The Ketone Sensor is a handheld breath sensor that can measure ketones in a person’s breath. This really important for diabetics as Diabetic Ketoacidosis(or DKA) is a very serious complication of diabetes. It happens when you don’t have enough insulin in your blood which, through a complicated process of body chemistry, makes your blood really acidic – and this can be fatal.
It’s a big problem. Just in Australia, 25 people a day are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes and nearly half are children. Statistically, DKA will be leading the cause of death for these children. And one third of all people who die from DKA did not even know they were diabetic.
The sensor has been built using an ESP8266 wifi enabled microprocessor, a humidity and temperature sensor and an electrochemical gas sensor. It works by measuring the levels of acetone in your breath.
The casing is being designed around field use, being small enough to hold in one hand while using the device, yet simple enough that it can be 3d printed. it accepts standard sized straws which can be found inexpensively nearly everywhere.
Contributors: Steve Dalton, Peter Caelli, Miles Gooding, Ian Sampson, Shervin Emami, Megan Steele. Jurgen Schull