Sensor Device Emulating Sample Container Weight for Transport Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
The transportation of samples, such as blood and urine, can cause damage due to exposure to vibrations, extreme temperatures, and other environmental conditions, leading to inaccurate test results and increased costs.
Innovation Solution
A sensor device is designed to detect transport parameters like vibrations, temperature, and humidity by emulating the configuration and weight of a sample container, allowing it to experience similar conditions during transportation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If samples are transported using pneumatic tube systems or other transportation methods, then transportation efficiency is improved, but samples are subjected to damaging conditions such as vibrations, extreme temperatures, and high accelerations that can cause hemolysis and render samples unusable
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor device is configured to detect transport parameters before samples are subjected to damaging conditions, allowing proactive identification of harmful transport conditions. The device monitors acceleration, temperature, and other parameters during transport to predict potential sample damage before it occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor device acts as an intermediary between the transport system and the samples, providing indirect monitoring of transport conditions. By placing sensors in proximity to samples rather than directly on them, the device mediates the measurement of transport parameters without interfering with the transport process or sample integrity.
2Measurement precision
If visual inspection of samples is performed to detect damage, then sample quality can be assessed, but the process becomes complex and inefficient especially when too many samples need to be inspected
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor device replaces manual visual inspection with automated electronic sensing. Instead of requiring technicians to visually examine each sample for damage, the device automatically detects transport parameters that indicate sample compromise, substituting mechanical/optical inspection with electronic measurement and analysis.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor device enables self-monitoring of sample conditions during transport. Samples essentially monitor their own transport environment through the proximate sensor device, providing autonomous quality assessment without requiring external inspection resources.
3Measurement precision
If sensor devices are placed directly on samples, then accurate detection of transport parameters is achieved, but the device weight and configuration may interfere with normal sample transport and handling
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor device is positioned as an intermediary near the samples rather than directly on them. This proximity-based monitoring allows accurate detection of transport parameters while maintaining sample handling convenience, as the sensors measure environmental conditions without physically interfering with sample containers or handling procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor device is designed with a configuration that matches standard sample container specifications, allowing it to emulate the mechanical properties of actual samples. This universal design enables the device to be used with various sample types and transport conditions while maintaining detection accuracy and operational convenience.
Data Source
AI summary
A sensor device for detecting transport parameters representative of those experienced by a sample during transportation is provided. The sample is stored in a container. The sensor device includes a housing with a configuration that generally matches the configuration of the container, a hardened substrate portion formed from a substrate material, and a sensor assembly comprising at least one sensor for detecting at least one transport parameter (e.g. acceleration, orientation, temperature, etc.). The sensor assembly is secured within the housing by the hardened substrate portion. Optionally, a weight of the device approximates a combined weight of the container and the sample stored therein. The weight of the sensor device can be adjusted. When the device is positioned proximate to the container during transportation, the at least one transport parameter detected by the at least one sensor is analogous to that at least one transport parameter experienced in the container.