Fully-automated interpretation of biochemical tests for decision support by smartphones

In this paper we present innovative research for the automatic interpretation of biochemical test strip color by a smartphone using image processing techniques. Urinalysis is the current application for these techniques. Our mobile application captures images of the color pads on strips using the camera phone, then analyzes automatically the images within the device itself and compares these against reference color pads to obtain a final classification. As a test scenario we focus on the detection of proteinuria, i.e., leakage of protein into the urine, for the detection of which strips for protein and creatinine are used. We performed an initial laboratory evaluation using specially prepared concentrations to check the accuracy and precision of detection. The results obtained are encouraging and show that the proposed technique has a good potential for the development of cheap, mobile and smart home-based readers for the early detection of health problems.