POD - real-time urban pollution monitoring using stationary devices

Pollution tracking in urban environments can now be performed through a variety of means, both dynamic and stationary. We envision a pollution data acquisition system that can be made accessible to end users by including them in the collection process, not just presenting the results through web pages or applications. We propose a low-cost device, easily configurable by anyone, which measures gas levels, dust, temperature and noise. The users can deploy them at home, connect them to their local Wi-Fi network and see the pollution data in real-time through a web interface. We address the design challenges of such a sensing device and the iterations that lead to its current hardware and software components. The node can function as part of a system that collects and stores the data and makes it available in real-time to all its users.