ATMO TUBE Pro Portable Air Quality Monitor User Guide

Product Guide

What is Atmotube PRO?

Atmotube PRO is our most advanced solution for both indoor and outdoor air quality tracking.
Atmotube PRO is a wearable, portable device that continuously monitors air quality in real time and alerts you when it gets unsafe.
Atmotube PRO tracks Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), just like
Atmotube Plus, but also detects PM1, PM2.5, and PM10 pollutants, such as dust, pollen, soot, and mold.

Why care about PM and VOCs in the air?

The average person takes over 20,000 breaths per day. Most of the time, we never think about WHAT we breathe in and how air quality affects our bodies.
Office equipment, paints and lacquers, cleaning supplies, and furnishings often emit Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs).
These gases can have adverse short and long-term health effects on our respiratory systems.
Over time, exposure to VOCs has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, liver and brain damage, and even cancer. Particulate  atter is a mixture of tiny particles and droplets made up of dirt, dust, soot, smoke, and liquid compounds that pollute the air. The ingredients can vary by season (for example, soot and smoke from wood fires, which are more common in winter, are a source of particulate matter).
When you inhale particle matter, it can harm your lungs, especially if you already have chronic lung disease or asthma. Particulate matter can even cause heart attacks, lung cancer, and low birth weight in babies. Exposure to this type of air pollution often leads to eye and throat irritation. Particle matter typically consists of nitrates, sulfates, organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust particles.
With Atmotube PRO, you can easily monitor the air you breathe and take steps to mitigate dangerous exposure before it’s too late.

How do particles affect the human body?

We’re sure you have heard about air pollution. It’s a major issue worldwide today and is mostly caused by very small particles in the air known as particulate matter (PM).
Particulate Matter (PM), also known as soot, is made of microscopic solid particles or liquid droplets that are either emitted directly into the air or formed by pollutants that combine in the atmosphere. PM is usually measured in three size ranges, which are the most harmful to health: PM10, PM2.5, and PM1.
PM10 or coarse dust particles refer to particles with a diameter less than or equal to 10 microns in size. They are about 30 times smaller than the width of a human hair and are small enough to evade our defensive nose hairs and get inhaled into our lungs. Sources of this PM10 include crushing/grinding operations, and dust stirred up by vehicles. Pollen, mold, and plant and insect particles are also considered PM10. Finally, the evaporation of sea spray can also produce large particles in coastal areas.
Dangerous level: 125 μg/m3 (microgram per cubic meter) or more.
PM2.5 or fine particles are 2.5 micrometers in diameter or smaller. Fine particles are produced from all types of combustion, including motor vehicles, power plants, residential wood burning, wildfires, agricultural burning, and some industrial processes. While PM10 ends up in your lungs, PM2.5 is more dangerous as it can transfer from your lungs into your bloodstream. From your bloodstream, it can end up anywhere in your body, thereby making it “the invisible killer”.
Dangerous level: 90 μg/m3 or more.
PM1 is particulate matter with a diameter smaller than 1 micron – is a major subset of PM2.5. These are extremely fine particles that are even more likely to reach deeper into the respiratory system than PM2.5. PM1 is the by- product of emissions from factories, vehicular pollution, construction activities, and road dust. It is not dispersed and stays suspended in the air that you breathe.
Dangerous level: 61 μg/m3 or more.

THE SMALLER THE PARTICLES, THE MORE DANGEROUS THEY ARE

Atmotube: a closer look

ON-DEVICE NOTIFICATION
The color of Atmotube’s LED indicates the current Air Quality Score (AQS), from red (extremely poor) to blue (very clean).
Press the button once and the LED will show the current AQS.

Setting up Atmotube PRO

1. Connect Atmotube to any USB power source with the supplied USB Type-C cable. The orange LED means Atmotube is turned on and charging.
   Atmotube start measuring 4 minutes after it’s turned on.
   Note: Atmotube is fully charged once the LED changes from orange to green.

2. Install the Atmotube app. It’s free on the Google Play store.
   It supports devices running iOS 9+ and Android 4.3+ with Bluetooth LE support.

Download to Android
| Download to iOS

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https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.atmotube.app| https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/atmotube/id1080310110?mt=8

How to use Atmotube PRO

3. Once you open the app, press Connect.
4. Choose your Atmotube from the list of devices and you are all set.

5. Observe the air quality score. The device starts measuring air quality immediately but will get more accurate after the first 12 hours. Proper calibration takes time.

The Air Quality Score (AQS) is the first thing you see in the app. It provides an instantaneous reading of air quality near the device which combines VOCs and PM. The AQS varies between 0 (extremely poor) to 100 (very clean).

Modes of Atmotube PRO

Your Atmotube PRO enters “10 Mins” mode by default to optimize battery life.
YOU CAN SELECT ONE OF THE FOLLOWING MODES IN THE APP:

You can also create your own custom Modes in Advanced PM settings. It’s recommended to use “Always ON” Mode while on the go to get immediate data on all changes in the air. While at home or in the office, you can use 5, 10 or 15 min Mode, since the environment will probably not change that often.

Connect Atmotube to the Cloud
If you are a research center or university you can request access to the Atmotube cloud API directly and obtain a key to access data for your device MAC address or serial number

How to connect Atmotube PRO to the cloud

Data analysis

If you need to dive deeper into analysis, all your gathered data can always be exported in basic CSV format. Download the example.
The internal memory of the Plus model can store data for up to 5 days, while the PRO model stores it up to 10.
At least once every 5 days for the Plus and 10 days for the PRO, the user needs to back up the device’s data by synchronizing it with the mobile app. Once the user connects the device with the app, the data automatically transfers from the device to the smartphone. For smartphones, the only limitation on data volume is the phone’s available storage.

How to open a CSV file?

GPS coordinates

We have public free Global Map available on https://map.atmotube.com/en/
Atmotube PRO does not have an embedded GPS module. To store GPS data, a mobile phone should be near the device at all times. If the mobile phone is not connected to Atmotube, the air quality data will be stored without GPS coordinates.

To contribute to the Global Map a user has to enable the option in settings. User data will be periodically uploaded to our secure cloud, and then aggregated on the air quality map. User accounts are not linked with data on the map.

Сan the device be used with multiple smartphones at the same time?

Atmotube maintains Bluetooth connection with only one device at a time.
If Atmotube is connected to one smartphone, it is completely invisible to other smartphones.
When several smartphones are nearby, disable Bluetooth on those you currently are not using so that they do not accidentally connect to Atmotube.
Atmotube data history can be synced only once. After syncing history data is marked as “synced” and cannot be retrieved by the other smartphone.
When you inhale particle matter, it can harm your lungs, especially if you already have chronic lung disease or asthma. Particulate matter can even cause heart attacks, lung cancer, and low birth weight in babies. Exposure to this type of air pollution often leads to eye and throat irritation.
Particle matter typically consists of nitrates, sulfates, organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust particles.
With Atmotube PRO, you can easily monitor the air you breathe and take steps to mitigate dangerous exposure before it’s too late.

Can I use Atmotube PRO without a smartphone?

Yes, you can. Atmotube PRO has an internal memory for storing data for up to 10 days. When you press the button on the front of the device, the LED light turns on. Based on the color, you will know what the current Air Quality Score (AQS) is. Please note that after 10 days, you need to sync your phone with the device. Otherwise, you may lose data older than 10 days. AQS ranges from 0 (severely polluted air) to 100 (very clean) points.

How it works

Atmotube PRO is equipped with 3 types of sensors:

1. Laser-based PM sensor
2. MEMS tVOC sensor
3. Combined digital sensor for humidity, temperature and barometric pressure

Here is how Atmotube PRO works: there is a tiny fan inside, which is engineered for optimal air flow. It takes the air in and pushes it through several chambers equipped with sensors. The sensors then take readings of the air as it passes through. Collected data is sent to your smartphone in real- time or stored in the device’s internal memory for up to 10 days if your smartphone is not around. The internal structure of Atmotube PRO is engineered in such a way that there is no maintenance required for the sensors or fan.
The noise level of the fan is about 20dB (rustling leaves). The fan is ON only during the readings, e.g. when set to the 10 min mode it will be ON for 1 minute and OFF for another 9 minutes. PM sensor measurement principles are based on laser scattering and make use of innovative contamination resistant technology. This technology, together with high-quality and long-lasting components, enables accurate measurements from first-use and throughout the device’s lifetime of more than eight years.
The functionality of our tVOC sensor is based on the conductivity-change of the gas-sensitive MOX semiconductor layers during gas exposure, which can be measured and analyzed. In order to provide accurate readings, the sensor is calibrated during production using a mix of clean air and gas. Since gases act differently at different temperatures/humidity levels, we utilize our humidity & temperature sensor to compliment tVOC measurements.
PM sensor measurement principle is based on laser scattering and makes use of innovative contamination resistance technology. This technology, together with high-quality and long-lasting components, enables accurate measurements from its first operation and throughout its lifetime of more than eight years. The functionality of our tVOC sensor is based on the conductivity-change of the gas-sensitive MOX semi-conductor layers at gas exposure, which can be measured and analysed. In order to provide accurate readings the sensor gets calibrated on the production in clean air and gases mix. Since gases act differently at different temperatures / humidity levels, we utilize our humidity & temperature sensor for compensation for
tVOC measurements.

See Atmotube PRO in action
We suggest trying the following use cases to see Atmotube in action.
To see changes related to PM, try measuring the air quality near a freeway or any street with heavy traffic. You can also walk along a construction site to see a change in the AQS.

Indoors you’ll see the effect of PM on the AQS if you spray any cosmetics or house cleaning products in a small closed room.

Or check the air quality close to a stove while cooking and see how Atmotube reacts.

The Atmotube app

Barometer & Altimeter
Atmotube PRO includes a barometric pressure sensor which provides real-time information and alerts for those who are sensitive to weather changes.
Temperature & Humidity Atmotube lets you monitor real-time the temperature and humidity so you can stay in your comfort zone and feel better.

Measurements History
Atmotube keeps tracking air quality even when your smartphone is disconnected from the device. Once Atmotube reconnects, your smartphone will download the missing data.

Air Quality Map
With our users’ permission, we store anonymous, aggregated environmental data in the cloud to update and share a global air quality map that’s free to use.
Each Atmotube contributes to global air pollution awareness.

Tech specs

LED: Multi-color, RGB
Casing: Polycarbonate plastic + Aluminum holder
Connectivity: Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE 5.0)
Sensors:
• VOC sensor
• PM1/PM2.5/PM10 sensor
• Temperature, Humidity, and Pressure sensor
Ports: USB Type-C
Battery: Non-removable, rechargeable Li-Polymer (2000 mAh)
Weight: 105 grams (3.7 oz)
Dimensions: 85х50×22 mm (3.3×1.9×0.8 inch)

MediaKit

Certifications

MCERTS
The PM sensor utilized in Atmotube PRO is MCERTS certified (MCERTS Performance Standards for Indicative Ambient Particulate Monitors). It is the first PM sensor in the consumer-grade market with this certification.
Learn more >
MCERTS report

AQMD.GOV
Air Quality Sensor Performance Evaluation Center report for PM sensor
Learn more >
South Coast AQMD AQ SPEC Field Evaluation (preliminary results)
Learn more >
South Coast AQMD AQ-SPEC report

About the company

ATMO® (before known as Atmotube) is an international company (HQ is in San- Francisco) specializing in air quality and environmental monitoring products.
Founded in 2016, ATMO helps people be aware of the air quality in their immediate surroundings and how it affects their wellbeing and health, and what to do about it.
Having started with the idea of creating the world’s first consumer-level air pollution monitor, ATMO became one of the leading engineering teams in the field of portable and stationary environmental sensing for consumers and businesses.
Our team is passionate about bringing tools for people which can improve their lives. We focus on delivering highly accurate and informative devices in a user-friendly format and on reasonable pricing. Long time, precise air quality and environmental data was a privilege only for big labs and municipalities, and we aim to democratize the highly accurate tools for people, professionals, businesses and researchers.

atmotube.com
For more information, please contact our team at info@atmotube.com

References

• AQMD - Home
• ATMO – Air Quality Monitors for Consumers and Businesses
• ATMO - World Air Quality Map

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