During the 16th INTARG International Trade Fair of Inventions and Innovations 2023 in May in Katowice, Silesian University of Technology researchers delivered a series of impressive solutions and were among the top awardees. In addition to numerous medals, they won the Diamond and Platinum awards of the Fair.
All inventions respond to current economic and environmental needs. And above all – they are in a state of readiness for implementation in our industry.
TRANSMITTING LAMPS
Two solutions from the Department of Automation, Electronics and Computer Science seem particularly promising. A system of autonomous VIS/UV-C lamps with sensors for adaptation of operating conditions and wireless transmission of measurement and control data was prepared by a team under the direction of Dr. hab. Eng. Dariusz Choinsky. The system is designed for industrial hall applications. It consists of VIS (visible light)/UV-C (ultraviolet radiation in the range of 200-280 nm) lamps, radiation sensors for determining lighting conditions. It is used for disinfection and detection of movement of people and machines working with lamps and wireless communication modules operating in the unlicensed band of the ZigBee standard, transmitting measurement data and controlling lamps, sensors and the central unit. The wireless network operates in a mesh topology, ensuring, through the use of routing algorithms, self-organization, long operating range and transmission reliability. Communication is based on a commonly used industrial protocol in the application layer without wires. The range between stations is up to 100 meters, and automatic routing allows other stations to take over transmissions in the absence of direct contact between sender and receiver. During the development of the invention, the biocidal effect was studied experimentally. Aerosols with bacteria were exposed to UV-C lamps. The effect of radiation was determined by a fluorescence test that distinguishes between live and dead bacteria. The system received INTARG’s Diamond Award.
MARRIAGE OF HEAT AND COLD
The Platinum Award went to the Autonomous Control System for Heat Generation and Distribution Processes Providing Improved Energy Efficiency and Production Efficiency. The project was developed by the team of Dr. Eng. Michal Frątczak, which received funding from the National Center for Research and Development as part of the prestigious LIDER XII competition. It is a solution involving an intelligent control system for heat generation and distribution processes located in the cloud. It significantly improves energy efficiency and production capacity wherever there are intensive heating and cooling systems in parallel, so mainly in the food and chemical industries. The heating system produces usable heat, while the cooling system, as it is known, emits it to the outside. Proper control of the cooperation of these systems saves significant amounts of energy.
IMPLANT FOREVER FAITHFUL
From the Department of Mechanical and Technological Engineering comes a Method of producing a TiAu layer with anti-corrosion properties for technical and biomedical applications, by M.Sc. Eng. Octavian Bialas, and Dr. hab. Eng. Marcin Adamiak, awarded the Gold Medal and the Award of the President of the Supreme Technical Organization. Cardiac assist devices, clips for embolization of brain aneurysms or valves are commonly known and used devices. However, they are a foreign body in the body and carry a serious risk of complications. The idea, then, is that the implants should put as little strain on the patient as possible – even allowing unlimited MRI scans. This invention will meet such expectations by enriching the implant material (usually a titanium alloy) with a thin layer of gold, melted with the help of a laser beam. Laser alloying is key to ensuring the durability of the solution and enables control of surface topography. It also allows for the delivery of the precise amount of energy needed to form a coating with the right phase composition. The resulting multilayer coating, due to the presence of a unique Ti3Auphase, will have better biotolerance, a lower risk of patient thrombosis, which can cause ischemic heart disease, strokes and even death. It will also allow an increase in abrasion resistance and hardness, which are important for long-term use. The use of titanium-gold element pairs also reduces interference during magnetic resonance imaging, which will allow accurate imaging at high magnetic induction values.
Zygmunt Jazukiewicz
Other interesting and award-winning solutions of the WB are Special mobile device designed for people with disabilitiesfrom the Department of Biomedical Engineering, and the Department of Organization and Management) ( Silver Medal, Award of the Polish Chamber of Patent Attorneys),
Optomechanical transducer for measuring the degree of expansion joint on gas transmission pipelines (joint work of several teams from different departments on behalf of Gas Transmission Operator GAZ SYSTEM S.A.) – Gold Medal, WIPO National Award for Creativity for HIGH TRL,
Method of producing porous oxide films on aluminum containing polymeric corrosion inhibitors (Department of Chemistry) – Silver Medal,
Innovative autonomous, adaptive and multi-purpose heating and cooling platform with a low carbon footprint (Department of Transportation and Aeronautical Engineering) – Silver Medal.
