Single-Use Chemical Diagnostics With Environmental Self-Validation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing point-of-care diagnostic devices lack the ability to monitor environmental conditions during shipping and storage, which can compromise their performance, especially for biological molecules like enzymes or antibodies, and they often require complex calibration and are not user-friendly or cost-effective, lacking quantitative digital readouts and sample volume accuracy.
Innovation Solution
A self-contained electronic diagnostic device with integrated environmental sensors (temperature, humidity, and pressure) that monitors conditions from manufacturing to use, disabling the device if parameters fall outside specified ranges, and provides a digital readout with wireless communication capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If environmental monitoring sensors are integrated into the device, then device reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple environmental sensors (temperature, humidity, pressure) into a single integrated monitoring system within the diagnostic device. This merging approach enables comprehensive environmental monitoring while consolidating components to minimize the increase in device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The device automatically monitors its own environmental conditions and performs self-validation without requiring external intervention. The system self-activates upon sample application and automatically determines whether environmental conditions are suitable for testing, reducing the need for complex external monitoring infrastructure.
2Measurement precision
If environmental monitoring is implemented, then measurement precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically performs environmental validation and sample volume verification without requiring user intervention. The device self-activates when sample is applied and automatically determines whether conditions are suitable for testing, maintaining ease of operation while ensuring measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The device provides immediate feedback to the user about environmental conditions and sample application status through visual indicators. This feedback mechanism guides users through the testing process without requiring them to understand complex environmental parameters, preserving ease of operation while ensuring accurate measurements.
3Productivity
If multiple analytes are measured from small sample volume, then productivity is improved, but measurement precision worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The device divides the sample analysis into multiple independent reaction zones, each optimized for specific analyte detection. This segmentation allows parallel measurement of multiple analytes from a small sample volume while maintaining sufficient precision for each individual measurement through dedicated reaction chambers and sensors.
Data Source
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AI summary
An electronic diagnostics device can detect and report environmental conditions from manufacture to use. The device can include a reaction chamber configured to receive a biological sample and contain a reaction with the biological sample. A component of the biological sample can be detected based on the reaction. The device can also include one or more environmental sensors, such as a temperature sensor and a humidity sensor, to detect the environmental conditions. A processor can read data from the environmental sensors and compare the measured conditions to specified ranges. If an environmental parameter falls outside the specified range, the processor can disable the device or communicate to a user that the device should not be used to perform a diagnostic test.