RoadTest: Sensirion Environmental Sensor Shield - Industrial Sensing
Author: s2000gt
Creation date:
Evaluation Type: Development Boards & Tools
Did you receive all parts the manufacturer stated would be included in the package?: True
What other parts do you consider comparable to this product?:
What were the biggest problems encountered?: Expansion ability beyond just the shield.
Detailed Review:
Introduction:
I would like to thank Sensirion for selecting me for this roadtest. This was a very interesting and easy to use
arduino shield to work with.
 |
|---|
Box |
Front |
Back |
Uno and shield |
Shield on Uno |
Non-stackable headers |
SPI header |
SPI and ICSP headers |
This arduino compatible shield provides a very easy means of evaluating Sensirions two sensor components,
the SHTC1, a Temperature/Relative Humidity sensor and the SGP30, a multi-pixel gas sensor for total VOC
(volatile organic compounds) in ppb and H2 based equivalent CO2 in ppm.
Basic Testing:
After loading the arduino-ess library into the IDE, several example sketches are provided to send sensor data to the serial monitor
as well as a led light demo.
All VOC testing utilized Steriphene disinfectant as the sample material (64% Ethyl alcohol and 36% Ortho-Phenylphenol)
With a little modification of the ess and led demos, came up with a nice VOC level indicator.
Application Project:
So after testing the basic sensor functions, I thought I might develop a practical application for this board.
First was to interface a 16x2 LCD display to display the sensor data. Since the shield board did not use
stackable header like many arduino shields, it was the SPI header to the rescue.
Battery power source for portability and intake fan for air sample flow.
Now to test the build with all sensor functions.
Ok, back to the software to make this focus on VOC sampling with hazard indication like
on the LED demo.
Conclusion:
First off, I would like to say I really like this shield. It is super easy to start getting immediate
data from these two sensors with one of the most popular micro-controller boards. I do see
the shield more for the professional wanting a quick means to eval these sensors for thier
design than the maker, but from my project build, it's certainly not out of the question.
A few minor critiques:
I would have preferred stackable headers, gives a lot more expansion possibility and
fairly standard with arduino shields. However, this is a pro development board, so I
do understand their omission.
Also I would have liked the SPI header on the component side, as it comes close to
interfering with the arduino ICSP header. But again, I understand, intended for non
arduino use, I just happened to use it for expansion.
Finally, the board is probably priced appropriately for the professional
market, arduino makers may find it a bit high.
Thanks again Sensirion, a pleasure to review.
