I-Corps: Aerial Virus Detectors

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发一种便携式系统，可以检测空气中的病毒颗粒，如COVID-19。目前可用的空气病毒检测技术以顺序方式操作，首先从空气样品中收集颗粒，然后将样品送去进行密集且昂贵的液体试剂（逆转录聚合链反应（RT-PCR））检测。潜在客户档案包括与他们及其家人呼吸的空气有关的个人。这项技术还可以服务于医院、公共交通（如出租车、飞机、铁路）、学校、酒店、企业、房主协会和政府机构等与其成员健康有关的组织。该解决方案能够及时识别感染源，并通过隔离受污染地区以实现快速的局部卫生，从而最大限度地减少传播，这有助于防止成本高昂的过度卫生以及个人防护设备和资源的迅速耗尽。I-Corps项目的基础是开发能够在小空间内检测空气中传播的COVID-19和其他病毒颗粒的技术。该装置旨在直接为房间的居住者提供指导，使他们能够做出有关安全的明智决定。检测空气中的病毒颗粒对于安全使用空间的智能决策至关重要。该技术将冠状病毒反应表面与高灵敏度检测技术相结合。在病毒颗粒存在的情况下，病毒表面的刺突蛋白与主动传感器接触，导致设备电阻率的变化，从而触发设备屏幕上的消息和警报。为了能够与传感器元件进行空中交互，设计并开发了一种气动壳体。利用计算流体动力学对流动剖面进行了建模。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a portable system that can detect airborne virus particles such as COVID-19. The currently available airborne viral detection technique operates in a sequential manner by first collecting particles from air samples and then sending the sample for processing with an intensive and expensive liquid-reagent (reverse transcription polymerace chain reaction (RT-PCR)) testing. The potential customer profile encompasses individuals concerned with the air that they and their family members are breathing. This technology may also serve organizations concerned with their constituents’ health in hospitals, public transportation (e.g., taxis, airliners, railways), schools, hotels, businesses, homeowner associations, and government agencies. The solution enables a timely identification of an infectious agent and minimizes the spread by isolating contaminated areas for swift localized sanitation, which helps prevent costly and aggressive over-sanitation and rapid depletion of personal protective equipment and resources.This I-Corps project is based on the development of technology that can detect airborne COVID-19 and other viral particles in a small space. The proposed device seeks to directly provide guidance to the occupants of the room, enabling them to make informed decisions about safety. The detection of viral particles in air is critical to enabling intelligent decision-making about safe usage of the space. This technology integrates a COVID-reactive surface with a highly sensitive detection technology. In the presence of a virus particle, the spike protein on the surface of the virus interfaces with the active sensor, leading to a change in the resistivity of the device, which triggers a message on the device-screen and an alarm. To enable aerial interaction with the sensor element, an aerodynamic casing has been designed and developed. The flow profiles have been modeled using computational fluid dynamics.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.