Last week I’ve assembled a KIT1 and posted some details about it to the forum. radhoo praised the article and asked me to share it on this blog, maybe will be helpful for the readers. So, here is an updated “copy-paste” from the original post. The diy kit is based on the v1.1.104 pcb. It […]
Air Quality Monitoring over LoraWAN
LoRaWAN is a Low Power Wide Area Network specification intended for wireless communication. The standard provides seamless interoperability of connected objects, without the need for complex installations. End devices can communicate wirelessly with a central server via radio gateways that appear as transparent bridges simply relaying the data. Picture 1: LoraWAN system diagram This opens […]
#BalCCon2k16
Novi Sad was the recent host of a high density of hackers during the BalCCon2k16 conference, organised by the Linux User Group of Novi Sad with the participation of many international guests. Entitled time is an illusion, the event delivered interesting talks and workshops, and above all the chance to meet the people behind the […]
uRADMonitor Model A3
uRADMonitor Model A3 is a fixed monitoring station designed to measure a total of 8 important parameters related to pollution and air quality, continuing the environmental monitoring direction that was introduced by the Model D. It was first announced in June 2016, initially being deployed in public transportation, marking our company’s first steps towards the […]
uRADMonitor Model D
uRADMonitor Model D is the first uRADMonitor unit designed to address air pollution. It features top quality sensors, being able to sense a total of 6 chemical and physical parameters. It is handheld portable detector, in a rugged compact form aluminium enclosure. The initial concept was announced May 2015, and by August 2015 a first […]
The Dashboard
The purpose of the Dashboard is to offer an interface to the uRADMonitor system, the global data and the uRADMonitor detectors. Dashboard presentation Using the Dashboard, you can see your connected units, add them to your account and manage them further. This includes changing the coordinates of your uRADMonitor unit on the map, either for […]
Dynamic IDs
All the uRADMonitor detectors were designed with a unique hardcoded identifier used to organise the datasets collected. Using this approach we were able to group together measurements collected from any given hardware unit, and display them to the unit owner or on the uRADMonitor frontend, like in this example. We named this identifier a “Device […]
Viva Technology Paris
Just returned from the Viva Technology Fair in Paris. The event was huge, bringing together an impressive number of startups, investors and companies, driving the innovation spirit to a new scale. It was a place to meet new people, share ideas and get inspired from known speakers kindly offering insight and know how on their […]
Open Innovation
The International Conference of Clusters from Northern Transylvania is an annual event in Romania created out of necessity for joint innovative projects, with a major impact on the community. uRADMonitor was invited and we held a presentation in one of the sections of the event. One of the topics of substantial importance was the “Open […]
Winner of Innovation Labs 2016
The 2016 edition of the Innovation Labs competition, organised by Tech lounge and backed up by Orange, Carrefour and the Romanian-American Foundation, ended a few days ago with an impressive ceremony at the National Library of Romania. Code named “the Demo Day”, it was an interesting combination of technical product/prototype demo and live presentations held […]
uRADMonitor Model A3 to map air pollution
We planned to extend the uRADMonitor network and go from Radiation monitoring to Air pollution and the first steps towards this goal included the uRADMonitor model D detector, capable of tracking multiple environmental parameters. As a continuation of this effort, we’re pleased to announce a new addition to the family of uRADMonitor detectors. Named A3, […]
Shipping the KIT1
Preparing to ship at once a large amount of units takes considerable time, mainly because each one needs to be carefully packed with all the accessories and also labeled correctly. Should the uRADMonitor network go for dynamic IDs, things would become a little easier on the logistics side, but for now, each shipping label must […]
Model KIT1 – Production Ready!
The uRADMonitor network started as a worldwide array of ionising radiation detectors, to deliver comparable radiation readings regardless of location. We’re now using the existing infrastructure to also include air quality measurements (the model D was a first step towards that). The first hardware detector we’ve built was the uRADMonitor model A, a fixed monitoring […]
Cluj Innovation Days
Cluj-Napoca emerged as Romania’s Innovation capital, thanks to the high number of universities, students and research programs, but especially due to the initiative of some very responsible people, that understood the need of creating an ascendent trend of development for the entrepreneurial spirit and business opportunities. Part of this positive direction was the Cluj Innovation […]
uRADMonitor featured by Bosch
The uRADMonitor model D was the first to go beyond detecting only ionising radiation, by adding various air parameters to the list of monitored values. Now a single handheld device contains enough sensory to assert a large interval of environmental parameters and identify pollution factors. One of the air sensors is the BME680: a low […]
Mobile World Congress 2016
We’ve been in Barcelona for an entire week, for the Mobile World Congress. As the MWC is mostly about software, we thought it is a great moment to have our first mobile app ready, even if it is in Alpha phase and only for Android phones. Get it here, keep in mind it’s an alpha, […]
First indieGogo funded unit went online
There are now three uRADMonitor units running in Poland. The last one went online this month, and even if it’s technically similar to the other two by being a model A unit, it is special because it’s the first indieGogo funded unit to go online, part of the first batch of perks delivered. Thanks to […]
uRADMonitor enters RICAP Academy
uRADMonitor was recently selected in the RICAP Academy program that aims to push Romanian Innovation further. Magnasci, the Romanian company behind it, while being still a newcomer on the technology and innovation market, manages production and worldwide recognition in record time with this successful first product. The mission focuses on developing technology to better our […]
The steps to success
One year ago, I concluded the project’s roadmap with a plan. And everything happened, literally: we finally have the startup company and the indieGogo campaign became a reality, exceeding the initial funding goal. And this is just a tiny bit of everything that happened in 2015. It’s been a really successful year, with so many […]
Model D updates
Some of the remaining changes for uRADMonitor model D included finalising the firmware and identifying a few better alternatives for the LCD bezel. Should the indieGogo campaign reach it’s stretch goal, we’ll also see a GPS module added to this unit, and an internal antenna for a more compact design. But getting back to the […]
The Hackaday Prize 2015 Finals
The uRADMonitor model D, or the Portable Environmental Monitor, has entered this year’s Hackaday Prize competition, throwing in a complex hardware design, backed by a matching software infrastructure implemented with thousands of lines of code. What started with a simple hand drawn diagram was followed later by the Beta prototype and finally led to the […]
Bosch BME680
The BME680 is an integrated environmental sensor developed specifically for mobile applications and wearables, where size and low power consumption are key requirements (source). Thanks to Bosch Sensortec, several BME680 samples have been provided to assist further development of the uRADMonitor-D project and support the monitor’s air quality assertion. The part of the uRADMonitor-D code […]
First prize at Arad Innovation Fair 2015
The Regional Innovation Fair 2015 aims to promote innovative technologies and solutions and brings together business and research professionals allowing you to open new business channels, exchange contacts and discuss potential cooperation in West Region, Romania. uRADMonitor is honoured to take the first prize, and is committed to continue delivering monitoring solutions, to track pollutions […]
Pollution monitor meets 3d printing
The portable environmental monitor is finalist in both categories of the Hackaday Project, Best Product and the GrandPrize but the development doesn’t stop here. We’ve managed to put together a complex piece of equipment that also has an appealing design. One thing missing was a proper bezel to protect the LCD and to hide the […]
Hackaday Prize 2015 Grand Prize Finals
The portable environmental monitor project or the uRADMonitor-D was announced today as one of the 10 finalists of the Hackaday Prize 2015, from a total of almost 1000 initial entries. With this highly honourable distinction, the uRADMonitor project is committed to continue its mission of tracking health threatening pollutants at global scale. By expanding the […]
uRADMonitor KIT1.1
The uRADMonitor KIT1.1 is an Open Source Digital Radiation Dosimeter, that can be used both as a portable detector, but also as a monitoring station to upload readings to the uRADMonitor network. It relies on a Geiger tube to detect radiation. This can be build by anyone interested with minimum effort. Construction details are available […]
Hackaday Prize 2015 Best product finals
The portable environmental monitor project or the uRADMonitor Model D, had its Finals deadline today, for the Hackaday Prize 2015 Best product category, where it competes with nine other projects for the grand prize. A series of upgrades have been introduced, to meet the competition requirements, but also improve the project forward. These include the […]
Model D – Production Ready!
The portable environmental monitor addresses pollution, the kind that we are unable to see but directly affects our health and can cause life threatening diseases. Airborne toxic chemicals, radioactive dust and radioactive radon are correlated with cases of pulmonary cancer, asthma and heart disease. Since our biological senses can do little to warn us of […]
Server upgrade / Site v4.0
The complexity of the uRADMonitor system stretches from a multitude of compact hardware detectors capable of sensing the invisible ionising radiation and air quality, to the big data software solutions that can handle the huge amounts of data in real time. With the network spreading at a fast pace, periodic upgrades on the server side […]
Nominated at CESAwards2015
uRADMonitor got into the shortlist of nominees for the Central European Startup Awards 2015, for the Best Cloud/Data application category. The Central European Startup Awards is a unique series of events in the CEE region, launched in 2014 to gather the best of the best from the CEE startup community. This competition covers 10 countries […]
uRADMonitor Model D Beta
The uRADMonitor-D, also known as the Portable Environmental Monitor is a powerful handheld unit equipped with advanced sensors to detect and warn against hazardous airborne substances. Three Beta stage prototypes are currently in transit for the Hackaday Headquarters to be part of the Hackaday Prize 2015 competition. Fingers crossed, winning this would boost the uRADMonitor […]
First uRADMonitor Model D prototype is ready
The first uRADMonitor-D hardware prototype is ready, while the software is still under development. See the progress and read more details here: http://www.pocketmagic.net/the-first-prototype/
Weather vs Radiation readings
I’ve been running uRAD unit #12000003 here in Australia for around 12 months now and the only time I’ve really seen a solid increase in readings is during heavy rain which got me thinking, what other weather conditions affect radiation levels? To find out I purchased a cheap weather station off eBay and set about […]
uRADMonitor Model D featured on HackADay
The uRADMonitor-D, racing for this year’s HaD Prize, has been featured on HackADay Support this project by voting, using the skull button on the project page. You can follow it to stay in touch and receive update notifications
First uRADMonitor unit in Middle East
The temperature levels in Kuwait are high. The highest recorded temperature was 54.4°C (129.92°F), but summer values often reach 50°C (122°F). On the other hand background radiation stays in normal levels, as measured by the first uRADMonitor unit in Middle East that just went online: The following image shows a quick comparison between various locations. […]
Model D Radiation Sensor
The previous blog entry on the uRADMonitor D presented a few details on this new radiation detector, stating that it will be able to detect not only gamma radiation, but also beta and alpha (including radioactive radon sources). One problematic issue was sourcing the proper detector, one that was both sensitive and small to fit […]
uRADMonitor in Shenzhen, China
Unit 1100007D went online in Shenzhen, China, showing slightly elevated radiation readings: This unit is located in an industrial electronics production centre. Its purpose is more connected to future uRADMonitor production than to environmental surveillance, so the readings might go offline from time to time. Other units in that part of the world, include the […]
uRADMonitor model D Concept
The uRADMonitor project started with a single network connected automated dosimeter, that quickly proved its usefulness and spawned into a global scale, full fledged monitoring network, covering all major continents. At the core of the entire infrastructure are the low power automated dosimeter units, at the moment of this article available as the uRADMonitor model […]
Featured on The Green Optimistic
If your concerns on a healthy environment extend from Ionising Radiation to multiple other environmental hazards, you’ll be most pleased to know that uRADMonitor has been featured on The Green Optimistic, part of an in depth analysis of our radiation detector! With their huge experience on enviromental-friendly technologies going back to 2008, they have a […]
Hackaday Prize 2015
The uRADMonitor project owes a considerable part of its exposure to the Hackaday Prize 2014 Edition, where it was one of the 50 semifinalists out of a large number of participants. Tomorrow, March 10, the 2015 edition of this prestigious competition is taking a new start. They are throwing huge resources in the game, in […]
uRADMonitor KIT1
uRADMonitor KIT1 is the first open source DIY dosimeter KIT, that can be used to collect radiation measurements and push them to the uRADMonitor network. Similar to model B that is to be released later this year, the KIT1 is intended for those interested in building their own radiation devices and contribute to the uRADMonitor […]
Two hundred uRADMonitor units
Not long after the 2014 summary announced a first achievement of 100 units deployed globally, the network has already doubled its size, with a total of two hundred units installed or in transit to their new location. The new locations are many and it would be a rather complicated task to name them all in […]
Model A New firmware v111
With the uRADMonitor network covering more ground, constant effort is invested in making the project serve its purpose better. Code improvements come with extra features or better stability, and new firmware updates are released to anyone interested in upgrading their units. Firmware 111 is the latest code released for the uRADMonitor model A units. We […]
The Compensation Capacitor
Normally, the Geiger tube delivers a sharp short pulse, with an abrupt descending path, as the quenching gas very quickly neutralises the conductive ions, and so terminating the current flow. The uRADMonitor pulses appear with a slightly rounded tip because an extra capacitor is added in the circuit, named the “compensation capacitor”. All uRADMonitor model […]
Checking the Geiger tube
The Geiger tubes used in uRADMonitor model A units are mostly the SBM-20 or the SI-29BG, both of Russian provenience, manufactured at military grade specs. Therefore they were meant to resist fluctuations over a wide interval of temperature or pressure. If a tube failure is suspected for a particular uRADMonitor unit, for example when the […]
Howto upgrade your uRADMonitor and graph local statistics
Hi everybody, My first post here to develop my answers in the forum about how to upgrade the firmware and get the local data to create some graphics. The upgrade procedure has been explained by Radhoo in a previous post, but I will add my little grain of salt.
Model A firmware upgrade guide
As a project targeting global coverage, uRADMonitor was designed with all the important features right from the start: the units are plug and play, the network settings are automated via DHCP, the location is estimated automatically based on IP and so turning the unit on is enough to have a new node on the map, […]
A year to remember
2014’s last day is slowly passing by. For what uRADMonitor is concerned, the passing year was one to remember. It was 2014 where this entire project practically started: it moved from an idea to a prototype and then into production, for now to see it expand quickly all over the world. The solution is already […]
Poland on the map with two units
With some of the new units still in transit, or waiting to get installed, a few others are already up an running. From the list of firsts, it is the time of Poland to come forward with two brand new uRADMonitor radiation monitoring stations in two of the country’s biggest cities: Warsaw and Łódź The […]