METHOD OF MANAGING SENSOR NETWORK
First Claim
1. A method of managing a sensor network, comprising:
- providing a plurality of sensor clusters, each sensor cluster having a plurality of sensors, and a calibrator coordinator in communication with the sensor clusters;
at each sensor cluster, obtaining measurements of values of one or more parameters from the sensors, performing first processing on the measurements to obtain at least one first result, and forwarding information to the calibrator coordinator;
at the calibrator coordinator, performing second processing on the information received from the sensor clusters to obtain at least one second result, and feeding back the second result to the sensor clusters; and
at each sensor cluster, assessing reliability of the sensors by employing the first result and second result.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An environmental sensor system comprises a plurality of sensor clusters. The sensor coupler of each sensor cluster obtains measurements parameters from the sensors, performs processing on the measurements to obtain at least one result, and forwards information from the measurements to the calibrator coordinator. The calibrator coordinator performs processing on the information received from all of the sensor clusters to obtain at least one result, and feeds back the result to the sensor clusters which then assess sensor reliability and accuracy. The first and second results indicate expected parameter values, and each sensor coupler decides whether, and how, to incorporate the measurements of sensors into the first processing based on the expected values. The sensor coupler may calibrate, decommission or replace sensors determined to be unreliable based on the expected values.
90 Citations
14 Claims
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1. A method of managing a sensor network, comprising:
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providing a plurality of sensor clusters, each sensor cluster having a plurality of sensors, and a calibrator coordinator in communication with the sensor clusters; at each sensor cluster, obtaining measurements of values of one or more parameters from the sensors, performing first processing on the measurements to obtain at least one first result, and forwarding information to the calibrator coordinator; at the calibrator coordinator, performing second processing on the information received from the sensor clusters to obtain at least one second result, and feeding back the second result to the sensor clusters; and at each sensor cluster, assessing reliability of the sensors by employing the first result and second result. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14)
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10. A sensor network, comprising:
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a plurality of sensor clusters, each sensor cluster having a plurality of sensors and a sensor coupler, and a calibrator coordinator in communication with the sensor clusters; wherein; the sensor coupler of each sensor cluster is arranged to obtain measurements of values of one or more parameters from the sensors, to perform first processing on the measurements to obtain at least one first result, and to forward information to the calibrator coordinator; and the calibrator coordinator is arranged to perform second processing on the information received from the sensor clusters to obtain at least one second result, and to feed back the second result to the sensor clusters; wherein in each sensor cluster, the sensor coupler is arranged to employ the first result and second result to assess reliability of the sensors.
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11. An apparatus for use as a sensor coupler in a sensor system, the apparatus comprising:
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receiving means connected to a plurality of sensors forming a cluster, and arranged to obtain measurements of values of one or more parameters from the sensors; and processing means arranged to perform processing of the measurements to obtain at least one first result, and to forward information to an external apparatus; and wherein the receiving means is further arranged to receive from the external apparatus a second result derived using the information; and the processing means is arranged to employ the first and second results to assess reliability of the sensors. - View Dependent Claims (12)
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13. An apparatus for use as a calibrator coordinator in a sensor system, the sensor system comprising a plurality of sensor clusters each having a plurality of sensors, and the apparatus comprising:
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receiving means connected to each of the sensor clusters to receive information from the sensor clusters; processing means arranged to perform processing of the information to obtain at least one processing result indicative of reliability of a specific sensor in a sensor cluster; and transmitting means arranged to transmit a message to the sensor cluster for one of calibrating and decommissioning the specific sensor.
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Specification