A portable Wireless Sensor Network system for real-time environmental monitoring

Abstract

Environmental contaminations such as fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and ultraviolet (UV) are expanding public health concerns globally. Existing centralized monitoring stations, however, are unable to properly estimate human exposure due to the low resolution spatiotemporal data. Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) uses real-time capable instrumentation could not only provide fine-grained readings of multiple environmental factors, but also create real-time mapping of the contaminants. In this paper we present a WSN system which is capable of sensing multiple environmental factors, collecting data from multiple dispersed sensor nodes and displaying the aggregated data in real-time. Each individual sensor node is capable of probing multiple factors, including temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, PM2.5, UV radiation, and geographical location. Sensor data are transmitted to a server, which then be stored into a database through Wi-Fi networks. Each sensor node is portable enough to be carried for personal use, enabling broad potential application of our system.