Pennsylvania Patent of the Month – November 2021
The environment is a key contributor to population health. For instance, if you live in a region with heavy air pollution, you are more likely to suffer from respiratory and inflammatory responses like asthma. Long term exposure can lead to more serious conditions including heart disease. This air pollution can be a problem both indoors and outdoors. Other environmental conditions could include excessive noise over long periods of time.
Airthinx, Inc. has been developing cutting-edge AI and IoT tech to improve the environment and therefore the health of the population. Part of this solution involves an environment monitoring and management system.
Their monitoring system uses sensors which send data to a series of processors to assess air quality. The sensors track environment quality parameters like particulate matter, gas concentration, temperature, humidity, pressure, sound intensity, and light intensity. They could also be expanded to include sensors configured to detect carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde and/or volatile organic compounds or other chemicals. The processors then analyze this data to generate an environment quality score and communicate this to the user through an alert. This score will depend on the purpose of the sensor – meaning it could be based solely on air quality or weighted based on additional parameters such as gases.
Airthinx has used this technology, alongside their other developments to help asthma and allergy patients breathe easier at home. These patients can use the device to track air quality and feel more comfortable in their surroundings. The system can help detect air impurities, chemicals, smoke, and biological threats in homes, restaurants, shared transportation and office buildings.
Are you developing new technology for an existing application? Did you know your development work could be eligible for the R&D Tax Credit and you can receive up to 14% back on your expenses? Even if your development isn’t successful your work may still qualify for R&D credits (i.e. you don’t need to have a patent to qualify). To find out more, please contact a Swanson Reed R&D Specialist today or check out our free online eligibility test.
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