No power, at home COVID diagnostic with tactile readout

项目摘要 目前，低视力或失明的人无法获得家庭COVID检测。为了解释结果， 低视力或失明的人可能需要视力助手，基于互联网的图像识别工具，或 一些其他的动力工具我们没有适应为视力正常的人开发的技术， 提出了一种提供无功率触觉读出的新平台，即，质地变化来解释测试结果 尽管COVID抗原在人类唾液中的浓度相对较低，但依靠表面化学 因此，可以设计相对少量的样品来引起显著的纹理变化。这个项目 将开发一种新的抗体结合聚合物，在唾液样本中，结合COVID抗原。在 结合，我们还将开发一种测试表面，旨在最大限度地提高抗原结合后的触觉反馈。 在与测试表面结合后，COVID阳性表面将感觉与阴性对照不同，如 区别塑料和玻璃。为了优化聚合物设计和测试表面设计，我们使用 材料表征、机械测试、人体测试和计算技术的组合。 该项目的高潮是让低视力或盲人用户用合成唾液溶液测试该设备 含有COVID抗原，以无害蛋白分离物的形式存在。受试者将接受合成唾液， 没有COVID抗原，并使用我们的平台，将被要求确定合成唾液是否含有 新冠病毒抗原。作为一个平台，该技术不仅限于COVID，而且可以适应新的变种， 或其他用例，例如妊娠测试。我们团队的专业知识结合了无障碍专家， 化学家、人类心理物理学、计算模拟、表面科学和力学。最大化 为了确保项目成功，该项目在所有阶段都包括视力障碍者，以确保实用性。

PROJECT SUMMARY Current at-home COVID tests are not accessible to people with low vision or blindness. To interpret results, people with low vision or blindness may need a sighted assistant, an internet-based image recognition tool, or some other sort of powered implement. Instead of adapting to technologies developed for sighted people, we propose a new platform which provides a no-power tactile readout, i.e., a texture change, to interpret test results. Although COVID antigens are at relatively low concentrations in human saliva, by relying on surface chemistry effects, a relatively small amount of sample can be designed to cause a significant texture change. This project will develop a new class of antibody-conjugated polymers which, in a saliva sample, bind to COVID antigen. In conjunction, we will also develop a test surface designed to maximize tactile feedback upon antigen binding. Upon binding to the test surface, a COVID positive surface will feel distinctive from the negative control, like distinguishing between plastic and glass. To optimize polymer design and test surface design, we use a combination of materials characterization, mechanical testing, human testing, and computational techniques. The project culminates by having low vision or blind users test the device with synthetic saliva solutions containing COVID antigen, present as innocuous protein isolates. Subjects will receive synthetic saliva with and without COVID antigen, and using our platform, will be asked to determine if the synthetic saliva did contain the COVID antigen. As a platform, the technology is not limited to COVID, but could be adapted to either new variants or other use cases, such as pregnancy tests. Our team's expertise combines accessibility experts, synthetic chemists, human psychophysics, computational simulations, surface science, and mechanics. To maximize project success, the project includes people with visual impairments at all stages to ensure practicality.