The Sunday Times reports that a high-precision device, which is slightly larger than a smoke alarm, is being hailed as a potential new way of inspection in airplane cabins, classrooms, nursing homes and offices for covid.
Early studies by scientists at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Durham University showed the device was 98-100% accurate, making it as reliable as laboratory-based Covid-19 tests.
The researchers emphasized that their results are still in the early stages and their work has been published in a paper that has not yet been peer-reviewed.
The sensor from the Roboscientific company of Cambridgeshire detects chemicals produced by the skin or in the breath of people infected with the coronavirus.
The Sunday Times said the detectors could find people with the virus even if they haven’t shown symptoms, making them more effective than PCR tests, which have been found to be inappropriate for asymptomatic carriers.
The devices take 15 to 30 minutes to sample air in a large room and send the results instantly to a cell phone or computer.
Currently, the sensors would cost around £5,000 each.
Tell us your thoughts in the Facebook post and share this with your friends.
