Design of Infant Incubator Analyzer

Abstract

Approximately 80% of newborn babies are placed in incubators in Turkey. In the incubator, the mother's uterus is simulated and the vital parameters of the newborns are maintained. The incubator provides a noiseless environment for babies with suitable temperatures and humidity. The complete functioning of the incubator is possible only if the incubators are kept under control by preventive maintenance. The purpose of this study is to design and develop a reliable incubator analyzer that ensures the sustainability of incubators. This study presents a detailed design of an analyzer that can be used to monitor the functional parameters of the incubator by means of three different sensors controlled by an AVR Atmega32 microcontroller unit and interfaced with a liquid-crystal display. In the analyzer, temperature, humidity, and noise measurements have been targeted. DHT11 sensor performed quite well with an average error ratio of 3.54% for air temperature measurements and 1.4% for humidity. Mattress temperature sensor (LM35) had an error ratio of 2%. The sound noise sensor was able to detect measurements with an error ratio of ±20 dB. The proposed design is a preliminary prototype that needs further optimization and testing. It is believed that design recommendations generated from this study will form the basis of similar designs in the future.