Lucideon and King’s College London develop antimicrobial coating for smartphones
Aims to cut the risk of cross infection from tablet devices and mobile phones
Scientists at materials technology specialist Lucideon have collaborated with Dr Paul Royall and Avneet Uppal at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences at King’s College London to develop an antimicrobial coating for portable communication devices.
The Stoke-on-Trent, UK-based company's technology has been developed to cut the risk of cross infection from tablet devices and smartphones, which are increasingly being used by healthcare professionals in the workplace.
It provides a crack-free and transparent antimicrobial coating that offers excellent adhesion to the glass surface of handheld devices.
Gemma Budd, Lucideon’s Business Manager for Healthcare, said: 'Often people don’t think about the cross infection issues of mobile devices, but they're a cause of considerable concern.
'It’s a really exciting development, which could have a profound effect on the control and management of hospital-acquired infections.'
Budd said the success of the project could mean the system can eventually be rolled out to other applications, including medical implants, dental devices, surgical instruments and packaging.
The technology is based on Lucideon’s inorganic controlled release platform and is the latest in a series of innovations from the company within the healthcare market.
The company is also mid-way through the ReBioStent project which involves co-ordinating an initiative to develop new biomaterials and arterial stents. It is supported by funding of more than €5m from the European Union.
Another project includes Lucideon’s inorganic controlled release technologies for abuse deterrent drug delivery, to solve prescription drug abuse.
A leading provider of materials development, testing and assurance, Lucideon was originally borne out of the British Ceramics Research Association. Led by Chief Executive Tony Kinsella, the company is enjoying major growth and is on track to increase its workforce by more than 50% over the next three years.
