[time-nuts] Helium and MEMS oscillators don;t mix well

[Bob kb8tq]

Hi

As much fun as this is, once it moves over to wireless charging as the likely 
issue ….. that’s getting pretty far from TimeNuts main focus…..

Bob

> On Nov 1, 2018, at 5:08 PM, David Witten <wittend at wwrinc.com> wrote:
> 
> Ok, one last try:
> 
> From AuntMinnie.com, free but subscrip[tion-based newslettter for clinical
> radiologists and related staff:
> 
> 
> November 1, 2018 -- A second imaging facility is reporting problems with
> Apple devices that appear to be related to the operation of the center's
> MRI scanner. Nearly 10 late-model Apple iPhones and Watches were
> permanently disabled at a Delaware center after it ramped down its MRI
> magnet.
> 
> CNMRI is an imaging facility in Dover, DE, that specializes in neurology
> and sleep medicine. It operates a 1.5-tesla MRI magnet and also performs
> studies such as polysomnography, nerve conduction, and home sleep studies,
> according to Dr. Robert Varipapa, a neurologist at the center.
> 
> In mid-October, field service engineers from an imaging OEM arrived and
> ramped the magnet down and then back up again. Immediately thereafter,
> staff members at the center who owned Apple devices with wireless charging
> reported that their devices were disabled. Approximately eight or nine
> devices were affected, according to Varipapa.
> 
> Only newer-model Apple products such as the iPhone 8 and iPhone 10 were
> affected, he added. Those with older models didn't experience any problems,
> nor did staff with Android phones.
> 
> The Delaware center's experience is similar to that of an Illinois hospital
> that also reported conflict
> <https://www.auntminnie.com/index.aspx?sec=sup&sub=mri&pag=dis&ItemID=123398>s
> between its MRI scanner and iPhones. That site reported that nearly 40
> iPhones stopped working after the installation of a new MRI scanner. The
> problem was attributed to helium gas that may have leaked during the
> installation and found its way into the mechanical workings of the phones.
> 
> But there are also crucial differences between the Illinois incident and
> the experience at the Delaware center. For one thing, the Delaware site
> never experienced a helium leak, to Varipapa's knowledge. Also, while the
> Illinois site reported problems with Apple models at the iPhone 6 level and
> above, in Delaware the problem was restricted to newer models with wireless
> charging -- no iPhone 6 devices were affected, Varipapa told AuntMinnie.com.
> 
> Finally, at the Illinois hospital, some of the iPhones began working again
> after the helium inside the devices apparently dissipated. At CNMRI, all of
> the smartphones were permanently disabled, and staff had to get new ones.
> 
> Varipapa said CNMRI's physicist told him that the center's experience is
> not an uncommon one. The physicist has heard that some field service
> engineers tell staff members to place smartphones in their cars' glove
> boxes when MRI magnets are being serviced, he said.
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