads up on contact into almost perfect spheres that rush off the hard surface at the smallest tilt.

Normally, water pools on the surface of pavement and permeates through cracks. Add freezing and thawing cycles, and it's no wonder that roadways are in need of frequent repair, says Sobolev.

Additives in the hybrid change the concrete on a molecular level when the pavement hardens, creating a spiky surface that, although microscopic, causes the water to bead and roll off.

The second innovation of this SECC allows the material to bend without breaking. Although some examples of a malleable concrete are currently commercially available, Sobolev's lab has improved ductility with their composite. Super-strong unwoven polyvinyl alcohol fibers, each the width of a human hair, are mixed into and bond with the concrete. When cracks begin, the fibers keep them from becoming larger tears.

In fact, the aim of Sobolev's material is not to minimize cracking. Instead, it's designed to allow multiple micro-cracking, which distributes the load across many tiny cracks that are too small to let water penetrate.

Conventional reinforced concrete, in contrast, is relatively brittle, and cracks get progressively worse with the constant loading. When that happens, the entire stress is transferred to the reinforcing steel that bridges the crack.

"Our architecture allows the material to withstand four times the compression with 200 times the ductility of traditional concrete," says Sobolev.

A targeted use

Since ductile concrete is more expensive than regular concrete, he sees its best application in specific places where deterioration begins, such as on bridge approach decks. That's where concrete that is heavily reinforced meets regular asphalt. The joint, says Sobolev, cannot withstand the continuous loading.

"The bridge and the road aren't designed to work together," he says. "You need something between them that has the durability to handle the stress."

He adds that the cost of his SECC is drastically offset by the reduction in labor costs for maintenance and early repairs.

The current construction on Milwaukee's Hoan Bridge, for example, includes replacement of just such a bridge deck that will cost millions to make the bridge safe for another 50 years.

In addition to his high-performance concrete, Sobolev also sees a promising future for "smart" concrete, with uses beyond transportation. Remote monitoring at facilities such as nuclear power plants allows problems to be detected while limiting the risk of harm to employees.

Referensi: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140409134323.htm

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Seminar Series IMS FTUI 1

Kemajuan zaman dan teknologi yang sangat pesat saat ini memicu kompleksitas berbagai hal, salah satunya di bidang konstruksi. Rintangan dan batasan yang dihadapi para Sarjana Teknik Sipil semakin bervariasi seiring dengan berkembangnya pula bermacam kebutuhan masyarakat.

               

Maka dari itu kebutuhan akan suatu metode atau sistem yang dapat menggabungkan dan mengorganisasi berbagai batasan seperti cost, time, scope, integration, resource, risk, procurement, quality, communication, dan stakeholders (PMBOK yang terbaru) untuk mencapai kualitas yang optimal sesuai yang kita inginkan di bidang kontruksi. Ilmu yang mempelajari sistem proyek ini yang telah ada yaitu Project Management. Ilmu ini merupakan tools yang memungkinkan tim proyek untuk mengorganisasi pekerjaan mereka sesuai constraints yang ada. Cara-cara dan teknik dalam manajemen proyek ini terangkum menjadi suatu sistem proyek yang menjadi standar acuan para pelaku proyek.

               

 Dalam suatu manajemen proyek, terdapat berbagai macam proses yaitu initiating, planning, executing, controlling, dan closing yang semuanya saling berkaitan sehingga harus dilakukan secara optimal dan menyeluruh agar tercapai kesuksesan dalam proyek. Namun dewasa ini, banyak sekali terjadi kegagalan dalam proyek di Indonesia yang tentunya menyebabkan kerugian yang cukup besar baik dari segi materi maupun moral. Kasus yang biasa terjadi misalnya kegagalan dalam controlling suatu proyek. Banyak pihak yang berhasil melaksanakan konstruksi, namun beberapa diantaranya mengabaikan maintenance dan post construction sehingga menyebabkan kegagalan bangunan dalam jangka waktu yang pendek misalnya bangunan menjadi retak bahkan runtuh. Hal lain yang sering diabaikan adalah standar-standar yang terdapat pada PMBOK. Dalam statistik yang didapat, Indonesia merupakan salah satu negara yang mempunyai tingkat kecelakaan kerja konstruksi paling tinggi di Asia yaitu 20 orang cidera fatal setiap 100.000 tenaga kerja. Selain itu, hal ini juga menimbulkan kerugian rata-rata per tahun sebesar Rp 280 trilliun. Angka tersebut bukanlah angka yang kecil.

               

 Dengan adanya berbagai kasus tersebut dapat memperburuk pandangan berbagai stakeholders yang berkepentingan di Indonesia akan kualitas konstruksi di Indonesia sehingga akan menurunkan kepercayaan pihak luar tersebut untuk memberikan suatu proyek untuk dikendalikan oleh Sarjana Teknik Sipil dari Indonesia. Akibat lebih jauhnya, kemampuan bersaing pelaku konstruksi di Indonesia akan semakin lemah di masa depan.

Berangkat dari kondisi konstruksi di Indonesia dan semakin tingginya kebutuhan akan pengetahuan manajemen proyek di zaman ini dan tingkat persaingan SDM dengan pihak asing yang semakin ketat, perlu  diadakan pencerdasan kepada generasi masa depan, yaitu para mahasiswa, akan pentingnya manajemen dalam suatu proyek.

 

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Smart Tunnel Malaysia

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