Infrastructure monitoring smart wireless sensor network with solar energy harvesting

Design considerations for an embedded wireless sensor network (WSN) for monitoring civil infrastructure are presented. Nodes capable of local signal processing mitigate the volume of data for wireless transmission. Dual battery and harvested solar power sources provide the energy for the added computation. A low-drop-out-regulator (LDO) recharger with high-temperature cutoff is key to the system being maintenance free over its expected two year lifetime in a hot desert climate.