Public Laboratory Spectrometer

A spectrometer is a ubiquitous tool for scientists to identify unknown materials, like oil spill residue or coal tar in urban waterways. But they cost thousands of dollars and are hard to use -- so the Public Lab community has designed its own.

This open hardware kit costs only $35, but has a range of more than 400-900 nanometers, and a resolution of as high as 3 nm. A spectrometer is essentially a tool to measure the colors absorbed by a material. You can construct this one yourself from a piece of a DVD-R, black paper, a VHS box, and an HD USB webcam.

Public Lab has also created open source software to collect, analyze, compare, and share calibrated spectral data. We've even made an experimental version which converts your cellphone into a spectrometer.

Public Lab community members have used this new tool to identify dyes in "free and clear" laundry detergent, to test grow lamps, and to analyze wines.

Now we need your help in collecting data to build a Wikipedia-style library of open source spectra, and to refine and improve sample collection and analysis techniques. We imagine a kind of "SHAZAM for materials" which can help to investigate chemical spills, diagnose crop diseases, identify contaminants in household products, and even analyze olive oil, coffee, and homebrew beer.

光谱仪（spectrometer）是科研人员识别未知物质的普及型工具，例如排查城市水道中的溢油残留物或煤焦油。但这类设备售价动辄数千美元，且操作门槛较高——因此Public Lab社区自主设计了一款设备。这款开源硬件套件仅售35美元，光谱覆盖范围达400-900纳米以上，分辨率最高可达3纳米。光谱仪本质上是用于测量物质吸收光谱的工具，你可利用DVD-R光盘、黑纸、VHS录像带盒及高清USB网络摄像头自行组装该设备。Public Lab还开发了配套开源软件，用于收集、分析、比对并共享经过校准的光谱数据。此外团队还推出了实验版本，可将智能手机改造为光谱仪。目前Public Lab社区成员已借助这款新工具，完成了"free and clear"洗衣液中染料的识别、植物生长灯的性能测试以及葡萄酒的光谱分析等工作。目前我们亟需您的协助，以收集相关数据，搭建维基百科式的开源光谱数据库，并优化样品采集与分析技术。我们期望打造一款"材料版SHAZAM"，助力化学泄漏排查、农作物病害诊断、家用产品污染物识别，甚至可用于橄榄油、咖啡与自酿啤酒的品质分析。