TFM: DISEÑO DE UN SISTEMA DE MONITORIZACIÓN DE CONSTANTES VITALES DE ROEDORES A DISTANCIA
Posted on by rookie

The VISNE project, from the B105 Electronic Systems Lab at the ETSIT in collaboration with the Neuro-Computing and Neuro-Robotics group at the Complutense University, focuses on the development of a thalamic prosthesis to restore vision in humans. In its initial phases, this system will be tested on rodents, specifically mice, through behavioral tests in an operant conditioning chamber, also known as a Skinner box (as can be seen in the image below) .

However, the use of animals for medical research is one of the most controversial and debated topics in the modern scientific community. Therefore, ensuring the welfare of the animals has become a fundamental task, and to this end, the aim is to remotely monitor their vital signs.

In this master’s thesis, two techniques for monitoring mice were evaluated and tested: an infrared camera (MLX90640 from Melexis) for temperature measurement and an FMCW radar (AWR6843AOP from Texas Instruments) for tracking heart rate and respiration through thoracic variations. An electronic system was designed and implemented, consisting of two components: a proof-of-concept using both sensors and a prototype PCB that integrates the temperature monitoring system.

The proof of concept was integrated with a central interface within a Skinner box for mice. A user-friendly graphical interface was developed to display measurements from both sensors over time. A program was created using the infrared camera to detect the rodent’s warm body, positioning it at the central point to enable precise tracking and presence detection. The motion data collected could be used to estimate the rodent’s stress level during behavioral tests. Additionally, this program records temperature and movement data in text files for further analysis.

System tests demonstrated that the camera enabled continuous monitoring of the mouse’s body temperature, while the radar successfully measured heart rate in humans, with results closely aligning with those obtained through traditional methods. However, the radar measurements exhibited notable variability. Additionally, the system effectively measured the respiratory cycle and accurately detected presence.

The Printed Circuit Board (PCB) for the prototype temperature monitoring system was designed and manufactured with compact dimensions of 50 x 103 mm. It includes wireless connectivity and supports data storage on a microSD card. Additionally, the PCB is equipped with a micro-USB port for easy programming and powering of the system. All the TFM’s files are available in this repository: https://bitbucket.org/b105upm/tfm_rpeon/

The PCB has been successfully soldered, tested, and programmed. The embedded software enables data communication with a central node using the MQTT protocol, while the central server capture the data and displays thermal images on a web interface. All the embedded software of this system is located in this repository: https://bitbucket.org/b105upm/skinnerbox

TFG: Design of a localization system based on 5G communications
Posted on by araujo

The arrival of 5G New Radio (NR) networks has improved mobile telephony service conditions. These improvements have made it possible to enhance other uses of these networks, such as localization. The higher bandwidths and directivity of 5G communications allow measurements taken from base stations to be more accurate, resulting in better position estimates than in previous generations of cellular networks. This makes localization applications based on cellular networks gain relevance. In addition, they are more efficient in terms of energy consumption, which is an advantage over GNSS systems.
The objective of this Graduate Thesis is to analyze and implement a localization algorithm based on 5G networks. This algorithm works outdoors and calculates the position locally, so the equipment to be located uses the measurements received from the base stations without interacting with any other element of the network. Certain accuracy and execution time requirements have been established.
To accomplish the objective, a study of the outdoor localization methods based on cellular networks has been carried out in order to select the most accurate one among those reviewed.
Subsequently, the corresponding algorithm has been implemented in a microcontroller, to finally test its performance in different simulated scenarios.
At the hardware level, the STM32 NUCLEO-F767ZI microcontroller has been used.


At the software level, the STM32CubeIDE development environment and C programming language have been used. Since it has not been possible to experimentally obtain the measurements required for the algorithm to work, some Matlab scripts have been created to simulate both these measurements and the test scenarios.
After testing its performance in different scenarios, it can be concluded that the implemented algorithm meets the objectives set, both in terms of accuracy and time, and that it could therefore be interesting to carry out tests in a real scenario.

TFG: Design and Implementation of an NBIoT Communication System
Posted on by Alejandro Guaita

The development of IoT product has generated multiple needs in the field of information and communication technologies. Among them, the challenge of creating technological products capable of functioning independently of the power grid arises, leading to a line of development in telecommunications that, instead of maximizing the transmission capabilities of a system, seeks to minimize its power consumption.

ESTAR project

This TFG is developed within the ESTAR project, an autonomous IoT product meant for monitoring multiple environments. More specifically, it focuses on ESTAR_COMMS, the module which will be in charge of connecting the device to an external server.

In order to provide wireless communications with the lowest energy cost, an analysis of different components is given, concluding with the SARA-R510S-01B. The SARA has access to NBIoT radio technology from the LPWANs that allows for low speed, low payload, sporadic and Ultra-Low-Power transmissions.

In the thesis, the following results are presented:

  • A functional communication design and PCB prototype that uses the SARA-R510S-01B module, with an analysis of all design stages.
  • A first approach to the software design, in addition to a summary of the main AT commands that will be used to control the SARA.
  • The first energy consumption tests with the KeysightB2901A.

TFG: Design and implementation of a geolocation tag for 5G communications
Posted on by nietoschoebel

With the rise of automation in industry and the great development of AI and IoT comes
Industry 5.0, in which the emphasis is on collaboration between machines and humans
to improve productivity and efficiency.

With the arrival of industry 5.0 comes the need to develop new devices that can meet their needs. The HUMAIN project, on which this work is based, was born from this need.

This TFG has consisted of the research and design of a geolocation tag for industry 5.0, for which the following phases have been carried out:

First, the bases of IoT, industry 5.0 and 5G have been investigated, achieving a better understanding of the project to be carried out. Then, design decisions have been established following the concepts obtained in the research and the product specifications, and an investigation of the components available on the market has been carried out taking into account these decisions.

From this, the components have been chosen and the schematic design and layout of the board has been carried out, and, finally, the soldering of the board has been made, reaching a first prototype.

TFM: Development of an electronic system on smart garments to aid in the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases
Posted on by María Tejedor

TFM: Development of an electronic system on smart garments to aid in the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases

Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects the nervous system, which mainly causes motor disorders. It affects more than 160,000 people in Spain. In addition, it is expected that due to the growing aging of the population it will become the most common serious disease by the year 2040.
One of the main problems faced in this disease is the delay in its diagnosis. In addition, it is important to ensure that patients’ symptoms are properly monitored in order to correctly adjust their medication.
Over the past few years, the use of wearable devices to monitor patients outside of the hospital environment has increased. Among these devices, those that use sensorized clothing, so that the sensors are integrated into the tissues, are gaining popularity and have great potential. Although these are still at an early stage of development.

In this context begins this Master’s Thesis, which is part of the research line of the B105 Electronic Systems Lab for the development of wearable devices. The main objective of the project is to design and implement an electronic system to control a set of intelligent clothes for the monitoring of different parameters, which can be connected to other wearable devices in the future.

For this purpose, a study of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and how it is possible to monitor them have been carried out. We have also analysed which studies have been conducted in recent years using textile sensor to diagnose or monitor this pathology. Subsequently, it has been searched which intelligent garments are being commercialized in the market. And finally, it has been established which requirements are intended to be fulfilled by the design that is going to be carried out.

Due to the initial work done, the design of the system to be implemented has been carried out.

It consists of a pair of socks and a harness, which communicate through Bluetooth with a mobile phone application.

The socks incorporate 3 textile resistors in the sole of the foot, and an IMU in the ankle to monitor the patient’s gait. While the harness makes use of 3 textile electrodes, whose outputs are filtered by a circuit to obtain the ECG. It also incorporates an IMU in the central part of the chest, to monitor the user’s posture. In addition, both garments make use of a PCB in which they operate the control part and the power supply.

In the software development of the project, FreeRTOS has been used together with a state machine to control the measurements of the sensors of the garments and send the measured values via bluetooth to a mobile application.

In the hardware development, the design and implementation of the PCBs has been carried out.

Finally, we have started to perform unit tests on the development carried out, for the hardware as well as for the software, which should be finalized to verify the complete performance of the developed system.