what is fringoe

frinGOe is an optical add-on attachment that transforms a camera into a spectrometer that measures the spectral power distribution of light. Once extremely expensive and too advanced to operate, the spectrometer has slowly been incorporated into our daily lives. Spectrometers are now used in many high-tech gadgets we see today: the monitor color calibration system that gamers and designers use, the printer calibration tool for professional printers, the color meters that cinematographers and photographers rely on, or simply as an analytical tool by astronomers, scientists and engineers.


frinGOe is a no frills spectrometer. It is a professional-grade tool that provides users the actual spectral data. Thanks to its unique optical design, we promise that frinGOe will be one of the smallest spectrometer available on Earth. In the spirit of the 2015 International Year of the Light, we officially announce to the World a breakthrough technology, frinGOe: spectrometer on the GO!

frinGOe will first be available on:

  • iPhone 5/5S
  • iPhone 6
  • Raspberry Pi



The spectral data of light is the basic building block of many applications. Figures such as correlated color temperature (CCT), color rendering index (CRI) and chromaticity coordinates are all derived from the spectral data.

When paired with a controlled light source and reference, frinGOe is able to measure the reflectance of objects. The reflectance of any object is intrinsic and a unique property of its surface. This reflectance, also known as the spectral signature of the object, can be used to objectively characterize and archive colors that the human eye sees. Armed with the spectral signature, colors can be reproduced exactly.


As the frinGOe spectrometer is affordable to the masses, it is a suitable candidate for IoT applications. Imaging a network of frinGOe spectrometers installed around the World together with frinGOe integrated natively into smartphones. Crowd-sourced data can be collected and previously unknown trends or signatures may be discovered.

By supporting frinGOe, you are contributing to the advancement of color recognition and exploration of the World we live in.



Unlike conventional spectrometers that uses gratings/prisms, frinGOe is custom array of Mach-Zehnder interferometers designed to make light interfere and create interference pattern known as an interferogram. By applying Fourier Transform to the interferogram, we obtain the spectrum. This is similar to FTIR technique that is well-known to the scientific community. Scientific details can be found in our whitepaper.




Video demonstration of frinGOe in action!

Measuring lasers
Measuring LEDs
Measuring a fluorescent Lamp