Hungarian university spin-offClariton (Budapest, Hungary) has developed a vision-based scanner that detects how well hands have been cleaned. After they have washed their hands with an ultraviolet (UV) reflective soap, users place them inside the so-called Hand-in-Scan where they are illuminated by a UV light. The equipment is intended to help surgeons to check how clean their hands are before entering operating theaters. It is claimed that the scanner may significantly reduce the occurrence of large-scale infections like MRSA and H1N1.
Pictures of the hand are taken in the UV-lit box with a PowerShot digital camera fromCanon (Tokyo, Japan) fitted with a wide-angle lens. Images of the palm and the top of the hand are recorded sequentially.
Images are downloaded over aUSB interface to a notebook computer that evaluates and highlights clean versus dirty areas. The computer also provides an overall score that rates the effectiveness of the hand-washing procedure. The score is then displayed on the computer screen.
For his efforts in developing the system, Clariton chief executive officer Tamas Haidegger, PhD, won the Science Business Academic Enterprise (ACES) award for entrepreneurs under age 30, which was presented to him at the Royal Academy of Science in Brussels in February 2012.
