Now your smartphone can sense dangerous chemicals

Jing Li, a scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center, California, has a plug-in Smartphone device, chemicals from the environment can be developed sense. The current prototype works with the iPhone device and mobile phone connector on the bottom. The device can detect chemicals in the air such as methane and ammonia, chlorine gas. It will connect a network via WiFi or a regular phone connection, to send warnings to other phones equipped with the device. According to Li, a former prototype device the size of a soda can - but this iteration is touted as one of the smallest full-sensing device in the world.

The device contains a silicon-based chip detection with 64 nanosensors. Li and colleagues had to make a chip that can contain all of these nanosensors and is still compact, high speed of work, low power and low cost. Chip uses 5 milliwatts and can last for 100 hours, when it constantly. Although connected to an end plug and purchase their electricity through them, the data communication to the audio input is forwarded due to restrictions imposed by Apple with third party developers. It may be a chance that the second phase may be the development of the device to a smartphone made ​​as an iPhone. If this happens or not, Lee sees future prototypes for use by firefighters and other types of first responders.

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