Spectroscopy for Malaria Detection through Machine Learning
Problem Statement
Malaria is prevalent and, on the rise, particularly in more rural areas, where access to early detection and treatment may not be available. Evidently, Malaria has become a pressing issue for global health. Effective and prompt diagnosis is crucial to controlling malaria in rural and urban areas. As stated by the National Institute of Health, late diagnosis is the primary cause of death due to malaria. Often, access to diagnostic methods are lacking in rural areas. Moreover, those in rural areas may not be able to make the extensive commutes to their nearest healthcare provider. When suffering from symptoms, the challenge to leave their home becomes even larger.
Goal
Using mid-infrared spectroscopy for malaria detection using led lights and an iphone camera. Spectroscopy is a method of detection that emits a wavelength to excite molecules. When the electrons in the molecules fall back down, a spectra is released that can then be converted to numbers and analyzed for different purposes. In order to cater this technology to malaria, we used a dataset that included different spikes of spectra that we had to look for when we used our spectrometer.
Design Approach
Like most engineering projects, our project started with a lot of research. This was done especially on different types of spectroscopy and their specialties as well as which type would be best at identifying malaria. When we eventually decided that mid-infrared would be best, we started sketching. For our project, since we wanted it to be portable, we thought it would be best to use the light from a phone camera to excite the molecules, so each sketch and prototype was catered to the phone light. The left-most sketch led to the creation of the first prototype, done with CAD in onshape. However, when we tested this out, it didn’t satisfy our needs because it didn’t show the spectra that we wanted. We realized we needed led’s so we ordered some from Thorlabs. The second prototype was then designed which could carry the led’s and a small battery that would charge them. This ended up being our final design for the project.
Sketches
Final Design
