Method and apparatus to generate breath voc signatures that can be correlated to physiological metrics indicative of specific medical conditions

Abstract

A novel approach, based on hybrid nanostructure gas sensors, to correlate metrics related to specific medical conditions to a signature created by the sensor's response to the Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) contained in human breath.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A sensor array comprising a plurality of sensing elements, wherein each of the plurality of sensing elements are functionalized with a deposited mixture consisting of hybrid nanostructures and a molecular formulation specifically targeting at least one of a plurality of VOC's, and wherein each of the plurality of sensing elements comprises a resistance and a capacitance, and wherein at least one resistance and capacitance are altered when the interacting with gaseous chemical compounds. 
     
     
         2 . The sensor array of  claim 1 , wherein the change in resistance or capacitance can be measured, quantified, and further processed for identification of VOC's and concentration measurement. 
     
     
         3 . The sensor array of  claim 2 , wherein the plurality of sensor elements forms an array of sensing channels, wherein each sensing channel generates a signature, and wherein the processing comprises processing the signature using a pattern recognition algorithm, will enable the detection of multiple VOC' s at the same time. 
     
     
         4 . The sensor array of  claim 3 , wherein at least one of the channels measures humidity. 
     
     
         5 . The sensor array of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of sensing element is designed such that the hybrid nanostructures and molecular formulations can be deposited using drop casting or electro-chemical deposition. 
     
     
         6 . The sensor array of  claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of sensing element comprises a MEMS substrate. 
     
     
         7 . A sensor system comprising:
 a sensor array comprising a plurality of sensing elements, wherein each of the plurality of sensing elements are functionalized with a deposited mixture consisting of hybrid nanostructures and a molecular formulation specifically targeting at least one of a plurality of VOC's, and wherein each of the plurality of sensing elements comprises a resistance and a capacitance, and wherein at least one resistance and capacitance are altered when the interacting with the at least one of a plurality of VOC's;   a transducer configured to detect changes to capacitance, resistance or both of each of the plurality of sensing elements of the multi-channel gas sensor array and produce an analog signal representative of the changes;   analog signal conditioning and Analog-to-Digital conversion circuit configured to convert the analog signal into a digital signal; and   a processor circuit configured to processes the digital signal using a signature recognition system implementing gas detection and measurement algorithms to correlate a plurality of VOC's detected with a medical condition or state.   
     
     
         8 . The sensor system of  claim 7 , further comprising a memory, coupled with the low-power processing circuit, the memory configured to store algorithms combining models that accurately reflect the behavior of sensing elements customized with the specific molecular formulation, and instruction that cause the processing circuitry to perform pattern recognition techniques to convert raw sensor output into VOC concentration readings based on the algorithms and models. 
     
     
         9 . The sensor system of  claim 7 , wherein each of the plurality of sensing element is designed such that the hybrid nanostructures and molecular formulations can be deposited using drop casting or electro-chemical deposition. 
     
     
         10 . The sensor system of  claim 7 , wherein each of the plurality of sensing element comprises a MEMS substrate. 
     
     
         11 . The sensor system of  claim 8 , wherein the instructions further cause the processing circuitry to convert the concentration readings into a value that can be indexed. 
     
     
         12 . A method for correlating VOC's with a medical condition or state, comprising:
 obtain multiple breath samples wherein the breath sample is known to correlate with the medical condition or state;   expose the breath samples to a sensor array comprising a plurality of sensing elements, wherein each of the plurality of sensing elements are functionalized with a deposited mixture consisting of hybrid nanostructures and a molecular formulation specifically targeting at least one of a plurality of VOC's, and wherein each of the plurality of sensing elements comprises a resistance and a capacitance, and wherein at least one resistance and capacitance are altered when the interacting with the at least one of a plurality of VOC's; and   creating an index based on the level of VOC's detected in the breath samples that correlates the levels of VOC' s detected with the medical condition or state.