A cellular IoT based sensor system for atmospheric studies using UAVs

Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of objects or sensors which are interconnected through communication technologies for exchange of information to provide services. Sensors for atmospheric studies can be integrated into a module and mounted on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) and data from these sensors can be uploaded to cloud for real time access. In cases where UAVs are used, most of the papers discuss atmospheric studies or air pollution monitoring through IoT where WiFi module/RF communication module and base stations on ground are used. This limits the range of the studies carried out. The proposed study intends to build a portable sensor system to be mounted on UAV for atmospheric studies and couple the same with cellular IoT using a 4G LTE modem for internet connectivity. The sensors’ data is uploaded to cloud via the cellular networks and accessed anywhere in real time directly from the cloud platform without range limitations. The proposed system does not require Wifi modules or base station on ground thus reducing the hardware complexity. The designed system is capable of measuring temporal data of atmospheric parameters like PM2.5, PM10, Co
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, CO, NH
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, barometric pressure, temperature periodically along with spatial data: latitude, longitude and altitude.