Light profoundly impacts many aspects of human physiology and behaviour, including the synchronization of the circadian clock, the production of melatonin, and cognition. These effects of light, termed the non-visual effects of light, have been primarily investigated in laboratory settings, where light intensity, spectrum and timing can be carefully controlled to draw associations with physiological outcomes of interest. Recently, the increasing availability of wearable light loggers has opened the possibility of studying personal light exposure in free-living conditions where people engage in activities of daily living, yielding findings associating aspects of light exposure and health outcomes, supporting the importance of adequate light exposure at appropriate times for human health. However, comprehensive protocols capturing environmental (e.g., geographical location, season, climate, photoperiod) and individual factors (e.g., culture, personal habits, behaviour, commute type, profession) contributing to the measured light exposure are currently lacking. Here, we present a protocol that combines smartphone-based experience sampling (experience sampling implementing Karolinska Sleepiness Scale, KSS ratings) and high-quality light exposure data collection at three body sites (near-corneal plane between the two eyes mounted on spectacle, neck-worn pendant/badge, and wrist-worn watch-like design) to capture daily factors related to individuals’ light exposure. We will implement the protocol in an international multi-centre study to investigate the environmental and socio-cultural factors influencing light exposure patterns in Germany, Ghana, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey (minimum n = 15, target n = 30 per site, minimum n = 90, target n = 180 across all sites). With the resulting dataset, lifestyle and context-specific factors that contribute to healthy light exposure will be identified. This information is essential in designing effective public health interventions.
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Light therapy is applied as treatment for a variety of problems related to health and ageing, including dementia. Light therapy is administered via light boxes, light showers, and ambient bright light using ceiling-mounted luminaires. Long-term care facilities are currently installing dynamic lighting systems with the aim to improve the well-being of residents with dementia and to decrease behavioural symptoms. The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of the application of ceiling-mounted dynamic lighting systems as a part of intelligent home automation systems found in healthcare facilities. Examples of such systems are provided and their implementation in practice is discussed. The available, though limited, knowledge has not yet been converted into widespread implementable lighting solutions, and the solutions available are often technologically unsophisticated and poorly evaluated from the perspective of end-users. New validated approaches to the design and application of ambient bright light are needed.
Light therapy is applied as treatment for a variety of problems related to health and ageing, including dementia. Light therapy is administered via light boxes, light showers, and ambient bright light using ceiling-mounted luminaires. Long-term care facilities are currently installing dynamic lighting systems with the aim to improve the well-being of residents with dementia and to decrease behavioural symptoms. The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of the application of ceiling-mounted dynamic lighting systems as a part of intelligent home automation systems found in healthcare facilities. Examples of such systems are provided and their implementation in practice is discussed. The available, though limited, knowledge has not yet been converted into widespread implementable lighting solutions, and the solutions available are often technologically unsophisticated and poorly evaluated from the perspective of end-users. New validated approaches to the design and application of ambient bright light are needed.
Recycling of plastics plays an important role to reach a climate neutral industry. To come to a sustainable circular use of materials, it is important that recycled plastics can be used for comparable (or ugraded) applications as their original use. QuinLyte innovated a material that can reach this goal. SmartAgain® is a material that is obtained by recycling of high-barrier multilayer films and which maintains its properties after mechanical recycling. It opens the door for many applications, of which the production of a scoliosis brace is a typical example from the medical field. Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine and wearing an orthopedic brace is the common non-invasive treatment to reduce the likelihood of spinal fusion surgery later. The traditional way to make such brace is inaccurate, messy, time- and money-consuming. Because of its nearly unlimited design freedom, 3D FDM-printing is regarded as the ultimate sustainable technique for producing such brace. From a materials point of view, SmartAgain® has the good fit with the mechanical property requirements of scoliosis braces. However, its fast crystallization rate often plays against the FDM-printing process, for example can cause poor layer-layer adhesion. Only when this problem is solved, a reliable brace which is strong, tough, and light weight could be printed via FDM-printing. Zuyd University of Applied Science has, in close collaboration with Maastricht University, built thorough knowledge on tuning crystallization kinetics with the temperature development during printing, resulting in printed products with improved layer-layer adhesion. Because of this knowledge and experience on developing materials for 3D printing, QuinLyte contacted Zuyd to develop a strategy for printing a wearable scoliosis brace of SmartAgain®. In the future a range of other tailor-made products can be envisioned. Thus, the project is in line with the GoChem-themes: raw materials from recycling, 3D printing and upcycling.
Mondkapjes, of mondmaskers, zijn door de SARS-COV-2 pandemie niet meer uit het straatbeeld weg te denken. De kwaliteit en comfort van de pasvorm van medische en niet-medische mondmaskers wordt bepaald door hoe goed het mondmasker overeenkomt met de afmetingen van het gezicht van de drager. Echter is er geen goed overzicht van de antropometrie van het gelaat van de Nederlandse bevolking waardoor de pasvorm van mondmaskers nu vaak niet optimaal is. Er is dus vraag naar een laagdrempelige en veilige manier om gezichtskenmerken in kaart te brengen en betere ontwerprichtlijnen voor mondkapjes. Driedimensionaal (3D) scannen doormiddel van Light Detection and Ranging (LiDaR) technologie in combinatie met slimme algoritmes lijkt wellicht een manier om gezichtskenmerken snel en laagdrempelig vast te leggen bij grote groepen mensen. Daarnaast geeft het 3D scannen van gezichten de mogelijkheid om niet enkel de afmetingen van gezichten te meten, maar ook 3D pasvisualisaties uit te voeren. Hoewel 3D scannen geen nieuwe technologie is, is de LiDaR technologie pas sinds 2020 geïntegreerd in de Ipad en Iphone waardoor het toegankelijk gemaakt is voor consumenten. Doormiddel van een research through design benadering zal onderzocht worden of deze technologie gebruikt kan worden om betrouwbare en valide opnames te maken van gezichten en of er op basis hiervan ontwerprichtlijnen ontwikkeld kunnen worden. In dit KIEM GoCi-project zal daarnaast ingezet worden om een kennisbasis en netwerk op te bouwen voor een vervolg aanvraag over de inzet van 3D technologieën in de mode-industrie.
Size measurement plays an essential role for micro-/nanoparticle characterization and property evaluation. Due to high costs, complex operation or resolution limit, conventional characterization techniques cannot satisfy the growing demand of routine size measurements in various industry sectors and research departments, e.g., pharmaceuticals, nanomaterials and food industry etc. Together with start-up SeeNano and other partners, we will develop a portable compact device to measure particle size based on particle-impact electrochemical sensing technology. The main task in this project is to extend the measurement range for particles with diameters ranging from 20 nm to 20 um and to validate this technology with realistic samples from various application areas. In this project a new electrode chip will be designed and fabricated. It will result in a workable prototype including new UMEs (ultra-micro electrode), showing that particle sizing can be achieved on a compact portable device with full measuring range. Following experimental testing with calibrated particles, a reliable calibration model will be built up for full range measurement. In a further step, samples from partners or potential customers will be tested on the device to evaluate the application feasibility. The results will be validated by high-resolution and mainstream sizing techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and Coulter counter.
