Daisy-Chained Marine Sensor Nodes for Low-Latency Underwater Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing underwater measurement systems face challenges such as significant measurement latency, mechanical wear-and-tear, and environmental hazards due to bulky components, corrosion, and collision risks, limiting effective and safe monitoring of underwater conditions.
Innovation Solution
A daisy chained marine sensor platform with interchangeable sensor nodes on a single line, controlled by a controller that identifies sensor types and positions, enabling simultaneous measurements and intelligent power management, allowing for flexible deployment and efficient data acquisition.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If mechanical winch-based systems are used to move sensors underwater, then a single location can be monitored, but measurement latency increases and mechanical wear-and-tear occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides a single mobile sensor platform into multiple stationary sensor nodes distributed along a line. Each node remains fixed at its position, eliminating the need for mechanical movement while enabling simultaneous measurements across multiple locations. The controller selectively activates appropriate nodes based on monitoring requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from a single-point temporal monitoring (one location at a time) to a distributed spatial monitoring architecture. By arranging sensor nodes along a line dimension, the system achieves both temporal and spatial distribution of measurements, eliminating measurement latency while maintaining monitoring capability.
2Reliability
If bulky mechanical components are deployed in ocean environments, then sensors can be positioned underwater, but corrosion and damage due to wear-and-tear increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces the mechanical winch-based positioning system with a stationary distributed sensor node architecture. By eliminating motors, winches, and moving mechanical parts, the system removes the sources of wear-and-tear and mechanical failure, significantly improving reliability in harsh ocean environments.
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts and removes the bulky mechanical components (winch, motor, movable sensor housing) from the underwater monitoring system. Only essential sensor elements remain at fixed positions, minimizing exposure to corrosive environments and eliminating mechanical wear mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If sensors are manually submerged by human operators, then measurements can be taken, but operational complexity and safety risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system is designed to be self-deploying and self-managing. Sensor nodes are pre-positioned and automatically activated by the controller based on monitoring needs. The system eliminates the need for human operators to manually submerge, retrieve, or reposition sensors, reducing both operational complexity and safety risks while maintaining ease of initial deployment.
Data Source
AI summary
In one aspect, there is provided a marine sensor platform that includes: a line having a plurality of slots that are spaced apart on the line, a plurality of sensor nodes, each sensor node configured to couple to each of the slots on the line, and each sensor node including at least one sensor, a power source coupled to the plurality of sensor nodes and configured to supply power to the plurality of sensor nodes on the line, and a controller coupled to the power source and the plurality of sensor nodes on the line, wherein the controller is configured to identify a type of the at least one sensor included in each of the sensor nodes when each of the sensor nodes is coupled to the respective slot on the line.