Since microorganisms are evolving rapidly, there is a growing need for a new, fast, and precise technique to analyse blood samples and distinguish healthy from pathological samples. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy can provide information related to the biochemical composition and how it changes when a pathological state arises. FTIR spectroscopy has undergone rapid development over the last decades with a promise of easier, faster, and more impartial diagnoses within the biomedical field. However, thus far only a limited number of studies have addressed the use of FTIR spectroscopy in this field. This paper describes the main concepts related to FTIR and presents the latest research focusing on FTIR spectroscopy technology and its integration in lab-on-a-chip devices and their applications in the biological field. This review presents the potential use of FTIR to distinguish between healthy and pathological samples, with examples of early cancer detection, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) detection, and routine blood analysis, among others. Finally, the study also reflects on the features of FTIR technology that can be applied in a lab-on-a-chip format and further developed for small healthcare devices that can be used for point-of-care monitoring purposes. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no other published study has reviewed these topics. Therefore, this analysis and its results will fill this research gap.

Nowadays ubiquitous technology can be a suitable way to motivate and engage children in interactive learning activities in order to promote their cognitive and social skills. Technologies, like augmented reality (AR), have the ability to catch the children's imagination and to promote their attention, as they can experiment artificial, safe and fascinating environments. Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) usually have difficulty to recognize facial expressions and to understand the associated emotions. Regarding that, an innovative GameBook to assist children with ASD to recognize and acquire emotions by engaging their attention and motivation was developed. The aim is to promote the interaction between the child/story teller and his/her imagination as well as it will help the child to identify the correct emotional face to the situation. It can be played on any mobile device, such as a tablet, a smartphone or a laptop, with either an external or an inbuilt camera. We also intend to observe the impact of the game on children interaction, as well as to quantity and evaluate their performance, assess the usability of the technology, and evaluate how it affects the child emotion reactions and the benefits it offers.

A method to measure variations in yarn diameter using coherent optical signal processing based on a single photodiode plus additional electronics is described. The approach enables us to quantify yarn irregularities associated with diameter variations which are linearly correlated with yarn mass variations. A robust method of system auto-calibration, eliminating the need for a temperature and humidity controlled environment, is also demonstrated. Two yarns that span the diameter ranges commonly used in the textile industry were used to verify the system linearity and ascertain its resolution. The results obtained have been verified using image analysis. Moreover, a diameter characterization was performed under real-world conditions for three types of yarns and a correlation with capacitive measurements is also presented. The system with sensitivity of 0.034 V/mm² is able to detect minute variations of yarn diameter and characterize irregularities starting at very low thresholds (commercial systems generally characterize variations of 30% or greater relative to the average value).