Brendan O'Flynn

• Doctor of Engineering
• Tyndall National Institute

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are commonplace in industry and a host of qualitative and quantitative approaches have been used to assuage the problem, including wearable sensors and biomechanical endurance models, both of which were used in the present study. Six endurance models (consumed endurance, new improved consumed endurance...

Presents corrections to the paper, (Corrections to “EEG Datasets for Healthcare: A Scoping Review”.

Non-invasive assessment of joint status using acoustic emissions (AE) is a growing research area that has the potential to translate into clinical practice. The purpose of this study is to investigate the correlation of the knee’s AE with measures of proprioception, self-assessment, and performance, as it can be hypothesised that, AE parameters wil...

Motor symptoms such as tremor and bradykinesia can develop concurrently in Parkinson’s disease; thus, the ideal home monitoring system should be capable of tracking symptoms continuously despite background noise from daily activities. The goal of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of detecting symptom episodes in a free-living scenario, p...

The invasive insect brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is an emerging pest of global importance, as it is destroying fruits and seeds, having caused estimated damages of € 588 million to crops in 2019 in Northern Italy alone. An open challenge is to improve monitoring of BMSB in order to be able to deploy countermeasures more efficiently and to incr...

Purpose The aim of this study is to explore the feasibility of using machine learning approaches to objectively differentiate the mobilization patterns, measured via accelerometer sensors, of patients pre- and post-intervention. Methods The intervention tested the implementation of a Frailty Care Bundle to improve mobilization, nutrition and cogni...

In this article, we introduce machine learning (ML) techniques developed for the monitoring of the brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB), a significant agricultural pest responsible for considerable crop damage worldwide. The Haly.ID project, initiated in early 2021, aims to enhance BMSB monitoring through the utilization of information and communica...

Comprehending the regulatory mechanisms influencing blood pressure control is pivotal for continuous monitoring of this parameter. Implementing a personalized machine learning model, utilizing data-driven features, presents an opportunity to facilitate tracking blood pressure fluctuations in various conditions. In this work, data-driven photoplethy...

Wrist-worn activity monitors have seen widespread adoption in recent times, particularly in young and sport-oriented cohorts, while their usage among older adults has remained relatively low. The main limitations are in regards to the lack of medical insights that current mainstream activity trackers can provide to older subjects. One of the most i...

With recent advances in wearable wrist-worn wireless sensing applications, the demand for smartwatches and wristbands is rapidly increasing due to their widespread adoption in applications such as smart health monitoring, security, and fitness tracking. Currently, these devices primarily operate in the 2.45 GHz band, leveraging the availability of...

Wearable sensors have recently been extensively used in sports science, physical rehabilitation, and industry providing feedback on physical fatigue. Information obtained from wearable sensors can be analyzed by predictive analytics methods, such as machine learning algorithms, to determine fatigue during shoulder joint movements, which have comple...

The market for wearable electronic devices is experiencing significant growth and increasing potential for the future. Researchers worldwide are actively working to improve these devices, particularly in developing wearable electronics with balanced functionality and wearability for commercializa-tion. Electrospinning, a technology that creates nan...

As the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to expand, the demand for the use of energy-efficient circuits and battery-less devices has grown rapidly. Battery-less operation, zero maintenance and sustainability are the desired features of IoT devices in fifth generation (5G) networks and green Industry 4.0 wireless systems. The integration of energy...

This paper introduces an innovative strategy for the development of sensing-ready concentric rings-based chipless radio frequency identification (CRFID) tags. Our approach is marked by the novel use of exponentially increasing spacing, a significant departure from the conventional uniform spacing method. This innovative design results in an impress...

Pressure insoles allow for the collection of real time pressure data inside and outside a laboratory setting as they are non-intrusive and can be simply integrated into industrial environments for occupational health and safety monitoring purposes. Activity detection is important for the safety and wellbeing of workers, and the present study aims t...

The rapidly evolving landscape of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning has placed data at the forefront of healthcare innovation. Electroencephalography (EEG) has gained significant attention for its potential to revolutionize healthcare applications. However, the effective utilization of EEG data in advancing medical diagnoses and tre...

Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative neurological disorder that impairs motor functions and is accompanied by a wide range of non-motor symptoms, such as sleep problems. Parkinsonism is assessed during clinical evaluations and via self-administered diaries and, based on these, the required medication therapies are provided to lessen symptoms. Tri-...

In this paper, we present a new approach for robust reading of identification and sensor data from chipless RFID sensor tags. For the first time, Machine Learning (ML) and Deep Learning (DL) regression modelling techniques are applied to a dataset of measured Radar Cross Section (RCS) data that has been derived from large-scale robotic measurements...

In this paper, we present a new approach for robust reading of identification and sensor data from chipless RFID sensor tags. For the first time, Machine Learning (ML) and Deep Learning (DL) regression modelling techniques are applied to a dataset of measured Radar Cross Section (RCS) data that has been derived from large-scale robotic measurements...

Physical fatigue in the workplace can lead to work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs), especially in occupations that require repetitive, mid-air movements, such as manufacturing and assembly tasks in industry settings. The current paper endeavors to validate an existing torque-based fatigue prediction model for lifting tasks. The model uses...

The aim of this study was to design a new canine posture estimation system specifically for working dogs. The system was composed of Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) that are commercially available, and a supervised learning algorithm which was developed for different behaviours. Three IMUs, each containing a 3-axis accelerometer, gyroscope, and m...

In this paper, we illustrate the technological innovations we implemented in a test-bed field to automate the bug scouting process. Our work is motivated by the invasive global pest Halyomorpha halys (HH), whose damages have a huge economic impact for fruit orchards. We propose the automation of the time-and labor-intensive process of the HH scouti...

Wireless Power Transfer (WPT) is a promising technique of extending the battery lifetime of battery-powered end-devices (EDs) without getting physical contact between the power transmitter and the ED. At the same time, many of these devices use a long range radio technology to report data of their measurements. Both WPT transmitters and long range...

italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Objective: Knee osteoarthritis is currently one of the top causes of disability in older population, a rate that will only increase in the future due to an aging population and the prevalence of obesity. However, objective assessment of treatment outco...

Conventional Wilkinson power dividers (WPDs) can provide acceptable performance close to the nominal center frequency. However, these WPDs can also exhibit poor out-of-band performance while requiring a large footprint. In order to improve on the current state of the art, a modified microstrip WPD is proposed that exhibits a substantially improved...

The concept of optical transparency in antennas for epidermal electronics is demonstrated in this work as a means of improving the long-term comfort-of-wear level and possibly opening up a wider range of applications. In contrast to previous attempts, the epidermal antenna transparency is achieved by employing dielectric and conductive materials th...

The concept of wireless power transfer for powering a low-power electronic circuit is demonstrated in this brief using a novel rectifying-antenna (rectenna). The proposed rectenna is consisted of by a wide-band antenna and a modified rectifier. The antenna bandwidth has been optimized to cover both the f1 = 868 MHz and f2 = 915 MHz UHF-RFID bands....

Smart manufacturing is a vision and major driver for change in today’s industry. The goal of smart manufacturing is to optimize manufacturing processes through constantly monitoring, controlling, and adapting processes towards more efficient and personalised manufacturing. This requires and relies on technologies for connected machines incorporatin...

Acoustic emission (AE) sensing is an increasingly researched topic in the context of orthopedics and has a potentially high diagnostic value in the non-invasive assessment of joint disorders, such as osteoarthritis and implant loosening. However, a high level of reliability associated with the technology is necessary to make it appropriate for use...

This paper investigates the effect of frequency on the magnetic field (H-field) strength at a specified distance from a single turn transmitting (TX) loop antenna in free-space. The H-field of a TX loop antenna in the Near Field (NF) region can be estimated using Biot-Savart's Law (BSL). However, the BSL method is only valid for DC current flow and...

Optically transparent electronic devices have attracted enormous interests in recent years. The development of transparent electronics emerges a lot of new industrial applications in variety of fields, such as displays, glasses, solar panels, satellite communications, terrestrial communications, integrated circuits, and sensors where optical transp...

This article provides a comprehensive overview of methods for evaluating the suitability of trainee dogs for assistance and guide work. It presents both current practices in industry as well as modern techniques with the aim of identifying important behavioural traits. It is divided into (1) selection and training methods, including breed, genetics...

The explosive growth of wireless sensor platforms and their emerging wide range of application areas make the development of a sustainable and robust power source, an essential requirement to enable widespread deployment of these wireless devices. As a solution to this cardinal issue, this paper reports the design and fabrication of a resonant Vibr...

Smart manufacturing is a vision and major driver for change in industrial environments. The goal of smart manufacturing is to optimize manufacturing processes through constantly monitoring and adapting processes towards more efficient and personalised manufacturing. This requires and relies on technologies for connected machines incorporating a var...

Ultra-sensitive and responsive humidity sensors were fabricated by deposition of graphene oxide (GO) on laser-induced graphene (LIG) electrodes fabricated by a low-cost visible laser scribing tool. The effects of GO layer thickness and electrode geometry were investigated. Sensors comprising 0.33 mg/mL GO drop-deposited on spiral LIG electrodes exh...

Ultra-sensitive and responsive humidity sensors were fabricated by deposition of graphene oxide (GO) on laser-induced graphene (LIG) electrodes fabricated by a low-cost visible laser scribing tool. The effects of GO layer thickness and electrode geometry were investigated. Sensors comprising 0.33 mg/mL GO drop-deposited on spiral LIG electrodes exh...

Venous leg ulcers can have significant social and economic impacts, and are generally treated by applying compression to the lower limb, which aids in promoting blood return to the heart. Compression therapies commonly involve the use of passive bandages that suffer from issues associated with incorrect application, and although automated solutions...

The paper presents a comprehensive review of the use of graphene to develop wearable temperature sensors. The detection of temperature over a wide range has been a growing interest in multidisciplinary sectors in the sensing world. Different kinds of flexible temperature sensors have been fabricated with a range of polymers and nanomaterials. With...

Repetitive movements that involve a significant shift of the body's center of mass can lead to shoulder and elbow fatigue, which are linked to injury and musculoskeletal disorders if not addressed in time. Research has been conducted on the joint torque individuals can produce, a quantity that indicates the ability of the person to carry out such r...

This paper presents an 868 MHz ultra-high frequency (UHF) bandage-type antenna for wireless body sensor network applications. The proposed antenna has a modified planar rectangular patch antenna topology and is realized using aluminum metalization and a flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrate. The performance characteristics of the antenna h...

There has been an explosion in research focused on Internet of Things (IoT) devices in recent years, with a broad range of use cases in different domains ranging from industrial automation to business analytics. Being battery-powered, these small devices are expected to last for extended periods (i.e., in some instances up to tens of years) to ensu...

Background The benefits to be obtained from home-based physical therapy programmes are dependent on the proper execution of physiotherapy exercises during unsupervised treatment. Wearable sensors and appropriate movement-related metrics may be used to determine at-home exercise performance and compliance to a physical therapy program. Methods A to...

This paper presents a circularly polarized flexible and transparent circular patch antenna suitable for body-worn wireless-communications. Circular polarization is highly beneficial in wearable wireless communications, where antennas, as a key component of the RF front-end, operate in dynamic environments, such as the human body. The demonstrated a...

Background:: Hypertension is a major health concern across the globe and needs to be properly diagnosed to so it can be treated and to mitigate for this critical health condition. In this context, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is essential to provide for a proper diagnosis of hypertension, which may not be possible otherwise due to the white...

Smart wearables are a promising tool for the objective and quantifiable monitoring of patients’ capabilities during remote at-home assessments. A novel platform for the remote assessment of patients undergoing knee rehabilitation has been presented in this paper, SKYRE. The challenges associated with the design of the SKYRE platform are described....

Background: The benefits to be obtained from home-based physical therapy programmes are dependent on the proper execution of physiotherapy exercises during unsupervised treatment. Wearable sensors and appropriate movement-related metrics may be used to determine at-home exercise performance and compliance to a physical therapy program. Methods: A t...

As global demographics change, ageing is a global phenomenon which is increasingly of interest in our modern and rapidly changing society. Thus, the application of proper prognostic indices in clinical decisions regarding mortality prediction has assumed a significant importance for personalized risk management (i.e., identifying patients who are a...

This paper describes the manufacturing of a torso phantom used for radio frequency (RF) measurements of a Wireless Implanted Medical Device (WIMD) implanted in the pulmonary artery. This devices work in the UHF (Ultra High Frequency) band. This phantom has a detailed internal anatomy, with 3D printed organs, to achieve a better approximation than h...

Among the many diverse methods of recording biological signals, sound and acoustic emission monitoring are becoming popular for data acquisition; however, these sensors tend to be very susceptible to motion artefacts and noise. In the case of joint monitoring, this issue is even more significant, considering that joint sounds are recorded during li...

Cancer is an aggressive disease which imparts a tremendous socio-economic burden on the international community. Early detection is an important aspect in improving survival rates for cancer sufferers; however, very few studies have investigated the possibility of predicting which people have the highest risk to develop this disease, even years bef...

The unique characteristics of graphene have generated a lot of interest in the research community. A concept of utilizing graphene and its derivatives in the development of energy harvesters has just appeared in recent decades. This paper focuses on the application of reduced graphene oxide (rGO), a graphene derivative, in the development of wearab...

•A Long-Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) testbed for environmental monitoring of artefacts within a museum storage facility is presented. • The goal is to identify the optimum wireless technology for this application. • A LoRaWAN and BLE testbed network was deployed inside a 5600 m 2 concrete building for the wireless communication performance...

This paper presents a long range wide area network (LoRaWAN) testbed for environmental monitoring of artefacts within a museum storage facility. The goal is to identify the optimum feasible wireless technology for this application by studying eight different wireless technologies. A testbed network was deployed inside a 5600 m2 concrete building to...

For the first time, this paper reports a smart museum archive box that features a fully integrated wireless powered temperature and humidity sensor. The smart archive box has been specifically developed for microclimate environmental monitoring of stored museum artifacts in cultural heritage applications. The developed sensor does not require a bat...

Aquaculture farming faces challenges to increase production while maintaining welfare of livestock, efficiently use of resources, and being environmentally sustainable. To help overcome these challenges, remote and real-time monitoring of the environmental and biological conditions of the aquaculture site is highly important. Multiple remote monito...

Athletic performance, technique assessment, and injury prevention are all important aspects in sports for both professional and amateur athletes. Wearable technology is attracting the research community’s interest because of its capability to provide real-time biofeedback to coaches and athletes when on the field and outside of more restrictive lab...

Background The assessment of dynamic stability is crucial for the prevention of falls in the elderly and people with functional impairments. Evidence that total knee arthroplasty improves balance in patients with severe osteoarthritis is scarce and no information exists about how the surgery affects dynamic stability during stair negotiation. Meth...