Unmanned Mobile Entity for Sensor Calibration
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The deployment of lower-cost sensors in IoT and smart city projects leads to issues with sensor drift and inaccuracies, making it challenging and costly to maintain and evaluate the performance of thousands of field-based sensors across wide geographic areas.
Innovation Solution
A method involving an unmanned mobile entity, such as a drone, that transports a reference sensor unit to the location of a first sensor unit, allowing for the comparison of measurements to evaluate the performance of the first sensor unit and potentially update its measurements with offset data for calibration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If lower-cost sensors are deployed on a wide scale, then deployment cost is reduced, but measurement precision deteriorates due to sensor drift and inaccuracies
Solution Approach 1:
A reference sensor unit is introduced as an intermediary standard against which the performance of deployed sensors can be compared. The unmanned mobile entity transports this reference sensor to various locations to establish baseline measurements, enabling the system to detect and correct drift in lower-cost sensors without requiring expensive manual evaluation at each site.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where measurements from deployed sensors are continuously compared against reference measurements from the reference sensor unit. When drift or performance degradation is detected, the system can trigger recalibration or replacement actions, ensuring measurement precision is maintained over time despite using lower-cost sensors.
2Reliability
If manual maintenance operators visit field-based sensor locations, then sensor performance can be evaluated and maintained, but time consumption and operational cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical system of manual operator travel and physical sensor evaluation with an autonomous unmanned mobile entity. This robotic system can autonomously navigate to sensor locations, transport reference sensors, and perform measurements, eliminating the time-consuming aspect of manual field visits while maintaining sensor performance monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service evaluation where the reference sensor unit, when transported by the unmanned entity, automatically performs comparative measurements against deployed sensors. This automated self-evaluation process eliminates the need for human operators to physically visit each sensor location, dramatically reducing maintenance time and operational costs.
3Area of stationary object
If sensors are placed in remote or difficult-to-access locations, then monitoring coverage is expanded, but accessibility for maintenance and evaluation becomes impractical
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static sensor deployment to dynamic evaluation capability. The unmanned mobile entity provides mobility, allowing the reference sensor to be dynamically transported to various remote locations as needed. This dynamic approach enables comprehensive monitoring coverage across difficult-to-access areas without requiring permanent human presence or infrastructure at each site.
Solution Approach 2:
The unmanned mobile entity serves as an intermediary between the operator and remote sensors, bridging the accessibility gap. It transports the reference sensor to remote locations, performs measurements, and returns data, enabling evaluation of sensors in areas that would be impractical for direct human access while maintaining operational feasibility.
4Quantity of substance
If thousands of sensors are deployed across wide geographic areas, then monitoring scope is increased, but cost and time for maintenance operations become prohibitive
Solution Approach 1:
The reference sensor unit serves multiple functions: it acts as a calibration standard, a performance benchmark, and a reference for drift detection across all deployed sensors. The unmanned mobile entity also performs multiple roles including transportation, measurement coordination, and data collection. This multi-functionality allows the system to efficiently manage large numbers of sensors without proportionally increasing maintenance resources.
Solution Approach 2:
The reference sensor unit creates a standardized measurement template that can be replicated across numerous sensor locations. By establishing a reference measurement at each location, the system can evaluate multiple sensors against the same standard, enabling scalable maintenance operations across thousands of sensors without requiring unique evaluation procedures for each site.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, an unmanned mobile entity and a computer program are provided for evaluating a performance of a first sensor unit which is arranged to measure a physical property of its environment at a location. An unmanned mobile entity transports a reference sensor unit to the location and the reference sensor unit is arranged to measure the physical property at the location. The performance of the first sensor unit is evaluated based on a comparison of the measurements of the first and reference sensor units.