• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.409-415
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• 2021

Medical waste management is becoming increasingly important, specifically in light of the current COVID-19 pandemic, as hospitals, clinics, quarantine centers, and medical research institutes are generating tons of medical waste every day. Previously, a traditional incineration process was utilized for managing medical waste, but the lack of landfill sites, and accompanying environmental concerns endanger public health. Consequently, an innovative sterilization shredding system was developed to resolve this problem. In this research, we focused on the design and numerical analysis of a shredding system for hazardous and infectious medical waste, to establish its operational performance. The shredding machine's components were modeled in a CAD application, and finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted using ABAQUS software. Static, fatigue, and dynamic loading conditions were used to analyze the structural stability of the cutting blade. The blade geometry proved to be effective based on the cutting force applied to shred medical waste. The dynamic stability of the structure was verified using modal analysis. Furthermore, an S-N curve was generated using a high cycle fatigue study, to predict the expected life of the cutting blade. Resultantly, an appropriate shredder system was devised to link with a sterilization unit, which could be beneficial in reducing the volume of medical waste and disposal time, thereof, thus eliminating environmental issues, and potential health hazards.

• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.62-73
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• 2022

As the competition among the autonomous vehicle (AV, here after) developers are getting fierce, Korean government has been supporting developers by deregulating safety standards and providing financial subsidies. Recently, some OEMs announced their plans to market Lv3 and Lv4 automated driving systems. However, these market changes raised concern among public road management sectors for monitoring road conditions and alleviating hazardous conditions for AVs and human drivers. In this regards, the authors proposed a methodology for monitoring road infrastructure to identify hazardous factors for AVs and categorizing the hazards based on their level of impact. To evaluate the degrees of the harm on AVs, the authors suggested a methodology for managing road hazard factors based on vehicle performance features including vehicle body, sensors, and algorithms. Furthermore, they proposed a method providing AVs and road management authorities with potential risk information on road by delivering them on the monitoring map with node and link structure.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.581-590
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• 2022

It is important to create a decent pedestrian space in order to realize a public space that can ultimately improve the quality of life based on guaranteeing people's right to move while also enhancing urban activity. The goal of this study is to develop a pedestrian path evaluation system in order to lay the foundation for data construction leading to the creation of such elegant walking space. First, a basic system was established in keeping with factors and the space, and this system was used as the basic framework of the study. The trends identified in the literature can be divided into eight categories, denoted here as: Walking safety policy, Walking focused plan, Recognition transition, Transportaion system, Activity-linked walking, Facility utilization walking, Nature and history linked walking and Content convergence walking. The macro- and micro-indices and factors mentioned in related studies were synthesized and classified, and the basis for universality and differentiation was established by integrating them. Next, according to the basic composition of the walking system, Walking potential and slope safety in the Safety category, Basic walking connectivity and Traffic linkage in the Efficiency category, Walking arrangement and Rest convenience in the Health category, and Resource connectivity and Activity abundance in the Comfortability category macro evaluation system of the eight categories were established and a corresponding measurement method was developed.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.567-579
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to find a way to improve the hospice system to increase comfortable home death, which people prefer, by understanding the factors affecting the difference in the rate of home death between South Korea and America within the hospice system. This study employs the Most Similar Systems Design, which is a case study approach. The result of this study is that both countries have public health insurance systems that are identical in terms of the appropriate time for the receipt of hospice services and the application procedure, which requires that two doctors confirm the patient's hospice eligibility. The main difference is that in South Korea, inpatient hospice is prevalent, whereas routine home care is predominant in the United States. Furthermore, in the United States, hospice assistants and housekeepers support at-home daily living care. Additionally, the United States provides inpatient respite care to allow care-giver, such as family to rest and there is no restriction on hospice-eligible diseases. To increase the accessibility of voluntary home death in South Korea, it is necessary to activate and expand the home type hospice service range and provide at-home daily living care, care-giver support services. Furthermore, there should be no restrictions on hospice-eligible diseases.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.3-11
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• 2022

Owing to the increasing demand for electric vehicles (EVs), appropriate management of their waste batteries is required urgently for scrapped vehicles or for addressing battery aging. With respect to technological developments, data-driven diagnosis of waste EV batteries and management technologies have drawn increasing attention. Moreover, robot-based automatic dismantling technologies, which are seemingly interesting, require industrial verifications and linkages with future battery-related database systems. Among these, it is critical to develop and disseminate various advanced battery diagnosis and assessment techniques to improve the efficiency and safety/environment of the recirculation of waste batteries. Incorporation of lithium-related chemical substances in the public pollutant release and transfer register (PRTR) database as well as in-depth risk assessment of gas emissions in waste EV battery combustion and their relevant fire safety are some of the necessary steps. Further research and development thus are needed for optimizing the lifecycle management of waste batteries from various aspects related to data-based diagnosis/classification/disassembly processes as well as reuse/recycling and final disposal. The idea here is that the data should contribute to clean design and manufacturing to reduce the environmental burden and facilitate reuse/recycling in future production of EV batteries. Such optimization should also consider the future technological and market trends.

• Journal of Appropriate Technology
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.115-125
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• 2020

Housing issues such as mushrooming slums remain as chronic in most developing countries. Due to the state's restrained capacity, the housing-vulnerable's self-help approaches have been increasingly inevitable and vital for addressing the housing issues. However, there are still two challenges: securing good quality with economic efficiency, and climate change mitigation and adaptation. This study aims at doing an architectural experiment by developing and educating the production of eco-friendly interlocking stabilized soil bricks (ISSB) by employing vernacular materials and technologies for housing-vulnerable communities in Indonesia. In collaboration with a local architectural NGO, the study features a co-creation workshop in which 40 evicted households participate in the whole process. Soil analysis, mixed design, compression tests, and economic analysis are carried out. This paper illustrates that ISSB also has a high potential as an alternative to a burned brick or a cement block. The application of ISSB to self-help housing is expected to have socioeconomic and environmental effects, thereby facilitating the housing-vulnerable's self-help approaches and contributing to addressing the housing challenges in Indonesia.

• Journal of the Society of Disaster Information
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.638-649
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• 2020

Purpose: The objective of this study is to evaluate the load carrying capacity of a target bridge structure based on the simple slab bridge of concrete over 20 years of public service. Method: By performing static loading test and dynamic loading test, the displacement, strain, impact factor, and natural frequency values were measured and evaluated through analysis method. Result: The main results of this study are as follows. First, the maximum displacement and maximum strain of S1 were assessed at 2.917 mm and 44.720 𝜇ε( tensile) and -13.760 𝜇ε(compression), respectively, with S2 maximum displacement and maximum strain being 2.100 mm and 4.870 𝜇ε(tensile), respectively. Second, the maximum measured impact factor was 0.191 in section S1 A-A, and the maximum measured impact factor was 0.155 in section S2 C-C. Third, the natural frequency was assessed at 6.086 Hz, and the measurement was found to be within the range of 6.152 Hz to 6.738 Hz. Conclusion: The tested bridge may be evaluated to show good behavior and characteristics for the design load.

• Journal of People, Plants, and Environment
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.403-413
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• 2021

Background and objective: There is growing concern about the effects of modern society on mental health, coming with Covid-19-related caveats on depression, anxiety, and stress (DAS). This can be a subject to provide alternative methods which alleviate DAS. In line with this context, sensory gardens are widely acknowledged to stimulate the five major senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell) and can have a significant (positive) impact on mental health. However, there is limited empirical evidence on the effect of these gardens with regard to alleviating DAS - particularly with respect to urban society This is a gab in knowledge how such limits can be addressed. Accordingly, this present study is clearly needed in order to verify if there are any correlations between sensory gardens and (positive) effects on DAS. The aim of this study was therefore to understand current levels of DAS in a high density building with a sensory garden in a courtyard and determine correlations between experiences in the sensory courtyard and levels of DAS. Methods: The Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) was employed to test the level of DAS. Results: Additionally, 13 different factors associated with experiences in the building, including the stimulation of the five major senses in the sensory courtyard, were measured to reveal their contribution to mitigating depression, anxiety, and stress. It is noted that the average levels of DAS were 7.91, 7.77 and 9.01 respectively indicating that the mental health of participants requires mental health management. However, results show that factors associated with the sensory courtyard could improve mental health. For example, new social relationships, walking with colleagues, and the stimulation of each of the five major senses in the sensory garden could improve DAS. Conclusion: This illustrates that external experiences are more effective at mitigating depression, anxiety, and stress than internal ones. Factor analysis revealed four components: stimulating the five senses; internal and external facilities; internet-based device use; and new social relationships. There was a strong positive correlation between new social relationships and walking with colleagues. There were also strong positive correlations among the stimulation of each of the five senses. In conclusion, there are strong indications that sensory courtyards can help alleviate DAS and should therefore be promoted, particularly in the current Covid-19 situation wherein the physical and mental health of the public at large are threatened. Accordingly, courtyard design should be rethought in light of the relationship between the positive impact of sensory gardens and mental health.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.94-101
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• 2021

According to the Facility Management System (FMS) operated by the Korea Authority of Land & Infrastructure Safety, it is expected that the number of aging facilities that have been in use for more than 30 years will increase rapidly to 13.9% in 2019 and 34.5% in 2929, and end up with a social problem. In addition, with the revision of "Common Application of Seismic Design Criteria" by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security in 2017, it is mandatory to re-evaluate all existing road facilities and if necessary seismic reinforcement should be done to minimize the magnitude of earthquake damage and perform normal road functions. The seismic performance management-decision support technology currently used in seismic performance management practice in Korea only determines the earthquake-resistance reinforcement priority based on the qualitative index value for the seismic performance of individual facilities. However with this practice, normal traffic functions cannot be guaranteed. A new seismic performance management decision support technology that can provide various judgment data required for decision making is needed to overcome these shortcomings and better perform seismic performance management from a road network perspective.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.99-106
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• 2023

This study measured the signal intensity (SI) of the hippocampus in relation to memory via fMRI analysis of 3 types of radiology symbols, 3 types of nuclear medicine symbols, and 3 types of oncology symbols among the most commonly employed medical symbols in hospitals. The following are the conclusions of the study. result of analyzing the SI values for symbol 1, symbol 2, and symbol 3 of the radiology, nuclear medicine, and oncology departments, symbol 3 had the highest SI value (1.72 ± 0.56) in radiology, symbol 2 had the highest SI value (1.69 ± 0.64) in nuclear medicine, and symbol 2 had the highest SI value (1.64 ± 0.63) in oncology. The overall mean of radiology, nuclear medicine, and oncology symbols was 1.62 ± 0.60 for nuclear medicine, 1.61 ± 0.59 for oncology, and 1.49 ± 0.49 for radiology. According to the overall SI measurement results, symbol 3 in radiology, symbol 2 in nuclear medicine, and symbol 2 in oncology were confirmed to have high SI values. If symbols with high SI values are used in a hospital, it is believed to be beneficial for navigating in any hospital.