Cerebrospinal fluid micro-volume changes inside the spinal space affect intracranial pressure in different body positions of animals and phantom.

Interpersonal differences can be observed in the human cerebrospinal fluid pressure (CSFP) in the cranium in an upright body position, varying from positive to subatmospheric values. So far, these changes have been explained by the Monroe-Kellie doctrine according to which CSFP should increase or decrease if a change in at least one of the three intracranial volumes (brain, blood, and CSF) occurs. According to our hypothesis, changes in intracranial CSFP can occur without a change in the volume of intracranial fluids. To test this hypothesis, we alternately added and removed 100 or 200 µl of fluid from the spinal CSF space of four anesthetized cats and from a phantom which, by its dimensions and biophysical characteristics, imitates the cat cerebrospinal system, subsequently comparing CSFP changes in the cranium and spinal space in both horizontal and vertical positions. The phantom was made from a rigid "cranial" part with unchangeable volume, while the "spinal" part was made of elastic material whose modulus of elasticity was in the same order of magnitude as those of spinal dura. When a fluid volume (CSF or artificial CSF) was removed from the spinal space, both lumbar and cranial CSFP pressures decreased by 2.0-2.5 cm H2O for every extracted 100 µL. On the other hand, adding fluid volume to spinal space causes an increase in both lumbar and cranial CSFP pressures of 2.6-3.0 cm H2O for every added 100 µL. Results observed in cats and phantoms did not differ significantly. The presented results on cats and a phantom suggest that changes in the spinal CSF volume significantly affect the intracranial CSFP, but regardless of whether we added or removed the CSF volume, the hydrostatic pressure difference between the measuring sites (lateral ventricle and lumbar subarachnoid space) was always constant. These results suggest that intracranial CSFP can be increased or decreased without significant changes in the volume of intracranial fluids and that intracranial CSFP changes in accordance with the law of fluid mechanics.

Use of Genetic Algorithms for Design an FPGA-Integrated Acoustic Camera.

The goal of this paper is to design a broadband acoustic camera using micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) microphones. The paper describes how an optimization of the microphone array has been carried out. Furthermore, the final goal of the described optimization is that the gain in the desired direction and the attenuation of side lobes is maximized at a frequency up to 4 kHz. Throughout the research, various shapes of microphone arrays and their directivity patterns have been considered and analyzed using newly developed algorithms implemented in Matlab. A hemisphere algorithm, genetic algorithm, and genetic square algorithm were used to find the optimal position and number of microphones placed on an acoustic camera. The proposed acoustic camera design uses a large number of microphones for high directional selectivity, while a field programmable gate array system on a chip (FPGA SoC) is selected as the processing element of the system. According to the obtained results, three different acoustic camera prototypes were developed. This paper presents simulations of their characteristics, compares the obtained measurements, and discusses the positive and negative sides of each acoustic camera prototype.

Comparative UAV Noise-Impact Assessments through Survey and Noise Measurements.

Possibilities to use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are rapidly growing. With the development of battery technologies, communication, navigation, surveillance, and autonomous systems in general, many UAVs are expected to operate at relatively low altitudes. Thus, the problem of UAV noise impact on human health and well-being will be more pronounced. In this paper, we conducted noise measurements of two UAVs of different performance (quadrotor and hexarotor) in flying up and down, hovering, and overflight procedures. Respondents of good hearing who were confirmed by audiogram measurement and had participated in the survey during UAV noise measurement gave their subjective assessments on the UAV noise perception. UAV noise measurements and subjective respondents' assessments were analysed and related. UAV noise analysis showed that the parameters measured at the same measurement point for the hexarotor were higher than those for the quadrotor in flying up and down and flying-over procedures. Low frequency noise was present in the noise spectrum of both drones. Participants were able to distinguish between the noise of UAVs and had a generally more negative experience with the hexarotor. Regardless of the noise perception, more than 80% of the respondents believe there are more pros than cons for UAV introduction into everyday life.

Electromechanical, acoustical and thermodynamical characterization of a low-frequency sonotrode-type transducer in a small sonoreactor at different excitation levels and loading conditions.

The paper reports and compares the results of the electromechanical, acoustical and thermodynamical characterization of a low-frequency sonotrode-type ultrasonic device inside a small sonoreactor, immersed in three different loading media, namely, water, juice and milk, excited at different excitation levels, both below and above the cavitation threshold. The electroacoustic efficiency factor determined at system resonance through electromechanical characterization in degassed water as the reference medium is 88.7% for the device in question. This efficiency can be reduced up to three times due to the existence of a complex sound field in the reactor in linear driving conditions below the cavitation threshold. The behaviour of the system is more stable at higher excitation levels than in linear operating conditions. During acoustical characterization, acoustic pressure is spatially averaged, both below and above the cavitation threshold. The standing wave patterns inside the sonoreactor have a stronger influence on the variation of the spatially distributed RMS pressure in linear operating conditions. For these conditions, the variation of ±1.7dB was obtained, compared to ±1.4dB obtained in highly nonlinear regime. The acoustic power in the sonoreactor was estimated from the magnitude of the averaged RMS pressure, and from the reverberation time of the sonoreactor as the representation of the losses. The electroacoustic efficiency factors obtained through acoustical and electromechanical characterization are in a very good agreement at low excitation levels. The irradiated acoustic power estimated in nonlinear conditions differs from the dissipated acoustic power determined with the calorimetric method by several orders of magnitude. The number of negative pressure peaks that represent transient cavitation decreases over time during longer treatments of a medium with high-power ultrasound. The number of negative peaks decreases faster when the medium and the vessel are allowed to heat up.

The influence of body position on cerebrospinal fluid pressure gradient and movement in cats with normal and impaired craniospinal communication.

Intracranial hypertension is a severe therapeutic problem, as there is insufficient knowledge about the physiology of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure. In this paper a new CSF pressure regulation hypothesis is proposed. According to this hypothesis, the CSF pressure depends on the laws of fluid mechanics and on the anatomical characteristics inside the cranial and spinal space, and not, as is today generally believed, on CSF secretion, circulation and absorption. The volume and pressure changes in the newly developed CSF model, which by its anatomical dimensions and basic biophysical features imitates the craniospinal system in cats, are compared to those obtained on cats with and without the blockade of craniospinal communication in different body positions. During verticalization, a long-lasting occurrence of negative CSF pressure inside the cranium in animals with normal cranio-spinal communication was observed. CSF pressure gradients change depending on the body position, but those gradients do not enable unidirectional CSF circulation from the hypothetical site of secretion to the site of absorption in any of them. Thus, our results indicate the existence of new physiological/pathophysiological correlations between intracranial fluids, which opens up the possibility of new therapeutic approaches to intracranial hypertension.

Comparison between piezoelectric material properties obtained by using low-voltage magnitude frequency sweeping and high-level short impulse signals.

Determination of electromechanical piezoceramic material parameters is usually done by fitting the measured input electrical impedance of the piezoceramic sample to the theoretical modelling equation for the input electrical impedance of the unloaded free piezoceramic resonator. The input electrical impedance of the sample is usually measured by using low voltage or current magnitude frequency sweeping signals. In this work, the complex material parameters of piezoceramic samples are determined in the real operating conditions by using the high voltage short impulse excitation signals. The input electrical impedance determined in the impulse mode around thickness extensional vibration mode (TE) and calculated piezoceramic parameters (clamped dielectric permittivity, electromechanical coupling factor, elastic stiffness and piezoelectric constant) are compared to the results obtained by using the low voltage magnitude frequency sweeping signals. When impulse excitation is used, the series resonance frequency is decreased and the input electrical impedance magnitude at series resonance is increased, which means that overall losses included in the piezoceramic parameters are increased. The complex material parameters obtained from the input electrical impedances determined by using the low voltage magnitude sweeping signal and high level short impulse signals are included in the KLM theoretical model describing the piezoceramic sample behaviour around TE mode. Better agreement between measured and theoretically determined current magnitude response around TE mode has been obtained, in the KLM model, when piezoceramic parameters determined by using the impulse signal excitations are included in the modelling. The physical reason for increase of the losses in piezoceramic material could lie in the fact that the ferroelectric domains in the piezoceramic respond harder on very short impulse excitation signals than on continuous frequency sweeping signals which are usually used in determination of piezoelectric material parameters.

Methods for measuring acoustic power of an ultrasonic neurosurgical device.

Measurement of the acoustic power in high-energy ultrasonic devices is complex due to occurrence of the strong cavitation in front of the sonotrode tip. In our research we used three methods for characterization of our new ultrasonic probe for neuroendoscopic procedures. The first method is based on the electromechanical characterization of the device measuring the displacement of the sonotrode tip and input electrical impedance around excitation frequency with different amounts of the applied electrical power The second method is based on measuring the spatial pressure magnitude distribution of an ultrasound surgical device produced in an anechoic tank. The acoustic reciprocity principle is used to determinate the derived acoustic power of equivalent ultrasound sources at frequency components present in the spectrum of radiated ultrasonic waves. The third method is based on measuring the total absorbed acoustic power in the restricted volume of water using the calorimetric method. In the electromechanical characterization, calculated electroacoustic efficiency factor from equivalent electrical circuits is between 40-60%, the same as one obtained measuring the derived acoustic power in an anechoic tank when there is no cavitation. When cavitation activity is present in the front of the sonotrode tip the bubble cloud has a significant influence on the derived acoustic power and decreases electroacoustic efficiency. The measured output acoustic power using calorimetric method is greater then derived acoustic power, due to a large amount of heat energy released in the cavitation process.

Comparison of measured acoustic power results gained by using three different methods on an ultrasonic low-frequency device.

The theme of this work is characterization of an ultrasonic low-frequency device, driven at an excitation frequency of around 25 kHz at different electrical excitation levels by using three different methods as proposed in IEC 61847 and IEC 61088 standards. The first method is based on the electromechanical characterization of the device. It consists of measuring the input electrical impedance around the excitation frequency in the unloaded and loaded conditions at a low level excitation voltage of 1 V. The equivalent RLC electrical circuit parameters of an unloaded and loaded device are determined in an anechoic tank and in a vessel at different immersion depths and tip positions in a complex geometry. The electroacoustic efficiency factor of the method is determined by knowing the real part of the radiation resistance and mechanical loss resistance which are transformed into an equivalent RLC electrical circuit of the transducer. The second method consists of measuring the spatial pressure distribution of an ultrasonic device near pressure release boundary in an anechoic tank. The acoustic reciprocity principle is used to determine the derived acoustic power of an equivalent point source in the form of radially oscillating sphere at the excitation frequency. The third method is based on the measurement of power dissipated in a restricted volume of water by using a calorimetric method. Some of the suggested methods are complicated to apply in the high energy ultrasonic devices whose size is much lower than the wavelength in the loading medium due to the occurrence of strong cavitation activity and influence of the sonotrode tip position in the complex standing wave field. However, the measured acoustic power found by using the three suggested methods is compared by means of the electroacoustic efficiency factor defined for each considered method. In the electromechanical characterization, which is made at low electrical excitation levels (applied electrical power of 1 mW at the series resonance frequency), the calculated maximum electroacoustic efficiency factor is around 48% when the influence of standing waves pattern on the radiation resistance is small. It is approximately the same as the one obtained by measuring the derived acoustic power in an anechoic tank (43%) without cavitation activity in front of the tip. When a strong cavitation activity is present in the loading medium, the bubble cloud has a significant influence on the derived acoustic power which is then dispersed in a broad frequency range and the electroacoustic efficiency factor of the method decreases down to 2%. A significant growth of the input electrical impedance magnitude at the excitation frequency is observed when the cavitation activity is present in front of the tip and when it is compared with the impedance magnitude measured at lower excitation levels without cavitation. The power dissipated in the loading medium almost linearly depends on the applied electrical power, with saturation at higher excitation levels. In the linear operating mode the electroacoustic efficiency factor of the calorimetric method (48%) is comparable with the efficiency factors of two other methods. In the nonlinear operating mode, it is larger (71%) due to a significant amount of heat energy released during the cavitation process.

Stochastic solutions of Navier-Stokes equations: an experimental evidence.

An electrodynamic loudspeaker has been operated in anharmonic regime indicated by the nonlinear ordinary differential equation when spring constant γ in restoring term, as well as, viscoelasticity of the membrane material, increases with displacement. For driving currents in the range of 2.8-3.3 A, doubling of the vibration period appears, while for currents in the range of 3.3-3.6 A, multiple sequences of subharmonic vibrations begin with f/4 and 3f/4. An application of currents higher than 3.6 A results in a spectrum, characteristic for the chaotic state. The loudspeaker was then operated in a closed chamber, and subharmonic vibrations disappeared by an evacuation. Subsequent injection of air revoked them again at ∼ 120 mbar (Re(')=476) when air viscous forces dominate the Morse convection. At 430 mbar (Re=538) single vibration state was restored, and the phenomenon is in an agreement with prediction of the five mode truncation procedure applied to the Navier-Stokes equations describing a two-dimensional incompressible fluid.

Measuring derived acoustic power of an ultrasound surgical device in the linear and nonlinear operating modes.

OBJECTIVE AND MOTIVATION: The method for measuring derived acoustic power of an ultrasound point source in the form of a sonotrode tip has been considered in the free acoustic field, according to the IEC 61847 standard. The main objective of this work is measuring averaged pressure magnitude spatial distribution of an sonotrode tip in the free acoustic field conditions at different electrical excitation levels and calculation of the derived acoustic power at excitation frequency (f0 approximately 25 kHz). Finding the derived acoustic power of an ultrasonic surgical device in the strong cavitation regime of working, even in the considered laboratory conditions (anechoic pool), will enable better understanding of the biological effects on the tissue produced during operation with the considered device. EXPERIMENTAL METHOD: The pressure magnitude spatial distribution is measured using B&K 8103 hydrophone connected with a B&K 2626 conditioning amplifier, digital storage oscilloscope LeCroy Waverunner 474, where pressure waveforms in the field points are recorded. Using MATLAB with DSP processing toolbox, averaged power spectrum density of recorded pressure signals in different field positions is calculated. The measured pressure magnitude spatial distributions are fitted with the appropriate theoretical models. THEORETICAL APPROACHES: In the linear operating mode, using the acoustic reciprocity principle, the sonotrode tip is theoretically described as radially oscillating sphere (ROS) and transversely oscillating sphere (TOS) in the vicinity of pressure release boundary. The measured pressure magnitude spatial distribution is fitted with theoretical curves, describing the pressure field of the considered theoretical models. The velocity and displacement magnitudes with derived acoustic power of equivalent theoretical sources are found, and the electroacoustic efficiency factor is calculated. When the transmitter is excited at higher electrical power levels, the displacement magnitude of sonotrode tip is increased, and nonlinear behaviour in loading medium appears, with strong cavitation activity produced hydrodynamically. The presence of harmonics, subharmonics and ultraharmonics as a consequence of stable cavitation is evident in the averaged power spectral density. The cavitation noise with continuous frequency components is present as a consequence of transient cavitation. The averaged pressure magnitude at the frequency components of interest (discrete and continuous) in the field points is found by calculating average power spectral density of the recorded pressure waveform signal using the welch method. The frequency band of interest where average power spectral density is calculated is in the range from 15 Hz up to 120 kHz due to measurement system restrictions. The novelty in the approach is the application of the acoustic reciprocity principle on the nonlinear system (sonotrode tip and bubble cloud) to find necessary acoustic power of the equivalent acoustic source to produce the measured pressure magnitude in the field points at the frequency components of interest. RESULTS: In the nonlinear operating mode, the ROS model for the considered sonotrode tip is chosen due to the better agreement between measurement results and theoretical considerations. At higher excitation levels, it is shown that the averaged pressure magnitude spatial distribution of discrete frequency components, produced due to stable cavitation, can be fitted in the far field with the inverse distance law. The reduced electroacoustic efficiency factor, calculated at excitation frequency component as ratio of derived acoustic power with applied electrical power, is reduced from 40% in the linear to 3% in the strong nonlinear operating mode. The derived acoustic power at other frequency components (subharmonic, harmonic and ultraharmonic) is negligible in comparison with the derived acoustic power at excitation frequency. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The sonotrode tip and loading medium are shown in the strong cavitation regime as the coupled nonlinear dynamical system radiating acoustic power at frequency components appearing in the spectrum. The bubble cloud in the strong nonlinear operating mode decreases the derived acoustic power significantly at the excitation frequency.

Verification of chaotic behavior in an experimental loudspeaker.

The dynamics of an experimental electrodynamic loudspeaker is studied by using the tools of chaos theory and time series analysis. Delay time, embedding dimension, fractal dimension, and other empirical quantities are determined from experimental data. Particular attention is paid to issues of stationarity in a system in order to identify sources of uncertainty. Lyapunov exponents and fractal dimension are measured using several independent techniques. Results are compared in order to establish independent confirmation of low dimensional dynamics and a positive dominant Lyapunov exponent. We thus show that the loudspeaker may function as a chaotic system suitable for low dimensional modeling and the application of chaos control techniques.