# Wearable Nanoelectronic Vapor Sensors for Transdermal Alcohol Monitoring

> **NIH NIH R44** · ARBORSENSE, INC. · 2020 · $566,692

## Abstract

Project Summary
In this Commercialization Readiness Pilot (CRP) Program project, Arborsense will develop field-ready wearable
alcohol bio-monitors that are robust and comfortable to wear continuously while maintaining the functionality and
performance demonstrated in Phase II, and conduct a field compliance study for 4 weeks to establish product-
market fit. Excessive alcohol consumption is the fourth leading preventable cause of death in the US. Alcohol-
related deaths have accelerated significantly in the past two decades as has the prevalence of other alcohol-
related harms such as alcohol use disorder and alcohol-related liver disease. Arborsense’s wearable alcohol
bio-monitor will address the unmet need for a continuous, convenient-to-use, and discreet device for monitoring
alcohol consumption without discomfort or stigma. This will lead to better awareness and compliance with respect
to alcohol use amongst the general public. Arborsense received an NSF Phase I SBIR grant (IIP-1548317) with
which we demonstrated proof-of-concept graphene alcohol sensors and their feasibility in human volunteer tests.
This led to an NIAAA Phase II SBIR grant (R44AA026119) that allowed us to build light, standalone, and wrist-
worn sensor modules integrated with self-calibration electronics and Bluetooth transceiver to transmit data
wirelessly to our custom Android app. In Phase II, we collaborated with the University of Michigan to validate
these sensor modules in large scale human subject tests (82 human participants; more than 150 sensors tested
in over 300 individual tests on multiple body locations). We have shown that our current modules can
continuously and reliably detect drink events with peak BAC level >0.03% when benchmarked with legal grade
breathalyzer and have very low false positives and low false negatives. In this CRP program, we will collaborate
with Sundberg-Ferar (a Michigan based industrial design firm) and incorporate robustness, ergonomic
refinements, and aesthetics to develop a rugged and high-fidelity system that will be utilized for a multi-week
wear study through the University of Michigan. We will also engage with our strategic partners during the design
process to incorporate features necessary for market acceptance. The successful performance of our bio-
monitors in these real-world tests in terms of functionality and usability is a key milestone towards market
approval and production development and will continue to provide investment momentum.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10137829
- **Project number:** 2R44AA026119-04
- **Recipient organization:** ARBORSENSE, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Girish Kulkarni
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $566,692
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2017-08-10 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10137829

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10137829, Wearable Nanoelectronic Vapor Sensors for Transdermal Alcohol Monitoring (2R44AA026119-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10137829. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*