From Wireless Sensor Networks to "The Internet of Things"

General description

Thanks to the wireless revolutions and pervasive computing technologies, the things (and people) around us can be interconnected and made visible and controllable on the web. We can sense, communicate and control our environment and by doing so create smart building, smart cities etc. This summer school aims at introducing electronic engineering students to this world of embedded sensing, computing and networking technology.

Academic information

Fields of activity:

Computer Engineering , Computer Science/Automatic Control/Informatics , Control Engineering/Systems engineering , Electronic/Electrotechnical Engineering , Telecommunications/Electronics

Content and topics:

Firstly, the challenges and design issues faced when extending the current internet to the ?things? will be explored. Secondly some solutions and new technologies will be discussed and a Wireless Sensor Network for sensing and controlling atmospheric parameters in the lab will be built (hands-on!). Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) form an emerging class of networks, which have driven numerous research efforts in the last decade. They are composed of numerous tiny wireless sensor nodes, embedded within an environment, which collaborate in order to extract information of interest. Such networks enable to monitor our world at an unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution, for applications in domains as diverse as ecology, industry, medicine, or defense. The very limited energy, communication, and computational resources of the sensor nodes however call for the design of new networking and information processing strategies. Thirdly you will acquire hands on experience on how the measurements taken by the sensor network can be brought to the internet and shared with a community. We demonstrate how cooperative sound measurements experiments are organized by our university.

Learning goals and objectives:

Being a participant to this summer school will reveal to you 1. Some aspect of embedded electronics 2. The art of designing power aware communication protocols 3. The quest for data reduction techniques (to avoid sending too much data and by doingnso deplete the energy available in the node) 4. How to program the sensor nodes 5. How to bring the measurement on the web and how to actuate on the environment 6. How to organize collaborative measurements

Examination type:

Practical and written examination.

ECTS credits issued:

Not known yet

Information for applicants

Selection criteria:

To apply to this course you need to have a basic understanding of electronics and computer science. The experience of at least one basic programming course is adviced. In addition to this the motivation letter will be used for selecting the participants.

Practical arrangements

All of the following are covered by the event fee:

Lodging:

Participants will stay in shared rooms at a dormitory close to the university.

Meals:

Breakfast, lunch & dinner, including at least one warm.

Transportation:

Public transportation.