International Scientific Journals
of Scientific Technical Union of Mechanical Engineering "Industry 4.0"

Considerable research has been conducted on measuring maximum tongue pressure, which is an index of tongue muscle strength that includes the relationship between tongue strength and swallowing function. Tongue pressure is the force with which the tongue presses a bolus of food against the palate and sends it into the pharynx. A low tongue pressure makes the aspiration of food more likely. In this study, we investigated the age-dependence of human swallowing function, as well as the swallowing function of female high school students in different courses, one in physical education and one in health and nursing.

In recent years, natural disasters have occurred almost annually in Japan, causing great damage. Power outages in disasterstricken areas have occasionally forced victims to resort to outdoor campfires or indoor candles for lighting. Prolonged bad weather during such events makes it difficult to safely secure lighting, which could have a negative influence on people’s health. To address this issue, we used white light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as the light source and fabricated handmade lanterns by filling a 500 mL plastic bottle with tap water and adding 1–2 drops of milk. In this study, an LED light source casing was constructed using a three-dimensional printer, achieving a stable light scattering effect. Red, green, blue, and yellow LEDs were used for the lantern, considering people’s preferences for colored handmade lanterns. An additional light source case was easily made from cardboard, and a bamboo light source case was also constructed.