SBIR/STTR Award attributes
Respiratory viral infection can sometimes lead to serious, possibly life threatening complications. Highly contagious respiratory diseases cause significant disruptions to social and economic systems if spread is uncontrolled. Therefore, the rapid and precise identification of viral infection before entering crowded or vulnerable areas is essential for suppressing their transmission effectively. Additionally, a device that is reconfigurable to address the next pandemic is highly desired. Screening for infection via exhaled breath analysis could provide a quick and simple method to find infectious carriers. This breath analyzer conceptualizes a rapid scanning device enabling the user to determine the presence of viral infection in an exhaled breath through analyzing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) concentrations.N5 Sensors will technically evaluate the feasibility of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) sensors for realizing Rapid Infection Screening via Exhalation (RISE) in a breathalyzer able to identify respiratory virus infected individuals, suitable for mass-testing scenarios.The proposed survey is expected to provide the guidance how to devise an integrated sensor system for actualizing initial screening at key check points. The evaluation will be accomplished by performing market survey, research level survey, and receiving consulting from breath analyzer pioneering companies for 1) Breath analyzer platform2) VOC gas sensors and 3) Machine learning algorithm. The survey will be progressed within stepwise assessment from initial database search, article screening and selection, to quality assessment and assortment. A comprehensive final report will be provided in which our findings and research strategy for Phase II are presented.
