Bosch Sensortec — BME688 Gas Sensor

The Bosch Sensortec BME688 is an environmental sensor from Bosch Sensortec which includes an intelligent gas sensor. Developers can use the BME AI-Studio tool from Bosch Sensortec to train the sensor to recognize smells or combinations of gases that are relevant to their applications, as well as to measure humidity, temperature, and pressure.

The Bosch Sensortec BME688 gas sensor can detect vapors such as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and Volatile Sulfur Compounds (VSCs), as well as carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and other gases, even when they are present at very low levels.

Because the BME688 can distinguish between different vapors and gases in the air, as opposed to merely detecting the overall presence of gaseous contaminants, the sensor can be used for applications such as detecting the outgassing of paint or furniture, or detecting bad breath caused by the growth of bacteria.

Besides running a customized gas scan, the sensor can provide pre-configured outputs for air quality based on breath VOCs, a measure of the most common components of the breath of healthy humans, and CO2 equivalents in parts per million. The sensitivity, selectivity, data rate, and power consumption of the gas scanner can all be configured by the designer.

Low power consumption and a size of 3mm x 3mm x 0.9mm make the BME688 suitable for mobile and battery-operated devices.