Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) has drawn the attention of the research community in the past few years. This growing interest can be largely credited to new applications enabled by large-scale networks. Most deployed wireless sensor networks measure scalar data such as temperature, pressure, humidity, or the location of objects. On a general note, most of the applications have low bandwidth cell phone signal demands and are usually delay tolerant. While the traditional wireless sensor networks consist of low-bandwidth sensors with limited capabilities, camera sensor networks can provide visual verification, in-depth situational awareness, recognition, and other capabilities. In recent years, wireless sensor networks have inspired tremendous research interest in diverse application fields such as structural health monitoring, environmental monitoring, and military and security surveillance. A typical wireless sensor network consists of sensor nodes, each equipped with various kinds of sensors, deployed over a geographical region of interest. Most of the applications are centered towards harvesting information from the physical environment, performing a simple processing on the extracted data and transmitting it to remote locations.
A new direction in wireless sensor network application design centers on the idea of enabling the network to learn the behaviour of the trend in the environment rather than merely making measurements and reporting about a single event or information of interest. A Wireless Multimedia Sensor Network (WMSN) is defined as a network of wireless embedded devices that allow retrieving video or audio streams, still images, and scalar sensor data.
Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) mainly deals with scalar data such as temperature, humidity, and light which are very suitable for low rate and low power. The commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) CMOS camera has fostered researchers to push WSN a step further. The unique properties of multimedia data delivery pose fresh challenges for resource constrained sensor networks. Transmitting raw data is very costly while limited processing power prevents sophisticated multimedia processing at the sensor nodes. Wireless sensor networks offer an attractive choice for low cost solutions for transmitting data wireless to a database to be evaluated. Wireless networks of visual sensors have recently emerged as a new type of sensor-based intelligence system. The goal of the visual sensor network is to provide a user with visual information from an arbitrary viewpoint within the monitored field.
Research says that wireless networks in combination with image sensors open up a multitude of previously unthinkable sensing applications. In an on-going project, we are designing and implementing a sensor node with a camera which would be capable of acquiring still images, transfer the data onto a personal computer through wireless communication, and store the image on a personal computer.
MobileAccess is a global provider of reliable wireless coverage solutions for all indoor wireless environments. MobileAccess’ solutions platform helps in delivering wireless connectivity in enterprises of every size, and has become the industry standard in the healthcare, hospitality and higher education markets. MobileAccess’ legacy of innovation and proven architecture set the bar for indoor wireless peak performance, ensuring customers can meet current wireless demands as well as easily expand with future applications and services. Thousands of organizations worldwide rely on MobileAccess including: Clarian Health, the Comcast Center, M Resort Spa Casino, Ford Field, GAN Tower (Paris), Grand Lakes Orlando, the Dutch Parliament building (Netherlands), Hearst Corporation, Melbourne Australia Airport, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Royal Dutch Shell and the University of Phoenix Stadium. MobileAccess is headquartered in Vienna, Virginia.
Mobile Access, a global provider of in-building wireless solutions, announced that its portfolio of 4G wireless solutions are certified by wireless operators and are actively supporting LTE networks across the country. After completing the certification testing and documentation review in November 2010, MobileAccess was the first distributed antenna systems (DAS) provider to receive preferred status from the largest US carrier currently deploying a LTE network for its entire 4G portfolio, including the innovative MobileAccessVE solution.
Flexibility and performance are key variables in bringing a next-generation network online, and we are very pleased that our carrier partners, Verizon and AT&T, have recognized the capabilities of our solution in this regard. From arenas and hotels to office buildings and airports, LTE rollouts can be up and running in weeks versus months for a fraction of the cost of traditional DAS solutions.
The MobileAccessVE solution delivers LTE multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) capabilities over existing CAT-5 Ethernet cables, helping to avoid costly infrastructure projects that require two cables to achieve necessary performance levels as well as cutting installation timeframes from months to weeks. Not only does this re-use of existing cabling help wireless operators to meet their LTE rollout goals on time, but it also aids in retrofitting existing facilities, turning LTE implementations into simple upgrades for buildings already equipped with DAS deployments. With MobileAccess’ high performance LTE MIMO solutions the promise of 4G data rates has been delivered indoors to stadiums, hotels and airports alike.
In addition to MobileAccessVE, the MobileAccess1000 and MobileAccess2000 distributed antenna systems passed testing and are certified and deployed by wireless carriers in the US. Now, the hundreds of stadiums, airports, hospitals, hotels and other enterprise buildings that have deployed MobileAccess1000 and MobileAccess2000 systems can be upgraded by simply adding LTE modules to these installed systems.