Gas Detector / Indicator (USB Powered) With Arduino

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Intro: Gas Detector / Indicator (USB Powered) With Arduino

ArduSniffer
This Instructable shows how to build a gas detector / indicator using an arduino.
The finished product is USB powered and displays the amount of detected gas on a led display.
In this design the reset button on the arduino is also working.

This project will cost you between €25,- and €65,- depending on the quality of the parts you want to use, the links to order the parts are included in step one.
Luckily, the arduino (which is the biggest investment here) can be easily reused for other projects.

STEP 1: Materials & Tools


The first thing you need to do is gathering the required materials,
for starters it is advised to use the electronics described here.
Ofcourse when you are more experienced you could display the data in a completely diffent way,
the arduino has great oppertunities for this.

Tools
- hot glue gun
- sharp knife
- metal ruler
- some drawing tools
   (depending on your personal preference)

Materials
- arduino nano
   €39,95 http://iprototype.nl/products/arduino/boards/nano
   or €11,44 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/nano-v3-0-avr-atmega328-p-20au-module-board-usb-cable-for-arduino-118037?item=92 (this includes cable!)

- usb cable
   €3,95 http://iprototype.nl/products/accessoires/cables-wires/mini-usb-cable

- usb powerplug (optional)
   €8,95 http://iprototype.nl/products/accessoires/power/usbadapter

- gas sensor
   €5,95 http://iprototype.nl/products/components/sensors/methane-CNG-gas-sensor-MQ-4

- led display
   €1,39 http://iprototype.nl/products/components/led-lcd/led-display-red

- cardboard or other material for the exterior (you can use the included drawing and print it on thick paper)
   or order the 3D printed exterior

    * parts are also available at sparkfun.com *

STEP 2: Mounting the Parts


Next, you have to mount the parts into the housing.
Use the drawing provided in the previous step or create something yourself,
The 3D printed exterior has a mounting clip for the arduino built in.

The pictures illustrate how to mount the parts using the hot glue gun.
As you can see I used some small pieces of cardboard glued together for spacers and mounting supports,
this is particularly important if you want the reset button on the arduino to work properly.
Make sure to securely glue the parts into place but still keep the electronic contact points and button clean.

STEP 3: Wiring


Once you have all the parts in place you can wire them.
connect the arduino to the sensor and led display according to the documents below.
If you have doubts, feel free to send me a message.

In the picture I used quite long wires that have female headers on them,
for a permanent version you could choose to solder the wires.

Sensor wiring
http://wiring.org.co/learning/basics/airqualitymq...

Led display wiring

http://www.learningaboutelectronics.com/Articles/A...

http://iprototype.nl/docs/led-display-red-technisc...

STEP 4: Uploading Code


The arduino needs to be programmed,
this is very easy to do.

Use the software provided on www.arduino.cc
- go to the site
- click on 'download'
- download and unpack the 0023 version (needs no installation)

Now you can open the included code file and upload it to the arduino.
The file needs to be in a folder with the same name tag.
(the arduino software will create this for you when you try to open the file)
For instructions check the arduino website.

STEP 5: Testing


Now you can test your gas detector!

Change the thresholds in the code if you are not satisfied with the reaction of the sensor.
Instructions can be found on the www.arduino.cc website.

44 Comments

I have a question. can arduino uno is capable to replace the arduino nano in this project? reply me please. I really need the answer for our project. thank you so much.

does this sensor detect refrigerant r410a gas leak?

you need to change the gas module for that

Excuse me sir, I'm about to modify this project and I add some other materials like buzzer and LED. can you help on how to put the schematic of these materials? I badly need it. :( thanks.

Hi, i have a rookish question, i made the circuit and it works but anytime the sensor senses gas and let's say number 4 is displayed, after some secs the gas evaporates and the blinking loop starts again number 4 is displayed again!! If the gas will be heavier and let's say number 6 is on the display after a while the blinking loop comes up but this time number 6 comes up again! how can i change it? i know it has something to do with the sum-break routine. P.s. the same happens to your video because you haven't put any delay before breaks it's not visible but if you pause it you will see that you have the same problem!

Hi ! your project looks great but I made this with an arduino uno and I have a problem with the display:

When I connect all pins to the arduino starting by the first on the left bottom (of the display) to the digital pin 2 until the tenth to the pin 9 and the third and the eighth to the positive and ground, the arduino doesn't work and it turns off. Are all the connections right ? Can you help me please ? The display needs a resistor? Thanks.

Sorry for my bad english but I'm an italian student and I don't speak english very well.

sounds like you are short-circuiting something. does this help:

http://www.learningaboutelectronics.com/Articles/Arduino-7-segment-LED-display.php

I have this kind of segment display is this different from your display ? I understood that my display works only with 5v connection and a 330 ohm resistor in the two wiring display connections. Please can you help me ? If you want could you help me by email ? Thanks for the link but the wiring doesn' t work but I could learn a lot of informations with that link. I appreciate your attention to much. :)
I am GianlucaS1 and I posted that comment on the top
Can you send me something how to wire the gas sensor?

The 3D printed exterior is broken!

sorry, the link is not working anymore since this is an old project.

Can you send me a video of how to do the wiring?
Can you send me a video of how to the wiring
How did you make the reset button?

Hi, arduino's have a standard reset pin. Connect a button to both the reset pin and ground, pushing the button will completely reset the arduino.

So do I have to buy a button for reset?

On the arduino nano there already is a reset button, you can use this as shown in the template.

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