Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting

The internet of things (IoT) makes it possible to measure physical variables and acquire data in places that were impossible a few years ago, such as transmission lines and electrical substations. Monitoring and fault diagnosis strategies can then be applied. A battery or an energy harvesting system...

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Main Authors: Yuming Liu, Jordi-Roger Riba, Manuel Moreno-Eguilaz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-01-01
Series:Sensors
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/23/3/1480
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author Yuming Liu
Jordi-Roger Riba
Manuel Moreno-Eguilaz
author_facet Yuming Liu
Jordi-Roger Riba
Manuel Moreno-Eguilaz
author_sort Yuming Liu
collection DOAJ
description The internet of things (IoT) makes it possible to measure physical variables and acquire data in places that were impossible a few years ago, such as transmission lines and electrical substations. Monitoring and fault diagnosis strategies can then be applied. A battery or an energy harvesting system charging a rechargeable battery typically powers IoT devices. The energy harvesting unit and rechargeable battery supply the sensors and wireless communications modules. Therefore, the energy harvesting unit must be correctly sized to optimize the availability and reliability of IoT devices. This paper applies a power balance of the entire IoT device, including the energy harvesting module that includes two thermoelectric generators and a DC–DC converter, the battery, and the sensors and communication modules. Due to the small currents typical of the different communication phases and their fast-switching nature, it is not trivial to measure the energy in each phase, requiring very specific instrumentation. This work shows that using conventional instrumentation it is possible to measure the energy involved in the different modes of communication. A detailed energy balance of the battery is also carried out during charge and discharge cycles, as well as communication modes, from which the maximum allowable data transfer rate is determined. The approach presented here can be generalized to many other smart grid IoT devices.
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spelling doaj.art-9ecaef0794764ac2a281c063867d1dd92023-11-16T18:01:40ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202023-01-01233148010.3390/s23031480Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy HarvestingYuming Liu0Jordi-Roger Riba1Manuel Moreno-Eguilaz2Electrical and Electronics Engineering Departments, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Rambla Sant Nebridi 22, 08222 Terrassa, SpainElectrical and Electronics Engineering Departments, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Rambla Sant Nebridi 22, 08222 Terrassa, SpainElectrical and Electronics Engineering Departments, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Rambla Sant Nebridi 22, 08222 Terrassa, SpainThe internet of things (IoT) makes it possible to measure physical variables and acquire data in places that were impossible a few years ago, such as transmission lines and electrical substations. Monitoring and fault diagnosis strategies can then be applied. A battery or an energy harvesting system charging a rechargeable battery typically powers IoT devices. The energy harvesting unit and rechargeable battery supply the sensors and wireless communications modules. Therefore, the energy harvesting unit must be correctly sized to optimize the availability and reliability of IoT devices. This paper applies a power balance of the entire IoT device, including the energy harvesting module that includes two thermoelectric generators and a DC–DC converter, the battery, and the sensors and communication modules. Due to the small currents typical of the different communication phases and their fast-switching nature, it is not trivial to measure the energy in each phase, requiring very specific instrumentation. This work shows that using conventional instrumentation it is possible to measure the energy involved in the different modes of communication. A detailed energy balance of the battery is also carried out during charge and discharge cycles, as well as communication modes, from which the maximum allowable data transfer rate is determined. The approach presented here can be generalized to many other smart grid IoT devices.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/23/3/1480energy harvestingthermoelectric generatorhigh voltagesubstation connectorbattery efficiencypower consumption
spellingShingle Yuming Liu
Jordi-Roger Riba
Manuel Moreno-Eguilaz
Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting
Sensors
energy harvesting
thermoelectric generator
high voltage
substation connector
battery efficiency
power consumption
title Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting
title_full Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting
title_fullStr Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting
title_full_unstemmed Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting
title_short Energy Balance of Wireless Sensor Nodes Based on Bluetooth Low Energy and Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting
title_sort energy balance of wireless sensor nodes based on bluetooth low energy and thermoelectric energy harvesting
topic energy harvesting
thermoelectric generator
high voltage
substation connector
battery efficiency
power consumption
url https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/23/3/1480
work_keys_str_mv AT yumingliu energybalanceofwirelesssensornodesbasedonbluetoothlowenergyandthermoelectricenergyharvesting
AT jordirogerriba energybalanceofwirelesssensornodesbasedonbluetoothlowenergyandthermoelectricenergyharvesting
AT manuelmorenoeguilaz energybalanceofwirelesssensornodesbasedonbluetoothlowenergyandthermoelectricenergyharvesting