Smarter Home Indoor Air Quality Monitor System

Smarter Home Indoor Air Quality Monitoring System

Applied Nanodetectors has developed a smarter home indoor air quality monitoring system (IAQMS) that can detect adverse levels of pollution, unique visualization of pollutants using Augmented Reality (AR). With the help of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to forecast IAQ level changes. As well as, provide suggestions and tips to reduce pollution levels.

Our Solution

This essentially means that this unit monitors the quality of the air in households while allowing the user to visualise the pollution and harmful chemicals around them at a higher time resolution (<1 min) in order for them to make a conscious decision to improve it, in doing so, reducing the environmental risk. Pollutants monitored include Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Particulate Mater (PM 1.0, PM 2.5 and PM 4.0), Total Volatile Organic Compounds (TVOC), Formaldehyde, Humidity and Temperature.

The importance of air quality in the household is notable for many reasons and calls for an effective monitoring process. On average, people spend around 90% of their time indoors where the daily exposure of indoor pollutants are 10 times higher than outdoor concentrations. Younger children and older adults are greatly affected by this as they spend more time indoors. There is significant evidence that shows exposure to indoor air pollutions can irritate the lungs and aggravate asthma symptoms in children. It is estimated that 20% of the population suffers from respiratory diseases and other allergic diseases as a result of substances found in indoor environments.

Smarter Home Indoor Air Quality Monitor System

Augmented Reality (AR) Visualisation

The unique augmented reality (AR) visualisations of the Smarter Home Indoor Air Quality Monitor System (IAQMS) will alert users to take action and safeguard their health. The AR application is a transformative and innovative way for the user to visualise IAQ in their home and to raise awareness of the issues, thereby improving comfort and health.

Indoor sources of pollution stem greatly from combustion sources, namely tobacco, wood, coal heating, cooking appliances, and fireplaces which release harmful by-products such as carbon monoxide directly into the indoor environment. Not to mention cleaning supplies, paints, and insecticides that introduce many other dangerous chemicals into the indoor air that have been linked to an increase in cancer occurrences in the population. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that 3.8 million people a year die prematurely from illnesses accredited to household air pollution.

Artificial Intelligence Solution

Smarter Home Indoor Air Quality Monitor System (IAQMS) uses AI prediction to identify these pollution spikes found in households anywhere in the world. The monitoring system uses machine learning techniques to analyse the sensor data to accurately predict an increase in pollution levels and identify the potential cause. Applied Nanodetectors has developed a nanosensors platform that can monitor a multitude of gases simultaneously (up to 16 gases) with high accuracy and high sensitivity (ppt levels).

IAQ is one of the leading environmental risks that affect people’s health, comfort and overall well-being. Using this new system will enable users to correlate household tasks to pollution risks and take action to reduce it. We, at Applied Nanodetectors, believe this will lead to behavioural changes and a positive response to mitigate IAQ that effects the everyday household’s health.

Mobile Application

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Features include looking at your history, real time values, tips, account, your neighbourhood and most importantly AR. As well as alerts when IAQ is worsening.

Artificial Intelligence Prediction

Provides actionable suggestions to help people improve IAQ through notifications & alerts.

Examples of Indoor Air Quality Pollutants

There is a positive correlation between the PM2.5 (scale on left hand side) and VOC (scale on right hand side), as shown by the concentration of pollutants in the Smoker’s house. The concentration of pollutants are sustained at high levels due to smoking and the air quality is poor compared to a non-smoker’s house.

Pollutant PM2.5 is found at higher concentrations in a poorly ventilated house (blue line) compared to a Well-ventilated house (dark orange line). Both devices were placed in the kitchens of each respective house, the spikes shown in the graph are due to cooking. The well ventilated house has 3 high peaks (in the red zone) whereas the poorly ventilated house has 17 high peaks, both over a period of 48 hours. Ultimately, ventilation is essential to reduce the concentration of PM2.5.

Four devices measuring VOCs at different time intervals (Device 4 = 1 Minute, Device 12 = 10 Minutes, Device 3 = 15 Minutes, Device 10 = 20 Minutes). Device 4 and Device 3 demonstrate an increase in VOC concentration, however Device 3 detected VOC concentration two minutes after its peak. This is significant as a two minute difference means not recording pollutant concentration at its peak. The user would not get an alert when the IAQ is poor/ventilation is required. Measuring every minute can detect spikes and when IAQ is in the poor (red) range.

Event 1: Air freshener was sprayed twice in an unventilated area, first 1 metre away from the device and then 30 cm away from the device. There is a small increase in PM2.5 concentration, followed by a sharp increase in VOC concentration.

Event 2: Multipurpose polish spray had the least effect on the IAQ, with the spikes only reaching the lower end of the amber range for both PM2.5 and VOC concentration.

Event 3: Hairspray had the highest spike of PM2.5 concentration, reaching 427μg/m3 and then rapidly reducing to 58μg/m3 within a space of 5 minutes. VOC concentration immediately after PM2.5 concentration increased.

For all conditions, VOC concentration reduce after a long period of time due to the lack of ventilation so it takes longer to remove from the air. Better ventilation is required to reduce the time taken for VOCs to leave the air, by opening windows, using an extractor fan or using an air purifier.