Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes
The extensions of the environment with the integration of sensing systems in any space, in conjunction with ubiquitous computing are enabling the so-called Smart Space Sensor Networks. This new generation of networks are offering full connectivity with any object, through the Internet of Things (IoT...
Main Authors: | , , , , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
MDPI AG
2012-05-01
|
Series: | Sensors |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/12/5/6463 |
id |
doaj-bc2a0ae17cbd49cbb97980e59fde9bc4 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-bc2a0ae17cbd49cbb97980e59fde9bc42020-11-24T23:29:58ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202012-05-011256463649610.3390/s120506463Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart HomesAntonio F. Gómez SkarmetaGuadalupe SantaAndrés L. BledaRafael MaestreAntonio J. JaraThe extensions of the environment with the integration of sensing systems in any space, in conjunction with ubiquitous computing are enabling the so-called Smart Space Sensor Networks. This new generation of networks are offering full connectivity with any object, through the Internet of Things (IoT) and/or the Web, <em>i.e.</em>, the Web of Things. These connectivity capabilities are making it feasible to sense the behaviours of people at home and act accordingly. These sensing systems must be integrated within typical elements found at home such as furniture. For that reason, this work considers furniture as an interesting element for the transparent location of sensors. Furniture is a ubiquitous object, <em>i.e.</em>, it can be found everywhere at home or the office, and it can integrate and hide the sensors of a network. This work addresses the lack of an exhaustive study of the effect of furniture on signal losses. In addition an easy-to-use tool for estimating the robustness of the communication channel among the sensor nodes and gateways is proposed. Specifically, the losses in a sensor network signal due to the materials found within the communication link are evaluated. Then, this work proposes a software tool that gathers the obtained results and is capable of evaluating the impact of a given set of materials on the communications. This tool also provides a mechanism to optimize the sensor network deployments during the definition of smart spaces. Specifically, it provides information such as: maximum distances between sensor nodes, most suitable type of furniture to integrate sensors, or battery life of sensor nodes. This tool has been validated empirically in the lab, and it is currently being used by several enterprise partners of the Technological Centre of Furniture and Wood in the southeast of Spain.http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/12/5/6463Internet of ThingsWireless Sensor Networkssmart spacessensing furnitureambient intelligence |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Antonio F. Gómez Skarmeta Guadalupe Santa Andrés L. Bleda Rafael Maestre Antonio J. Jara |
spellingShingle |
Antonio F. Gómez Skarmeta Guadalupe Santa Andrés L. Bleda Rafael Maestre Antonio J. Jara Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes Sensors Internet of Things Wireless Sensor Networks smart spaces sensing furniture ambient intelligence |
author_facet |
Antonio F. Gómez Skarmeta Guadalupe Santa Andrés L. Bleda Rafael Maestre Antonio J. Jara |
author_sort |
Antonio F. Gómez Skarmeta |
title |
Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes |
title_short |
Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes |
title_full |
Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes |
title_fullStr |
Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes |
title_full_unstemmed |
Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes |
title_sort |
evaluation of the impact of furniture on communications performance for ubiquitous deployment of wireless sensor networks in smart homes |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Sensors |
issn |
1424-8220 |
publishDate |
2012-05-01 |
description |
The extensions of the environment with the integration of sensing systems in any space, in conjunction with ubiquitous computing are enabling the so-called Smart Space Sensor Networks. This new generation of networks are offering full connectivity with any object, through the Internet of Things (IoT) and/or the Web, <em>i.e.</em>, the Web of Things. These connectivity capabilities are making it feasible to sense the behaviours of people at home and act accordingly. These sensing systems must be integrated within typical elements found at home such as furniture. For that reason, this work considers furniture as an interesting element for the transparent location of sensors. Furniture is a ubiquitous object, <em>i.e.</em>, it can be found everywhere at home or the office, and it can integrate and hide the sensors of a network. This work addresses the lack of an exhaustive study of the effect of furniture on signal losses. In addition an easy-to-use tool for estimating the robustness of the communication channel among the sensor nodes and gateways is proposed. Specifically, the losses in a sensor network signal due to the materials found within the communication link are evaluated. Then, this work proposes a software tool that gathers the obtained results and is capable of evaluating the impact of a given set of materials on the communications. This tool also provides a mechanism to optimize the sensor network deployments during the definition of smart spaces. Specifically, it provides information such as: maximum distances between sensor nodes, most suitable type of furniture to integrate sensors, or battery life of sensor nodes. This tool has been validated empirically in the lab, and it is currently being used by several enterprise partners of the Technological Centre of Furniture and Wood in the southeast of Spain. |
topic |
Internet of Things Wireless Sensor Networks smart spaces sensing furniture ambient intelligence |
url |
http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/12/5/6463 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT antoniofgomezskarmeta evaluationoftheimpactoffurnitureoncommunicationsperformanceforubiquitousdeploymentofwirelesssensornetworksinsmarthomes AT guadalupesanta evaluationoftheimpactoffurnitureoncommunicationsperformanceforubiquitousdeploymentofwirelesssensornetworksinsmarthomes AT andreslbleda evaluationoftheimpactoffurnitureoncommunicationsperformanceforubiquitousdeploymentofwirelesssensornetworksinsmarthomes AT rafaelmaestre evaluationoftheimpactoffurnitureoncommunicationsperformanceforubiquitousdeploymentofwirelesssensornetworksinsmarthomes AT antoniojjara evaluationoftheimpactoffurnitureoncommunicationsperformanceforubiquitousdeploymentofwirelesssensornetworksinsmarthomes |
_version_ |
1725543422079533056 |