Wireless building sensor powered by ambient energy sources with integrated switching module
First Claim
1. A sensor device, comprising:
- one or more sensors to sense one or more environmental conditions;
a power supply system including a plurality of energy harvesting devices to harvest energy from a plurality of ambient energy sources for powering one or more components of the sensor device;
a memory to store sensor data associated with the one or more environmental conditions sensed by the one or more sensors;
a communication device for transmitting the sensor data to a remote device; and
one or more processors configured;
to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources to power one or more components of the sensor device according to an availability of energy from the ambient energy sources and/or an energy consumption requirement of the one or more components;
to control supply of power to the one or more components of the sensor device; and
to control a supply of available power from the power supply system selectively to the one or more sensors, the memory, the communication device, and the one or more processors according to an energy consumption priority level of an operation to be performed, and an availability of energy from the selected energy source,wherein the one or more processors include a first processor of a controller configured to implement a sensing operation by the one or more sensors, and a second processor of a separate smart module configured to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources, the available power being supplied to components of the sensor device in the following order from a higher energy consumption priority level to a lower energy consumption priority level;
(1) the first processor, the one or more sensors and the memory to perform a sensing operation, (2) the first processor and the communication device to perform a communication operation, and (3) the second processor to perform a dynamic selection operation.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A battery-less sensor device includes a sensor to sense an environmental condition, a power supply system, a memory, a communication device, and a processor. The power supply system includes energy harvesting devices to harvest energy from ambient energy sources for powering one or more components of the sensor device, and an energy storage device to store harvested energy. The memory stores sensor data associated with the environmental condition sensed by the sensor. The communication device transmits the sensor data to a BMS or remote device. The processor is configured to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources to power one or more components of the sensor device according to an availability of energy from the ambient energy sources and/or an energy consumption requirement of the one or more components of the sensor device, and to control supply of power to the one or more components.
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Citations
21 Claims
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1. A sensor device, comprising:
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one or more sensors to sense one or more environmental conditions; a power supply system including a plurality of energy harvesting devices to harvest energy from a plurality of ambient energy sources for powering one or more components of the sensor device; a memory to store sensor data associated with the one or more environmental conditions sensed by the one or more sensors; a communication device for transmitting the sensor data to a remote device; and one or more processors configured; to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources to power one or more components of the sensor device according to an availability of energy from the ambient energy sources and/or an energy consumption requirement of the one or more components; to control supply of power to the one or more components of the sensor device; and to control a supply of available power from the power supply system selectively to the one or more sensors, the memory, the communication device, and the one or more processors according to an energy consumption priority level of an operation to be performed, and an availability of energy from the selected energy source, wherein the one or more processors include a first processor of a controller configured to implement a sensing operation by the one or more sensors, and a second processor of a separate smart module configured to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources, the available power being supplied to components of the sensor device in the following order from a higher energy consumption priority level to a lower energy consumption priority level;
(1) the first processor, the one or more sensors and the memory to perform a sensing operation, (2) the first processor and the communication device to perform a communication operation, and (3) the second processor to perform a dynamic selection operation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method of powering a sensor device using a plurality of ambient energy sources, the sensor device having one or more components including at least one sensor configured to sense an environmental condition, the method comprising:
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dynamically selecting one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources to power the one or more components of the sensor device according to an availability of energy from the ambient energy sources and/or an energy consumption requirement of the one or more components; harvesting energy from the selected one or more energy sources; supplying power, which is generated from the harvested energy, to the one or more components of the sensor device; and controlling the supplied power selectively to the at least one sensor, a memory of the sensor device, a communication device of the sensor device, and a plurality of processors, according to an energy consumption priority level of an operation to be performed, and an availability of energy from the one or more energy sources, wherein the plurality of processors includes a first processor of a controller configured to implement a sensing operation by the one or more sensors, and a second processor of a separate smart module configured to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources, the available power being supplied to components of the sensor device in the following order from a higher energy consumption priority level to a lower energy consumption priority level;
(1) the first processor, the at least one sensor and the memory to perform a sensing operation, (2) the first processor and the communication device to perform a communication operation, and (3) the second processor to perform a dynamic selection operation. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A sensor device, comprising:
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one or more sensors to sense one or more environmental conditions; a power supply system including a plurality of energy harvesting devices to harvest energy from a plurality of ambient energy sources for powering one or more components of the sensor device; a memory to store sensor data associated with the one or more environmental conditions sensed by the one or more sensors; a communication device for transmitting the sensor data to a remote device; and one or more processors configured; to dynamically select one or more energy sources from the ambient energy sources to power one or more components of the sensor device according to an availability of energy from the ambient energy sources and/or an energy consumption requirement of the one or more components; and to control supply of power to the one or more components of the sensor device; and a pyramid-shaped housing for housing the one or more sensors, the power supply system, the memory and the one or more processors, wherein one or more of the energy harvesting devices are formed as a film that is connected on or over a surface of the pyramid-shaped housing, the pyramid-shaped housing including one or more cavities therein to support at least a portion of the power supply system, the communication device, the memory and the one or more processors.
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Specification