A wireless multi-functional sensor badge for epidemiological studies

描述（由申请人提供）：了解许多慢性疾病的环境因素是预防这些疾病的关键和必要步骤。实现这一目标需要能够准确测量各种环境毒物的新工具。由于个体的遗传易感性和环境暴露的巨大差异，理想的工具必须是可穿戴的，这样它就可以实时测量每个人呼吸区域内的有毒物质。已经开发出几种可穿戴设备来检测某些化学物质或颗粒物，它们有望为流行病学研究做出贡献。然而，大多数流行病学研究需要实时评估多种分析物的能力，以便准确确定毒物来源，并有效确定某一特定分析物或一组分析物是否导致某种疾病。其他人和我们的初步研究表明，要求一个对象，特别是一个孩子，长时间佩戴多种不同的设备面临着几个挑战。首先，每个孩子正确操作和每个研究人员有效维护多个设备需要大量的培训资源。其次，多个设备的总重量、尺寸和噪音对孩子来说将是一个不受欢迎的负担。第三，尽管每个设备都很便宜，但多个设备的总成本可能会使大规模人口研究的成本过高。最后，不同的设备有不同的采样率、内部时钟、数据采集频率和格式；正确解释和同步来自这些设备的数据可能非常复杂，特别是在大型队列设置中部署它们时。在目前的项目中，将利用pi实验室最近开发的几种创新技术开发一种集成的多功能传感器，用于实时测量个人暴露。该传感器可以同时检测多种重要的分析物，包括二氧化氮、臭氧、一氧化碳、甲醛和颗粒物。选择这些分析物是因为它们对研究室外和室内空气污染对健康的影响很重要。除了能够检测多种分析物外，该传感器还具有嵌入式无线芯片，可以与手机通信，并使用GPS和加速度计提供额外的位置和身体活动信息。最后，传感器将被小型化到可穿戴的徽章大小。该团队将与工业界合作，以确保质量和低成本的生产。传感器开发小组和流行病学家将共同测试和验证该设备。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Understanding environmental factors in many chronic diseases is a critical and necessary step towards the prevention of these diseases. Reaching the goal requires new tools that can accurately measure various environmental toxicants. Due to large variations in the individuals' genetic susceptibility and environmental exposure, an ideal tool must be wearable so that it can measure the toxicants in real time and within each individual's breathing zone. Several wearable devices have been developed to detect certain chemicals, or particulate matter, and they are expected to contribute to epidemiological studies. However, most epidemiological studies require a capability of assessing multiple analytes in real-time in order to accurately pin down the source of toxicants and efficiently determine if a particular analyte or a group of analytes are responsible for a disease. Pilot studies by others and us revealed that asking a subject, especially a child, to wear multiple different devices for an extended period of time faces several challenges. First, it will take substantial training resources for each child to correctly operate and for each researcher to efficiently maintain multiple devices. Second, the total weight, size and noise of multiple devices will be an unwelcome burden for a child. Third, even though each device could be inexpensive, the total cost of multiple devices can make large-scale population studies cost prohibitive. Finally, different devices have different sampling rates, internal clocks, and data collection frequencies and formats; correct interpretation and synchronization of data from these devices may be prohibitively complicated, especially when deploying them in large cohort settings. In the present project, an integrated multifunctional sensor will be developed using several innovations recently developed in the PIs' labs for real-time measurement of personal exposures. The sensor can simultaneously detect multiple important analytes, including nitric dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and particulate matter. These analytes are selected because they are important for studying health effects of both outdoor and indoor air pollution. In addition to the capability of detecting multiple analytes, the sensor has an embedded wireless chip that can communicate with cell phones and uses GPS and accelerometer to provide additional location and physical activity information. Finally the sensor will be miniaturized to a wearable badge size. The team will collaborate with industry to ensure quality and low cost production. The sensor development group and the epidemiologists will work together to test and validate the device.