1. A monitoring device, comprising:
a. a power source;
b. wireless communication equipment; and
c. at least one sensor or sensing system utilizing microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology that consumes less than 500 \u03bcW of power;
wherein data gathered from the at least one sensor or sensing system is transferred by the wireless communication equipment to a central communication hub.
2. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor or sensing system utilizing MEMS technology comprises at least one vital sign sensor.
3. The monitoring device of claim 2, wherein the at least one vital sign sensor senses a vital sign selected from the group consisting of heart rate, body temperature, respiration rate, blood pressure, pulse oximetry and any combination thereof.
4. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor or sensing system utilizing MEMS technology comprises at least one gas sensor.
5. The monitoring device of claim 4, wherein the at least one gas sensor senses a gas selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, chlorine, ozone, diesel particulates, gasoline fumes, ethanol and combinations thereof.
6. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensor or sensing system utilizing MEMS technology comprises at least one surrounding environmental condition sensor.
7. The monitoring device of claim 6, wherein the at least one surrounding environmental condition sensor senses a surrounding environmental condition selected from the group consisting of temperature, pressure, radiation, moisture and combinations thereof.
8. The monitoring device of claim 1, further comprising at least one of an audible alarm, a visual alarm andor a tactile alarm.
9. The monitoring device of claim 1, further comprising an integrated global positioning system.
10. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein the monitoring device is incorporated on or within an earpiece or can be worn on or around the face or human body.
11. The monitoring device of claim 10, wherein the at least one sensor or sensing system utilizing MEMS technology comprises a vital sign sensor designed for contact with an ear.
12. The monitoring device of claim 11, further comprising at least one hazardous gas sensor or sensing system utilizing MEMS technology.
13. The monitoring device of claim 11, further comprising at least one surrounding environmental condition sensor or sensing system utilizing MEMS technology that results in a sensor with less that 500 uW power.
14. A method of monitoring personnel comprising use of the monitoring device as claimed in claim 1.
15. The method of claim 10, wherein the monitoring comprises vital sign monitoring.
16. The method of claim 10, wherein the monitoring comprises hazardous gas monitoring.
17. The method of claim 10, wherein the monitoring comprises surrounding environmental conditions monitoring.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. A composite substrate, comprising a substrate; an electrode layer embedded in the substrate in such a manner that the electrode layer and the substrate are in one plane; and an insulating layer formed on the surface of a composite of the substrate and the electrode layer.
2. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer comprises a dielectric having a dielectric constant of 1000 or more.
3. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer contains barium titanate as a main component.
4. The composite substrate according to claim 3, wherein the insulating layer further contains, as a secondary component, at least one selected from the group consisting of magnesium oxide, manganese oxide, tungsten oxide, calcium oxide, zirconium oxide, niobium oxide, cobalt oxide, yttrium oxide and barium oxide.
5. The composite substrate according to claim 3, wherein the insulating layer contains, as a secondary component, at least one selected from the group consisting of SiO2, MO, Li2O and B2O3, wherein M is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Mg, Ca, Sr, and Ba.
6. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer contains barium titanate as a main component and at least one secondary component selected from the group consisting of magnesium oxide, manganese oxide, yttrium oxide, barium oxide and calcium oxide, and silicon oxide as secondary components; and wherein the content of magnesium oxide in terms of MgO is 0.1 to 3 moles, that of manganese oxide in terms of MnO is 0.05 to 1.0 mole, that of yttrium oxide in terms of Y2O3 is not more than 1 mole, that of barium oxide in terms of BaO and calcium oxide in terms of CaO is 2 to 12 moles, and that of silicon oxide in terms of SiO2 is 2 to 12 moles, based on 100 moles of barium titanate in terms of BaTiO3.
7. The composite substrate according to claim 3, wherein the total content of BaO, CaO and SiO2 in terms of (BaxCa1xO)ySiO2 is 1 to 10 wt. % based on the total content of BaTiO3, MgO, MnO and Y2O3, wherein x satisfies 0.3×0.7, and y satisfies 0.95y1.05.
8. The composite substrate according to claim 1, which is a thick film obtained by sintering the laminate formed by the use of a sheet-forming process or a print process.
9. The composite substrate according to claim 1, which is obtained by forming a functional film on the insulating layer, and then heating the functional film at a temperature of from 600 C. to a sintering temperature of the substrate or less.
10. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein the substrate and the insulating layer each comprise the same composition.
11. The composite substrate according to claim 9, wherein said functional film is from 800 C. to 1,500 C.
12. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein said substrate comprises a glass material in a range of about 20 to 30 wt. % based on the substrate material.
13. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein said substrate has a thickness of from about 1 to 5 mm.
14. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein said electrode layer contains a glass frit as an underlayer thereof, thereby increasing adhesion of the electrode layer to the substrate.
15. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer comprises composite titanium oxides, titanium-based composite oxides, and mixtures thereof.
16. The composite substrate according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer has a thickness of 100 m or less.
17. The composite substrate according to claim 16, wherein the insulating layer has a thickness of 2 to 20 m.
18. A thin film EL device, comprising the composite substrate in claim 1, and a luminescent layer, another insulating layer and another electrode layer formed successively on the composite substrate.
19. The thin film EL device according to claim 18, wherein the electrode layer comprises at least one element selected from the group consisting of Ag, Au, Pd, Pt, Cu, Ni, W, Mo, Fe and Co, at least one alloy selected from the group consisting of AgPd, NiMn, NiCr, NiCo and NiAl alloys.
20. A process for producing a thin film EL device, comprising:
a) forming a first insulating layer precursor on a film sheet having a flat surface by a thick-film production process;
b) forming a first patterned electrode layer precursor thereon;
c) forming a substrate precursor thereon, subjecting the laminate to a binder-removing treatment and sintering it to obtain a composite substrate having the first electrode layer and the first insulating layer formed on the substrate; and
d) further laminating a luminescent layer, a second insulating layer and a second electrode layer on the first insulating layer successively to obtain the thin-film EL device.
21. The process for producing the thin film EL device according to claim 20, wherein a heat treatment is carried out at a temperature of from 600 C. to a sintering temperature of the substrate or less, after the formation of the second insulating layer according to claim 2 or the second electrode layer.
22. The process for producing the thin film EL device according to claim 20, wherein the substrate precursor is a substrate green sheet which contains at least one selected from the group consisting of alumina (Al2O3), silica glass (SiO2), magnesia (MgO), steatite (MgOSiO2), forsterite (2MgOSiO2), mullite (3Al2O32SiO2), beryllia (BeO), zircon, and Ba-, Sr- and Pb-based perkovskites.
23. The process for producing the thin film EL device according to claim 20, wherein the composition of the main component of the substrate precursor is the same as that of the insulating layer.
24. The process for producing the thin film EL device according to claim 20, wherein the electrode layer precursor comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of Ag, Au, Pd, Pt, Cu, Ni, W, Mo, Fe and Co, or any one of AgPd, NiMn, NiCr, NiCo and NiAl alloys.
25. The process for producing the thin film EL device according to claim 20, wherein the sintering temperature is in a range of 1,100 to 1,400 C.