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ALS Respiratory, Communication, and Mobility Suite
ECE 445
Project Proposal
September 13, 2010
Alexander Chirban
Alex Kim
Donald Ziems
I. Introduction
a. Title
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a
degenerative neural condition that affects a person’s ability to control voluntary muscle
movement. After a period of time, those suffering from the disease will lose the use of
their appendages and the affliction eventually spreads to their ability to control breathing.
Commonly during the later stages of the disease, these patients are confined to life in a
hospital bed with respiratory support and communication can only be achieved through
means of eye movements. Our project aims to alleviate the solitude caused by this kind
of lifestyle by incorporating communication, mobility, and respiration into a wheelchair
mounted device.
b. Objectives
The consumer will be able to direct their movements and communicate with the
world through the means of eye tracking software.
Respiratory functions such as regular breathing will be provided by a negative
pressure system developed in tandem with a Fall 2010 mechanical engineering senior
design team. In addition, we are receiving guidance and additional support from Dr.
Bruce Flachsbart. In the coming weeks we will be joined by another senior design team
from the college of Bioengineering.
Benefits include:
User no longer always confined to a hospital bed
Communication possible to the outside world with a lightweight interface
Assisted breathing functions such as sighing and coughing incorporated into the
user interface
Features include:
User controlled steering
User controlled and automated coughing and sighing
Text-to-speech communication
II. Design
a. Block Diagram
b. Block Descriptions
i. Bio-Sensors
EKG and O2 sensors will interpret information from the patient to constantly
monitor current oxygen levels as well as his/her heartbeat. This information will
be fed to the microprocessor responsible for processing this data into breathing
control.
ii. Microcontroller 1 (Breathing Control)
This microcontroller is responsible for processing O2 and heartrate data and then
administering the proper control signals for the vest motor drivers. The
microcontroller will also be able to take an interrupt signal in order to initiate
cough or sigh routines.
iii. Microcontroller 2 (Wheelchair Motor Control)
This microcontroller will receive control signals directly from the PC. These
signals will be provided by the eye-tracking software we aim to develop. The PC
will then process these control signals and direct them to the wheelchair’s motor
control.
iv. PC (Camera + Eye tracking)
The PC will allow the patient to interface with the outside world through web
browsing and communication. The patient will be able to build up sentences by
using their eyes as an input device. In addition this will feed signals to the
microcontrollers which process the respiration and movement of the patient.
v. Motor Drivers
The motor drivers will provide sufficient current and voltage to the motors
controlling breathing and the movement of the wheelchair. The drivers
responsible for breathing will also limit the torque delivered by the motor so as to
not crush the patient.
c. Performance Requirement
This project will need to operate efficiently and reliably without a charge for at
least an hour.
The breathing vest must be able to produce at least 150 pounds of force for
coughing, in addition to the constant 30 pounds of force needed for normal
breathing operation.
The eye-tracking software interface must be intuitive.
Reliable communication between the patient and the system is necessary.
III. Verification
a. Testing Procedure
i. EKG Sensor
Results from a frequency analysis of the voltage waveform created from the
sensor will be compared to a manual test conducted by the testee.
ii. O2 Sensor
Testing of the O2 sensor will be the responsibility of the bioengineers.
iii. Microcontrollers
A variety of inputs will be fed to the microcontrollers. The behavior of the motor
drivers in the case of the vest microcontroller will be measured to ensure proper
calculations of Oxygen levels and heartbeat tempo are being conducted.
iv. Motor Drivers
We will check that the motor drivers will be able to withstand double the
operating current to ensure that proper stall operation will be achieved.
v. Eye-tracking system
Proper calibration will be conducted each time the system is started to ensure that
the patient has effective control over the apparatus. In order to test this we will
make sure that successful calibration can be achieved with every member of the
team. A simple sentence will be written by each team member to make sure that
input is easy and intuitive.
b. Tolerance Analysis
The motor drivers are probably the most important part of our design. Ensuring
that they work under stressed conditions will ensure that the patient will have
uninterrupted respiratory function. In addition, the motor drivers are the only portion of
our design that interfaces directly with another teams design (the ME vest). Ensuring that
our designs work together is extremely important when dealing with the life of a fellow
human being. Varying stall torques will be tested with the motors and the drivers. We
will apply excess force ensuring that our drivers can hold the motors at the desired
positions.
IV. Cost and Schedule
a. Cost Analysis
i. Labor
1. Alexander Chirban $35 * 300 hrs = $10,500
2. Alex Kim $35 * 300 hrs = $10,500
3. Donald Ziems $35 *300 hrs = $10,500
$31,500
ii. Parts
1. Eye-tracking:
a. PS3 Eye $43.00
b. IR Photo Filter $15.00
c. Close Focus Lens $10.00
d. PS3 Eye Lens mount $5.00
e. Netbook $250-300.00
Sub-Total $323-373
2. Controllers
a. Arduino Duemilanove $30.00
b. ATMega 328 (x2) $10.00
c. H-Bridge Motor Drivers (x4) $10.00
d. NI-USB-6009 $250.00
Sub-Total $300
3. Grand Total = Labor + Parts
$31,500 + $623 = $32,123
Schedule:
