A low cost technology-based device for breath analysis and self-monitoring

Here, we describe the development of a portable device, based on low cost technology, able to collect and analyze in real time the composition of the breath. Despite its great potential, breath analysis is not widely used in clinical practice: high costs for standard analytical instrumentation (i.e., gas chromatograph- mass spectrometer), the need for specialized personnel able to read the results and the lack of standardized protocols to collect breath samples, set limits to its exploitation. The presented device, named Wize Sniffer, is based on commercial gas sensors and a widely employed open-source controller; in addition, it is very easy to use also for non-specialized personnel. The Wize Sniffer is composed of three modules: signal measurement, signal conditioning and signal processing. The idea was born in the framework of the European SEMEiotic Oriented Technology for Individual's CardiOmetabolic risk self-assessmeNt and Self- monitoring (SEMEOTICONS) Project, in order to monitor indi- vidual's lifestyle by detecting in the breath those molecules related to the noxious habits for cardio-metabolic risk. Nonetheless, the modular configuration of the Wize Sniffer makes it usable also for other applications by changing the type of the gas sensors according to the molecules to be detected.