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Portable Spectrometers

The AvaPortability Project

Avantes designs for portable and handheld application design

Avantes Inc. was granted funding in 2017 from State of Colorado to develop an internship program to introduce one STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) undergraduate student to the photonics industry. Avantes took an interdisciplinary approach and developed a program that melded Avantes optical instruments with software development for embedded systems and machines.
That internship kicked off a new phase of development at Avantes US with the birth of the AvaPortability project that has extended to partnerships with miniature laser experts, beginning to expand the DLL kit and sample program libraries to include Linux, the prototyping of a variety of application specific accessories, and other initiatives that aim to support the design of handheld and/or portable spectroscopy systems.

The Internship that Started it All

The 2017 Internship project at Avantes was to facilitate the development of a mobile microprocessor-based device for absorption spectroscopy field measurements. The goal was to demonstrate the application development capabilities and portability of the Avantes platform using the Avantes Linux-based dynamic linking library.

The project delivered a proof of concept design using Avantes optical instruments and commercially available peripheral components. The QT creator environment 4.0. using the existing Linux-based dynamic linking library provides communication with the AvaSpec-Mini2048 compact spectrometer and the small form-factor AvaLight-XE Mini pulsed xenon flash lamp light source. The flexibility of the Raspberry Pi 3B embedded system was paired with a 7-inch touchscreen display to create the mobile user interface. Off-the-shelf battery packs provide power within the prototype housing which has a standard 10 mm cuvette slot for convenient and rapid acquisition of spectral absorbance/ transmission measurements.

Read more about this internship project

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Interface Design

One of the most popular commercially available user interfaces on the market today is the Raspberry Pi kit. These low-cost and versatile open-source systems offer ample computing power, low power consumption, and compact size. They are relatively easy to program and have a huge user-community and resources available.

In 2018, the AvaPortability project recognized the value of developing a Raspbian DLL interface. The Raspbian SDK includes some sample programs, also under development. These resources are not by any means comprehensive but offer tools and resources to instrument design engineers and software application developers.

Future engineering internships planned for 2021 and beyond are planned to expand the capability of sample programs so stay tuned for more details.

Read More About the Development of the Raspbian SDK for AvaSoft Developers

Explore Software Development for Portable Spectroscopy Systems

Raspbian DLL for AvaSoft

Read More About the Raspbian SDK Raspberry Pi Interface DLL for AvaSoft

Raspbian DLL for AvaSoft

Raspberry Pi SDK Setup

Step-by-step setup of the Raspberry Pi SDK for Avantes AvaSoft

Raspberry Pi SDK Setup

Push Button; Collect Spectrum

Setting up a simple instrument interface with Raspberry Pi

Push Button; Collect spectrum

Creating a Python Project

Get Started: Install the AvaSoft Library and creating a Python project

Creating a Python Project

Python Project Development- Part2

Complete a simple program to interface with Avantes Spectrometers

Python Project Development

Strategic Partnerships

The potential strategic advantages for the development of handheld LIBS systems are enormous, but designing a system requires both the compact spectrometer, and an equally compact laser. Avantes partnered with Lumibird to integrate the onboard AvaSpec-Mini4096CL 4096-pixel CMOS spectrometer and Ultra-compact diode-pumped Nd;YAG pulsed 1.57 µm excitation laser with a footprint small enough for handheld LIBS devices.

The development of this system was the subject of a webinar in 2020. Speak with an Avantes Engineer about a demo of the portable test system to conduct your own in-house feasibility study.

Get the LIBS Portable System Specifications

The Power of Portability

Portable LIBS Test Kit

Use the Avantes exclusive test drive program to test the integrated LIBS system

Portable LIBS Test Kit

Handheld LIBS Design Webinar

Handheld LIBS system requirements with Lumibird Laser

On Demand LIBS Webinar

LIBS Spectra Experiment

Aluminum sample identification with the portable LIBS test kit- download the data set

Downloadable LIBS Spectra Files

Portable Spectrometers are the Future

One of our strengths at Avantes is the flexibility of our modular design that leverages fiber optics when standoff measurements are required. This flexibility extends to software interfaces solutions that allow user developers to take control of their applications. Multi-channel capabilities increase flexibility without sacrificing system performance.

Avantes has committed itself to leading the industry for manufacturing automation and innovation. Learn more about our innovative AvaMation manufacturing process.

Discover the Advantages of AvaMation

Press Release

Avantes Upgrades Manufacturing

Read the press release announcing changes in Avantes Manufacturing

Read the Press Release

Harness the Power of Avantes in your Design Today

The Avantes Team is your collaborative ace in the hole with nearly 3 decades experience working hand-in-hand with researchers and industrialists to design systems to exceed application demands.

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