Olfactory Sensor Product State Assessment via Humidity Reference
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic devices for assessing the state of products transforming by volatile organic compounds, such as freshness or degradation, face complexities and inaccuracies in learning processes due to the need for extensive training on various products and conditions.
Innovation Solution
An electronic device with olfactory sensors that compares signatures from a reference humid environment to those from the product, calculating a similarity value to determine a product transformation index, simplifying the learning process and improving reliability by using a processor to compute a similarity value between signatures from a reference and product environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If extensive training on various products and conditions is performed to improve assessment accuracy, then measurement precision improves, but device complexity and learning process complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential reference information by capturing only the humid environment signature without product interference, separating the critical moisture-related baseline from complex product-specific variations. This extraction eliminates the need for extensive product-specific training while preserving the core assessment capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the assessment parameter from product-specific volatile compound profiles to a humidity-based reference signature comparison. By transforming the assessment basis from complex chemical fingerprints to a simplified humidity reference, the system achieves accurate assessment without extensive training on various products and conditions.
2Measurement precision
If extensive training on various products and conditions is performed to improve assessment accuracy, then measurement precision improves, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by establishing a humidity-based reference signature in advance, which serves as a universal baseline for all product assessments. This preliminary reference capture eliminates the need for time-consuming extensive training on various products and conditions, as the reference is established once and reused across different assessment scenarios.
3Device complexity
If a reference humid environment comparison method is used to simplify the learning process, then device complexity reduces, but measurement precision may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces humidity as an intermediary reference that mediates between the olfactory sensors and product state assessment. By using humidity as the intermediate reference medium, the system simplifies the learning process while maintaining measurement precision, as humidity provides a consistent and measurable baseline that correlates with product transformation states.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for simplified learning and more reliable estimates of product states, such as freshness or degradation, by leveraging the similarity between signatures from a reference and product environments, reducing the complexity of training and enhancing accuracy.
Implementation Method 1
assessing a state of a product likely to transform by emission of volatile organic compounds
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic device for assessing a state of a product likely to transform by emission of volatile organic compounds includes olfactory sensors, designed to provide signals representative of a presence of volatile organic compounds in the ambient air close to the product, and a processor for processing the provided signals to obtain a signature representative of the state of the product. It further includes a memory for storing a reference signature, representative of an exposure of the olfactory sensors to a reference humid environment in which the product is not present, and a computer which computes a similarity value for similarity between the signature representative of the state of the product and the reference signature, to provide a product transformation index value from the computed similarity value.