• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.123-128
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• 2017

Background and aims: The KCNQ1 S140G mutation involved in $I_{ks}$ channel is a typical gene mutation affecting atrial fibrillation. However, despite the possibility that the S140G gene mutation may affect not only atrial but also ventricular action potential shape and ventricular responses, there is a lack of research on the relationship between this mutation and ventricular fibrillation. Therefore, in this study, we analyzed the correlation and the influence of the KCNQ1 S140G mutant gene on ventricular fibrillation through computer simulation studies. Method: This study simulated a 3-dimensional ventricular model of the wild type(WT) and the S140G mutant conditions. It was performed by dividing into normal sinus rhythm simulation and reentrant wave propagation simulation. For the sinus rhythm, a ventricular model with Purkinje fiber was used. For the reentrant propagation simulation, a ventricular model was used to confirm the occurrence of spiral wave using S1-S2 protocol. Results: The result showed that 41% shortening of action potential duration(APD) was observed due to augmented $I_{ks}$ current in S140G mutation group. The shortened APD contributed to reduce wavelength 39% in sinus rhythm simulation. The shortened wavelength in cardiac tissue allowed re-entrant circuits to form and increased the probability of sustaining ventricular fibrillation, while ventricular electrical propagation with normal wavelength(20.8 cm in wild type) are unlikely to initiate re-entry. Conclusion: In conclusion, KCNQ1 S140G mutation can reduce the threshold of the re-entrant wave substrate in ventricular cells, increasing the spatial vulnerability of tissue and the sensitivity of the fibrillation. That is, S140G mutation can induce ventricular fibrillation easily. It means that S140G mutant can increase the risk of arrhythmias such as cardiac arrest due to heart failure.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.424-433
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• 2022

As the proportion of non-contact telemedicine increases and the number of electrocardiogram (ECG) data measured using portable ECG monitors increases, the demand for automatic algorithms that can precisely analyze vast amounts of ECG is increasing. Since the P, QRS, and T waves of the ECG have different shapes depending on the location of electrodes or individual characteristics and often have similar frequency components or amplitudes, it is difficult to distinguish P, QRS and T waves and measure each parameter. In order to measure the widths, intervals and areas of P, QRS, and T waves, a new algorithm that recognizes the start and end points of each wave and automatically measures the time differences and amplitudes between each point is required. In this study, the start and end points of the P, QRS, and T waves were measured using six Deep Neural Networks (DNN) that recognize the start and end points of each wave. Then, by synthesizing the results of all DNNs, 12 parameters for ECG characteristics for each heartbeat were obtained. In the ECG waveform of 10 subjects provided by Physionet, 12 parameters were measured for each of 660 heartbeats, and the 12 parameters measured for each heartbeat well represented the characteristics of the ECG, so it was possible to distinguish them from other subjects' parameters. When the ECG data of 10 subjects were combined into one file and analyzed with the suggested algorithm, 10 types of ECG waveform were observed, and two types of ECG waveform were simultaneously observed in 5 subjects, however, it was not observed that one person had more than two types.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.22-30
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• 2015

Melanoma is originated from the melanocyte producing the melanin which determines the complexion, and it has the highest mortality among skin cancers. Acral lentiginous melanoma(ALM) arises from extremities such as hands, feet or fingernails. Since the appearance of ALM is different from melanoma on the body, conventional auto diagnosis systems for melanoma is inappropriate to detect ALM. Therefore, ALM is typically difficult to distinguish from general nevus, resulting in delayed diagnosis and bad prognosis. In this paper, we firstly introduce a determination method for ALM by dermatologists and propose a method to rotate dermoscopic images automatically as a pre-processing for facilitating the easy determination of ALM and to select the optimal value of the Gaussian differentiation filter parameter which is significant for precise pattern extraction using the scale space analysis. From experimental results, it is shown that there exists the consistency between empirical values of the Gaussian differential filter parameter and optimal values derived from the scale space analysis to distinguish nevus and ALM.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.182-188
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• 2018

Nitrogen (N)-doped protein-based carbon as platinum (Pt) catalyst supports from tofu for oxygen reduction reactions are synthesized using a carbonization and reduction method. We successfully prepare 5 wt% Pt@N-doped protein-based carbon, 10 wt% Pt@N-doped protein-based carbon, and 20 wt% Pt@N-doped protein-based carbon. The morphology and structure of the samples are characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron micro scopy, and crystllinities and chemical bonding are identified using X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The oxygen reduction reaction are measured using a linear sweep voltammogram and cyclic voltammetry. Among the samples, 10 wt% Pt@N-doped protein-based carbon exhibits exellent electrochemical performance with a high onset potential of 0.62 V, a high $E_{1/2}$ of 0.55 V, and a low ${\Delta}E_{1/2}=0.32mV$. Specifically, as compared to the commercial Pt/C, the 10 wt% Pt@N-doped protein-based carbon had a similar oxygen reduction reaction perfomance and improved electrochemical stability.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers P
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• v.66 no.3
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• pp.117-122
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• 2017

Due to the aging and obesity population in Korea, degenerative musculoskeletal diseases and people suffering from degenerative arthritis are increasing day by day. So, it is necessary to develop rehabilitation treatment device. Conventional high-frequency treatment devices have disadvantages in that therapeutic range is narrow, cost is high, image is adversely affected, treatment time is long, and failure rate is high. This paper proposes a customized therapy device that is stable and effective in reducing treatment time and output to target body part using 2MHz switching frequency, feedback control technique, and joint insulation flexible multipolar electrode. The device can be a new concept high-frequency stimulator to accommodate the advantages of CET and RET.

• Journal of Applied Reliability
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.72-79
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• 2018

Purpose: Numerical and experimental study was performed to evaluate the effect of peening temperature on the residual compressive stress distribution and magnitude of residual compressive stress at the material surface. Methods: A compressive air-propelled warm peening equipment was designed and manufactured for warm peening test. Results: 3D dynamic finite element (FE) model of the warm peening test was proposed and validity of the proposed FE model was verified by comparing the predicted residual stresses with the measured residual stresses in the open literature. Maximum warm peening temperature and a proper peening time were investigated with the proposed FE model. Conclusion: Compressive residual stress increased remarkably with peening temperature increased. But, peening temperature is greater than $350^{\circ}C$, the effect of peening temperature disappeared. Therefore, maximum peening temperature possibly applicable for warm peening industry might be $350^{\circ}C$ and peening time is 45s.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.27 no.11
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• pp.617-623
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• 2017

Mesoporous carbon nanofibers as electrode material for electrical double-layer capacitors(EDLCs) are fabricated using the electrospinning method and carbonization. Their morphologies, structures, chemical bonding states, porous structure, and electrochemical performance are investigated. The optimized mesoporous carbon nanofiber has a high sepecific surface area of $667m^2\;g^{-1}$, high average pore size of 6.3 nm, and high mesopore volume fraction of 80 %, as well as a unifom network structure consiting of a 1-D nanofiber stucture. The optimized mesoporous carbon nanofiber shows outstanding electrochemical performance with high specific capacitance of $87F\;g^{-1}$ at a current density of $0.1A\;g^{-1}$, high-rate performance ($72F\;g^{-1}$ at a current density of $20.0A\;g^{-1}$), and good cycling stability ($92F\;g^{-1}$ after 100 cycles). The improvement of the electrochemical performance via the combined effects of high specific surface area are due to the high mesopore volume fraction of the carbon nanofibers.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.411-416
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• 2018

Tungsten oxide($WO_3$) films with uniform surface morphology are fabricated using a spin-coating method for applications of electrochromic(EC) devices. To improve the EC performances of the $WO_3$ films, we control the heating rate of the annealing process to 10, 5, and $1^{\circ}C/min$. Compared to the other samples, the $WO_3$ films fabricated at a heating rate of $5^{\circ}C/min$ shows superior EC performances for transmittance modulation(49.5 %), response speeds(8.3 s in a colored state and 11.2 s in a bleached state), and coloration efficiency($37.3cm^2/C$). This performance improvement is mainly related to formation of a uniform surface morphology with increased particle size without any cracks by an optimized annealing heating rate, which improves the electrical conductivity and electrochemical activity of the $WO_3$ films. Thus, the $WO_3$ films with a uniform surface morphology prepared by the optimized annealing heating rate can be used as a potential candidate for performance improvement of the EC devices.

• Biomedical Engineering Letters
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.355-364
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• 2018

When focusing using an ultrasonic transducer array, a main lobe is formed in the focal region of an ultrasound field, but side lobes also arise around the focal region due to the leakage. Since the side lobes cannot be completely eliminated in the focusing process, they are responsible for subsequent ultrasound image quality degradation. To improve ultrasound image quality, a signal processing strategy to reduce side lobes is definitely in demand. To this end, quantitative determination of main and side lobes is necessary. We propose a theoretically and actually error-free method of exactly discriminating and separately computing the main lobe and side lobe parts in ultrasound image by computer simulation. We refer to images constructed using the main and side lobe signals as the main and side lobe images, respectively. Since the main and side lobe images exactly represent their main and side lobe components, respectively, they can be used to evaluate ultrasound image quality. Defining the average brightness of the main and side lobe images, the conventional to side lobe image ratio, and the main to side lobe image ratio as image quality metrics, we can evaluate image characteristics in speckle images. The proposed method is also applied in assessing the performance of side lobe suppression filtering. We show that the proposed method may greatly aid in the evaluation of medical ultrasonic images using computer simulations, albeit lacking the use of actual experimental data.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.105-108
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• 2021

Detection and localization of partial discharge are considered critical techniques for estimating the lifetimes of power cables. High-frequency current transformers (HFCTs) are commonly used for the detection of partial discharge in high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) power cables; however, their applicability is compromised by the limitations of the installation locations. HFCTs are typically installed in cable terminals or insulation joint boxes because HVACs induce strong time-varying magnetic fields around the cables, saturating the ferromagnetic materials in the HFCTs. Therefore, partial discharges near the installation locations can be detected. In this study, the feasibility of partial discharge detection using a HFCT was investigated for high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cables. We demonstrated that the HFCT could be installed at any location in the HVDC power cable to monitor partial discharge along the entire cable length. Furthermore, we showed that the HFCT could detect the location of partial discharge with high accuracy.