A clever new sensor system will be deployed at the Clositers Museum in New York, but it may not be easily seen. Dozens of tiny sensors will protect the works of art displayed in the museum using a network of wireless environmental sensors.
IBM has equipped each sensor with a radio and a microcontroller in a cigarette sized package. These sensors can measure variables such as temperature, humidity, air flow, light levels, contaminants and more.
The sensors will be linked to a computer programs which will automatically make adjustments in the environment to preserve the art houses in the museum. The inexpensive sensors run on low power and many of them can be placed in a single room. If the trial is successful the sensor network will be expanded to include the rest of the museum.
The project by IBM is part of the company’s bid to digitally monitor buildings, and more such as traffic, utilities and hospitals, to make them run more efficiently. The initiative is called Smarter Planet and may generate sales in terms of $10 billion for IBM in the next three years.