This article entails the design, manufacturing, application, testing, and analysis/discussion of a controller area network (CAN)–based vehicle safety system that detects vehicle failure such as brake failure, gear failure, tire blowouts, and other failures that can be monitored using digital or analogue sensors. The aim and objectives are to implement a real-life tire blowout on an Iveco S-Way Euro III and design a system that sends out CAN-based messages using J1939 protocol to the Iveco S-Way Euro III to downshift the gears, retarders, activate the limp mode braking system, activate the hooter, and activate the hazards. The system is split into five sections: (1) detection and activation, (2) gear control system, (3) retarder control system, (4) braking control system, and (5) hooter and hazard control system; while analyzing the: acceleration in the lateral, longitudinal, and vertical acceleration (g) vs. time (s), vehicle speed (km/h), rate of deflation (s), and the steering torque (Nm). The findings show that pressure (bar) vs. time (ms) indicates that the rate of deflation without the countermeasures took 1.053 s longer, wheel speed (mph) vs. time (s) indicates that the testing without countermeasures took 3.9800 s longer to reach 0 km/h, steering torque (Nm) vs. time (ms) indicates that the testing without countermeasures had a maximum value that was 0.1179 Nm higher than the testing with countermeasures, longitudinal acceleration (g) vs time (s) indicates that the testing without countermeasures has more sporadic values, lateral acceleration (g) vs time (s) indicated the testing with countermeasures has a 0.132 g higher lateral acceleration, and vertical acceleration (g) vs time (s) indicated that both tests (with and without countermeasures) have almost the same maximum vertical acceleration when the tire blowout occurred with the test without countermeasures having a 0.02 g higher vertical acceleration than the testing with countermeasures.

Optimising thrust generation is fundamental to enhancing the performance, efficiency, and manoeuvrability of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), especially as their applications expand across diverse sectors. This paper presents a performance analysis of propeller configurations, investigating the effects of blade diameter, pitch, and blade count on thrust output. Utilising a custom-built, low-cost frictionless test rig, a systematic approach evaluated various configurations under controlled conditions. The results show how each factor influences performance and provides practical advice for improving UAV designs.

The effects of the impact of a selection of two-wheeled vehicles with a pothole were investigated. The vehicles used were a BMW 1250 cc motorbike, a BigBoy 200 cc delivery-type motorbike, and a dual-suspension mountain bicycle. The vehicles were used with standard specifications, and a datalogger was used to measure instantaneous velocities and accelerations. Three speeds were selected for the motorbikes: 20, 40, and 60 km/h. The findings have provided the necessary insight to confirm that damages to a motorcycle and bicycle rim and tyre from impact with a pothole do not readily occur at typical urban road speeds, given the particular circumstances. No evidence of pothole impact was noted. The resulting forces generated for the particular circumstances appear well within acceptable levels of survivability for the motorcycle and bicycle and for a general rider's capabilities. Some baseline forces are determined; however, further and expansive testing is suggested.

Purpose The purpose of the research has been the primary consideration and evaluation of a cost effective, reliable, robust and simple process of radio frequency identification (RFID)-based stock control, asset management and monitoring of concrete safety bollards used in the road environment. Likewise, the consideration of the use of the same system and technology to other items in and around the general road infrastructure. Design/methodology/approach The research approach undertaken has been an evaluation of the use of currently available RFID technology, with a key emphasis on low cost, ease of use, reliability and convenience. Practical field exercises completed in considering the relevant RFID tags and readers and associated software and apps and necessary software integration and development have been undertaken. At the same time, evaluating the specific limits created in the specific environment is being applied. Of particular interest has been the use of a moving scan in a vehicle drive-through or pass-bye, type reading system. This has been determined to be viable and completely practical, drastically reducing the key issue of time-taken. Practical application of the system from idea to real life application has been undertaken. The integration of the use of the RFID tag and reader system with necessary and related software to database upload and storage has been established. The creation of an online facility to allow the appropriate use of the data and to include the convenient output of an asset report has been undertaken. Findings The findings have provided the necessary insight confirming the use of RFID technology as a simple yet reliable, cost effective and adaptable stock control, asset management and geo-locating system in the road environment. The use of such systems in this particular environment is in its infancy, and is perhaps novel and original in the specific aspect of using the system to stock control, manage and monitor road safety concrete bollards and other roadside objects in the road environment. Originality/value To establish if in fact, stock control geo-locating can be reliably undertaken with the use of RFID tags and readers in the specific road and road construction environment, particularly with the use of moving RFID reading of passive tags. To establish the minimum requirements of a field usable RFID tag and reader, specifically applicable to the concrete safety bollards, however to other roadside furniture. To identify the minimum requirements of a function, simple app to minimise general requirements of the overall stock control and monitoring of the RFID-tagged objects. To establish the possibility of reading the tag data, global positioning system (GPS) location and video imaging footage as a single operation function. To determine the basic parameters or limits of the GPS geo-locating, on the proposed products selected and overall system. To determine the current best practice in respect of reasonable accuracy and detail in relation to price considerations to a fully function stock control and monitoring system. To identify the minimum requirements of an online database to receive, house and provide ongoing access to and report on the data. To identify the key differences and benefits between traditional stock control and monitoring systems, against that of proposed RFID tag, read and geo-locating system.

The performance of a low-cost 3D printed myoelectric prosthetic device known as the Touch Hand 4.5, at the 2020 Cybathlon competition is discussed. This device is under development as a low-cost prosthetic device for upper-limb amputees. The Touch hand team placed 13th out of 15 teams at the Cybathlon competition. By assessing the performance of the device and comparing with the performance of competitors, avenues of future research for the improvement of the Touch hand are identified.

This paper details the research conducted as vacation work undertaken for Touch Prosthetics during which an electroencephalogram (EEG) headset was used to analyse psychological priming effects on subjects’ concentration levels using visual and audial stimuli. The experimental procedure consists of a visual aspect and an audial aspect during which a participant’s brain activity was measured when exposed to their self-reported favourite colour or music genre, respectively. The findings of both aspects of the experiment may have applications in an industrial environment as a measure to improve employee concentration, and consequently ensure health and safety by minimising hazards due to poor concentration.

Background The Touch Hand 4.5 is a highly customisable prosthetic hand, which features an optimised modular design of the Touch Hand 4. The Touch Hand team has developed a low-cost prosthetic hand, which has been built using an additive manufacturing process. The functionality and features are discussed that are crucial for amputees. Methods This paper documents the design and integration of the Touch Hand 4.5 to be used in the Cybathlon 2020 event as well as the development of the mechanical structure of the hand, socket, electronics and control system utilized. The Touch Hand 4.5 was designed and continuously optimized, with the goal to achieve the tasks in the Cybathlon 2020 event. Results The performance and functionality of the Touch Hand 4.5 was tested on a global scale at the Cybathlon 2020. The device and technology were evaluated against the leading prosthetics and prototypes from around the world. A series of everyday tasks, as set by the Cybathlon event, were performed to determine the capabilities of the device, with the pinch grip, full grip, half grip, and a thumb grip. The Touch Hand team was the only team to complete the Haptic Box task in all three races, which comprised of the identification of objects without the aid of visual input or perception, with a duration between 100 and 120 s. The Breakfast task entailed completing a series of everyday breakfast tasks, such as cutting a loaf of bread, lighting a candle, opening a sugar packet, opening a plastic bottle and a jar, as well as opening a tin can with a can opener. This task was only completed in Race 3, with a duration of 132 s, due to a faulty equipment that was supplied. Conclusion The first contribution that was achieved was the design and development of an additive manufactured hand and socket, considering the socket to have comfort, breathability and decreased irritability. The second contribution was the design optimisation with the linear actuator integration, for a multi-grip hand, which allowed for the pinch grip, full grip, half grip, and a thumb grip. Slippage prevention with grip force control system integration was also implemented. Trial registration number: Ethical clearance certificate HCC/0161/011.

With the recent regulations for remote piloted licenses, implemented by the civil aviation authority (CAA) in the year 2015 within South Africa, are being adopted in other countries. The procedures and steps required to have all paperwork, documentation and approvals for commercial remote piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) flights, come with many uncertainties. This paper looks at the different tasks, documentation and approvals that will be required to obtain a RPAS operator's certificate (ROC). A case study of tests that were conducted for the CAA are analyzed, and the possible ways to decrease the delay for commercial flight income are given. The case study includes RPAS in Visual Line of Sight (VLOS), Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS), flights in controlled airspace, and night flights. It has been found that implementing these requirements for such RPAS flights to happen are not an easy task, and it was best for small and medium companies to join with established operators, for the legal commercial flights to happen sooner.

The popularity of myoelectric prosthetic hands increases as technological advances allows for the sophistication on prosthetic devices to become more affordable. A 3D printed myoelectric prosthetic hand was designed to ensure that it is cost-effective whilst having functionality similar to commercially available prosthetic hands. A three-fingered prosthetic hand was designed to grip objects of different shapes using one grip. An electromyography control system was investigated by performing tests on an able-bodied person and observing the results. The electromyography control system for the prosthetic hand was then designed. The prosthetic hand was then tested by an amputee by gripping objects of different shapes and sizes to determine its practicality of the prosthetic hand. The prosthetic hand was capable of picking up the object in 50% of its tests and showed a grip strength of 30.4 N and a response time of 4.5 seconds.

Amedicalwearabletechnologywasdesignedwithalltheelectronicdevicesneededforthesmartwatchto perform medical monitoring functions such as body temperature sensing and heart ratesensing. The medical smartwatch requires an enclosure for the electronic devices and a mechanismthatwouldbewornonahumanwrist.Themedicalsmartwatchwasdesignedtohaveelectronicdevicessuch as an electrocardiography (ECG) sensor, impulse and oximeter sensor, light emitting diode(LED) light, a battery, Bluetooth module, humidity and temperature sensors, flame sensor, vibrator,electromyography(EMG)sensor,Infrared(IR)LEDsensor,transistor,andaArduinoboardandmanymore. The focus was designing an enclosure that will interface between these electronic devices andthe user. This paper shows the design that was considered for the enclosure, and the effect a casing has on the temperature and ECG sensors.

This research aimed to develop a liquid oxygen tank valve defrosting system that could be used in hospitals to enable a steady supply of oxygen even during cold weather or periods of high oxygen demand. The system was intended to be used as a viable alternative to the hosing systems currently used in many South African hospitals by being partially autonomous and environmentally friendly in its design and operation. Based off conducted research and interviews from hospital personnel, focus was placed on developing a defrosting system that used flowing water to melt ice. The development of the defrosting system was successful, and the system was able to conduct the independent tests reliably. Although the conducted testing did not involve using the defrosting system on a real liquid oxygen gas tank’s frozen valve, various analyses were conducted with respect to flow rate performance, effects of water loss and the degradation of performance due to cold temperatures. Based off practical testing on ice, it was concluded that the system should be able to perform similarly if used on the liquid oxygen tank valves of hospitals and that the defrosting system should theoretically prove effective even under high oxygen demand or cold weather. The developed defrosting system should be an effective solution to the stated predicament of frozen oxygen tank valves in hospitals and is theoretically a viable alternative to the hosing system currently used by many South African hospitals.

This research paper details the engineering design process undertaken to develop an affordable alternative to commercially available orthotic moon boots. The project conceptualisation was conducted using an approach that aligns the design with the key focus of cost-effectiveness and fundamental functionality. Therefore, non-essential, cost-adding, and superfluous factors that are present in the existing production of orthotic moon boots were identified and omitted from this design. Stringent engineering design processes were used to redesign and optimise the materials and methods that are currently employed in the manufacturing of commercially available moon boots. The total cost of production of the redesigned moon boot amounted to R175.90, which was approximately 88% lower than commercial products. Therefore, this research proves to be extremely invaluable as it would widen accessibility to orthotics for various demographics.

This paper reports on the kinematic design of the Touch Hand 4, which has been a continuous optimization of the first three iterations. The Touch Hand 4 is a low-cost myoelectric prosthetic terminal hand device designed to be used by transradial amputees. The paper investigates the mechanical design of the prosthetic hand and investigates the kinematics and static force analysis of the digits on the hands. Illustrative diagrams describe the kinematics and static force analysis. The analysis results are displayed and used to compare the different digits designed on the prosthetic hand. The final product is then tested and compared with other prosthetic hands. The Touch Hand 4 had shown in tests to perform significantly slower than other prosthetic hands but had similar grip strength to some prosthetic hands.

This paper is part of ongoing research and serves to document the testing of the direction of origin of a rock striking and passing through a windscreen of a motor vehicle. The paper covers the literature reviewed for the tests, the design of the test rig and the documentation of the tests performed. The data from the tests was gathered and analysed. Extensive video footage and imagery obtained was considered. As a result, it was deduced that given sufficient factors being evident, it is possible to determine the direction of origin of the rock.

Due to the overburden on healthcare resources, there is a need to invest in Internet of Things (IoT) based telemonitoring devices that can remotely monitor and diagnose patients without constant supervision by health practitioners. Current commercial and research initiatives in this area fail to create a comprehensive IoT-based system with deficits in the sensing layer and model consumption phase being an underlying concern. This gap was closed through the development of an IoT-based system consisting of a multi-faceted wireless body access network (WBAN), cloud integration and two application layers (mobile and web-based). Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking on the patient's phone was used to allow doctors to track and dispense ambulatory services in cases of emergencies. Overall, the developed system was able to possess around 15 of the features common in most wearable health device systems at a reduced cost, thereby successfully achieving the desired outcomes of this research.

Conductive additive manufacturing polylactic acid (PLA) filament is a material considered for sensors in the additive manufacturing of products, where conductive material, or sensors are infused into dual material printed parts. An example of these additive manufacturing parts could be a space-confined wearable medical device, which requires 3-dimensional circuitry, or an additive manufacturing circuit board, to be infused within the structure of the device. Some research has been conducted with conductive filament in the additive manufacturing of capacitive and radio frequency applications, yet the usage of it is dependant on the electrical properties. This paper experimentally investigates the electrical properties of the conductive PLA, specifically resistance, resistivity, and linear expansion coefficient, as the temperature of the printed conductive material changes. The samples have been printed with the use of an Anet A8 additive manufacturing printer, using the fused filament fabrication process, with printer settings elaborated in this paper.

This paper follows the development of a vision–based object detection and localization system for implementation in an autonomous aircraft for payload delivery. Application of such a system could see use in the delivery of packages to offshore freighter ships and inaccessible inland areas. This system was developed in a modular fashion, such that it could be interchanged and adapted between various airframes. This system comprised of three core elements, namely autonomous flight control, vision–based object detection and localization and, payload release and delivery modelling. The final integrated system was tested and able to achieve fully autonomous flight, and simultaneously model a payload release trajectory from an altitude of 75 m to deliver the given payload with an average displacement of 1.8 m of the designated drop-zone. The drop-zone location was determined via the onboard vision system through the implementation of an object detection and localization algorithm.

The need for climate predictions by the aviation, maritime and agriculture sector, has led to now-casting models being investigated. Now-casting is the climatic prediction of up to 6 hours into the future. The accuracy of the now-casting temperature predictions is dependent on the sunrise and sunset times. The now-casting sunrise and sunset times prediction model is compared with the NOAA model sunrise and sunset times. Using these two models, the temperature now-casting predictions for daytime and nighttime is determined to compared and identify the accuracy between them.

Research involving prosthetic devices is of growing interest, especially to develop low-cost devices, since there is technology available to develop advanced prosthesis at a much lower price than was possible in the past. Research was therefore performed to develop the concept of the mechanical design for a myoelectric prosthetic hand which is capable of functioning as well as other prosthetic hands available in the market presently, whilst costing less. Research was performed to consider design features that would be implemented in creating a concept of the mechanical design of a prosthetic hand, considering the design features, 3D prints of designed concepts undergo testing. Tests were performed by attempting to grip objects of different shapes and observing the performance of the hand. The contact of the fingers and grip have shown to be rigid for different shaped objects that it was tested on. The performance of the concept design was then evaluated and further changes were then considered after the testing.

In this paper, further studies have been made on improving the output performance optimization of the exponentially weighted moving average filter for real-time system applications. It has been shown in prior research that the filter is an effective, low-cost filtering algorithm; however, its output performance is dependent on the calibration of its gain parameter. As a result, the filter will produce sub-optimal outputs if not calibrated correctly. A method is sought that can provide an appropriate gain parameter for maximizing the signal-tonoise ratio of the filter's resulting output, thereby increasing the effectiveness of the filter for real-time system applications. A trial-and-error experimental approach was used to find the filter's optimal parameter gain that maximizes the filter's output signal to noise ratio for a known signal that is sampled using a Gaussian distribution model. It was found that the output signal performance of the complementary filter is highly dependent on its chosen parameter gain, and using a static parameter gain value is unsuitable. An equation was found that approximates an optimal parameter gain to produce a filtered output with the best signal to noise ratio and applied to a real-world application.