Research Proposal For Vacuum Cleaning Machine

Literature Review

Discuss about the Research Proposal for Vacuum Cleaning Machine.

In our daily lives, people are exposed to dust from various sources, including dust from wind found in the air and dust generated from human activity. As people move around, their footwear collects dust and this dust is transported to other locations, creating new hazards, especially inside enclosed buildings and spaces such as houses, schools, hospitals, and offices (Sing and Sing, 2010).  Dust is considered a health hazard according to occupational health and safety bodies, such as the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS).  This is because dust particles suspended in the air find their way into human lungs, in addition to settling on surfaces and equipment, creating further hazards, and discomfort to users.  When people breathe in dust, it goes to the lungs, which are constantly exposed to danger from dust that people breathe in (CCOHS, 2018). While the lungs have a defense mechanism against dust and other particles, too much dust can cause irritation and find their way into the windpipe and into the bronchi and bronchioles, causing irritation, some diseases (depending on the source and type of dust), and can cause diseases if the dust is carrying disease causing pathogens (‘Kent Systems’, 2018).  Apart from health concerns, dust settles on surfaces, creating dirt and can adversely affect sensitive equipment such as microscopes, and other running machinery. The normal approach to solving foot dust problems is cleaning floor surfaces every now and then, especially in places like schools and offices (Vallero, 2014).

This creates an additional hazard of slipping from wet floors and requires human labor and machinery to keep floors and other surfaces clean. Yet it is possible to clean off foot dust before one enters a building or space, by having an automatic foot dust cleaner installed at entrances.  This will not only reduce dust in buildings, but save time and costs associated with cleaning floors and surfaces (Tinley, Eddy and Collier, 2014). This paper is a research proposal to develop an automatic, mechanical foot dust cleaning machine to use for such purposes.  Following this introduction, the paper undertakes a detailed literature review on the subject area and evaluates past related research. This is then followed by the development of a research question and objectives/ goals that will guide the rest of the research.  A theoretical concept is then developed and an experimental setup designed to test the proposed equipment. The paper then discusses the kind of data and results that will be used, and their relevance, before developing a scheduled plan for undertaking the proposed research.  A conclusion is then made at the end and an abstract to give a brief picture of the entire proposal developed.

According to the European Commission (2012), there is no precise scientific meaning of ‘dust’; it however is defined as a solid that has been broken into fine particles/ powder. The particle size is equally as important as the nature of that dust in establishing if it is hazardous; the smaller the size of the dust particles, the more dangerous and hazardous they are, because the defense mechanisms in lungs may be unable to stop them earlier in their journey when they are breathed in (Mercola, 2018). Further, very small dust particles are invisible to the human eye, such as fine powders because they are small such that they can be inhaled, but large in that they can get trapped inside lung tissue in a way that they cannot be exhaled.  Some materials, such as asbestos, produce large particles of dust that are coarse and are also highly dangerous.  Apart from the physical hazards caused by dust, the more serious effects of dust is that it can be a carrier for all sorts of pathogens, including disease causing bacteria, fungi, and even viruses. Dust in an average home in the US, for instance, contains over 5000 bacteria species and over 2000 fungi species (Barberán et al., 2015).  Indoor dust contains compounds that can bind themselves to, and cause the activation of PPAR-GAMMA; a substance involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, fat metabolism, and cell death. 

Even at low levels of exposure, dust containing materials such as fire retardants and other chemicals can result in adverse health effects in children (klepeis et al., 2001).  People spend a significant amount of their daily lives in enclosed spaces; either at work, at home, or in a transport vehicle, or even in a commercial/ common building such as a supermarket or hospital. This means that people could be breathing indoor air almost 85 to 90% of the time in their lifetimes.  The levels of pollutants found in dust in indoor environments are usually high, up to two to five times higher than would be found in surrounding outdoor areas.  A major contributor to the high number f pollutants is house dust, which is more often than not, regarded as an aesthetic issue, rather than a health problem/ hazard. A vast number of microbes are found on dust, with dust in an average US home, based on research, containing 2000 different fungi and 3000 different bacteria (Mercola, 2018).

Most people nowadays wear shoes, or some form of footwear; the soles of these shoes and footwear are possible vectors for a variety of infectious disease vectors Environmental fomites and surfaces are important components in the transmission of infections associated with human health. One of the common fomites for dynamic infections transmission is shoes and footwear, for instance, those worn by healthcare personnel, visitors, workers in a factory plant, or patients (Rashid et al., 2016).  Their movement means they become an instant mechanism by such dust and its associated pathogens are carried from one place to another.  Research has shown that bacteria redistributed to the air from medical operating rooms accounted for about 15% of all the airborne bacteria. Walking on floors that are contaminated is an effective manner by which pathogens are dispersed to the air, much more effective than sweeping or mopping. In society, research shows that nearly 40% of shoes are contaminated by the toxic Clostridium (Clostridium difficile), according to Alam et al (2014). In a research study, ten participants were provide with new shoes to use, and on testing the shoes after two weeks of usage,  results showed over 420000 bacteria units were found on the outer soles of the shoes used in the test (Maloney, 2018).

27% of the bacteria found on the shoes was the deadly E Coli; others found include Klebsiela pneumonia that can cause infections to the blood stream, and Serratia ficaria, that can cause respiratory tract infections.  The large amount of E Coli found in shoe soles shows frequent fecal matter contact that is likely from restroom floors. As the people move around, the bacteria in their shoe soles mixes with dust, and because of the walking motion, causes these to be transmitted to the air, creating further airborne disease risks. A proposed method to reduce colonization of pathogens on floors was the use of UVC (Ultraviolet C) by delivering germicidal UVC radiation to the soles of shoes. This was in recognition of the fact that shoe soles are not only dust vectors, but vectors of disease causing pathogens. The device weas tested experimentally with three bacterial strains (Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escheridia Coli). Further, nontoxic Clostridium difficile strain was also spiked onto shoes: one sample of shoes was exposed to UVC radiation while the other sample was not treated. This was an experimental test to establish whether the UVC device could kill disease causing pathogens in shoe soles. The results of the experiment established that UVC treatment significantly reduced the pathogens found in the shoe soles; further, floor contamination was further decreased for all the pathogen species tested (Rashid et al., 2018).

Shoes are not only carriers for bacteria, but also breeding grounds for bacteria and can contain upwards of 400000 bacteria, posing a serious health hazard to others. Further, bacteria are able to survive for much longer on shoe soles, while shoes pick up toxins easily. These toxins, along with dust and pathogens are then transmitted by the shoes to buildings, including hospitals and schools, further posing more health risks.  As such, it is important that shoes are cleaned, using appropriate means and methods. In manufacturing plants where any dust cannot be tolerated, clean room technologies have been adopted; clean room technology is a central component of high tech manufacturing. The clean rooms are achieved through the use of various small electro mechanical and mechanical devices’ which have themselves brought further problems of dirt and dust. Some industries use very high tech and high cost air filtration systems to remove all forms of dust from rooms (Holbrook, 2009). An automated shoe sole cleaning machine, mated with a shoe shiner has been proposed and developed by Sreenivas and Gouda (2013). The machine is an electromechanical device was designed with portability and ease of use in mind, to not only remove dust for a clean, dust free work environment, but also to keep shoes shinny.

However, on further analysis, this design only looks at office shoes where shoes need to be polished; it does not fully address the issue of keeping environments dust free by cleaning all kinds and types of shoes. Another design was proposed by Vaibhav et al. (2017) to clean the shoes and also polish them, with an automatic ink dispenser. The limitation of this approach, on further review, is that it is focused on shoe cleaning as an aesthetic exercise, with a focus on shoes that require ink/ polish, such as black or brown office shoes. Rajath et al. (2015) designed and developed roller bearing mechanism based shoe cleaner developed on a four legged steel frame to support the weight of users; the design was based on a vacuum pump with a blower and a sprayer with four independent shafts mounted on ball bearings and welded to the steel frame. The cleaner had nylon roller shafts mounted on the shafts and cleaning was achieved by the rotary action of the nylon brush. The equipment was then covered using steel sheets and two vents for the vacuum and blower provided, to suck in the dust as it is physically removed from the shoes.  The machine worked with a micro controller inbuilt into a circuit board for automatic operation; the cleaner was designed for semi-automatic operation. Once a user places their foot over the platform between the rollers, an actuator motor is set off through a push start button rotating at between 500 and 600 rotations per minute.

The primary shaft is mounted on the main rotor with the rollers being chain driven; the operation works by the nylon rollers brushing off dust from the shoes for fifteen seconds and the impure dust/ air mixture is then sucked off through the vacuum chamber that crates a partial vacuum. This achieves two goals of removing dust and dirty air from the shoe; both the removal of dust and impure air occur concurrently. At the final stage, a motor driven fan blows fresh air and deodorizes the users’ feet. The total operation lasts thirty seconds of less with the brushes rolling through all the stages.  This is a novel design that also achieves the goal of deodorizing and removal of dust from the shoes, while sucking out bad odor from the shoes in a single tandem operation. The ideas and machines developed by the previous researchers are commendable and honest efforts at ensuring feet dust is removed from shoes as people walk in and out of the building. This paper proposes an improved novel machine that will achieve the triple functions of removing dust from feet, keeping the air fresh by sucking out the odor from shoes, while also attaining a significant kill of bacterial and other pathogens found in the shoes, especially the shoe soles. This proposed research aspires to develop an automated system with infrared sensors, rather than a push button operated machine that efficiently removes dust from shoes while killing pathogens using UVC and sucking out the removed dust through a vacuum pump.

The aim of this proposed research is the development of an automatic feet dust cleaning and disinfecting machine, which will work based on the question;

• Can inner air quality be enhanced through the use of a foot dust cleaner and disinfectant to have clean rooms devoid of dust and pathogens associated with the dust particles?

The aims of this research and answering the research question are to be achieved by attaining the following objectives;

• To evaluate existing designs for feet cleaning machines and then generate a general idea and design for the proposed machine
• To justify the need for the machine by reviewing existing literature on the harms and dangers carried in feet dust
• To conceptualize a suitable machine to solve the problem of shoe dust
• Develop the machine based on an optimal design, with durability, ease of use, and automated operation with low energy consumption
• Test the developed machine prototype for functionality and efficiency and refine the design
• Finalize the design and develop a working machine and test to meet stated cleaning criteria

The theories underlying this proposed research include infrared vision and its underlying theory in which artificial and biological systems are able to detect infra-red radiation through thermal imaging and thermal vision. The design will also be based on the disk actuator theory which is a mathematical model described on the basis of an actuator disc where the aspects of momentum will be used to practically make brushes automatically clean shoes as soon as a shoe is detected by the system.  Based on these systems, the proposed research will be conducted using an experimental research design in which the machine is developed and then tested in an experimental setup, with the aim of meeting performance objectives.

The machine will be developed with individual components with a DC motor used to achieve kinetic motion of the nylon brushes and for the functioning of the vacuum. An ultraviolet light obtained from a UV tube light will be fixed horizontally to help achieve pathogen decimation/ inactivation when the machine is in operation. Steel frames and plates will be used for mounting the machine on rotary shafts with ball bearings mounted for smooth motion. The system will be designed using automatic computer aided design and the model tested and the functioning simulated, with any problems noted and rectified during the design phase. After that, a prototype will be assembled and tested to remove 96% of dust from a shoe, by spraying a test shoe with a specific amount of dust and then walking across the cleaner, and the collected dust in the vacuum weighted. Further, tests will be done by infusing the shoe soles with E coli culture and then the soles will be tested for presence of E coli bacteria to test the functioning of the UV system.  The data will be used to adjust design, including rotor speed to ensure the whole process takes 30 seconds or less and ensures 96% dust removal and 90% pathogen killing.  The vacuum cleaner will operate based on the Venturi effect and works using the Bernoulli principle which posits that as the air speed increases, the pressure drops. This drop in pressure causes air to flow from a high pressure region to a low pressure region; a fan in the vacuum will forces air towards the exit. The expected evacuation time for the vacuum pump is 3 seconds for an enclosed evacuated volume of 1 cubic meters of air. With 500 mbar pressure, the vacuum flow apacity is computed from the formula

t = V / q ln(p0 / p1)

Where V is enclosed evacuated volume in cubic meters, t is evacuation time, q is vacuum volume flow rate capacity, p₀ is initial pressure and p₁ is end vacuum pressure. Substituting, a vacuum flow rate of 0.25 m³ per second is required.

The design of the system is as shown below; when one walks into the cleaner, an infrared sensor senses their presence and activates the rollers with nylon brushes to start rotating and turns on the UV light bulb that shines across the device. The motor supplies the rotating rollers with power; after a small delay (1 s), the vacuum pump is also activated; it sucks the dust from the brushes. The vacuum has a filter and a dust bag that can be removed. When the person exits the cleaner, the infra red sensor detects this and brings the cleaner t standby mode, with the vacuum and rollers as well as the UV light bulb turned to off.

Where

V1    =    line-to-neutral terminal voltage.  The phase windings are considered to be in a Y configuration.

r1   =   stator resistance per phase

x1   =   stator leakage reactance per phase

r2   =   rotor resistance referred to the stator, per phase

x2   =   rotor leakage reactance referred to the stator, per phase

xm   =  a shunt reactance supplied to provide a path for the magnetizing component of the current flowing in the stator

The DC resistance test, the Blocked-rotor test, and the No-load tests will be undertaken in the lab, as well as the vacuum efficiency which is governed by the equation

eff_p = (P₂-P₁) x Q/ 2298 x kW x eff_m

where P₂ is discharge pressure in Psi, P₁ is suction pressure, Q is the gpm, eff_m is the electric motor efficiency, and kW the power of the motor in kilowatts

The experimental data collected for shoe/ feet cleaning and pathogen kills will be used to determine if the designed machine can meet functional requirements, including the ability to carry weight of people, and operate with low power consumption. The noise from the operation of the cleaner will also be measured to ensure it operates as quietly as possible and does not adversely create noise that can be disturbing in area of operation. All components used for the design will be specified to ensure optimal operation of the cleaning machine

The exercise will be undertaken using project management principles and methodologies; specifically, an agile framework will be used in developing and testing the machine to ensure no resources are wasted and that objectives are met. The work breakdown structure (WBS) and Gantt chart developed below will guide the execution of the project

Conclusions

Dust is considered a health hazard according to occupational health and safety bodies, such as the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS). The smaller the size of the dust particles, the more dangerous and hazardous they are, because the defense mechanisms in lungs may be unable to stop them earlier in their journey when they are breathed in. The aim of this proposed research is the development of an automatic feet dust cleaning and disinfecting machine, which will work based on the question;

Can inner air quality be enhanced through the use of a foot dust cleaner and disinfectant to have clean rooms devoid of dust and pathogens associated with the dust particles?

The theories underlying this proposed research include infrared vision and its underlying theory in which artificial and biological systems are able to detect infra-red radiation through thermal imaging and thermal vision.  An experimental research design will be used to design the system using Auto CAD and then develop a prototype to be tested and refined based on a set performance criteria

References

Barberán, A., Dunn, R., Reich, B., Pacifici, K., Laber, E., Menninger, H., Morton, J., Henley, J., Leff, J., Miller, S. and Fierer, N. (2015). The ecology of microscopic life in household dust.Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 282(1814), p.20151139.

CCOHS (2018). What are the Effects of Dust on the Lungs? : OSH Answers. [online] Ccohs.ca. Available at: https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/lungs_dust.html [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

‘European Commission’ (2012). Health and safety: Dust and nanoparticles – SAMANCTA. [online] Ec.europa.eu. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/dds2/SAMANCTA/EN/Safety/Dust_EN.htm [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Holbrook, D. (2009). Controlling contamination: the origins of clean room technology. History and Technology, 25(3), pp.173-191.

‘Kent Systems’ (2018). 4 Reasons you Need to Use a Shoe Sole Cleaner for your Home. [online] Kent.co.in. Available at: https://www.kent.co.in/blog/4-reasons-a-shoe-sole-cleaner-is-an-absolute-necessity-for-your-home/ [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Klepeis, N., Nelson, W., Ott, W., Robinson, J., Tsang, A., Switzer, P., Behar, J., Hern, S. and Engelmann, W. (2001). The National Human Activity Pattern Survey (NHAPS): a resource for assessing exposure to environmental pollutants. Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology, 11(3), pp.231-252.

Maloney, A. and Maloney, A. (2018). Why it’s not OK to wear shoes inside.. and 4 other gross facts about carpets. [online] The Sun. Available at: https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/5327634/this-is-why-you-should-never-wear-shoes-in-your-home/ [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Mercola, D. (2018). What Dangers Are Lurking in Your Household Dust?. [online] Mercola.com. Available at: https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/09/12/household-dust-danger.aspx [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Rajath, S., Yashas, N., Pothnis, B., Gowda, D. and Vanishree, T. (2015). Design And Fabrication Of Feet Dust Removal And Deodorizing Machine. nternational Journal of Informative & Futuristic Research, [online] 2(11). Available at: https://www.ijifr.com/pdfsave/31-07-2015676V2-E11-069.pdf [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Rashid, T., VonVille, H., Hasan, I. and Garey, K. (2016). Shoe soles as a potential vector for pathogen transmission: a systematic review. Journal of Applied Microbiology, [online] 121(5), pp.1223-1231. Available at: https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/2c41/830f2f8f25265bd031d4eb59072fcff09c1c.pdf [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Rashid, T., Poblete, K., Amadio, J., Hasan, I., Begum, K., Alam, M. and Garey, K. (2018). Evaluation of a shoe sole UVC device to reduce pathogen colonization on floors, surfaces and patients. Journal of Hospital Infection, 98(1), pp.96-101.

Sing, D. and Sing, C. (2010). Impact of Direct Soil Exposures from Airborne Dust and Geophagy on Human Health. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, [online] 7(3), pp.1205-1223. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2872320/ [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Sreenivas, H. and Gouda, S. (2013). Design of Shoe Sole Cleaning with Polishing Machine. International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology, [online] 2(9). Available at: https://www.ijirset.com/upload/september/78_Design.pdf [Accessed 5 Jun. 2018].

Tinley, P., Eddy, K. and Collier, P. (2014). Contaminants in human nail dust: an occupational hazard in podiatry?. Journal of Foot and Ankle Research, 7(1).

Vaibhav, P., Ganesh, L., Yogesh, B., Avinash, B. and Wasnik, M. (2017). Design and development of automatic shoe cleaning and polishing machine with liquid spraying shoe ink.International Journal of Modern Trends in Engineering & Research, [online] 4(10), pp.104-106. Available at: https://www.ijmter.com/papers/volume-4/issue-10/design-and-development-of-automatic-shoe-cleaning-and-polishing-machine-with-liquid-spraying-shoe-ink.pdf.

Vallero, D. (2014). Respiratory Effects of Air Pollutants. Fundamentals of Air Pollution, pp.247-256.

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