Original post by Graeme Harkness on July 30, 2018.
For the past 5 or 6 years we have been trying to gather enough sensors to outfit our biology, chemistry and physics labs. Sensors can detect properties such as CO2/ O2 concentration, pressure, temperature, pH, light absorbance and much more. The problem is the sensors are expensive ($300-$600 each) and they need in interface to run them ($250), paid site software licence ($380), and a computer to show the data.
Venier came out with the labquest 2 that allowed the sensor to work with it alone but again they were very expensive ($500 each).
Last week I was at a conference and I was introduced to the wireless probes by Pasco (Vernier also has wireless probes). These probes are now much cheaper as they do not need the interface, the software or the computer as they can connect through bluetooth to an iOS or android mobile device using their free app. The sensors and the app were very easy to use and as soon as the app was downloaded we were ready to go.
The students and I always seem to spend more time setting up and calibrating then actually running the experiment so switching over to the wireless probe should increase our efficiency.
Seeing as almost every student has a mobile device it makes sense that they can use them to run the sensors. Being able to record data, manipulate their graph and share it with their group members right from their phone is incredibly convenient and should make the lab time more enjoyable.
What motivated me to include this post by Graeme Harkness was because I have used this company’s portable devices and I can attest to the fact that they are doing fantastic work on the mobile technology front! I did not use wireless probes with my students but rather a wireless spectrometer. What was special about this was firstly that the technology was more accessible in terms of cost than a large full-spec. setup would have been (roughly a fifth of the cost)… This allowed me to buy these instruments for undergraduate students that would normally never have gotten access to such instruments at such a junior level of study. The interface has also been designed to allow anyone with only the tiniest amount of knowledge on this piece of equipment to be able to use it. There is also a wonderful site with YouTube videos to guide students through the steps of using the instrument. Lastly, the connection… normally one would need a dedicated PC to run a piece of equipment like this and it would require an immense amount of wiring but the PASCO instruments are designed to run on mobile devices wireless (just see how a small Apple Mini tablet ran the spectrometer over Bluetooth- https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JrlaxbN4Tsw6-AQuUNzCYQHtoy7yfjIj/view?usp=sharing). They are also so small that one could easily pack them in a bag and go and do field work as you pleased. A dream experience.