Session: 09-11-01: Engineering Research Innovation I

Paper Number: 73428

Start Time: Tuesday, 04:10 PM

73428 - Virus Detection and Medical Diagnostics Student Projects for the Internet of Medical Things 

Recent events underscore the need for rapid, accessible medical diagnostics technology to detect viruses and other pathogens.  Over the past several years, our Engineering Technology students (mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, biomedical engineering) have designed, prototyped and tested various microfluidic systems and instruments for point-of-care (POC)  diagnostics and virus detection as Senior Design projects.  Point-of-care diagnostics is an expanding technology area that seeks to develop portable, low-cost, easy-to-use bioassays for medical and other tests for use outside of centralized laboratories in non-traditional venues such as at the point of care (doctors and dentists offices, pharmacies, school infirmaries, storefront clinics, and home use), as well as field testing for environmental monitoring, veterinary and agricultural applications, food and water safety, and homeland security. 

In our experience, design, development and testing of POC tests are feasible, highly instructive, capstone projects due to their immediate relevancy and their interdisciplinary nature, involving microfluidics, optics, instrumentation, Smartphone platforms, microcontrollers, sensors, heat transfer, and prototyping, especially 3D printing.  POC Devices are excellent case studies in product development, and in this context students are introduced to patent searches, market studies, regulator affairs (FDA approval), prospects of clinical trials,   As such, these projects serve as an effective vehicle for introducing engineering students to healthcare and biomedical applications.   The projects can be completed over the course of two semesters, require modest expenditures (< $1000), and can be implemented with mostly off-the-shelf components (microcontrollers, sensors, actuators, Smartphones), and prototyped with common desktop 3D printers and laser cutters.  Commercial educational reagent kits (with safe, non-infectious materials) can be used to simulate clinical samples for test purposes.  The reagents are often available in pre-measured, freeze dried form for easy handing and use.  We emphasize that students need not develop the bioassays per se (i.e., the chemistry of the test), but rather are adapting a laboratory (‘benchtop’) assay with well established protocol and reagents normally implemented with water baths, centrifuges, mixers, thermal cyclers, and optical instruments (absorption, fluorescence, turbidity) to a microfluidic format on a single-use (disposable) credit-card sized plastic ‘chip’ with miniaturized fluidic network for sample processing and analysis.  In fact, many of the assays can be realized with comparatively simple plastic chips made by laser machining, CNC milling, soft lithography, or 3d printing, with feature sizes no smaller than 0.1 mm.  Also, students will design and construct a portable companion instrument that will provide the chip with fluidic actuation (pumping) and flow control (if necessary), regulated heating, and optical detection, such as with LEDs and photodiodes or CCD camera.  Many projects used a Smartphone platform to utilize the CCD camera, user interface, GPS, data acquisition and logging, computation, and communication features of the Smartphone for the diagnostics system.  Students have built systems for HIV and Corona virus testing, as well as assays for bacteria testing. 

  One immediate objective is developing next-generation healthcare technology as nodes for the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), a network of sensors and medical devices connecting patients, data bases, healthcare providers, hospitals, and public health authorities.  As we enter the era of Big Data, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and high connectivity, more and more engineers will be needed to provide innovative solutions to make healthcare more sustainable, accessible, effective, and patient-driven.      We describe our projects and report on student achievements in these areas in the interest of disseminating our work to others so they may gain from our experiences and leverage our work for similar endeavors.

Presenting Author: Michael G. Mauk Drexel University

Authors:

Yunshun (Richard) Chiou Drexel University
Michael G. Mauk Drexel University
Tzu-Liang (Bill) Tseng The University of Texas at El Paso