Progress Report, Week 4: October 4th

This week we ran into some new more innovative if far reaching ideas. Pursuing these ideas seemed to displace a few of the goals we set for ourselves last week. Below Mo delineates:

• Employ sound vibrations to generate a light source
  • Vibrations are essentially responsible for the movement of atoms. Sound vibrations eventually break up causing atoms to no longer move in unison but rather in a random manner. This principle as we know it is solely responsible for heat. The idea here is to use the vibrations coming from the Korotokoff sounds to heat up a filament so as to cause an incandescent. This function, if it works, will allow us to visually detect high and low BP. The intensity of the light (which will have to be amplified) will directly correlate with BP readings. 
• Light source can be used to excite light sensitive molecules
  • Given a light source we are now able to excite molecules that are sensitive to light. When light particles (photons) hit these molecules their energy states will increase. The molecule  will respond by trying to bring down its energy state back to its ground state. In the process fluorescence will be emitted. Each molecule will require different activation energy and will emit a different color. Each of the colors can correspond to a range of BPs. Molecules that are sensitive to vibrations should also be looked into o When a molecule senses a mechanical vibration of a certain frequency it will luminescence. We need to find out if such molecules do exist.
• Filament Properties
  • Currently being investigated

We see the project as possibly spinning off into two subprojects. To suit EWH a very simple design might be preferable over a more complicated design with higher accuracy. However, this is yet to be determined.

Testing protocols can be designed and executed in a lab. We will need to be testing all of the technical requirements/specifications, such as how much pressure the system we design can take, what humidity levels might throw off the accuracy, if the principles outlined above are physically possible with the low signal we are dealing with, and so on.

This next week we will continue to pursue feasible designs that fit the customer needs.