Open Access

Background: Polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard for detecting obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). However, this technique has many disadvantages when using it outside the hospital or for daily use. Portable monitors (PMs) aim to streamline the OSA detection process through deep learning (DL). Materials and methods: We studied how to detect OSA events and calculate the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) by using deep learning models that aim to be implemented on PMs. Several deep learning models are presented after being trained on polysomnography data from the National Sleep Research Resource (NSRR) repository. The best hyperparameters for the DL architecture are presented. In addition, emphasis is focused on model explainability techniques, concretely on Gradient-weighted Class Activation Mapping (Grad-CAM). Results: The results for the best DL model are presented and analyzed. The interpretability of the DL model is also analyzed by studying the regions of the signals that are most relevant for the model to make the decision. The model that yields the best result is a one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1D-CNN) with 84.3% accuracy. Conclusion: The use of PMs using machine learning techniques for detecting OSA events still has a long way to go. However, our method for developing explainable DL models demonstrates that PMs appear to be a promising alternative to PSG in the future for the detection of obstructive apnea events and the automatic calculation of AHI.

The architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry is currently in transformation. Within this transformation, digitalization has a leading function, whereby a higher level of efficiency is pursued. In order to ensure a coordinated information exchange within the digitalization, the concept of the Common Data Environment (CDE) has been developed in the last years. A CDE is a cloud based collaborative platform that is used to exchange project information and data between the different stakeholders of a construction project. The main objective of this thesis is the implementation of a suitable CDE solution for the purpose of a construction management company. For this purpose, an evaluation of different CDE software on the market, based on the functions and usability of the different software, has been complied to identify the most suitable solution. Secondly, a concept for the setup and implementation of a CDE solution has been developed. Therefore, advice for a successful change-management has been established to ensure the good implementation of the CDE. The first part of the thesis includes a literature review through which the current state of the information management in the AEC industry is analyzed. The advantages of a CDE for the information management are also analyzed. Therefore, a synthesis of the functions and requirements to a CDE has been complied. The second part of the thesis links the concept of Building Information Modelling (BIM) with the CDE. The advantages of a CDE in the BIM process has been established. The third part of the thesis treats the evaluation of CDE software. This evaluation has been complied with a scoring method. As basis of the evaluation, a requirement list has been developed in which all the required functions of a CDE are listed. In the fourth part of the thesis, a concept for the establishment of a CDE has been developed. The developed concept is a practical application of the standards specifications to CDE. The concept has been developed with CDE expert and CDE power users. The developed concept treats overall of the structuration, the standardization, and the implementation of a CDE. The last part treats of the change process engender by the implementation of a CDE. Summary, this thesis provides a structure for the implementation of a CDE software and serves as framework for companies of the AEC industry to select and establish a CDE.

In order to ensure sufficient recovery of the human body and brain, healthy sleep is indispensable. For this purpose, appropriate therapy should be initiated at an early stage in the case of sleep disorders. For some sleep disorders (e.g., insomnia), a sleep diary is essential for diagnosis and therapy monitoring. However, subjective measurement with a sleep diary has several disadvantages, requiring regular action from the user and leading to decreased comfort and potential data loss. To automate sleep monitoring and increase user comfort, one could consider replacing a sleep diary with an automatic measurement, such as a smartwatch, which would not disturb sleep. To obtain accurate results on the evaluation of the possibility of such a replacement, a field study was conducted with a total of 166 overnight recordings, followed by an analysis of the results. In this evaluation, objective sleep measurement with a Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 was compared to a subjective approach with a sleep diary, which is a standard method in sleep medicine. The focus was on comparing four relevant sleep characteristics: falling asleep time, waking up time, total sleep time (TST), and sleep efficiency (SE). After evaluating the results, it was concluded that a smartwatch could replace subjective measurement to determine falling asleep and waking up time, considering some level of inaccuracy. In the case of SE, substitution was also proved to be possible. However, some individual recordings showed a higher discrepancy in results between the two approaches. For its part, the evaluation of the TST measurement currently does not allow us to recommend substituting the measurement method for this sleep parameter. The appropriateness of replacing sleep diary measurement with a smartwatch depends on the acceptable levels of discrepancy. We propose four levels of similarity of results, defining ranges of absolute differences between objective and subjective measurements. By considering the values in the provided table and knowing the required accuracy, it is possible to determine the suitability of substitution in each individual case. The introduction of a “similarity level” parameter increases the adaptability and reusability of study findings in individual practical cases.

Elbphilharmonie, BER, Bischofsresistenz Limburg, Stuttgart 21, Alter Elbtunnel Hamburg. Alles bekannte deutsche Bauprojekte der letzten 20 Jahre. Alle mit einer Gemeinsamkeit: Exorbitante Kostenexplosionen und Bauzeitenverzögerungen. In dieser Arbeit wird aufgezeigt, weshalb solche Kostenexplosionen auch aufgrund von Unklarheiten bzw. Fehlern in Leistungsbeschreibungen entstehen und welches enorme Potential klare und erschöpfende Leistungsbeschreibungen haben, um bereits im Vorfeld eines Bauvorhabens die Weichen für einen reibungslosen und erfolgreichen Projektverlauf zu stellen.