Withings’ U-Scan technology to bring urinalysis-based personalized nutrition into the home

04 Jan 2023 --- Smart technology player Withings is launching an in-home biomarker urinalysis platform in Europe starting in Q2 of 2023. The device will sit in the toilet bowl and can measure nutrition, hydration, ovulation and automated menstruation journaling through its Nutri Balance and Cycle Sync consumer cartridges.

According to the company, U-Scan is a “miniaturized health lab” capable of unlocking the wealth of information contained in daily urine, noting that, even though urine contains over 3000 measurable metabolites, analyses are usually only performed once a year.

U-Scan will allow for analysis on a daily and even a throughout-the-day basis and provide insights and recommendations via the accompanying app.

“The ability of U-Scan to perform daily urine analysis from home will allow Withings to take its mission to help consumers fully utilize urine data to an entirely new level,” says Mathieu Letombe, CEO at Withings. “It’s one of the most exciting and complex products we have ever announced.”

“We begin this journey with U-Scan Cycle Sync and Nutri Balance and look forward to announcing more cartridges on an ongoing basis as well as medical applications of the technology.”

At-home health analysis

The company notes that the technology has already received three honoree awards from the Consumer Health and Technology Association for 2023 in the smart home, digital health and fitness and sports categories.

U-Scan can track dozens of factors and offer daily personalized dietary recommendations. Credit: Withings

The platform consists of a pebble-shaped reader and changeable analysis cartridges that can measure specific biomarkers and provide immediate feedback through the Withings Health Mate app. The app will also provide actionable insights based on its findings.

The Nutri Balance cartridge will measure specific gravity, vitamin C, pH levels, carb balance and ketone levels to help optimize daily hydration as well as offering personalized dietary recommendations, recipes and workout suggestions to help reach identified health goals.

The Cycle Sync cartridge will also give more specific feedback for women, including coaching, cycle tracking and automatic journaling. It will also monitor hormone levels to make menstruation cycle and ovulation predictions.

Compact calculationsThe company states that it is awaiting regulatory approval for medical cartridges in Europe.
According to the company, the rechargeable U-scan reader can automatically distinguish between urine and external liquid. It then funnels the correct samples through a pebble-shaped inlet where a thermal sensor pump activates in the presence of urine and then injects the sample into a test pod where an optical module reads the chemical reactions. The system is cleaned with each flush.

U-Scan also contains a Stream ID feature which allows it to distinguish between various users by calculating the distance and movement of different urine streams. The rotating cartridge contains dozens of miniaturized test pods that the company says perform reliable chemical analysis and automatically transmit the results to the app via Wi-Fi. 

Each pod can support up to three months of use. Moreover, Withings states that it is also waiting for approval for use in the US and that medical cartridges for use in Europe are currently pending regulatory approval.

Edited by William Bradford Nichols