Mesh Communications: A New Tool for Connected Sensors
Many useful sensor locations are also difficult places to communicate from. Buildings, rural landscapes, industrial facilities, river corridors and complex terrain can interrupt direct radio links or make conventional infrastructure uneconomic.
Mesh communication provides a different option. Instead of assuming every sensor must reach one central point directly, a suitably designed network can use intermediate nodes to relay information. The result can be improved reach, flexibility and resilience across difficult sites.
Tigertek has undertaken groundbreaking development work on applying mesh communications to sensor data as part of its integrated sensing and communications package. This work is focused on making measurements from dispersed assets useful without automatically depending on a permanent internet connection.
Potential applications include agriculture and livestock environments, environmental and river monitoring, wildlife observation, industrial maintenance, refrigeration, safety-related status monitoring and security events such as the opening or closing of doors and equipment enclosures. Our work associated with Rathlin Island and the RSPB illustrates the relevance of resilient remote-area monitoring.
Mesh is not magic coverage. Network design must account for antenna position, range, interference, power budgets, bandwidth, encryption, local rules and the physical characteristics of the site. Radio signals cannot be assumed to travel underwater; suitable sensor placement and a communications path above the waterline may be needed.
For Tigertek, mesh is one communications tool among several. Its strength is how it can be applied intelligently to sensor data and combined with appropriate devices and protocols for a particular deployment.
To discuss sensors and resilient mesh-enabled monitoring, contact hello@tigertek.io.
