DEVICE FOR AUTOMATIC DETECTION OF URINATION

OBJECTIVES OF THIS PROJECT ARE TO DEVELOP AN INEXPENSIVE DISPOSABLE UNDERGARMENT DEVICE FOR EARLY AUTOMATIC DETECTION OF URINATION AND TO DESIGN A QUANTITATIVE DEVICE TO BE USED IN CLINICAL RESEARCH AND OTHER APPLICATIONS. THE ELECTRONIC OUTPUT OF THE DETECTOR SYSTEM WILL TRIGGER A SIGNAL TO BE OBSERVED BY THE PERSON WEARING THE GARMENT AND/OR BY OTHERS (NURSE, ETC.). THE DEVICES WILL BE USEFULL AS A RESEARCH TOOL, CLINICAL MONITOR, AND PERSONAL HEALTH CARE ITEMS. IT WILL BE OF A PARTICULAR BENEFIT TO THE ELDERLY WITH SKIN PROBLEMS. DURING PHASE I, UNDERGARMENT MATERIALS (SHIELDS, ABSORBENTS, BARRIERS) SUITABLE FOR USE WITH THE URINATION DETECTION SYSTEM WILL BE SELECTED AND EVALUATED AND THE DETECTOR AND ELECTRONIC SIGNAL TRANSMITTER AND RECEIVER WILL BE DESIGNED. SEVERAL PROTOTYPES OF THE UNDERGARMENT DETECTION SYSTEM AND TWO PROTOTYPES OF THE TRANSMITTER-RECEIVER WILL BE BUILD AND LABORATORY TESTED. WITH THIS STEP SUCCESSFULL, A RE-DESIGN OF THE DEVICE FOR QUANTITATIVE MEASUREMENT OF THE VOLUME OF URINE WILL BE PERFORMED, FOR THE PROTOTYPE TO BE BUILT IN PHASE II. BOTH DEVICES SHOULD BE EVALUATED ON PATIENTS IN PHASE II, WHEN THE TYPES OF OUTPUT SIGNALS WOULD BE SELECTED TO BEST FIT VARIOUS NEEDS OF MEDICAL RESEARCH AND THE CLINICAL, NURSING AND PERSONAL CARE.