CAPTION: VTT has
developed a gas sensor that can be connected to mobile devices.
Using a mobile
device to measure carbon dioxide creates the possibility of developing
new kinds of
mobile phone applications. For example, sleep quality can be monitored
by checking the
levels of carbon dioxide exhaled by the sleeper.
Applications from monitoring air quality to healthcare &
wellness
(August 14, 2015) VTT
Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed a miniature gas sensor that
can be connected to mobile devices. Gas measurements made with smartphones will
make activities such as the detection of internal air problems easier. In
addition, sleep quality will be measurable with greater precision, using mobile
healthcare applications which gauge carbon dioxide quantities.
Many sensor developers are interested in using smartphones
to measure gas concentrations.
"This is probably due to the spread of the Internet of
Things (IoT), which enables indirect observations of a range of environmental
factors based on data gathered from single sensors or sensor networks. Many
day-to-day issues, such as precision and efficiency in the workplace, can
depend on carbon dioxide levels and internal air quality," says Anna
Rissanen, leader of the VTT research team.
Using a mobile device to measure carbon dioxide will also
enable new applications for smartphones: for example, sleep quality can be
monitored by measuring the sleeper's exhalations.
The miniaturised gas sensor is based on Fabry-Pérot
interferometers (FPI) – adjustable optical filters. Over the years, VTT has
developed these for various spectroscopy-based applications, such as
hyperspectral cameras for nanosatellite- and drone-based environmental
monitoring, the early detection of skin cancer and fuel analysis for emission
minimisation.