- Problem Understanding & Context Burn injuries affect millions of people worldwide and remain one of the most challenging emergencies to assess accurately in the first minutes after injury. Current burn assessment often relies on visual inspection, which can be subjective and highly dependent on the experience of the healthcare provider. Misjudging burn severity may lead to delayed treatment, unnecessary transfers, improper triage, and increased patient risk. DeramScan was created to address this critical gap by providing a fast, objective, non-contact, and AI-assisted method for evaluating burn severity directly at the point of care. The goal is to support healthcare professionals with rapid and reliable information when every second matters.
- AI Reasoning & Appropriateness Artificial Intelligence is the core component that transforms raw sensor measurements into meaningful clinical insights. DeramScan uses computer vision and multimodal sensor fusion to analyze multiple indicators simultaneously, including skin color changes, thermal patterns, and temperature measurements. Unlike human visual assessment, which can be affected by lighting conditions, fatigue, experience level, and subjective judgment, AI applies the same evaluation criteria consistently for every patient. Unlike traditional devices that rely on fixed thresholds or lookup tables, AI can recognize complex relationships between multiple variables, learn from clinical burn datasets, adapt to variations in skin tones and burn appearances, and continuously improve its performance as additional data becomes available. This enables more accurate, scalable, and standardized burn assessment, making AI not only appropriate but essential for solving the problem effectively.
- Solution Design & Architecture DeramScan is designed as a practical emergency-care solution that combines speed, reliability, and intelligent decision support. Inputs:
- Infrared thermal measurements
- Digital temperature readings
- Skin color and surface appearance data Processing Layer:
- ESP32/Arduino-based processing unit
- Sensor fusion engine for combining multiple physiological signals AI Layer:
- Computer vision analysis
- Pattern classification model
- Confidence scoring system
- Computer vision, multimodal sensor fusion, pattern classification, and confidence scoring for burn severity assessment. Outputs:
- Burn severity classification (1st, 2nd, or 3rd degree)
- Confidence score
- Emergency Priority Index (Green, Yellow, Red)
- OLED display results Connectivity:
- Bluetooth communication
- Mobile monitoring interface
- Future physician review integration The complete assessment process is designed to deliver results within seconds, supporting rapid triage and treatment decisions in emergency situations.
- Impact & Decision Value DeramScan improves decision-making during the most critical stage of burn management: the first assessment. The system helps healthcare professionals, paramedics, and emergency responders quickly determine burn severity and treatment urgency. By reducing uncertainty and standardizing assessment procedures, DeramScan can improve triage efficiency, support earlier intervention, and potentially improve patient outcomes. The solution is particularly valuable in ambulances, rural healthcare settings, disaster-response situations, and locations where burn specialists may not be immediately available.
- Responsibility, Ethics & Limitations DeramScan is designed as a clinical decision-support tool and not as a replacement for professional medical judgment. To ensure safe and responsible deployment:
- The system provides preliminary assessments only.
- Users are clearly informed that professional medical evaluation remains necessary.
- Final diagnosis and treatment decisions remain the responsibility of qualified healthcare professionals.
- If the AI confidence score falls below 80%, the system automatically flags the case for mandatory human review before any treatment decision is made.
- Assessment results are intended to support, not replace, clinical expertise.
- Future development will include training on larger clinical datasets, continuous validation, and improved calibration across diverse patient populations. These safeguards ensure that DeramScan remains ethical, transparent, and trustworthy while delivering meaningful clinical value.
- AI Signals
- AI Signals DeramScan uses multiple AI signals to improve burn assessment accuracy and reliability. These signals include:
- Skin color variation and discoloration patterns
- Surface appearance characteristics
- Infrared temperature distribution
- Digital temperature measurements
- Temperature differences between affected and surrounding tissue The AI model combines these signals through multimodal sensor fusion to identify patterns associated with different burn severities. By analyzing several indicators together rather than relying on a single measurement, the system can produce more robust and clinically useful assessments.
- Human Role Humans remain central to every stage of the DeramScan workflow. Healthcare professionals are responsible for:
- Performing the physical examination
- Positioning and operating the device
- Reviewing AI-generated results
- Interpreting findings within the patient's clinical context
- Making final diagnosis and treatment decisions The AI system functions solely as a decision-support tool. If the confidence score falls below 80%, the system automatically requests mandatory human review before any action is taken. This ensures that medical expertise always remains the final authority.
- Pitch DeramScan is an AI-powered burn assessment system designed to provide fast, objective, and non-contact evaluation of burn severity. By combining computer vision, thermal sensing, and intelligent pattern classification, the system helps healthcare professionals make faster and more consistent decisions during critical emergency situations. Unlike traditional visual assessment methods, DeramScan reduces subjectivity, improves triage efficiency, and provides actionable clinical insights within seconds. Our vision is to make accurate burn assessment accessible everywhere—from ambulances and emergency rooms to rural clinics and disaster-response environments—ultimately helping healthcare providers deliver faster care and improve patient outcomes.
Log in or sign up for Devpost to join the conversation.