Those who received the kits were encouraged to share their experiences using the microscope on a website, Foldscope Explore, so that Prakash's team could see how people could use the Foldscope. The projects eventually expanded to 50,000 Foldscope kits. The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation funded the "Ten Thousand Microscopes" project under which Prakash plans to give away 10,000 Foldscope kits to interested parties, including students for research. Each unit costs less than one US dollar to build, with estimates varying from 50 cents to 97 cents. The Foldscope is designed to be assembled by the end user, and hence is color-coded to help with the assembly. To enable several people to use them at once, each microscope is able to project images with a built-in projector. Included with each Foldscope, a picture is provided of the particular microbe to look for on each disease-specific variant. įollowing the first generation of simple Foldscopes, twelve medical diagnostic Foldscope variants are in development with each type being designed specifically to aid in the identification of a particular disease-causing organism. Prakash claims that the Foldscope can survive harsh conditions, including being thrown in water or dropped from a five-story building. A Foldscope can be printed on a standard A4 sheet of paper and assembled in seven minutes. The magnification power is enough to enable the spotting of organisms such as Leishmania donovani and Escherichia coli, as well as malarial parasites. The kit also includes magnets that can be stuck onto the Foldscope to attach it to a smartphone, allowing the user to take pictures of the magnification. The Foldscope weighs 8 grams and comes in a kit with a lens that magnifies 140X. Once assembled, the Foldscope is about the size of a bookmark. Ī Foldscope is an optical microscope that can be assembled from a punched sheet of cardstock, a spherical glass lens, a light emitting diode (LED) and a diffuser panel, along with a watch battery that powers the LED. (G) Demonstration of the field-rugged design, such as stomping under foot. (F) Novice users demonstrating the technique for using the Foldscope. (E) Different modalities assembled from colored paper stock. (D) Foldscope components and tools used in the assembly, including Foldscope paper components, ball lens, button-cell battery, surface-mounted LED, switch, copper tape and polymeric filters. (B) Schematic of an assembled Foldscope illustrating panning, and (C) cross-sectional view illustrating flexure-based focusing. Details įoldscope design, components and usage.(A) CAD layout of Foldscope paper components on an A4 sheet. He developed the first prototype in 2014. He also wanted to create a device that people felt they had ownership of, which is part of the reason the Foldscope comes in a kit to be assembled. He wanted to create an affordable microscope that would be versatile and sturdy enough to work in field conditions. He remarked that the station had a very expensive microscope but that everyone was afraid to use it because it was fragile and worth more than most people's salaries. The idea for creating a low-cost microscope came to Prakash in 2011 while he was at a field station in Thailand. The project was funded by several organisations including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which gave a grant of US$100,000 for research in November 2012. The Foldscope was developed by a team led by Manu Prakash, an assistant professor of bioengineering at the Stanford School of Medicine. The basic principle of using a small spherical lens held close to the eye dates back to the time of Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723), who was the first to see single-celled organisms using such a lens held in a device of his own design. It is a part of the " frugal science" movement which aims to make cheap and easy tools available for scientific use in the developing world. It was created by Manu Prakash and designed to cost less than one USD to build. A Foldscope is an optical microscope that can be assembled from simple components, including a sheet of paper and a lens.
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