BME680 4-in-1 environmental sensor module — temperature, humidity, pressure, VOC gas
The BME680 is a highly integrated environmental sensor from Bosch Sensortec that measures four parameters in a single compact package: temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, and VOC (volatile organic compound) gas resistance. The gas sensor enables indoor air quality (IAQ) assessment by detecting a broad range of gases including ethanol, acetone, and carbon monoxide. It communicates via I²C or SPI and is compatible with Arduino, ESP32, Raspberry Pi, and virtually any modern microcontroller.
Key Specifications:
- Sensor IC: Bosch BME680
- Measurements: Temperature, Humidity, Pressure, Gas (VOC resistance)
- Interface: I²C (address 0x76 or 0x77) and SPI (up to 10 MHz)
- Supply voltage: 1.71V – 3.6V (module typically 3.3V – 5V with onboard regulator)
- Temperature: range −40°C to +85°C, accuracy ±1.0°C
- Humidity: range 0–100% RH, accuracy ±3% RH
- Pressure: range 300– 1100 hPa, accuracy ±1 hPa
- Gas sensor: VOC resistance output (kΩ), broad-spectrum detection
- Current consumption: 2.1μA at 1Hz (humidity + temperature), ~0.1mA during gas measurement
- Gas heater: integrated, programmable temperature (200°C – 400°C)
- Package: LGA-8 (3.0mm × 3.0mm × 0.93mm)
- Operating temperature: −40°C to +85°C
I²C Pinout (typical module):
- VCC: 3.3V – 5V power input
- GND: Ground
- SDA: I²C data
- SCL: I²C clock
- SDO: I²C address select (GND = 0x76, VCC = 0x77) / SPI MISO
- CS: SPI chip select (pull high for I²C mode)
Compatible Libraries:
- Adafruit BME680 Arduino library
- BSEC (Bosch Sensortec Environmental Cluster) library for IAQ index
- Pimoroni BME680 Python library (Raspberry Pi)
- ESP-IDF BME680 component
Applications:
- Indoor air quality (IAQ) monitoring and scoring
- Smart home environmental dashboards
- Weather stations and barometric loggers
- HVAC and ventilation control systems
- Wearable environmental monitors
- IoT edge nodes for environmental sensing
Note: The gas sensor requires a burn-in period of approximately 30 minutes on first use, and a run-in period of 5 minutes before each measurement for accurate VOC readings. Use Bosch’s BSEC library for a calibrated IAQ index (0–500 scale) rather than raw gas resistance values.