Synergistic MPC and Temperature Regulator in Phototherapeutic-Incubator: A Mathematical Modeling Approach

Premature birth and neonatal jaundice are critical concerns in neonatal care. Infant incubators providing phototherapy help manage these conditions through thermal regulation and jaundice treatment. However, phototherapy can elevate incubator air temperature. This study proposes an integrated system using model predictive control (MPC) and temperature regulatory circuit. This circuit effectively restored temperatures to reference values (36.5-37.5°C) during phototherapeutic pulses. The synergy between model predictive controller and temperature regulator ensured consistent, acceptable thermal regulation for the incubator infant under diverse conditions like phototherapy. This unique approach overcomes limitations of previous PID, fuzzy PID and GPC systems for incubator thermal control. The integrated system optimizes incubator thermal stability amidst dynamic disturbances, improving viability for vulnerable premature infants requiring essential thermotherapy and phototherapy interventions.