Wireless network of low power sensing and actuating motes

• US 9,811,059 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2013
• Issued: 11/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2013
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bermudez, Sergio A., Hamann, Hendrik F., Klein, Levente I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Paul D
• Application Number:
  US13/965,382
• Publication Number:
  US 20140257699A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,547 Days
• Field of Search: 702 3
• CPC Class Codes: G01W 1/00 Meteorology
• CPC Class Codes: G01W 1/02 Instruments for indicating weather conditions by measuring two or more variables, e.g. humidity, pressure, temperature, cloud cover or wind speed G01W1/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/00 Digital computers in general details G06F1/00 – G06F13/00; Data processing equipment in general
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/00 Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/04 Arrangements for maintaining operational condition
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/33 for indoor environments, e.g. buildings
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/38 for collecting sensor information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 40/18 Network protocols supporting networked applications, e.g. including control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

Embodiments include a wireless mote network having a plurality of motes, wherein each of the plurality of motes includes a processing unit in communication with a communications device. Each of the motes includes at least a sensor configured to monitor an environmental condition in an area around the mote or an actuator configured to control one or more external systems. The wireless mote network also includes a central communications device configured to communicate with one or more of the motes within a range of the central communications device and a controller configured to communicate with the central communications device, to receive one or more signals indicative of the environmental condition of one or more of the plurality of motes, and to transmit one or more control signals indicating an operation of the actuator to one or more of the plurality of motes.

Claims

1. A wireless mote network comprising:

a plurality of motes, wherein each of the plurality of motes includes;

a processing unit in communication with a communications device, wherein the communications device is configured to emit an identification signal that includes an identification number of the mote and a time stamp indicating the time the signal was sent in response to the mote receiving an inquiry signal;

a sensor configured to monitor an environmental condition in an area around the mote;

an RFID reader configured to sense a presence of one or more RFID tags and to transmit data regarding the one or more RFID tags wherein the one or more RFID tags are each associated with capital equipment that is monitored by the wireless mote network; and

an actuator configured to control one or more external systems;

a central communications device configured to communicate directly with a first subset of the plurality of motes within a range of the central communications device and to communicate indirectly with a second subset of the plurality of motes not within the range of the communications device via multihop communications through the first subset of the plurality of the motes; and

a controller configured to communicate with the central communications device, via at least one of cellular communications system and a satellite communications system, to receive one or more signals indicative of the environmental condition of one or more of the plurality of motes, and to transmit one or more control signals indicating an operation of the actuator to one or more of the plurality of motes, wherein a position of at least one of the plurality of motes is unknown and wherein the controller includes a server configured to generate a map of a relative location of the plurality of motes based on a signal strength of a wireless communication between the plurality of motes,

wherein each of the plurality of motes records data corresponding to each of the identification signals observed by the mote, wherein the data corresponding to each of the signals observed by the mote comprises the identification number of the mote that emitted the signal, the time that the signal was emitted, the identification number of the mote that observed the signal and the time that the signal was observed.

2. The wireless mote network of claim 1, wherein one or more of the plurality of motes further includes an interface configured to enable the mote to electrically communicate with an external device.

3. The wireless mote network of claim 2, wherein the interface includes at least one of an RS-233 serial communication interface, an Ethernet interface, or an USB interface.

4. The wireless mote network of claim 1, wherein the environmental condition of the mote comprises at least one of the following:

temperature;

humidity;

pressure;

air flow;

CO₂ level;

CO level;

presence;

noise;

strain;

stress; and

corrosion.

5. The wireless mote network of claim 1, wherein the external system is a lighting control system or an air conditioning system and the actuator is a latching relay used for simple on-off type of control.

6. A wireless mote network comprising:

a plurality of motes, wherein each of the plurality of motes includes;

a processing unit in communication with a communications device, wherein the communications device is configured to emit an identification signal that includes an identification number of the mote and a time stamp indicating the time the signal was sent in response to the mote receiving an inquiry signal;

a sensor configured to monitor an environmental condition in an area around the mote;

an RFID reader configured to sense a presence of one or more RFID tags and to transmit data regarding the one or more RFID tags wherein the one or more RFID tags are each associated with capital equipment that is monitored by the wireless mote network; and

an actuator configured to control one or more external systems;

a central communications device configured to communicate directly with a first subset of the plurality of motes within a range of the central communications device and to communicate indirectly with a second subset of the plurality of motes not within the range of the communications device via multihop communications through the first subset of the plurality of the motes; and

a controller configured to communicate with the central communications device, via at least one of cellular communications system and a satellite communications system, to receive one or more signals indicative of the environmental condition of one or more of the plurality of motes, and to transmit one or more control signals indicating an operation of the actuator to one or more of the plurality of motes, wherein a position of at least one of the plurality of motes is unknown and wherein the controller includes a server configured to generate a map of a relative location of the plurality of motes based on a signal strength of a wireless communication between the plurality of motes,

wherein each of the plurality of motes further includes two power supplies comprising at least two of a battery, a line power adapter, and an energy harvesting device and

wherein each of the plurality of motes records data corresponding to each of the identification signals observed by the mote, wherein the data corresponding to each of the signals observed by the mote comprises the identification number of the mote that emitted the signal, the time that the signal was emitted, the identification number of the mote that observed the signal and the time that the signal was observed.

7. The wireless mote network of claim 6, wherein the energy harvesting device is a solar panel capable of being powered by indoor lighting.