DEEPER LEARNING: Articial Nose
Press the 5-way joystick button to enter
Inference mode. The screen should now indicate
what scent is being detected with the highest
level of confidence. This basic model can smell
coffee, tea, whiskey, and rum.
MORE SENSORS, MORE SCENTS
You might find yourself limited by the capabilities
and accuracy of the sensor used in this build.
In my experience, it’s working fine for telling
a handful of scents apart — I first used it to
distinguish between a few brands of my favorite
spirits. But your project might involve classifying
dozens of very similar scents, or scents that don’t
graph distinctively on this particular sensor.
If that’s the case, just start browsing your
favorite electronics supplier’s catalog, and
consider replacing the original sensor with
something more geared toward your application.
Methane? Ozone? Ammonia? Smoke? Name a
compound that’s characteristic of the scent you’re
trying to classify, and there’s a good chance a
sensor for it already exists on the market.
I SMELL IMPROVEMENTS COMING
There are many things I wish I’d done differently
when designing the enclosure. In retrospect,
using Blender instead of actual CAD software
probably was a bad idea. The nose looks pretty
and Blender can do stunning 3D renderings, but
tweaking the model is unnecessarily complex.
Somewhat related, the nose cavity and nostrils
could probably do a better job at concentrating
the airflow straight onto the gas sensors. Or
maybe the fan is blowing too strongly, not leaving
enough time for the gas sensor to react with
the air molecules? Either way, don’t hesitate to
experiment using the nose … without the nose!
Another important next step: Use the Wio's
built-in Wi-Fi to make the nose a connected,
wireless device. The nose could be very useful
in remote or difficult-to-access location. For
example, in the drop ceiling of an office building’s
restrooms, to monitor when they need servicing.
Therefore, by the time you’re reading this,
my GitHub repo will most likely contain all the
instructions to directly upload to an IoT platform,
in real time, the detected scents. I also plan on
making it possible to fully update the nose’s
neural network remotely, without any human
intervention.
Just think of the possibilities if all of us
makers start putting together an open source
catalog of scents’ fingerprints that anyone can
cherry-pick from for building their own smell-
capable applications!
How about you? Who nose what you’ll do to
improve the build?
A DIY SOLUTION FOR ANOSMIA?
Anosmia refers to a temporary or permanent
loss of the ability to smell.Among U.S. adults
over 40, some 3% suffer from total anosmia and
23% report some alteration in their ability to smell.
Add Covid-19 to the mix, and you get even more people impaired
in their day-to-day olfactory life.
Since I started sharing my project, I’ve heard dozens of stories
of folks being impacted by anosmia. Has that bottle of milk gone
sour? Does the dog need a bath? Could I use a shower? For
many, those everyday questions are just impossible to answer.
And while a cheap, DIY electronic nose will likely not replace a
fully functional human nose anytime soon, it could most certainly
become a great companion for those suffering from anosmia.
36 makercampus.com
USER INTERFACE CHEATSHEET
• Joystick (5-way switch) — Press in, to alternate
between Inference mode (the nose displays its
current prediction) and Training mode (raw sensor
data is displayed). Push left or right to navigate the
various screens of the application.
• Upper-left button — aka Button 1 or Key A. Press to
toggle the fan on and off.
M77_032-37_SS_Nose_F1.indd 36M77_032-37_SS_Nose_F1.indd 36 4/11/21 1:21 PM4/11/21 1:21 PM
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