… & how can you know?
There is probably some sort of air quality monitoring in your town or city. In my small city, there are 3 monitors with output easily available to the public. They are 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) & 21 km (13 miles) apart. Hourly & daily graphs are available.
http://www.health.act.gov.au/public-information/public-health/act-air-quality-monitoring/real-time-graphs
Recently, there have been two crowd funded projects to provide personal air quality measurements & improve the resolution of air quality monitoring world-wide.
CleanSpace Tag
CleanSpace Tag + app on iPhone
Credit: CleanSpace/Crowdfunder
CleanSpace aims at measuring air pollution by detecting just one component, carbon monoxide (CO). Rationale is that, CO is a good indicator of pollution because:
● incomplete combustion (as in an internal combustion engine) produces many pollutants, including CO, so its presence is an indicator of other pollutants
● CO can be a significant pollutant indoors
Something that sets the CleanSpace device apart, is the use of Freevolt, which, “harvests energy from 2G, 3G, 4G & WiFi [2.4 GHz] signals”, to power the device – so no battery swapping or charging – ever.
A smartphone app (iOS & Android) connects to the CleanSpace Tag via Bluetooth & the CleanSpace website to aggregate data captured by all tags.
Even without a Tag, the app is able to display aggregated air pollution data. There is no search function in the app. Zoom & pan is required to see information for anywhere other than your own location.
At this time, CleanSpace is only available for sale in Europe, due to approval issues.
Only in London, was I able to find detectable levels of CO pollution. This is, no doubt, influenced by the limited availability, & will persist until Tags become more widely available.
CleanSpace app showing high & medium levels of CO pollution
Credit: CleanSpace/App Store
If you see red lines, appearing only on roads, you are probably seeing Google indicators of heavy traffic. They can be turned off in Tag app settings.
Paul Drayson, of Drayson Technologies interviewed about the CleanSpace Tag
CleanSpace project on Crowdfunder
http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/cleanspace
If you live in Europe, you can still buy a CleanSpace Tag at:
https://our.clean.space/
Atmotube
Atmotube & smartphone app
Credit: Atmotube
Atmotube is broadly similar to CleanSpace in that:
● a portable detector collects local pollution information for the user
● displays it on a smartphone app
● aggregates it to a website maintained by the manufacturer
Differences:
● by contrast with CleanSpace, Atmotube measures a huge array of pollutants: carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, benzine, d-limonene, a-pinene, acetaldehyde, hexanal, ethylene glycol, acetone, propane, toluene, methylene chloride, 1,3-butadiene, vinyl acetate, acetylene dichloride, xylene, VOCs in smoke, acrylyl chloride & methyl chloroform
● lithium ion battery charged via USB-C
● no aggregated data available at the time I checked
Atmotube project on Indiegogo
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/atmotube-the-portable-air-pollution-monitor-environment/x/9010251#/ / project awareness action air pollution cities revolutionary technology better data CleanSpace Clean Space game-changer clean up air we breathe Dr Penny Woods Chief Executive British Lung Foundation CleanSpace Tag portable air pollution sensor enables track your personal pollution exposure what you are actually breathing in real-time air quality data anonymised aggregated combined data all other Tags across UK people begin using CleanSpace Tag mass scale more granular crowd-sourced live map air pollution across UK around the world knowledge people-power best ways fight global problems more Tags better data better understanding problem better quality solution CleanSpace Tag design small light only 51 grams carbon monoxide sensor Bluetooth radio data processing memory all powered by Freevolt technology connects to your phone via Bluetooth sends carbon monoxide levels CleanSpace app very personal view your exposure pollution choose cleaner routes to travel tag data collected anonymised sent to the cloud build detailed map air pollution for everyone using CleanSpace CleanSpace Tag powered Freevolt world first personal air pollution sensor powered radio waves Freevolt technology never need to charge Tag change battery harvests energy 2G 3G 4G WiFi signals world first hard work Tag carbon monoxide pollutant pollution airtight bag CleanSpace Tag pick up air help you avoid the nasty stuff join CleanSpace movement cleaner air get involved join the movement clean air your own CleanSpace Tag start contributing better knowledge cleaner air you and your city CleanSpace Tag donate £5 charity partners CleanSpace Tribe start your own CleanSpace tribe CleanSpace Tags family friends colleagues up-to-date local air quality information cyclists club running group neighbourhood community concerned about air quality your area package for you CleanSpace Tags CleanSpace website social media channels official CleanSpace partner CleanSpace movement improve air we breathe launched CleanSpace experienced London-based team proven track record innovation science technology work with everyone create cleaner world months development world with cleaner air making clean travel choices downloaded CleanSpace app earning CleanMiles travel foot bike redeem deals rewards high street online partners movement real impact air pollution levels nationwide health continue across the rest of the world support movement with your own CleanSpace Tag portable air pollution sensor track your personal pollution exposure what you are actually breathing in real-time CleanSpace Tag connect your phone via Bluetooth Smart BLE carbon monoxide levels breathing CleanSpace app data anonymised sent cloud crowd sourced data used improve our air pollution models more detailed for everyone using CleanSpace Freevolt technology never need charge your Tag change its battery /
