A scalable wireless positioning sensor network for industrial automation

现代工业工厂的自动化要求实时跟踪对象位置和感测当地感兴趣的参数，用于各种应用，如装配线上对象的计数和跟踪，机器和对象故障的检测和定位，以及恢复控制程序的调用等。现有的实时定位系统(RTLS)在跟踪对象位置之前执行对象识别，但它们没有与传感和控制系统集成。根据应用需要，定位精度需要从亚米到几米范围。独特的无线传感器网络(WSN)通常被用来感知和传递传感数据。工业的室内环境对无线电信号的传播提出了极具挑战性的条件，这对传感和位置数据的通信可靠性产生了不利影响。在这个项目中，我们与我们的工业合作伙伴Peytec合作，建议设计无线定位传感器网络(WPSN)的集成解决方案，并开发其关键组件，以实现准确性、可靠性、可扩展性和网络运行的优化。我们通过引入冗余来接近可靠性，并通过自适应智能学习过程使我们的系统可重新配置。我们使用自适应集群技术来满足不同工业场景的可扩展部署需求。WPSN将适用于恶劣的室内环境，包括工业仓库，不仅用于监测和控制，而且还用于资产和库存的识别、本地化和跟踪。我们将在设计和开发过程的每一步都利用我们成功向Peytec转让技术的经验。Peytec和Ryerson之间达成了一项全面的知识产权协议，这将促进该项目所产生的知识产权的商业化。它还将确保Peytec以及加拿大在快速崛起的工业物联网解决方案领域保持领先地位。此外，拟议的项目还将培训一批高素质的电气工程、电信和工业自动化相关领域的人员，这些领域对加拿大和整个世界都至关重要。

Automation of modern industrial plants require real-time tracking of object locations and sensing of local parameters of interest for variety of applications such as counting and tracking of objects in assembly line, detection and localization of failures of machines and objects, and invocation of recovery control procedures etc. The existing Real Time Localization System (RTLS) performs identification of objects prior to tracking their locations, but they are not integrated with the sensing and control systems. The localization needs precision of sub-meters to few meters range depending upon the application needs. The distinct Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is often used to sense and communicate sensing data. The indoor environment of industries pose challenging conditions for radio signal propagation that adversely affect reliability of communication of sensing and location data. In this project, in collaboration with our industrial partner Peytec, we propose to design an integrated solution of Wireless Positioning Sensor Network (WPSN) and develop its key components for accuracy, reliability, scalability and optimal network operation. We approach reliability by incorporating redundancy and making our system reconfigurable through adaptive intelligent learning process. We employ adaptive clustering technique to address the need of scalable deployment for varied industrial scenarios. The WPSN will be applicable in harsh indoor environments, including industrial warehouses, for not only monitoring and control, but also for identification, localization and tracking of assets and inventory. We will leverage our experience of successful tech-transfer to Peytec in every step of the design and development process. A comprehensive intellectual property agreement is in place between Peytec and Ryerson, which will facilitate the commercialization of the intellectual property resulting from this project. It will also ensure that Peytec, as well as Canada, remain leaders in the fast emerging field of industrial IoT solutions. Moreover, the proposed project will also train a number of highly qualified personnel in electrical engineering, telecommunications, and industrial automation related areas that are crucial to Canada and the overall world.