Questions and Answers regarding the new Token Model and White Paper

In this article you will find all the answers that PlanetWatch CEO, Claudio Parrinello, gave in the AMA session regarding the new PlanetWatch token model and White Paper.

• What types of sensors do we have at PlanetWatch and what’s their availability?

In our network we leverage 4 types of sensors:

– Type I sensor is a high-specs outdoor air quality monitor: high specs means that the one we are using at the moment is a scientific instrument, developed by a research center from Italy. It’s a very reliable device, delivering several types of measurements (particulate matter and some gases). You can find the details in the PlanetWatch White Paper;

– Type II sensor is an outdoor consumer-grade device, typically one which only monitors particulate. At the moment we are leveraging a device called Arianna;

– Type III sensor is for indoor air quality monitoring. Indoor air quality is very important for people’s health. We have not sold such monitors on our Ecommerce yet, but we are going to offer some sensors soon.

– Type IV sensor is a wearable device, so it can be used both indoors and outdoors. It is meant to follow you throughout your day, whether you are commuting to work or biking, jogging, etc. It’s a lightweight sensor, which connects to your mobile phone and gives you very interesting information on how your lifestyle and your behavior correlates with the quality of the air you inhale. We are currently leveraging a sensor called Atmotube PRO.

In terms of availability, here we go with some news:

• Type I sensor: we’ll pre-sell at least 50 devices in the coming days with delivery expected in May. If you are interested, you’ll be able to book a Type 1 air quality device for use in Europe;
• Type II sensor: we just got a lot of 50 additional Arianna devices, to be used in Europe. They will be available by the end of April. We’ll put up a presale system on our ecommerce. We will also open presales for an additional lot of Ariannas that will become available most likely in July. We hope that this lot will be certified for USA usage too;
• Type III indoor sensor: we’ll open up presales probably for 100 devices. The good news is that these devices are already certified for use both in Europe and the USA.
• Type IV sensor: There is still some stock available both in Europe and in the USA.

Further developments:

• We are working on certifications. Every area in the world has different standards, so we are working on FCC certifications for future USA deployments of Type 1 and Type 2 sensors;
• For the rest of the world, we are facing logistics and certification challenges. In particular, we are working to serve Asia as soon as possible, probably via a Singapore-based warehouse. We are also soon going to serve Canada;
• I advise to buy all sensors from our website. If you buy for example an Atmotube PRO from another vendor and then you want to connect it to PlanetWatch, we may have to charge a one-off connection fee. This is because managing sensors on the network is very expensive.

• Can I change my sensor from a Tier2 to a Tier1 location in my city?

Yes, sure you can. It will soon be possible automatically with the new version of our PlanetWatch App, that we’re going to release hopefully at the end of April.

Remember however that if you move your Type I or Type II sensor from one pixel to another, your local reputation score will decrease (for more information check our White Paper).

Please refrain from reselling your sensors to other PlanetWatchers, as Planets earned by the sensor would not automatically pass to the new owner. As an Algorand account switch would be involved in a change of ownership, this process needs to be set up and managed by us and will be handled manually, for security reasons. It will require a fee, payable in Planets.

•  Can we use a sensor purchased in Europe in Asia? Or will there be an issue in certification?

It depends on the sensor: Type IV (Atmotube PRO) is certified both in Europe and in Asia, but, for example, that’s not the case for Arianna, so I would advise against ordering an Arianna for delivery in Europe and then moving it to Asia, because that could create legal issues and performance is not guaranteed.

• Do I need to live in a purple area to be Tier 1?

Yes, you do. As you can see on our White Paper, we have divided the world in two regions: tier 1 regions and tier 2 regions and the difference is linked to the population density. So we’re giving priority to tier 1, which is the more density populated area.

• Is there a plan to disable clawback in the future?

Yes, in the future we will look into disabling clawback.

• Is the token model final?

Yes. We have set up a community-driven governance system to decide on future changes if necessary.

• What will the purpose of the token be? Like what can I do with it?

The Planet token is a utility token which means that it gives you access to obtain services and products from PlanetWatch and our partners, such as:

• Air purifiers
• Additional sensors
• Carbon credits
• Premium data/app features

When will this be enabled? After the listing.

• There are many questions regarding the listing – what is the news?

Listing is a complex matter which needs a careful analysis in order to choose the best scenario and optimize value for money. There is a lot of paperwork for compliance (e.g. two legal opinions in our case), high fees, etc.

We have a couple of offers on the table but before deciding we still need to validate a number of points. We aim to be listed by mid-May.

• What is an Earth Credit?

Forget about Earth Credits! Earth Credits are meant as an internal accounting tool to manage micro transactions which may occur in our network, but it’s nothing substantial. They are not tokens, not a crypto currency…just an internal accounting system.

• In the new Token model, there is a provision for sensor owners to share some Planets with people who manage their sensors in different parts of the country or world. I believe this capacity is not currently available but will be part of the next release of the PlanetWatch App. Is this right?

Yes, definitely. In the next release of the App there is a feature that will give you this flexibility.

• Are there any plans to open up the API for people that already have PM2.5 sensors?

We have a rigorous sensor onboarding procedure. We evaluate each sensor brand on a case by case basis, because we want to be 100% sure that data quality matches our standards. This is time consuming and expensive. We will certainly onboard new sensors in the future, but don’t expect that you suggest a new sensor and we say yes/no in a matter of days.

• Can I have multiple sensors in one wallet?

Yes, you can.

• Does the Atmotube PRO only work in cities or also in rural areas?

The Atmotube PRO works wherever power and internet connectivity via a mobile phone are available.

• Can you tell us more about the collectibles that you announced at the NFT conference?

Let me clarify that our mission is environmental monitoring. PlanetWatch collectibles are a way to deliver additional value and incentives to the community. We use NFTs (Non Fungible Token) to launch digital collectibles and we are among the first to do this on the Algorand blockchain.

Collectibles will be inspired by our mission, which is environmental monitoring, so we will be releasing environment-related digital collectibles.

As a thank you to all the early PlanetWatchers, we have decided that all the people owning a PlanetWatch sensor before the onset of the new token model will receive a free limited edition digital collectible!

Stay tuned and look after our Planet!