Beijing, Feb 19 (IANS): Chinese company Xiaomi has been granted a patent for smart masks that would come equipped with sensors and a chip to gather real-time data collection about the air you breathe.

The sensor would record data such as total wearing time, pollution absorption, breathing volume and breath counts.

The design consists a pollutant filter and a sensor that records how long a person has been wearing the mask.

According to a report on the Abacus website, the US Patent and Trademark Office has granted Xiaomi the patent for a "smart mask" design that was filed in June 2016.

There is also a built-in battery that powers the standard air filter.

The smart mask will also come with sensors like accelerometers and gyroscopes.

"The collected data will be stored on the mask using the storage module and can also be transferred to other devices, thanks to the connection module," reports GizmoChina.

Xiaomi already sells generic masks to ward off air pollution.