Outdoor air quality gas sensor offers selective ozone measurements

Renesas Electronics Corp. has expanded its ZMOD4510 outdoor air quality (OAQ) gas sensor platform with an IP67-qualified waterproof package and a new AI-based algorithm that enables ultra-low-power selective ozone measurements. The company claims the enhanced ZMOD4510 is the industry’s first fully calibrated, miniature digital OAQ sensor solution with selective ozone measurement capabilities. These sensor platform provides visibility into the air quality in users’ immediate environments, and can be used in mobile and wearable devices as well as industrial applications such as wireless security cameras and parking meters.

Based on Renesas’ new ultra-low-power firmware, the enhanced ZMOD4510 can detect specific ozone levels – without reporting on other pollutants – while maintaining power consumption under 200 µW. It can quantify selective ozone levels in concentrations as low as 20 parts per billion (ppb). The supply voltage range is 1.7 V to 3.6 V.

This selective measurement capability allows devices such as smart watches, phones, and smoke detectors to monitor for harmful ozone gasses typically found outdoors but can drift indoors through open windows and doors, said Renesas.

“Optimizing the ZMOD4510 for very low power is key to enabling the longer life cycles required for these types of battery-powered devices,” said Renesas.

The new waterproof packaging allows the sensor to operate in harsh and submersible environments. The IP67-rated sensor is said to maintain accuracy and high performance while eliminating the need for expensive waterproofing systems  in a small 3 × 3 × 0.9 mm LGA package. In addition, the software-configurable ZMOD platform allows firmware updates in the field to enable new, application-specific capabilities.

The ZMOD4510 is calibrated to the U.S. Environmental Agency’s (EPA) Air Quality Index for measuring ozone, and is highly resistant to siloxanes. The sensor is shipped fully calibrated in the hydrophobic and oleophobic package, and customers can apply a conformal coating on their circuitry instead of adding an external membrane to the module, said Renesas.

The enhanced ZMOD4510 platform is available in both a standard and IP67-rated sensor package. Renesas has developed Winning Combination system architectures for a variety of applications for the ZMOD4510 family such as for smart lighting, “Building Automation Lighting with Air Quality Sensors Solution.”

Renesas also recently expanded its ZMOD4410 indoor air quality (IAQ) sensor platform with a new option for high-humidity environments.