Regensburg Sensors for the Life Sciences
In the business field of sensor materials at the Fraunhofer Institute for Microsystems and Solid State Technologies EMFT new materials are being developed which signal the presence of particular substances by changing their optical or electrical properties. The integration of such sensor materials in particles, polymers, films or textiles in combination with the respective analysis systems opens up diverse applications, including the early diagnosis of certain diseases, effective industrial safety measures in the laboratory environment or the quality control of foodstuffs, drinking water or production processes. There is a focus on solutions that deliver fast and reliable results using simple and mobile analysis equipment. An overview of the current projects:
Protective clothing as a warning system when working in hazardous and toxic environments
In the treatment and disposal of wastewater employees come into contact with chemical and biological substances that can be hazardous to health under certain circumstances. In the project PROWEAR the Fraunhofer EMFT is developing, together with partners from the industry, intelligent protective clothing that changes its colour as soon as it come into contact with hazardous substances. It is important that sensor protective clothing like this is able to function without electricity and without tools such as measurement devices for the evaluation of the information. In this way it can meaningfully complement regular industrial safety measures and improve the safety of the employees. The project is being supported by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy within the framework of the Central Innovation Programme for mid-sized companies (ZIM).
Intelligent packaging for the detection of freshness of food
Comsumers can only get a "hunch" for the degree of freshness of packaged food from the best before date on the packaging. Through mistakes in packaging, interruption of the cold chain or leaky packaging foodstuffs can perish prematurally during distribution or at home, which is however not recognisable in many cases. In the framework of the project "Hexanal Sensors", scientists at Fraunhofer EMFT and IVV are developing intelligent packaging with colour indicator systems that make the freshness of food containing fat visible. The principle the solution uses is based on the measure of volatile aldehydes, (e.g. hexanal), in the gaseous phase, and creates a basis for the development of further indicator systems.
Early recognition of multiresistant pathogens:
Multiresistant pathogens, for example MRSA (Staphylococcus areus), are becoming an increasing problem for hospitals and medical practices. Currently however MRSA tests are only carried out in suspected patients, as the methods are either very time-consuming (proven by microbiological culture) or very cost-intensive (molecular biological or antibody-based detection). A research team at the Fraunhofer EMFT is working together with Asklepios Kliniken GmbH and the company KETEK GmbH on a cost-effective MRSA fast test which would be suitable for routine first examination in hospitals and doctor's surgeries. For this fast test a single nasal swab from the patient is required. Wheather MRSA is present in the sample, can be detected in a short perios of time by the use of fluorescence indicators with a highly sensitive detection system. The intention is being supported by the Bavarian State Ministry of Economics, Media, Energy and Technology in the framework of the programme "Microsystem Technology Bavaria".