Project Overview - Buksh-head/Salamis-Salmon GitHub Wiki

Description

This project implements a wireless environmental monitoring system designed for hazardous or inaccessible areas, such as disaster zones. It consists of five interconnected node types: Sensor Nodes, a Mobile Relay Node, a Base Node, a Viewer Node, and a PC Node. Sensor Nodes are deployed throughout the environment to measure temperature, humidity, gas concentrations, and motion, periodically broadcasting this data via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). A drone-mounted Mobile Relay Node captures these broadcasts and attaches GPS coordinates before forwarding the data to the Base Node. The Base Node relays the information to a Viewer Node for real-time heatmap visualisation and to a PC Node over UART. The PC Node logs all sensor data to a local Ethereum blockchain for tamper-proof verification, stores it in InfluxDB, and visualises it using Grafana. For redundancy, the data is also saved to a USB drive. This system enables real-time monitoring and secure data logging, providing emergency response teams with actionable insights into environmental risks such as gas build-up or structural instability.

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Deliverables and Key Performance Indicator

  1. Mobile Node with BLE: Less then 2s average connection time to sensor nodes;
  2. Environmental Heatmap & Activity Dashboard: Updates within 5s of new data received; supports visualisation of at least 2 sensor nodes.
  3. Web Based Dashboard: Accessible in real-time, can visualise all sensor data.
  4. Sensor reading accuracy: Within +-5% calibrated reference on datasheet
  5. BLE broadcast interval: Broadcasts atleasts once every 5 seconds +- 10%.
  6. Sensor Node: The GPS allows accurate geotagging within +- 3m.

System Overview

Block Diagram

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Flow charts

Base Node

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Mobile Node

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Sensor Node

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Wifi + BLE Operation on Mobile Node

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System Integration

  • SAM-M8Q (GPS Board): UART
  • EFR32MG12 Thunderboard (SLTB004A): Temperature, Humidity, Pressure: I2C

Wireless Network Communications

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Network Topology

The system uses a hierarchical star topology with a mobile relay:

  • Sensor Nodes communicate via Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to a mobile node.

  • The mobile node then forwards the data to the PC via Wifi (MQTT protocol).

  • The PC adds the data to the blockchain ledger, web dashboard, and sends to base node for visualisation.

IoT Protocols Used

Wi-Fi (for base node communication): This will be the primary protocol for communication between the mobile node and the web dashboard.

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE): BLE will be used to transmit data from each sensor node to the Mobile node (Thingy52).

MQTT Protocol: MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport) will be used as the message protocol to publish sensor data to the PC (web dashboard and blockchain ledger).

Data Rate Requirements

Wi-Fi: For communication between the mobile node and PC, the data rate requirement can be modest (a few KB/s). This is enough for sending data logs or sensor readings, such as temperature, humidity, or gas concentrations. Assuming an update rate of 5 seconds and future proofing for more nodes, a rate of 0.95 kbps can be used.

Bluetooth: For Bluetooth communication, BLE supports low data rates. 0.2 kbps per Sensor Node to Mobile Node will be used based on a update rate of every 5 seconds. 0.8 kbps from Mobile Node to Base node based on an update rate of 5 seconds.

DIKW Pyramid Abstraction

Data: Raw sensor readings

Information: Timestamped and geotagged data logs

Knowledge: Heatmaps showing gas build-up or unstable areas and Web Dashboard showing sensor readings.

Wisdom: Emergency teams prioritise zones base

Algorithms schemes used

Sensor data is embedded in a blockchain ledger to ensure tamper-proof logging. Allowing reliable verification of data integrity in disconnected or high-risk environments. This ensures environmental readings remain trustworthy for emergency response and post-event analysis.

Project Management

---
config:
  theme: cybernetic
---
gantt
    title CSSE4011 Project Timeline (Starting May 12, 2025)
    dateFormat  YYYY-MM-DD
    excludes    weekends
    section Planning
    Research and Planning                    :done, 2025-05-12, 3d
    Initial System Design                    :active, 2025-05-15, 2025-05-18
    Project Milestone Prep                   :2025-05-15, 2025-05-16

    section Development
    Mobile Node BLE Setup                    :2025-05-19, 2d
    Sensor Node Data Acquisition             :2025-05-21, 2d
    GPS Integration (Sensor Node)            :2025-05-23, 1d
    BLE to Base Node Communication           :2025-05-26, 1d
    MQTT + Web Dashboard                     :2025-05-27, 2d
    Data Processing & Heatmap Display        :2025-05-29, 1d

    section Milestones
    Project Milestone Presentation           :milestone, 2025-05-15, 0d
    BLE Communication Verified               :milestone, 2025-05-20, 0d
    Sensor Data Logged                       :milestone, 2025-05-23, 0d
    Full Node Chain Tested                   :milestone, 2025-05-27, 0d
    Heatmap Display Functional               :milestone, 2025-05-29, 0d
    Final Submission                         :milestone, 2025-05-30, 0d
    section Milestones

    Project Milestone Presentation           :milestone, 2025-05-15, 0d
    Submission                               :milestone, 2025-05-30, 0d

Equipment

  • Thingy52
  • M5 Core2
  • 2x SAM-M8Q (GPS Board)
  • 2x EFR32MG12 Thunderboard (SLTB004A)
  • laptop for web-dashboard