With the outbreak of new coronavirus pneumonia in China, masks have become more important and sales have grown. Recently, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) approved the patent for "smart masks" submitted by Xiaomi.
This mask will have a built-in computer unit, which contains a processor (processing all data from the mask's onboard sensors), a size module (responsible for storing calculation data), a battery (powering all equipment), a connection module (Transmits all stored data) and standard air filters.
According to Xiaomi, the smart mask also has a sensor that can be used to calculate the "pollution absorption" and record the total wearing time of the mask. The processor then initiates a wireless connection via a paired device, such as a smartphone, to transmit the user's air breathing data to the application for a specified period of time.
Once the data is transmitted, the mask will let users know the air quality of their city in real time through the air quality index data of the call center server.
In addition, this smart mask may also have a built-in health sensor that will be used to record data such as the user's breathing volume per breath and the total number of breaths during wear.
In addition, sensors such as common accelerometers and gyroscopes are also included. They can help masks determine whether the user is in motion during wearing, because if it is in motion, it will bring different results.
These indicators will be consistent with the total amount of pollutants inhaled by the user, which will extract data from a central server and send it to the mask through a paired phone.
Once the total intake of pollutants is calculated, the smart mask can compare this parameter with the filtering efficiency of the mask air filter to estimate the air quality that the user breathes in the current environment.
In addition, it may even help users determine if their lung capacity is increasing or decreasing.
In view of the current pollution situation in people's living environment, such a mask may seem to be a wearable medical product, which can potentially detect abnormal breathing conditions of users and recommend healthier breathing methods for them.
The patent was filed on June 15, 2016.
