STMicroelectronics, and Mobile Physics – a software-development startup specialising in environmental physics – have revealed an exclusive collaboration that enables smartphones and other devices to measure household and ambient air quality with a built-in optical sensor.
Developed exclusively for ST’s multizone ranging sensors, which are widely used for features like camera autofocus and presence detection, this solution measures particulates in the surrounding air. With accuracy comparable to purpose-designed air-quality monitors, Mobile Physics’ EnviroMeter app acts as a personal, portable environment monitor and smoke detector to safeguard health and enhance fire safety. Manufactured using ST’s low-power technology, it can operate ‘always on’ to provide constant awareness, with minimal impact on battery life.
Each year, 3,2 million people die prematurely from illnesses attributable to household air pollution, and the combined effects of ambient air pollution and household air pollution are associated with 6,7 million premature deaths annually. Monitoring air quality has become a real necessity and a public health issue.
Leveraging ST’s market positioning to accelerate integration, the two companies have integrated Mobile Physics’ software and ST’s VL53L8 direct time-of-flight (dToF) sensor on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 smartphone platform. As showcased at the Qualcomm Snapdragon Summit 2023, this project creates the world’s first smartphone with always-on air-quality sensing and smoke detection.
“The team at Mobile Physics has made ingenious use of the data from our dToF sensor to produce this groundbreaking, yet economical and elegant environment monitor,” said Alex Balmefrezol, GM, Imaging Sub-Group at STMicroelectronics. “We are delighted to enable this new, wellness-enhancing feature that complements the established ToF use cases, providing even more value to our customers.”
The air-quality sensing solution developed with ST is included in Mobile Physics’ EnviroMeter Software Development Kit (SDK), which also provides data on temperature, wind, precipitation, humidity, light-intensity, UV, and noise-level monitoring. Sensing can detect particles smaller than 2,5 micron. The solution does not require any additional equipment; a standard dToF sensor and the Mobile Physics software is all that is needed.
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