Scientists build miniature dandelion sensor prototype to easily build large-scale environmental monitoring network

  UW research team builds new 'dandelion' sensor with miniature solar panel In an article published today in the journal Nature,a team of researchers at the University of Washington has introduced a miniature "dandelion" sensor that can be blown by the wind. Based on this, we can imagine a future in which, as electronic devices continue to miniaturize, we can place hundreds of sensors such as temperature and humidity around a forest or farm to easily build a large-scale environmental monitoring network. (From: University of Washington / Mark Stone) The new "dandelion" sensor created by the University of Washington research team is said to use a miniature solar panel (shown in the black rectangle above). The lightweight, compact sensor can be delivered by hundreds of drones - like the seeds of a dandelion scattered in the wind - to effectively build a massive monitoring network platform. It is worth mentioning that in order to find the best "dandelion" design, scientists tried 75 different model designs and finally picked one of them (with room for continuous improvement). At this stage, it took a lot of time and effort for the researchers to create such an exquisite sensor. However, as industrial production begins, it is believed that this solution will have exciting applications. The sensor body is extremely light and compact Dandelion seeds have a unique center point structure, and a ring of small bristles slows their fall," said study author Vikram Iyer. We developed a two-dimensional projection of it and finalized the basic design of the new sensor," said study author Vikram Iyer. As the weight increases, the bristles begin to bend inward. To do this, the researchers added a ring structure to make it more stable and increase the impact area, thereby slowing the sensor's fall. The team tried 75 different shapes and designs But more importantly, the team chose to replace the bulky battery module with a lightweight, miniature solar panel. In order to continue working after the sun goes down, the sensor is equipped with a temporary storage capacitor. Although the current prototype weighs about 30 times as much as a dandelion seed (1 milligram), it was able to float in the breeze for a soccer field length after being dropped by a drone. Details of the study have been published in the recent issue of Nature. The original title is "Wind dispersal of battery-free wireless devices". Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)