• Journal of Internet of Things and Convergence
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.87-92
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• 2023

As times develop, information becomes more diverse and methods of obtaining it become more diverse. About 80% of the amount of information gained in life is acquired through the visual sense. However, visually impaired people have limited ability to interpret visual materials. That's why Braille, a text for the blind, appeared. However, the Braille decoding rate of the blind is only 5%, and as the demand of the blind who want various forms of platforms or materials increases over time, development and product production for the blind are taking place. An example of product production is braille books, which seem to have more disadvantages than advantages, and unlike non-disabled people, it is true that access to information is still very difficult. In this paper, we designed a CNN-based Braille conversion and voice output device to make it easier for visually impaired people to obtain information than conventional methods. The device aims to improve the quality of life by allowing books, text images, or handwritten images that are not made in Braille to be converted into Braille through camera recognition, and designing a function that can be converted into voice according to the needs of the blind.

• Proceedings of the KOSOMBE Conference
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• v.1992 no.05
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• pp.27-47
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• 1992

Engineers have developed new instruments that aid in diagnosis and therapy Ultrasonic imaging has provided a nondamaging method of imaging internal organs. A complex transducer emits ultrasonic waves at many angles and reconstructs a map of internal anatomy and also velocities of blood in vessels. Fast computed tomography permits reconstruction of the 3-dimensional anatomy and perfusion of the heart at 20-Hz rates. Positron emission tomography uses certain isotopes that produce positrons that react with electrons to simultaneously emit two gamma rays in opposite directions. It locates the region of origin by using a ring of discrete scintillation detectors, each in electronic coincidence with an opposing detector. In magnetic resonance imaging, the patient is placed in a very strong magnetic field. The precessing of the hydrogen atoms is perturbed by an interrogating field to yield two-dimensional images of soft tissue having exceptional clarity. As an alternative to radiology image processing, film archiving, and retrieval, picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) are being implemented. Images from computed radiography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear medicine, and ultrasound are digitized, transmitted, and stored in computers for retrieval at distributed work stations. In electrical impedance tomography, electrodes are placed around the thorax. 50-kHz current is injected between two electrodes and voltages are measured on all other electrodes. A computer processes the data to yield an image of the resistivity of a 2-dimensional slice of the thorax. During fetal monitoring, a corkscrew electrode is screwed into the fetal scalp to measure the fetal electrocardiogram. Correlations with uterine contractions yield information on the status of the fetus during delivery To measure cardiac output by thermodilution, cold saline is injected into the right atrium. A thermistor in the right pulmonary artery yields temperature measurements, from which we can calculate cardiac output. In impedance cardiography, we measure the changes in electrical impedance as the heart ejects blood into the arteries. Motion artifacts are large, so signal averaging is useful during monitoring. An intraarterial blood gas monitoring system permits monitoring in real time. Light is sent down optical fibers inserted into the radial artery, where it is absorbed by dyes, which reemit the light at a different wavelength. The emitted light travels up optical fibers where an external instrument determines O2, CO2, and pH. Therapeutic devices include the electrosurgical unit. A high-frequency electric arc is drawn between the knife and the tissue. The arc cuts and the heat coagulates, thus preventing blood loss. Hyperthermia has demonstrated antitumor effects in patients in whom all conventional modes of therapy have failed. Methods of raising tumor temperature include focused ultrasound, radio-frequency power through needles, or microwaves. When the heart stops pumping, we use the defibrillator to restore normal pumping. A brief, high-current pulse through the heart synchronizes all cardiac fibers to restore normal rhythm. When the cardiac rhythm is too slow, we implant the cardiac pacemaker. An electrode within the heart stimulates the cardiac muscle to contract at the normal rate. When the cardiac valves are narrowed or leak, we implant an artificial valve. Silicone rubber and Teflon are used for biocompatibility. Artificial hearts powered by pneumatic hoses have been implanted in humans. However, the quality of life gradually degrades, and death ensues. When kidney stones develop, lithotripsy is used. A spark creates a pressure wave, which is focused on the stone and fragments it. The pieces pass out normally. When kidneys fail, the blood is cleansed during hemodialysis. Urea passes through a porous membrane to a dialysate bath to lower its concentration in the blood. The blind are able to read by scanning the Optacon with their fingertips. A camera scans letters and converts them to an array of vibrating pins. The deaf are able to hear using a cochlear implant. A microphone detects sound and divides it into frequency bands. 22 electrodes within the cochlea stimulate the acoustic the acoustic nerve to provide sound patterns. For those who have lost muscle function in the limbs, researchers are implanting electrodes to stimulate the muscle. Sensors in the legs and arms feed back signals to a computer that coordinates the stimulators to provide limb motion. For those with high spinal cord injury, a puff and sip switch can control a computer and permit the disabled person operate the computer and communicate with the outside world.

• Archives of design research
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.77-88
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• 2004

It was 1988 when people pay attention to an importance of the facilities for the handicapped, with Seoul Paralympics. In early 1990s, regular efforts were made to improve a physical environment for the handicapped, which results in reforming the Welfare Law for the Handicapped all over the surface. However, keeping pace with the expansion of the western universal design concept, it is required to evaluate a new concept in which way the facilities for the handicapped must be installed. That is, any physical environment, which regards the handicapped as an independent subject, tend to isolate them from normal people rather than satisfy their needs. making the handicapped feel more discriminated. All the facilities for the handicapped has to reflect a general idea that the facilities are opened for all the people including the handicapped. Being recently reformed and enacted in order to reflect this essential point, 'the raw of contributing to the convenience of the handicapped, aged men, pregnant women and nursing mother(1998)' even covers the aged men, pregnant women and nursing mother, not to mention of the handicapped. In addition, the law states clearly that all the handicapped can share all the facilities with the normal people, inducing the handicapped to more actively participate in society. Consequently, the handicapped are acquiring their rights by directly demanding for correction of varied discrimination. Though even more facilities have been provided, most of them are deficient in the quality, setting limits to the handicapped person's living field as well as social activities. Especially, most public buildings in our country rarely provide the adequate facilities for the handicapped, aged men, pregnant women and nursing mother. Therefore, this study is focused on developing the list of actual condition research that can effectively detect the inadequacy of facilities in public buildings. Then it will find the aspects to be improved in a systematic and scientific way to propose a practical method to improve the facilities in public buildings.

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.176-192
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• 1991

School nurses, in service of 102 special schools in Korea, were urveyed by mail questionnaires from February to March, 1991 and 77 of hem responded. Collected data were analyzed to establish the direction of health management in special school and to provide basic reference data for improving the quality of the management of school-nurses' services. The major findings are as follows: Out of special schools surveyed, 67.5% is private school and 83.2% is located in city. The average number of classes, students, and educational personnels per special school is 17.2, 194, and 28 respectively. The average age of school-nurses surveyed is 32.7. The proportion of graduates from the junior college and upward was 97.4%, the proportion of the married was 71.4%. Out of respondents, 71.4% has religion : 79.2% has past career in the fields of clinics or public health: 62.3% accompanishes independent services: 77.9% belongs to primary school. About 69% of nursing room in special schools surveyed is located at the first floor. Out of special school surveyed, 90.9% has no organization for school health programms: Only 18.2% entrusted everyone of school doctor, school dentist, and school pharmacists with school health. 46.8% of respondents didn't know about the annual budget for school health programmes. The average annual expenditure for school health programme per special school was 317,000F26. won and the purchase cost for medical supplies accounted for the larger part of them. The monthly average number of students utilizing school nursing room was 71 per school, annual utilization times of school nursing room was 4.4 per student and utilization due to injury was prevalent by 26.6% and there is some differences in using the school nursing room according to disabled area. Rate of referral to medical facilities was 1.4%. The leading reason of referral to medical facilities was high fever among those who have visual handicaps, fracture among those who have emotional disturbance, injury by trauma among others. Nine hundred fifty six students of students in special school surveyed have sufferd from epilepsy and prevalence rate of epilepsy was 6.4%. Only 22.6% of respondents replied that they had physical examination more than 2 times per year. Out of respnodents, 98.7% answered that they had health education and 67.1% of them ansered that they educated in a classroom, 98.7% of respondents emphasized need of sex education. Respondents put the most emphasis on the personal hygiene when they performed health education and they used broadcasting education in the area of visual handicaps, OHP or VTR in hearing handicaps, home correspondence or OHP VTR in other area importantly. About 47% of repondents answered that health education was the most difficult and they emphasized that definite guide on health management was requested. Respondents had self-confidence and high perfomance rate in most of school-nurses' services completely, but so they was not in area of evaluation of school health programmes, an examination of physical strength, evaluation of health education, management of school purification area, suture of wounds. In consideration of above findings, we may conclude that special education for school-nurse in special schools as well as improvement of definite guiding principles are requested to establish direction for health management in special schools and to improve the degree of quality for school-nurses' sevices in special schools.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.15-41
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• 2001

Since medical clients and the community they live in are expected to be center of future public health and medical care system, new service programs must be developed with patients focused on in line with widening public access of information and social participation. Patients- focused service shall mean the area- oriented provision of public health service. In this study, health officers working at public health centers, public health sub- centers and medical offices in Jeonbuk- do area were taken for population in order to investigate their attitudes toward and knowledge about the service area assigning system under the public health programs. Findings from the survey to 260 health officers, divided by general category, are as follows : Government officers at public health organizations appeared to have high grade of understanding to the service area assigning system and also great appreciation for the necessity of it. Regarding the timing for the system to be introduced, they support the gradual implementation and, as for the type of service to be provided, they preferred home nursing and treatment of chronic diseases. Highly positive responses were centered on the health classes under the health promotion projects, and as far as health projects for the old are concerned, services for home nursing, for the disabled and for home- alone people are favored most. On the other hand, budgeting, manpower and reorganization are rated as prerequisite to establishment of the service area assigning system. From the viewpoint of system side, the improvement of working conditions is rendered as most urgent, while the information system for establishing the service area assigning system is conceived far from satisfactory. Proper assignment of specialists was noted as mostly important to establish the delivery system for medical service through the service area assigning system by team. As merits of the service area assigning system, it is pointed out that, through the system, health clients can better be managed and the nursing quality will be improved thank to the enhanced specialization. It is also perceived that the district health service is not well prepared to respond to the increased and diversified needs of community people and, furthermore, service programs of health centers have not been fully developed. The most serious problem standing in the way to expansion of health projects is, it is noted, uniformity (formality) of the project. Based on the results of the survey which suggest time has ripen to introduce the service area assigning system, following strategies are proposed to anchor down the system as soon as possible: First, we should introduce the system gradually, starting from the area selected, and in consideration of area specialities, refraining from the hitherto stereotyped way of providing health service. Second, we should seek to properly assign the specialists and improve the working conditions of the assigned officers by securing sufficient budget, since it is a most urgent step to lay foundation for the service area assigning system. Third, best service program should be developed to meet the satisfaction of community people by responding to their needs and solidifying the management of medical clients. Fourth, wide scope of study should further be conducted in order to help this system take roots in the central living of community residents since pilot project on the experimental base attended by specialists only can not win popularity among the masses.