Zynect Sensors Help Users Choose Sustainability
Zynect, the creator of Air Quality Egg, has introduced a new suite of wireless sensors for monitoring temperature and soil moisture levels that are capable of providing customers with customizable real-time alerts to their smartphones. While each of the three sensors has a unique purpose, the core values behind the sensors and the company are reducing waste, increasing sustainability, and providing customers with actionable information.
The first two battery-operated sensors, Thermote and Thermote X, are able to measure temperatures between -77 to 2157 Fahrenheit (-55 to 125 Celsius) and -328 to 392 Fahrenheit (-200 to 200 Celsius), respectively.
The Thermote sensor is intended for climate control in spaces such as restaurants, hotels, schools, grocery stores, or cold storage facilities. For example, a restaurant could use the Thermote to monitor the temperature of its walk-in fridge, to ensure food safety and prevent unnecessary food spoilage and waste. Subsequently, if a walk-in fridge is colder than necessary, this information allows the restaurant to adjust the temperature, lowering operating costs and energy waste.
The enhanced Thermote X sensor is designed to be used in laboratories with ultra-low temperature freezers or incubators. Similar to the Thermote, the sensor allows users to monitor storage temperatures and alerts them if temperatures are too high or low.
“Both of us founders have family who work in labs at Cornell. We created the Thermote X because they saw a need for a seamless -80°C freezer alert system that both lab managers and students could use to monitor samples. Other alert systems in the market are very expensive and difficult to add multiple users” said Dirk Swart, co-founder and CEO of Zynect.
Rounding out the suite is the Soilmote sensor, designed to measure and monitor moisture levels in soil by volumetric water content. Applications of the Soilmote sensor range from irrigation management for large-scale farm and greenhouse operations to simple lawn and indoor plant care. While the function of this sensor differs from the other two, it similarly provides actionable information aimed at decreasing water waste. This type of information is extremely beneficial to specialty crop growers, such as wineries, which produce crops that are greatly impacted by soil moisture.
Zynect Sensors stand out among competing products due to the ease of being able to share data from sensors among multiple people in an organization. This was an important consideration for Zynect when the team was designing the software.
Currently, Rev has a Thermote installed on its outside deck. Curious readers are encouraged to download the Zynect Sensors mobile app (also on Android) and use the share code REVITH to monitor the temperature from this sensor.
According to Molly Murphy, Senior Marketing Manager at Zynect, “Being a Rev member has given us access to a wide range of individuals and organizations, so we’re able to test our product with a multitude of different viewpoints that we wouldn’t necessarily have access to if we were just using our own personal networks.”
Zynect Sensors are being used by several local organizations, including the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Animal Health Diagnostic Center (laboratory freezers), Ithaca Coffee Company (retail freezers), and fellow Rev member, South Hill Cider (orchards).
During COVID-19 business operation restrictions, Zynect recognizes that restaurant owners and lab managers may not be in their place of work on a daily basis. Both food and lab samples are sensitive to temperature changes. Zynect would like to offer local restaurants and labs a free sensor. The first 20 organizations to email [email protected] will receive this exclusive offer. To be eligible you must be located in Tompkins County and share at least one picture of your sensor in action for Zynect to use in marketing material.
To learn more about the startup’s suite of sensors and their capabilities, visit zynect.com.