Sensor Nodes

IoT 1

Data Acquisition System Block Diagram

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 Data Acquisition System Block Diagram

A data acquisition system consists of many components that are integrated to:

• Sense physical variables (use of transducers)

• Condition the electrical signal to make it readable by an A/D board

• Convert the signal into a digital format acceptable by a computer

• Process, analyze, store, and display the acquired data with the help of software

Wireless Sensor Network

A data acquisition system having smart sensors & which transmits data wirelessly can
be said to be a Wireless Sensor Network.

Wireless sensor network

• Large number of sensor nodes, densely deployed over an area.
• Sensor nodes collaborate with each other, measuring the surrounding physical
parameters.
• Sensed measurements are transformed into digital signals and processed, to
reveal some information about the phenomena monitored.
• Sensor nodes have short radio transmission range. Hence they work together,
collaboratively, to gather and transmit the data / information gathered.
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 WSN video

Applied Electronics 5

Basic Smart Sensor Node Architecture

Storage
Energy
Source

RS232 Debugging & Wireless

Computation
Programming Communication
Unit
Interface Interface
Prog

Sensor
Interface

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 Mote / Sensor Node

• A very low cost low power computer

Analog I/O Ports

Sensor
Radio Transceiver
D/A • Monitors one or more sensors
A/D
Microcontroller Digital I/O ports • A Radio Link to the outside world
Sensor
External Memory
• Building blocks of Wireless Sensor

Networks (WSN)

Sensor Node
A sensor node (mote)
– 8K RAM, 4Mhz processor
– wireless (radio broadcast) communication up to 100 feet
– costs ~$10 (right now costs $200)
Grain Sized Node
Match-box Sized Node
 Powered by inductive coupling to a
• Mica series, XSM node, Telos transmission from a reader device to
• 8-bit microprocessor, 4MHz CPU transmit a message back
• ATMEGA 128, ATMEL 8535, or Motorola HCS08  Available commercially at very low
• ~4Kb RAM : holds run-time state (values of the variables) prices
of the program × Computation power is severely
• ~128Kb programmable Flash memory limited
• holds the application program × Can only transmit stored
unique id and variable
• Downloaded via a programmer-board or wirelessly
× Hard to add any interesting sensing
• Additional Flash memory storage space up to 512Kb.
capability 8

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 Mica2 and Mica2Dot
1 inch
• ATmega128 CPU
– Self-programming
• Chipcon CC1000
– FSK
– Manchester encoding
– Tunable frequency
• Low power consumption
– 2 AA battery = 3V

Different Targets

mica mica2 mica2dot micaz

telos telosb rene2 pc

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 Mica2

• Extremely popular mote

• 8-bit AVR Controller
• FSK radio
• Data-logger flash

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Taxonomy of Sensor Nodes

Sr. Size of Mobility Power of Computation Sensor mode Communication
No sensor of sensor logic & Storage apparatus or
sensor capability of protocols of
sensor sensor

1 Large Mobile Self High end Multimodal, Multihop,mesh

replenishable processor & physics with dynamic
storage routing
2 Small Static Battery, hours- Mid range Multimodal, Single hop with
days processor & chemistry-biology static routing
storage
3 Micro- Battery weeks- Low end Single function,
scopic months processor & physics
storage
4 Nano- Battery years Single function,
scopic chemistry-biology

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 Types of sensor platforms

1. RFID equipped sensors

2. Smart-dust tags
– typically act as data-collectors or “trip-wires”
– limited processing and communications

3. Mote/Stargate-scale nodes
- more flexible processing and communications

3. More powerful gateway nodes, potentially using wall

power
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Telos Platform
• Low Power
– Minimal port leakage
– Hardware isolation and buffering
• Robust
– Hardware flash write protection
– Integrated antenna (50m-125m)
– Standard IDC connectors
• Standards Based
– USB
– IEEE 802.15.4 (CC2420 radio)
• High Performance
– 10kB RAM, 16-bit core, extensive double
buffering
– 12-bit ADC and DAC (200ksamples/sec)
– DMA transfers while CPU off

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 Brick-sized node: Stargate
• Mini Linux computers communicating via 802.11 radios
– Computationally powerful
– High bandwidth
– Requires more energy (AA infeasible)

• Used as a gateway between the Internet and WSN

• Hardware
• RFID, Spec
• Mica2, XSM, Telos
• Stargate

• Software
• TinyOS
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Smart Sensor
What is a smart sensor ?
A smart sensor is a device that can compute, communicate and sense the
environment

What makes sensors smart ?

• Self Identification & Self Diagnostic

• Time Awareness

• Digital Output

• Provide software functions like Signal processing, Data logging

• Conforms to a standard data & control protocol

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 Smart Sensor Networks

IoT 17

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Smart Sensor Network Application

Sensors are deployed

to analyze remote
locations
– the motion of a
tornado

– fire detection in a
forest

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 Smart Sensor Network Application

Sensors are attached to taxi cabs

in a large metropolitan area to

study the traffic conditions and

plan routes effectively.

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Smart Sensor Network Application

Wireless parking lot

sensor networks that
determine which
spots are occupied
and which spots are
free.

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 Smart Sensor Network Application

Wireless surveillance
sensor networks for
Military sensor networks to Sensor networks can
providing security in a
detect, locate or track increase alertness to
shopping mall, parking
enemy movements. potential terrorist threats.
garage or at some other
facility.

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IOT IN MILITARY
Application Video

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 Smart Sensor Network – Military Application

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A Hierarchical Sensor Network

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 Sensor Network Challenges

Building an
Extending the topology changes
intelligent data
lifetime very frequently.
collecting system

limited in power,
computational Sensors are very
capacities and prone to failures
memory;

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Requirements of Sensor Networks

Large number of sensors

Low energy use

Efficient use of the small memory

Data combination

Network self-organization

Collaborative signal processing

Querying ability

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 Advantages of Sensor Networks

The advantage of using these sensors is

their ability to maintain connectivity in case
of movement.

Sensor networks should maintain network

connectivity even if some of their sensors
are moved.

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Self Study - Key Definitions

• Sensor: A transducer that converts a physical phenomenon into
electrical or other signals.
• Sensor node: A basic unit in sensor network, with on-board
sensors, processor, memory, wireless modem & power supply.
• Network topology: A connectivity graph where nodes are sensor
nodes & edges are communication links. The link represents a one-
hop connection.
• Routing: The process of determining a network path from a packet
source node to its destination.
• Data-centric: Approaches that name, route or access a piece of
data via properties, such as physical location, that are external to a
communication network.
• Geographic routing: Routing of data based on geographical
attributes such as locations or regions. (Example of data-centric
routing).
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 Key Definitions
• In-network: A style of processing in which the data is processed and
combined near where the data is generated.
• Collaborative processing: Sensors cooperatively processing data from
multiple in order to serve a high-level task. (requires communication among
a set of nodes).
• Localization & tracking: The estimation of the state of a physical entity such
as a physical phenomenon or a sensor node from a set of measurements.
• Sensor tasking: The assignment of sensors to a particular task and the control
of sensor state for accomplishing the task.
• System performance goal: The abstract characterization of system properties.
Eg. Scalability, robustness, throughput etc.
• Evaluation metric: A measurable quantity that describes how well the system
is performing on some absolute scale. Eg. Location error, packet loss etc.
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Basic Types of WSNs

Types

Event driven WSN Query driven WSN

one or several sensors sensors remain silent

detect an event and until they receive a
report it to a request from the
monitoring station monitoring station
e.g. T>50 event e.g. 4-legged animal
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 Other Types of WSNs

Types

Underground Underwater Multimedia and

Terrestrial WSNs
WSNs WSNs mobile WSNs

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Terrestrial WSN

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 Underground WSN

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Underwater WSN (UWSN)

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 Multimedia and Mobile WSN

IoT 35

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RFID

IoT 36

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 What is RFID
• RFID = Radio Frequency IDentification.
• An ADC (Automated Data Collection) technology that:
– uses radio-frequency waves to transfer data between a reader and a movable
item to identify, categorize, track..
– Is fast and does not require physical sight or contact between reader/scanner
and the tagged item.
– Performs the operation using low cost components.
– Attempts to provide unique identification and backend integration that allows
for wide range of applications.
• Other ADC technologies: Bar codes, OCR.

IoT 37

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RFID System Components

Ethernet

RFID
Reader

RFID Tag RF Antenna Network Workstation

IoT 38

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 RFID Systems: Logical View
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Product
12
ONS Information
Server Internet
(PML Format)

Antenna
Write
Items with RF Read Transactio Applicatio
data to Reader n
RF Tags Manager n Systems
RF tags Data Store
Antenna Trading
Partner
EDI / Systems
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 XML

Tag/Item 10
Relationshi
p Database 9

Tag Interfaces RFID Middleware Other Systems

IoT 39

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RFID Tags: Smart Labels

A paper label
with RFID inside

an antenna,
printed, etched
or stamped ...

… and a chip … on a substrate

attached to it e.g. a plastic
foil ...
IoT 40

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 RFID Tags

IoT 41

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RFID Tags
•Tags can be attached to almost anything:
– Items, cases or pallets of products, high value goods
– vehicles, assets, livestock or personnel
•Passive Tags
– Do not require power – Draws from Interrogator Field
– Lower storage capacities (few bits to 1 KB)
– Shorter read ranges (4 inches to 15 feet)
– Usually Write-Once-Read-Many/Read-Only tags
– Cost around 25 cents to few dollars
•Active Tags
– Battery powered
– Higher storage capacities (512 KB)
– Longer read range (300 feet)
– Typically can be re-written by RF Interrogators
– Cost around 50 to 250 dollars IoT 42

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 Tag Block Diagram

Antenna

Power Supply
Memory
Control Logic Cells
Tx Modulator (Finite State
machine)
Rx
Demodulator

Tag Integrated Circuit (IC)

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RFID Tag Memory

• Read-only tags
– Tag ID is assigned at the factory during manufacturing
• Can never be changed
• No additional data can be assigned to the tag
• Write once, read many (WORM) tags
– Data written once, e.g., during packing or manufacturing
• Tag is locked once data is written
• Similar to a compact disc or DVD
• Read/Write
– Tag data can be changed over time
• Part or all of the dataIoTsection can be locked 44

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 RFID Readers

• Reader functions:
– Remotely power tags
– Establish a bidirectional data link
– Communicate with networked server(s)
– Can read 100-300 tags per second
• Readers (interrogators) can be at a fixed point such as
– Entrance/exit
– Point of sale
• Readers can also be mobile/hand-held

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Some RFID Readers

IoT 46

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 Reader Anatomy

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RFID Applications
 Handheld Applications

Wireless

• Assembly Line

 Shipping Portals Bill of Lading

IoT Material Tracking 48

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 RFID Applications

Manufacturing and Supply Chain

Retail Security Location Tracking
Processing Management
• Inventory and • Inventory tracking • Inventory control • Access control • Traffic movement
production process systems and customer • Counterfeiting and control and parking
monitoring • Logistics insight Theft management
• Warehouse order management • Auto checkout with control/prevention • Wildlife/Livestock
fulfillment reverse logistics monitoring and
tracking

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Smart Groceries
• Add an RFID tag to all items in the grocery.
• As the cart leaves the store, it passes
through an RFID transceiver.
• The cart is rung up in seconds.

• Track products through their entire lifetime.

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 Smart Cabinet

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Smart Fridge
• “Smart” appliances: Recognizes what’s been put in it
– Closets that advice on style depending
on clothes available.
– Ovens that know recipes to cook pre- Recognizes when things are removed
packaged food.
• “Smart” products:
– Clothing, appliances, CDs, etc. tagged Creates automatic shopping lists
for store returns.
• “Smart” paper:
– Airline tickets that indicate your Notifies you when things are past their
location in the airport. expiration
• “Smart” currency:
– Anti-counterfeiting and tracking. Shows you the recipes that most
• “Smart” people ?? closely match what is available

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 RFID Advantages over Bar Codes
• No line of sight required for reading
• Multiple items can be read with a single scan

• Each tag can carry a lot of data (read/write)

• Individual items identified and not just the
category

• Passive tags have a virtually unlimited

lifetime
• Active tags can be read from great distances

• Can be combined with barcode technology

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Operational Frequencies
UHF Microwave
Frequency LF HF
868 - 915 2.45 GHz &
Ranges 125 KHz 13.56 MHz
MHz 5.8 GHz
Typical Max
Shortest Short Medium Longest
Read Range 1”-12” 2”-24” 1’-10’ 1’-15’
(Passive Tags)
Active tags with
Generally passive Active tags with
integral battery
Generally passive tags only, using integral battery or
Tag Power or passive tags
tags only, using inductive or passive tags using
Source inductive coupling capacitive
using capacitive
capacitive storage,
storage,
coupling E-field coupling
E-field coupling
Data Rate Slower Moderate Fast Faster
Ability to read
near
Better Moderate Poor Worse
metal or wet
surfaces
Access Control &
Security
Identifying widgets Highway toll Tags
Library books supply chain
through Identification of
Laundry tracking
manufacturing private vehicle
Applications processes or in
identification Highway toll
fleets in/out of a
Access Control Tags
harsh environments yard or facility
Employee IDs
Ranch animal Asset tracking
identification
Employee IDs

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 RFID Summary

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RFID – Points to Note

• RFID benefits are due to automation and optimization.

• RFID is not a plug & play technology.

• “One frequency fits all” is a myth.

• Technology is evolving but physics has limitations.

• RFID does not solve data inconsistency within and across

enterprises.

• Management of RFID infrastructure and data has been

underestimated.

IoT 56

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 RFID- The Complete Picture

Tags and Readers

Identifying Read Points

Installation & RF Tuning
RFID Middleware
Connectors & Integration
Process Changes
Cross Supply-Chain View

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IoT

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 Thank You!

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