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Updated: Mar 21, 2026

Low-Cost, Volume-Controlled Dipstick Urinalysis for Home-Testing
Published on: May 8, 2021
Robust dipstick urinalysis using a low-cost, micro-volume slipping manifold and mobile phone platform
Gennifer T Smith1, Nicholas Dwork1, Saara A Khan1
1Department of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA. audrey@ee.stanford.edu.
Abstract:
We introduce a novel manifold and companion software for dipstick urinalysis that eliminate many of the aspects that are traditionally plagued by user error: precise sample delivery, accurate readout timing, and controlled lighting conditions. The proposed all-acrylic slipping manifold is reusable, reliable, and low in cost. A simple timing mechanism ensures results are read out at the appropriate time. Results are obtained by capturing videos using a mobile phone and by analyzing them using custom-designed software. We show that the results obtained with the proposed device are as accurate and consistent as a properly executed dip-and-wipe method, the industry gold-standard, suggesting the potential for this strategy to enable confident urinalysis testing in home environments.

