http://hdl.handle.net/10468/148 2013-05-21T13:49:30Z http://hdl.handle.net/10468/954 A dual-band antenna enabling improved quality of service in multi-radio wireless sensor applications in indoor environments Loizou, Loizos; Buckley, John; O'Flynn, Brendan; Barton, John; Popovici, Emanuel M.; Ó Mathúna, S. Cian 2012-07-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10468/955 A novel and miniaturized 433/868MHz multi-band wireless sensor platform for body sensor network applications Buckley, John; O'Flynn, Brendan; Loizou, Loizos; Haigh, Peter; Boyle, David; Angove, Philip; Barton, John; Ó Mathúna, S. Cian; Popovici, Emanuel M.; O'Connell, Seán Body Sensor Network (BSN) technology is seeing a rapid emergence in application areas such as health, fitness and sports monitoring. Current BSN wireless sensors typically operate on a single frequency band (e.g. utilizing the IEEE 802.15.4 standard that operates at 2.45GHz) employing a single radio transceiver for wireless communications. This allows a simple wireless architecture to be realized with low cost and power consumption. However, network congestion/failure can create potential issues in terms of reliability of data transfer, quality-of-service (QOS) and data throughput for the sensor. These issues can be especially critical in healthcare monitoring applications where data availability and integrity is crucial. The addition of more than one radio has the potential to address some of the above issues. For example, multi-radio implementations can allow access to more than one network, providing increased coverage and data processing as well as improved interoperability between networks. A small number of multi-radio wireless sensor solutions exist at present but require the use of more than one radio transceiver devices to achieve multi-band operation. This paper presents the design of a novel prototype multi-radio hardware platform that uses a single radio transceiver. The proposed design allows multi-band operation in the 433/868MHz ISM bands and this, together with its low complexity and small form factor, make it suitable for a wide range of BSN applications. 2012-05-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10468/514 Towards persistent structural health monitoring through sustainable wireless sensor networks Boyle, David; Magno, Michele; O'Flynn, Brendan; Brunelli, Davide; Popovici, Emanuel M.; Benini, Luca This paper documents the design, implementation and characterisation of a wireless sensor node (GENESI Node v1.0), applicable to long-term structural health monitoring. Presented is a three layer abstraction of the hardware platform; consisting of a Sensor Layer, a Main Layer and a Power Layer. Extended operational lifetime is one of the primary design goals, necessitating the inclusion of supplemental energy sources, energy awareness, and the implementation of optimal components (microcontroller(s), RF transceiver, etc.) to achieve lowest-possible power consumption, whilst ensuring that the functional requirements of the intended application area are satisfied. A novel Smart Power Unit has been developed; including intelligence, ambient available energy harvesting (EH), storage, electrochemical fuel cell integration, and recharging capability, which acts as the Power Layer for the node. The functional node has been prototyped, demonstrated and characterised in a variety of operational modes. It is demonstrable via simulation that, under normal operating conditions within a structural health monitoring application, the node may operate perpetually. 2011-12-09T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10468/519 Antenna tuning for wearable wireless sensors Buckley, John; McCarthy, Kevin G.; O'Flynn, Brendan; Haigh, Peter; Ó Mathúna, S. Cian When miniaturized wireless sensors are placed on or close to the human body, they can experience a significant loss inperformance due to antenna detuning, resulting in degradationof wireless performance as well as decreased battery lifetime.Several antenna tuning technologies have been proposed formobile wireless devices but devices suitable for widespread integration have yet to emerge. This paper highlights the possible advantages of antenna tuning for wearable wireless sensors and presents the design and characterization of a prototype 433MHz tuner module. 2011-10-31T00:00:00Z