Monday, November 23, 2009

Sensor Networks



A sensor network is a group of specialized transducers with a communications infrastructure intended to monitor and record conditions at diverse locations. Commonly monitored parameters are temperature, humidity, pressure, wind direction and speed, illumination intensity, vibration intensity, sound intensity, power-line voltage, chemical concentrations, pollutant levels and vital body functions.

A sensor network consists of multiple detection stations called sensor nodes, each of which is small, lightweight and portable. Every sensor node is equipped with a transducer, microcomputer, transceiver and power source. The transducer generates electrical signals based on sensed physical effects and phenomena. The microcomputer processes and stores the sensor output. The transceiver, which can be hard-wired or wireless, receives commands from a central computer and transmits data to that computer. The power for each sensor node is derived from the electric utility or from a battery.

Potential applications of sensor networks include:

* Industrial automation
* Automated and smart homes
* Video surveillance
* Traffic monitoring
* Medical device monitoring
* Monitoring of weather conditions
* Air traffic control
* Robot control.


• monitoring space,
• monitoring things, and
• monitoring the interactions of things with each
other and the encompassing space

Source : http://searchdatacenter.techtarget.com

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