Senior high students in Antipolo develop prototype vs. foul odor in comfort rooms 

A group of senior high school students in Antipolo City, Rizal has developed a prototype that aims to eliminate the foul smell in comfort rooms. 

In the latest feature of “Game Changer” on “24 Oras” on Monday, the Smart Monitoring Odor Control and Alert System (SMOCAS) was developed by STEM strand students of San Jose National High School. SMOCAS targets to lessen or eliminate ammonia in the air, especially in comfort rooms. 

The developers noted that some students feel nauseous because of the foul smell from the urine. 

“We’ve conducted a qualitative research din po about this and ayun po nalaman namin na marami po pala kaming nagi-struggle. Kapag po tumataas po yung panghi ng CR o yung ammonia po niya, nakakapag make po siya sa mga students na maging nauseous sila,” said Kylene Pangilinan, one of the developers. 

(We also conducted qualitative research about this and we found out that many of us are actually struggling. When the smell of urine or the ammonia levels in the CR (comfort room) rise, it can actually make the students feel nauseous.) 

“The comfort room should live up to its name na nagse-serve po ng comfort sa mga students. Ang primary goal ng humidifier na built-in po sa aming prototype is to lessen the odor,” said Yesha Miranda, also one of the developers. 

(The comfort room should live up to its name by providing comfort to the students. The primary goal of the built-in humidifier in our prototype is to lessen the odor.) 

SMOCAS features a gas sensor that detects the level of ammonia in the air. If the level of ammonia is high or exceeds 30 parts per million (ppm), the motor will turn on the humidifier. The prototype also has sensors to detect temperature, humidity, and other gas values. 

Further, when it detects high levels of ammonia in the air, SMOCAS also has a feature that sends a message to the caretakers of the comfort room to inform them about the condition. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/LDF, GMA Integrated News