Connectivity is the order of the day in today’s shrinking world, and the world of sensors is no exception. At the just-completed Sensors Expo in Rosemont, IL, there was no shortage of sensor products touting advances in miniaturization and performance. But more important, sensors are taking on the role of being key detection and control nodes in manufacturing, transportation, energy monitoring, and medical networks.

This brave new world for sensors was highlighted in a keynote speech by Beth Wozniak, President of Sensing and Control for Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions. Not only does Wozniak foresee sensors going into more applications than ever, she believes sensors will play a pivotal role in improving our health and well-being, boosting economic productivity, and lowering energy costs.

As an example, Wozniak said sensors could monitor the effects of prescription doses. The information sensors provide would enable doctors to adjust dosage levels, without requiring patients to continually visit medical facilities. Home health care would improve and overall health care costs could be reduced.

In transportation, Wozniak suggested sensors could monitor flow in bus-only lanes and signal control systems to allow automobiles to use those lanes, if congestion was severe. In agricultural facilities, Wozniak believes sensors could team with video cameras to monitor soil conditions to improve crop control and yield.

One key to making this all happen, according to Wozniak, is continuing improvements in wireless sensor networks. In the future, sensor nodes on these networks would not only detect abnormal conditions but also incorporate the intelligence to make control decisions and thus reduce processing overhead on the central controller. To become feasible, sensor networks would have to address challenges in power, security, and of course, cost.

Judging from the exhibits and conference sessions at Sensors Expo, Wozniak’s vision is becoming a reality. Sprinkled among the dozens of sensor vendors at the show were companies showing wireless networking solutions using high-speed protocols. Several conference sessions addressed issues such as low-power wireless sensing, wireless standards, and the development of ‘smart’ sensors.

The future of sensors is unfurling before our eyes.

NASA Wireless Sensor System Finds New Uses as Commercial Product

Beneath the waves near Key Largo, FL, an underwater lab called Aquarius provides a safe harbor for scientists to live and work for weeks at a time. For NASA, Aquarius provides an environment that is analogous to the International Space Station (ISS) and the space shuttle. To maintain Aquarius, NASA recruited Invocon of Conroe, TX, to develop wireless sensor technology that monitors and measures environmental and structural parameters inside the lab.

The project included the design, fabrication, and demonstration of a battery- powered, miniature wireless temperature sensor. NASA and Invocon agreed to take Invocon’s existing wireless network communication system and combine it with various microelectro- mechanical system (MEMS) sensors. The innovation consisted of a PC interface unit, a graphical user interface, and multiple wireless sensors that are each equivalent in size to a stack of five quarters.

Upon completion of the miniature wireless sensor, NASA’s Johnson Space Center applied it to the space shuttle to acquire temperature data from several fundamental locations in and around the shuttle crew compartment and avionics equipment. The sensor system has flown and operated successfully on more than 20 space shuttle missions. Further use of the technology is being investigated for monitoring carbon dioxide concentrations onboard the ISS.

Invocon’s wireless sensor system has been turned into a commercial product called MicroWIS-CO2, a wireless, remote, low-power, carbon dioxide data acquisition system for near-static sensing and recording applications.

Read the full story here.

Techs of the Week: Torque and Liquid Level Sensors

The Magtorque sensor provides a simple, low-cost means to monitor torque on rotating elements. It uses a small and magnetoelastic sensor attached to the shaft that is monitored remotely via an inductive pickup. It provides sensitive and repeatable measurements of applied torque without direct physical contact.
More information here.

An optical liquid level sensor eliminates the need for encapsulation material to seal the light source, detector, and associated wire bonds within the assembly. Without thermal expansion and contraction of encapsulating material, the operating temperature range is significantly extended. The sensor uses a semiconductor light source and is suitable for extreme operating environments such as industrial, commercial, military, or aerospace.
More information here.

The Technologies of the Week describe inventions offered for license through the yet2.com marketplace. Search over $2.5 billion of licensable technologies at www.yet2.com.

Cell Phone Sensors Would Detect Bio Threats and Attacks

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is researching the use of cell phones equipped with sensors that could detect biological agents such as anthrax, as well as radioactive isotopes and toxic chemicals. Since fixed sensors can’t be placed everywhere, the solution could soon be in everyone’s hands.

Gentag, a Washington, DC-based company, is working with the government on a patented technology that modifies a cell phone to serve as a low-cost radiation and/or chemical sensor to discover external threats. The technology incorporates both modular (removable) sensor modules and built-in sensors.

The DHS program, called Cell-All, would link cell phones equipped with the detection sensors via the Global Positioning System (GPS). If a detector sensed a threat, the GPS would transmit the location and time to local emergency responders and the DHS operations center. According to the DHS, if the program works, it could be a “game-changer” in how the nation detects and responds to a deadly attack.

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System Detects Hazardous Materials Released in Aircraft Cabins

Researchers at Purdue University are developing a system that uses
mathematical models and sensors to locate passengers releasing hazardous materials or pathogens inside airline cabins. The research has shown that the technique can track a substance to an area the size of a single seat.

The technique, called “inverse simulation,” analyzes how a material disperses throughout the cabin and then runs the dispersion in reverse to find its origin. Sensors track the airflow pattern and collect data related to factors such as temperature, velocity, and concentration of gases and particles in the air.

According to the researchers, the technique might enable officials to identify passengers responsible for the unintentional release of germs, such as contagious viruses, or the intentional release of pathogens or chemical agents in a terrorist attack.

For more information, click here.