UW researchers have created a sensor system that can ride on the back of a moth. Shown here is a Manduca sexta moth with the sensor on its back.Mark Stone/University of Washington
There are many places in this world that are hard for researchers to study, mainly because it’s too dangerous for people to get there.
Now University of Washington researchers have created one potential solution: A 98 milligram sensor system — about one tenth the weight of a jellybean, or less than one hundredth of an ounce — that can ride aboard a small drone or an insect, such as a moth, until it gets to its destination. Then, when a researcher sends a Bluetooth command, the sensor is released from its perch and can fall up to 72 feet — from about the sixth floor of a building — and land without breaking. Once on the ground, the sensor can collect data, such as temperature or humidity, for almost three years.
The team presented this research Sept. 24 at MobiCom 2020.
“We have seen examples of how the military drops food and essential supplies from helicopters in disaster zones. We were inspired by this and asked the question: Can we use a similar method to map out conditions in regions that are too small or too dangerous for a person to go to?” said senior author Shyam Gollakota, a UW associate professor in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering. “This is the first time anyone has shown that sensors can be released from tiny drones or insects such as moths, which can traverse through narrow spaces better than any drone and sustain much longer flights.”
While industrial-sized drones use grippers to carry their payloads, the sensor is held on the drone or insect using a magnetic pin surrounded by a thin coil of wire. To release the sensor, a researcher on the ground sends a wireless command that creates a current through the coil to generate a magnetic field. The magnetic field makes the magnetic pin pop out of place and sends the sensor on its way.
The sensor was designed with its battery, the heaviest part, in one corner. As the sensor falls, it begins rotating around the corner with the battery, generating additional drag force and slowing its descent. That, combined with the sensor’s low weight, keeps its maximum fall speed at around 11 miles per hour, allowing the sensor to hit the ground safely.
The researchers envision using this system to create a sensor network within a study area. For example, researchers could use drones or insects to scatter sensors across a forest or farm that they want to monitor.
Once a mechanism is developed to recover sensors after their batteries have died, the team expects their system could be used in a wide variety of locations, including environmentally sensitive areas. The researchers plan to replace the battery with a solar cell and automate sensor deployment in industrial settings.
The Latest Updates from Bing News & Google News
Go deeper with Bing News on:
Sensor system
- Biden Administration Provides $30 to Strengthen DART System
The funding will go toward modernizing the Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis Ocean Observing System to make data more available and enable more accurate tsunami forecasting.
- Idaho Rolling Out $1.2 Million Tire Inspection Sensor System
Tires on commercial vehicles traveling through Idaho’s ports of entry are under scrutiny with the state transportation department rolling out a $1.2 million system of inspection sensors.
- RS Offers Banner Engineering’s Portfolio of Sensor Products for Industrial Automation
RS, a trading brand of RS Group plc, a global provider of product and service solutions for industrial customers, offers Banner Engineering’s extensive portfolio of sensor products, which spans a wide ...
- Inline Thickness Measurement C-Frame Systems Get a New Look, Enhanced Performance and Larger Measuring Widths
Precision sensor supplier Micro-Epsilon has updated the C-frame version of its thicknessGAUGE series of inline thickness measurement systems for precise thickness measurements of strip materials, ...
- MIT Unveils Game-Changing Sensor for Toxic Gas Detection
A breakthrough in gas detection technology at MIT combines high sensitivity and continuous monitoring. The material could be made as a thin coating to analyze air quality in industrial or home ...
Go deeper with Google Headlines on:
Sensor system
[google_news title=”” keyword=”sensor system” num_posts=”5″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
Go deeper with Bing News on:
Micro sensor system
- Driving innovation: Sheba unveils world’s first autofocus car camera
Sharp-7 pioneers autofocus in automotive cameras, ensuring high-quality imaging despite temperature fluctuations, crucial for ADAS.
- MIT Unveils Game-Changing Sensor for Toxic Gas Detection
A breakthrough in gas detection technology at MIT combines high sensitivity and continuous monitoring. The material could be made as a thin coating to analyze air quality in industrial or home ...
- Sheba Microsystems Launches Sharp-7: The World's First Autofocus Automotive Camera
Sheba Microsystems Inc., a leader in MEMS technologies, today announced the launch of Sharp-7, the world’s first autofocus automotive camera. It is th ...
- Automotive sensor unveiled for ADAS and autonomous driving
Omnivision has introduced a 5-megapixel CMOS image sensor for automotive use cases where high dynamic range (HDR), low-light performance and LED flicker mitigation (LFM) is needed.
- Lightweight, High Speed: Fujifilm Introduces FUJIFILM GFX100S II Mirrorless Digital Camera
GFX100S II is equipped with a high-magnification, high-resolution electronic viewfinder (EVF) with a magnification of 0.84x and 5.76 million dots that is designed to suppress image distortion and flow ...
Go deeper with Google Headlines on:
Micro sensor system
[google_news title=”” keyword=”micro sensor system” num_posts=”5″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]