ITVT20110012A1 - INTEGRATED SYSTEM FOR THE MONITORING OF HYGIENE-HEALTH PROTOCOLS IN THE MANAGEMENT OF RECREATIONAL AND / OR THERMAL WATERS. - Google Patents

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 2

POSSIBLE APPLICATIONS. 7

CLAIMS. 9

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The use of water for recreational use represents an element of increasing social value both for the playful-recreational context and for the implications related to health promotion; however, the use of swimming pools and swimming facilities fed with mains or bathing water, or thermal water - as reported in the Italian and European regulations and in the WHO guidelines - requires compliance with particular health and hygiene requirements, essential for ensure user safety.

This Technological Platform is a method for contributing to the surveillance and monitoring of such waters, even if it is clearly applicable and extensible to other contexts and types of waters.

The catchment area connected with the context of recreational waters is consistent, growing and relevant, and includes, among other things, applications in the spa, recreational-recreational and sports fields. In particular, the context of spas and spas represents an important area in Italy and in Europe; from the data reported by Federterme, other organizations and sports bodies, a broad and important context emerges aimed at a population of all ages and which involves wellness operators, professional and amateur sportsmen, health professionals, including wellness centers, spas, swimming pools private and public, sports facilities, hotels, and structures that use the salus per aquam (SPA) principle.

The figures relating to the world of thermalism, SPAs, Wellness Centers, etc., are consistent and referring to the subject, as a whole, approximately: 185 Spas in Italy; 350 companies operating in the sector; 12,500 employees; 60,000 people employed in related industries; over 290 million in turnover; 3,300 million turnover in related industries with a total turnover of around 3,600 million Euros; with an estimated order of 14,500 customers per year.

From the statistical data expressed by CONI / ISTAT they report over 4,500 swimming pools distributed throughout the national territory and Federnuoto indicates about 37,000 registered athletes, with 1,400 companies, 35,000 training schools, 7,000 amateurs and / or masters, in addition to the data relating to swimming pools of other Sports Promotion Bodies and to the numerous occasional visitors.

The issue of the sanitary safety of swimming pool water and the guarantee for the operator and / or the consumer as a user of swimming pools is current and relevant.

The present invention is an Application Platform aimed at monitoring the safety of swimming pool water. It is aimed at an area of high intrinsic value due to its size and is part of the processes of guaranteeing safety and quality for the management of spas, wellness centers and sports facilities, and in general towards the users of recreational water, therefore, approximately that 33% of the entire population (18-64 years) who uses services connected to this type of water environment.

In the context of the safety of water for recreational use, in addition to the usual disinfection and control practices, the evaluation of contaminants that can generate water hygiene problems, especially at the time of maximum influx of users, is becoming increasingly important, and regardless of the type of preventive disinfection processes adopted.

At the moment, in fact, there are no tools for the management of recreational waters that monitor in real time and automatically the safety of swimming pool water in terms of biological risk. To date, only occasional examinations are envisaged, sometimes carried out every 6-12 months by the local health authority and / or sporadically at the discretion of the plant manager using expert consultants and relying on private and / or public laboratories. The analyzes performed are demanding, expensive and generally the response takes at least 3-5 days, making a timely preventive reaction impossible, but only a buffering of any damage. The main indicators used are microbiological, and in particular based on the presence of charges beyond the threshold limits for the following parameters: total charge, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, E. faecalis. Among others, the main limitation of this situation today consists in the impossibility of reporting in a continuous, daily and effective way any dangerous situations related to contamination. In a cost / benefit ratio, it would not be justified to perform multiple daily samplings and analyzes in a laboratory. The pool manager, whether in a sports, recreational or spa swimming facility, therefore does not have any tool to verify the safety of the water in real time, other than the confirmation of correct disinfectant parameters and chemical / physical conditions of the water for the 'placing in the tank. This deficiency substantially entails infectious risks for users of swimming pools. These risks can lead to pathological manifestations ranging from epidemics of gastroenteritis, to dermatitis, pharyngus-conjunctivitis, keratitis, up to situations of exceptional severity such as those connected to episodes of meningitis. In the swimming pool environment, especially if not properly managed, various microorganisms can be found including bacteria, viruses, protozoa and various epidemics related to the use of recreational waters have been widely reported in the literature, and by the health authorities in charge, from cryptosporidiosis and giardiasis, to epidemics from hepatitis A, up to adenovirus infections, and echovirus infections which can lead - albeit in rare cases - extremely serious sequelae. The guidelines of the World Health Organization highlight AFR (accidental faecal release) episodes, i.e. the accidental release of feces, as the main risk element. This occurrence, as is well known to the workers in the sector, is not a rare exception, but a condition of common possible finding, sometimes associated with the presence of children, the elderly, the disabled or subjects suffering from forms of diarrhea. Furthermore, faecal contamination is also linked to the hygienic conditions of the plant, to compliance with procedures and regulations, even by bathers. Furthermore, it is known that the athlete, both professional and amateur, can release quantities of feces as a result of strenuous athletic effort.

MS raises extreme prominence and alarm in the case of AFR as fecal contamination involves not only the introduction of saprophytic microbes such as E. coli or E. faecalis, but also the possibility of pathogens, be they viruses, bacteria, or protozoa .

The possibility of having automatic tools that monitor the safety status of the water in the tank in real time represents a revolution in the sector, which operators and managers can use, but also benefit users, both in terms of safety and of reliability and above all of quality.

Although the use of probes and biosensors has been implemented for water intended for human consumption, or for industrial water for pharmaceutical use, such as for sewage, there are no tools adapted to the management of water for recreational use, in fact it is necessary to provide for different intervals sensitivity and above all to have indicators aimed at the particular type of water.

The Problem and the Solution with the Present Invention

In the absence of tools for monitoring the water in the tank from the point of view of microbiological contamination, it is impossible to evaluate organic contamination including the accidental release of traces of feces. To date, the analyzes of microbiological indicators can be performed occasionally during the year, with response times of several days. This makes it impossible to intervene promptly in the event of contamination and makes it impossible to know in real time the level of safety and sanitary quality of the water in the tank.

It was therefore necessary to implement active and advanced surveillance systems, through the creation of monitoring tools based on sensors and software in order to check the presence of dangerous pollutants "in real time" and possibly activate alarm signals and enable timely activation effective interventions.

The application of these systems was based on the identification of particular chemical indicators and on the realization of relative special sensors that have been designed, engineered and adapted to the particular needs of swimming pool water. The detection system is then connected with software capable of integrating the acquired data and preparing response actions.

The integrated system is able to detect the various indicators and therefore processes the data in a manner suitable for the purpose. All this can be conducted on the basis of non-specific and specific indices. Among the non-specific indices, an important role is defined by TOC (Total Organic Carbon) and NORG (Organic Nitrogen) which are able to provide indications regarding organic compounds of biological origin.

In addition to these indices - which can be associated with the casual presence of organic residues of various origins such as transport of plant fragments or desquamation of human tissues, etc. - it is also necessary to monitor substances coming from users of recreational waters that may be produced in uncontrollable physiological conditions. In this context, an important role is played by the knowledge of the urinary and fecal metabolic profile; we have observed, in fact, how different compounds are present in these excrets and we have selected those of main interest in order to carry out a sensitive, specific and effective surveillance. Among these, some that we have considered include in a non-exclusive way acetate, propinate, butyrate, isobutyrate, isovalerate, malate, succinate, pyruvate, fumarate, lactate, amino acids - both aliphatic and aromatic -, trimethylamine, phenolic or chilled acids <[2 ]>. Many of these metabolites can also be present in products of non-human origin, while the presence of mayionate and glycerol seem to be attributable solely to the human factor <[3]>.

We therefore moved towards the determination of mayionate and phenolic acids as indicators of the generation of foreign substances. The determination of the pollution parameters takes place using colorimetric techniques capable of providing “real-time” indications and which have shown to possess the necessary characteristics to allow quantitative detection.

Among others, colorimetric reactions have been selected for the TOC and for the NORG, while for the maionate the suitable characteristics are presented by the blue bromothymol reagent.

Essential bibliographic references

1 - Liguori G, Naples C, Romano Spica V, Motor Sciences for Health GL. World Health Organization Guidelines for swimming pools and similar recreational water environments: Italian translation by the Siti Working Group "Enhancing health and physical activity". Ig Public Health

2009; 65 (5): 507-16.

2 - Doris M. Jacobs, Nancy Deltimpie, Ewoud van Velzen, Ferdi A. van Dorsten, Max Bingham, Eiaine E. Vaughan and John van Duynhoven; "1H NMR metabolite profiling of feces as a tool to assess the impact of nutrition on the human microbiome"; Biomed NMR. 2008; 21: 615-626

3 - Jasmina Saric, Yulan Wang, Jia Li, Muireann Coen, Jurg Utzinger, Julian R. Marchesi, Jennifer Keizer, Kirill Veselkov, John C. Lindon, Jeremy K. Nicholson, Eiaine Holmes; “Species Variation in the Fecal Metabolome Gives Insight into Differential Gastrointestinal Function”; Journal of Proteome Research 2008, 7, 352-360

The present invention consists of a single Application Platform (in its hardware and software components) integrates Bio-Chemical Probes and Software for the control of hygienic-sanitary thresholds and, through control traffic lights, the same software is able to activate protocols of electronic, mechanical, human response and all the actions necessary to maintain the state of healthiness of recreational waters.

The system consists of a reading cell in a closed environment, capable of detecting and transmitting data to an analysis unit which, through algorithms, analyzes and determines the alarm levels, triggers commands for system management, and in if pre-set thresholds are exceeded, it warns, for example, with an acoustic and luminous signal.

It is based on the use of latest generation sensors capable of establishing, through a comparative analysis of the various controlled twin-reactors, the level of risk in the pool water; the system consists of a reading cell in a closed environment (for each probe managed), capable of detecting and transmitting data to an analysis unit which processes the data and prepares the implementation of measures based on exceeding the levels threshold. The thresholds of water pollution levels are preset and parameterized also with the use of additional additional and modifiable parameters such as analysis time intervals, setting of attention thresholds, consideration of elements dissolved in the water, use and volumetric capacity , crowding in the tub, etcetera. In summary, the software allows you to detect when the attention thresholds are exceeded and implement planned and modifiable actions based on different needs (acoustic and light signaling, activation of electro-mechanical processes, request for manual interventions).

The system consists of two units:

> Reading Unit, consisting of

or a reading cell (camera) A

or two tanks - one for water (F) and one for the reagent (N)

o two pumps for dosing liquids (C and D)

or a tray to contain the liquid to be analyzed (L)

or a stepper motor for emptying and washing (H)

> Analysis and Remote Control Unit, composed of

o interface for data acquisition from the reading cell (B)

or transmission interface

or interface for remote controls

or memory cards

or power supply

or box

o analysis and management software.

At preset (and parameterizable) times, the analysis unit activates the test procedure, starting in sequence a series of controls and commands as described below:

1. check for the presence of water in the tank

2. check for the presence of reagent in the tank

3. check the functionality of the LEDs (FIG. 1)

4. check that the tank is clean and, if necessary, actuate cleaning (FIG. 1)

5. opening the water metering valve - (FIG. 2)

6. opening the reagent dosing valve - (FIG. 2)

7. activation of the reading celia (FIG. 3)

8. acquisition (repeated n times) of the image contained in the tray

9. historicization comparison analysis (if transmission to a remote unit is required) 10. if the result is above the alarm threshold, activation of the attention systems

11. activation of the motor to overturn, empty and the tray - FIG. 4, 5, 6 and 7

12. system in stand by FIG. 8

POSSIBLE APPLICATIONS

The Application Platform performs the sampling and automated analysis of water; the engineered software is able to integrate "data / safety indicators".

Furthermore, the software part of the architecture, by interpreting the data provided by the sensors, allows risk analysis, the management of alarm thresholds and the generation of signals suitable for triggering automated (home automation) and / or manual external interventions.

The Sofwtare Platform, based on the set time intervals, reads the information transmitted by the probes, represents them on the video and the security staff will be able, in this way, to monitor the safety and health of the water; when the thresholds are exceeded, the system itself is able to activate electro-mechanical and / or manual processes to ensure the usability of the system without risk of contamination. In the mask it is possible to see the simultaneous tracing of the three probes managed by the system:

TOC - window at the top and whose values are within the threshold,

NORG - median window and whose values are also within the threshold,

MALONATO (third probe) - lower window with untraceable values.

See Fig 9

The prototype probe consists of a reading chamber which, based on the variation of the chromatic values, referred to a specific contamination, assess the degree of pollution.

The platform, upon exceeding the thresholds of pollution by pathogens, will be able to generate alarms of various kinds which, in turn, will be able to trigger a preordained series of automatic and / or semi-automatic and / or manual processes (activation of electric pumps, ignition / switching off of traffic lights of various kinds, manual actions all actions aimed at solving the exception). See Fig 10

Detail of the Reading Chamber (Fig 11), the 4 LEDs that provide the correct lighting of the analysis tank are visible and in the center - even if not very visible - there is the magic eye, the detector that will control, based on the colorimetric variations , the sanitary state of the waters.

The image shown in Fig 12 shows the screen presented to the control staff; in the upper left, you can see what is determined by the reading chamber and the response of the system that goes from zero to a pollution reading equal to 5 parts per million.

The focus of the magic eye on the control area is highlighted in the red box; on the third line of the lower box you can see the reading of the contamination value which is no longer at zero.

Claims (9)

CLAIMS 1 Each method for monitoring swimming pool water through the integrated use of at least two organic contamination indicators. 2 Integrated system according to claim 1 for the surveillance of waters for recreational use which allows automatic and real-time control. 3 Software for the integration of data coming from the sensors and the processing of programmable responses for the activation of warning signals or other actions. 4 Integrated use of TOC, NORG indicators in swimming pool water. 5 Use of the matured indicator in swimming pool waters. 6 Use of the butyrate indicator in swimming pool water. 7 Use of the triethylamine indicator in swimming pool water. 8 Use of sensors for chemical indicators of faecal contamination in swimming pool water. 9 Use of colorimetric reaction and video camera for the detection of indicators of organic and / or faecal contamination in swimming pool waters.