SYSTEM BLOCK

Spectrophotometer

(1) What will the flow rate need to be in order to get an accurate optical density measurement?

(3) What is the density of white blood cell (WBC) needed in order to see a change in optical density and how accurate will the measurement be with small changes in WBC levels?

(13) Will we have the issue of air flow if drainage occurs at a low rate?

(15) Will there be error introduced from the flow of the fluid in our optical density measurement?

(2) Because cuvettes for spectrophotometers are rectangular prisms and the surface through which the test light passes must be orthogonal to the light, will tubes allow for accurate measurement?

(9) How do white blood cell concentrations of detection vary across patient body types and solution volumes?

(8) What type of material will allow for optical reading? Will a tube be insufficient?

(18) What wavelength of light would be best for our measurement?

(4) What wavelength will the light need to be to be detected by the photocell? Would an LED or laser be better?

Power Source

Microprocessor

(12) What is the power draw of the combined device components? Can it operate off of standard electrical outlets?

(11) What is the needed processing capability for our microprocessor in configuration with the spectrophotometer?

Receiver/
LED Notfication Screen

(14) How much will patients want to interact with the device? Would they be willing to take data into the doctors?

(17) How long does the battery need to last? Should we use an outlet instead?

Microprocessor

(5) What is the composition of PD Dialysis waste?

Pre-Processing

(6) What is the distribution of white blood cells released over a PD treatment?

(7) How do potential pathogens and other waste materials in dialysis waste alter OD measurements?

(10) Will there be a large amount of system noise from the waste dialysis fluid due to its contents? (ie other cells? fibrin?)

Power Source

Pre-Processing Block

(16) What type of pre-processing method (i.e. dye, filter, etc.) is the most efficient/accurate for magnifying the OD difference for detection?

Patient

(19) What does the potential consumer market look like for our device?

(20) What is the competiton for our device? Would it be favorable over other devices on the market?

Patient