A full description of the final design components can be found in the final report. A brief summary of the thermometry and alert system is offered here.
Thermometry System: Oral Thermometry, Thermistor
Oral thermometry was found to be the most practical method of measuring a football player's core body temperature. The advantages of oral temperature include the location's easy accessibility and its ability to change quickly with a change in body temperature. Despite being affected by consumption of hot or cold liquids, as well as rapid breathing, oral thermometry is less volatile than other locations. The preferred location for measurement is under the tongue[3]. For the case of a football player, a mouth guard can be used to integrate the proper technology needed to obtain an oral temperature.
Within the mouth guard, a thermistor is used to measure the core body temperature. Thermistors are resistors whose resistances vary with temperature, and sense an object's temperature by direct contact. When a temperature change occurs, the resistance changes by an expected amount, providing accuracy to within 0.1 K.
Alert System: Vibration Motor
A coin vibration motor, also known as a shaftless or pancake vibration motor, has been chosen as a player-targeted alert system for informing the athlete that the core body temperature is above the set threshold. In comparison to other methods, such as sound stimuli, visual stimuli, or alerting other people, vibration offers the most effective, direct, and safe method of alerting the player. This type of motor was chosen for its relatively flat profile, as well as the complete encapsulation of the vibration-generating eccentric mass, which is more suitable for injection mold manufacturing of the mouth guard.
Thermometry System: Oral Thermometry, Thermistor
Oral thermometry was found to be the most practical method of measuring a football player's core body temperature. The advantages of oral temperature include the location's easy accessibility and its ability to change quickly with a change in body temperature. Despite being affected by consumption of hot or cold liquids, as well as rapid breathing, oral thermometry is less volatile than other locations. The preferred location for measurement is under the tongue[3]. For the case of a football player, a mouth guard can be used to integrate the proper technology needed to obtain an oral temperature.
Within the mouth guard, a thermistor is used to measure the core body temperature. Thermistors are resistors whose resistances vary with temperature, and sense an object's temperature by direct contact. When a temperature change occurs, the resistance changes by an expected amount, providing accuracy to within 0.1 K.
Alert System: Vibration Motor
A coin vibration motor, also known as a shaftless or pancake vibration motor, has been chosen as a player-targeted alert system for informing the athlete that the core body temperature is above the set threshold. In comparison to other methods, such as sound stimuli, visual stimuli, or alerting other people, vibration offers the most effective, direct, and safe method of alerting the player. This type of motor was chosen for its relatively flat profile, as well as the complete encapsulation of the vibration-generating eccentric mass, which is more suitable for injection mold manufacturing of the mouth guard.