Self-Sustainable Air Quality Sensors

Dr. Phil Lundrigan

The advent of small, low-cost air quality sensors has allowed researchers to measure the air quality at a much more granular level. This has had a significant impact on medical and epidemiological research, allowing researchers to monitor air quality in real-time. However, available air quality sensors require wall power and WiFi connectivity. We are exploring new wireless protocols and energy-saving strategies to create a network of untethered, low-power, self-sustainable sensors that can report air quality data in real-time. By removing the need for wall power and WiFi connectivity, sensors can be placed in more diverse locations, such as remote locations, bus stops, schools, parks, disadvantaged neighborhoods, and other high-interest places, ushering in new air quality research that has not been possible before.