Portable Air Quality Sensing Device and Air Quality Sensing Method Therefor

Abstract

The present invention provides a portable air quality sensing device and a corresponding air quality sensing method. The portable air quality sensing device is equipped with environmental parameter detecting means (10) configured to detect local readings of one or more environmental parameters affecting air quality; retrieval means (150) for retrieving at least one global AQI value and/or at least one global measurement of an environmental parameter affecting air quality contributing to the global AQI value from at least one remote reading data source means (200) via a network (500); and an evaluation device (20) configured to form a local AQI value based on said one or more detected local readings and said at least one global AQI value and/or on said at least one retrieved global reading.

Claims

1. A portable air quality sensing device comprising: an environmental parameter detecting means configured to detect local readings of one or more environmental parameters affecting air quality; retrieval means for retrieving at least one of a global AQI value and a global reading of an air quality influencing environmental parameter contributing to said global AQI value from at least one remote reading data source means via a network; and an evaluation device configured to form a local AQI value based on the one or more detected local readings and the at least one retrieved global AQI value and/or on the at least one retrieved global reading.

2. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 1, wherein the environmental parameter detecting means comprises an optical particle concentration detection device configured to detect local readings of an instantaneous site-specific particle concentration of predetermined particles as the environmental parameter.

3. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 2, wherein the particle concentration is at least one of a PM2.5 fine dust concentration and a PM10 fine dust concentration.

4. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 1, wherein said environmental parameter detecting means comprising at least one gas sensor device is configured to detect local readings of an instantaneous site-specific gas concentration of a predetermined gas as said environmental parameter.

5. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined gas is one or more of SO.sub.x, NO.sub.x, O.sub.3, CO, NH.sub.3, CO.sub.2 and CH.sub.2O.

6. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 1, wherein said environmental parameter detecting means is configured to detect local readings of a local temperature or a local humidity as said environmental parameter.

7. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 1, wherein the evaluation device is configured to correct at least one detected local reading of the at least one air quality influencing environmental parameter by means of at least one retrieved global reading for forming the local AQI value.

8. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 7, wherein the environmental parameter detecting means comprises an optical particle concentration detection device configured to detect local readings of an instantaneous site-specific particle concentration of predetermined particles as the environmental parameter, and wherein the evaluation device is configured to correct a detected local reading of the instantaneous site-specific particle concentration of predetermined particles by means of at least one retrieved global reading.

9. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 8, wherein the at least one retrieved global reading is an air humidity or a temperature reading or a gas concentration reading.

10. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 2, wherein the particle concentration sensing means has an optical emitter device for directing at least one optical measuring beam through an optical exit region outside a housing into a focus region within which particle detection can be carried out, and an optical detector device disposed within the housing for detecting the measuring beam scattered by particles and for outputting information about the particle concentration.

11. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 10, the optical emitter device having a laser diode, in particular a VCSEL diode, and the optical detector device having a photodiode integrated in the laser diode.

12. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 10, wherein the measuring beam and the scattered measuring beam can be analyzed by the algorithm by means of the self-mixing interference method.

13. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 1, which is disposed within a smartphone or portable tablet device.

14. The portable air quality sensing device according to claim 1, comprising transmission means for transmitting the formed local AQI value to said at least one reading data source device via said network.

15. An air quality sensing method comprising the steps of: acquiring local measurements of one or more environmental parameters affecting air quality; interrogating at least one global AQI value and/or at least one global reading of an air quality influencing environmental parameter contributing to the global AQI value from at least one remote reading data source device over a network; and forming at least one local AQI value based on the one or more acquired local readings and the at least one retrieved global AQI value and/or on the at least one retrieved global reading.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] It is shown in:

[0039] FIG. 1 a block diagram explaining a portable air quality sensing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] FIG. 2 a block diagram explaining a portable air quality sensing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and

[0041] FIG. 3 a block diagram explaining an optical particle sensor device known from DE 10 2015 207 289 A1.

[0042] In the figures, identical or functionally identical elements are provided with the same reference signs.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0043] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a portable air quality sensing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] In FIG. 1, reference sign 100 denotes a housing, for example the housing of a smartphone, in which an environmental parameter detecting means in the form of an optical particle concentration detection device 10 is provided, which is configured to detect readings of an instantaneous particle concentration of predetermined particles in a time-controlled measuring operation and/or in an event-controlled measuring operation. In the present embodiment, the particles are PM2.5 fine dust particles.

[0045] The particle concentration detection device 10 has an optical emitter device LD for directing an optical measuring beam OB through an optical exit area OF outside the housing 100 into a focus area FA. Particle P can be detected within the focus range FA. Also disposed within the housing 100 is an optical detector device DD for detecting the measuring beam OB scattered by the particles P and for outputting information about the particle concentration.

[0046] In the present embodiment, the LD optical emitter device is a laser diode, in particular a VCSEL diode, and the DD optical detector device is a photodiode integrated in the laser diode. To determine the particle concentration, the measuring beam OB and the scattered measuring beam OW are analysed by an algorithm using the self-mixing interference method, as explained above.

[0047] The readings of an instantaneous particle concentration of the PM2.5 fine dust particles determined by the particle concentration detection means 10 are transferred to an evaluation device 20. The respective readings of the PM2.5 fine dust particle concentration are referred to here as P.sub.1.sup.local.

[0048] A retrieval means 150 connected to a GSM antenna 155 is configured to retrieve a global AQI value and a plurality of global measurements of air quality influencing environmental parameters contributing to the global AQI value from a remote measurement data source 200 of a (non-displayed) public measuring station over a network 500 such as the Internet.

[0049] The retrieved global AQI value AQI.sup.global and the majority of global readings P.sub.1.sup.global, P.sub.2.sup.global, P.sub.3.sup.global, . . . , P.sub.n.sup.global of air quality influencing environmental parameters that contribute to the global AQI value AQI.sup.global can be functionally (fct) represented as:

AQI.sup.global=fct(P.sub.1.sup.global,P.sub.2.sup.global,P.sub.3.sup.global, . . . ,P.sub.n.sup.global)

where n is a natural number denoting the total number of global readings retrieved. In this example, n=4 is assumed, wherein
P.sub.1.sup.global=global reading of PM2.5 fine dust particle concentration
P.sub.2.sup.global=global reading of CO gas concentration
P.sub.3.sup.global=global reading of NO.sub.x gas concentration (e.g. x=2)
P.sub.4.sup.global=global reading of SO.sub.x gas concentration (e.g. x=2).

[0050] The evaluation device 20 is configured to form a local AQI value AQI.sup.local based on the respective recorded local reading of the PM2.5 fine dust particle concentration P.sub.1.sup.local and the retrieved global readings P.sub.2.sup.global, P.sub.3.sup.global, P.sub.4.sup.global.

[0051] The local AQI value AQIlocal formed in this way can be represented functionally (fct) as:

AQI.sup.local=fct(P.sub.1.sup.local,P.sub.2.sup.global,P.sub.3.sup.global,P.sub.4.sup.global)

[0052] The functional relationship (fct) used when forming can be stored user-specifically or country-specifically in the air quality sensing device or can also be retrieved from the data source device 200 or another (unrepresented) data source device.

[0053] A display device 30 connected to the evaluation device 20 enables a visual representation of the local AQI value AQI.sup.local for the user. Further display modes are possible, e.g. an additional display of the PM2.5 fine dust particle concentration P.sub.1.sup.personal and/or the retrieved global AQI value AQI.sup.global and/or the majority of global readings P.sub.2.sup.global, P.sub.3.sup.global, P.sub.4.sup.global.

[0054] The display device 30 can optionally be configured to issue warnings if the local AQI value AQI.sup.local is within a highly hazardous range.

[0055] By means of a transmission device 40, the formed local AQI value AQI.sup.local can be transmitted to the reading data source device 200 or another (not displayed) data source device via the network 500.

[0056] Thus, the embodiment described above enables the forming of a constantly updatable local AQI value AQI.sup.local, which is available to both the user and other persons.

[0057] FIG. 2 is a block diagram explaining a portable air quality sensing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] The air quality sensing device according to a second embodiment corresponds in essential components to the first embodiment described above.

[0059] In the second embodiment, the air quality sensing device additionally comprises first, second and third gas sensing means S1, S2, S3 configured to sense local readings of an instantaneous site-specific gas concentration of predetermined gases.

[0060] In particular, the first gas sensor device S1 serves to detect local readings of the CO gas concentration P.sub.2.sup.local the second gas sensor device S2 serves to detect local readings of the NO.sub.x gas concentration P.sub.3.sup.local and the third gas sensor device S3 serves to detect local readings of the SO.sub.x gas concentration P.sub.4.sup.local The corresponding readings are transmitted to the evaluation device 20 time-controlled and/or event-controlled.

[0061] The functionalities of the retrieval means 150 and the evaluation device 20 for the second version are also different from those of the first version. As an option, these functions can be selected by the user.

[0062] The global reading P.sub.5.sup.global retrieved by the retrieval means 150 in the second version is the global reading of the air humidity which cannot be measured locally by the air quality sensing device.

[0063] The evaluation device 20 is configured to form a corrected local reading of the PM2.5 fine dust particle concentration, which is referred to here as P.sub.1.sup.local, corrected. Such a correction compensates the measurement error, which correlates with the humidity.

[0064] By means of a correction function fct1 stored in the air quality sensing device, the evaluation device 20 calculates the corrected local reading of the PM2.5 fine dust particle concentration as being

P.sub.1.sup.local,corrected=fct1(P.sub.1.sup.local,P.sub.5.sup.global)

and calculates the local AQI value to AQI.sup.local as being

AQI.sup.local=fct(P.sub.1.sup.local,corrected,P.sub.2.sup.local,P.sub.3.sup.local,P.sub.4.sup.local)

[0065] Although the embodiments described detect local readings of certain environmental parameters affecting air quality, the invention is not limited to these parameters, but can be applied to any environmental parameter.

[0066] It is also possible that the retrieval means only retrieves a global AQI value and transforms it into a local AQI value using local measurements of certain environmental parameters affecting air quality.