FYPSim : Evaluation Tool for Solar-based Energy Harvesting for WSNs

We introduce a simulation tool for modeling energy harvesting and energy storage technologies with application to wireless sensor networks. Firstly, we provide a concise review of various energy harvesting technologies (solar, wind, thermal, vibrations) that can possibly increase the autonomy of wireless sensor network (WSN) nodes. Secondly, we illustrate the capabilities of the proposed tool by means of outdoor and indoor solar energy harvesting examples. These examples consider four types of WSN nodes (Micaz, Imote2, Dresden-AVR, and TelosB) and two types of storage devices (Li-Ion battery and supercapacitor). The results illustrate how system designers can rapidly assess the feasibility of solar-based energy harvesting for various computational loads on the above WSN nodes. In turn, this could be useful for designing, among others, wearable health monitoring systems making use of e.g. bio-electromagnetic sensors.

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