Deployment of passive and wirelessly connected sensors based on Computational RFID tags for enabling IoT solutions

Deployment of passive and wirelessly connected sensors based on Computational RFID tags for enabling IoT solutions

Engineering for the Information Society and Sustainable Development

Hugo Landaluce Simón http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2103-7713

DeustoTech-Mobility unit focuses its activity on research into the information and communication technologies (ICT) for application in the sector of transport, mobility and logistics. This research contributes to the development of Intelligent Transport Systems which can improve the mobility of people and goods, making them more sustainable, smart and comfortable.

Applicants for positions must hold an MsC degree in Communications, Electronics or Industrial Engineering. Experience in developing and characterizing radio-frequency systems with excellent grades. Knowledge on electronics, circuit analysis and PCB design, C++, Python, assembly language, and radio frequency transmission is desired. Also: – Ability to design and model radio-frequency circuits. – Fluency in English (understanding, speaking and writing) is also essential. – Ability to work in a team and collaborate with people in complementary disciplines. – Circuit analysis and PCB design will be very well evaluated. .

• Information Sciences and Engineering (ENG)

The proliferation of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in cities has allowed the Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm to become a reality, where the most unexpected elements can be empowered with certain intelligence. Wireless sensor networks are the catalyzer to implement this paradigm. Besides, the concept of “SMART DUST” in IoT, where a massive number of small sensors are required, can be fulfilled using Radio Frequency identification (RFID) technology and its emerging variant, computational RFID (CRFID). CRFID involves the use of PASSIVE tags that integrate a PROGRAMMABLE microcontroller and one or more sensors of different nature in order to deploy solutions for IoT applications. Tags are able to sense, perform simple calculations, and to transmit the data back to a reader, WIRELESSLY and all WITHOUT BATTERIES. That is why CRFID is increasingly becoming relevant in the field of sensor networks. The applicant will face several challenges to deploy novel CRFID applications such as those related to the transmission of data, the management of the radio signal, or the energy harvesting system. Furthermore, one of the main challenges of CRFID is the need to deal with sensors’ collisions, which is very likely to happen in a scenario with simultaneously responding sensors. Therefore, the main objective of this thesis will be to develop strategies for STREAMING DATA from passive sensors, optimizing the communication in dynamic scenarios.

[1] F. Muralter, H. Landaluce, R. Del-Rio-Ruiz and A. Perallos, «Selecting Impedance States in a Passive Computational RFID Tag Backscattering in PSK,» in IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters. (Q1 – IF 2.374). [2] F. Muralter, L. Arjona, H. Landaluce and A. Perallos, «A theoretical and experimental study of passive computational RFID tags,» 2019 4th International Conference on Smart and Sustainable Technologies (SpliTech), Split, Croatia, 2019, pp. 1-5. [3] Souto, G.; Muralter, F.; Arjona, L.; Landaluce, H.; Perallos, A. Protocol for Streaming Data from an RFID Sensor Network †. Sensors 2019, 19, 3148 (Q1 – IF 3.031). [4] L. Arjona, H. Landaluce, A. Perallos and E. Onieva, «Timing-Aware RFID Anti-Collision Protocol to Increase the Tag Identification Rate,» in IEEE Access, vol. 6, pp. 33529-33541, 2018 (Q1 – IF 4.098). [5] H. Landaluce, A. Perallos, E. Onieva, L. Arjona and L. Bengtsson, «An Energy and Identification Time Decreasing Procedure for Memoryless RFID Tag Anticollision Protocols,» in IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications, vol. 15, no. 6, pp. 4234-4247, June 2016 (Q1 – IF 4.951).

Several projects have been completed using CRFID and data management for the development of different IoT solutions. CRFID in the paradigm of INDUSTRY 4.0 for Tool-Machine industry; and to provide services in trains. – TEKINTZE: Teknologia Ekin Hagin (T) Zerra Erabiliz [Elkartek KK-2018/00104)] – 58.500 € – IoTRAIN: Optimización de la explotación de datos de seguimiento de pasajeros en entornos ferroviarios a través de técnicas de soft computing [Retos Investigación RTI2018-095499-B-C33] – 45.738 € Using RFID for tracking and TRACEABILITY purposes. Monitorization of goods and vehicles using NON-INVASIVE systems. – IoTT: Cloud platform based on lot to provide full integral services in goods transports[Retos Colaboración RTC-2016-5463-4] – 230.861 € – TRAZAMED: Plataforma integral basada en tecnologías de identificación RFID para la trazabilidad de medicamentos [INNPACTO IPT-090000-2010-007] – 93.731€ – i-LogisTICs: Sistema telemático para la mejora de la logística en el transporte de mercancías a través de servicios avanzados de planificación y trazabilidad [Retos TEC2013-45585-C2-2-R] – 26.100 € Collection of data coming from different data sources to provide services in transport and logistics. – TIMON: Enhanced real time services for an optimized multimodal mobility relying on cooperative networks and open data. [H2020 GA No. 636220] – 943.750 € – LOGISTAR: Enhanced data management techniques for logistics planning and scheduling in real time [H2020 GA Nº 769142] – 811.511 €

CRFID gathers different areas of knowledge to make the technology work. Some of them are mentioned here: – Electronics engineering to be able to modify or redesign computational tags optimized for a particular application. – Sensor networks to provide the algorithmic strategy to manage several computational tags in the desired application. – Middleware design to manage the performance of one or several readers, manage the data obtained from them and transmit it to higher layers like a cloud. – Energy harvesting to optimize the performance of the tags obtaining power from the reader’s electromagnetic signal. – Antenna design to optimize the performance of the tags maximizing the power of the signal received from the reader. – Wireless Communications to manage the communications protocol used to obtain data from the sensor network. Thus, CRFID integrates all these technologies and knowledge areas, and all of them are essential to make it work. The applicant must show advanced skills on these fields to properly face this PhD proposal.

Yes, an international codirection is envisaged. Dr. Laura Arjona from University of Washington (Seattle – USA) (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9815-446X) will co-direct this thesis. Currently there is a fruitful collaboration among Dr. Arjona from the Paul Allen Center at the University of Washington, and the scientist in charge of this grant proposal. The applicant will join a research unit that currently maintains an active collaboration with Dr. Arjona, whose research work and experience is closely related to this PhD proposal. Dr. Arjona, as well as her research unit will not only provide the applicant an international perspective of the research, but most importantly it will provide the applicant with a strong expertise and support in the field of CRFID. The current collaboration between Dr. Arjona and Dr. Landaluce is manifested with published and in-progress research papers.

The applicant will join an interdisciplinary team in DeustoTech that will be able to help on any of the knowledge areas mentioned above apart from the extensive knowledge in the field of Dr. Arjona and the scientist in charge of the proposal. Currently there are 27 members in the team (http://research.mobility.deustotech.eu/people/members/) working on these knowledge areas. During the last 4 years, 4 doctoral thesis have been defended in this area and these postdocs, now, will actively collaborate with the applicant. Additionally, the applicant will have enough resources available to produce knowledge, new prototypes and developments. A fully coherent and working CRFID platform to experiment with will be available. This platform consists of a Software Defined Radio (SDR) reader and several WISP tags. – The SDR platform is able to generate a radio frequency system that is configurable using software. – The WISP tag, originally designed in the University of Washington (Seattle – USA), the research unit the applicant is going to collaborate with, provides a fully open and documented device. In addition, Deustotech offers the ProDesign lab, equipped with a spectrum analyzer and various oscilloscopes. This laboratory also provides a milling machine, electronic equipment and components to produce PCB prototypes.

The proposed topic in this thesis proposal fits into several forthcoming H2020 topic calls. For the first call of “2018-2020 Mobility for Growth”, the topic “MG-2-12-2020: Improving road safety by effectively monitoring working patterns and overall fitness of drivers” is perfectly related to the topic proposed for this research position. A WIRELESS and PASSIVE sensor network integrated in the driver’s clothes will be proposed to monitor the driver’s fitness and physical state in order to provide the information to a decision taking system. Another call that is related to this position is “Secure, clean and efficient energy”, in particular, the topic “LC-SC3-B4E-3-2020: Upgrading smartness of existing buildings through innovations for legacy equipment”. For this topic, smart building measurements are proposed by integrating CRFID sensors into construction materials, so that, walls, doors or windows are able to perform measurements providing a smart environment. Moreover, the research group that will embrace the applicant is actively participating and coordinating several H2020 projects such as LOGISTAR (2018-2021; GA No. 769142), TIMON (2015-2018, GA No. 636220) and POSTLowCIT(2016-2019, GA: 2015-ES-TM-0239-S). In addition to this, the research group is highly active in international forums, being part of ECTRI, the European research association for sustainable and multimodal mobility, a european platform involving all the most outstanding research centres in transport.

This thesis will be co-directed together with Dr. Arjona from the Paul G. Allen Center for Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington (Seattle – USA). This research group, led by Prof Joshua R. Smith (h-index 60), is a pioneer in the development of CRFID tags, since it was the birthplace of the Wireless Identification Sensing Platform (WISP), which will be used as one of the main tools for this position. The WISP has been and continues to be used extensively by researchers around the world, and its initial publication in 2008 (Design of an RFID-Based Battery-Free Programmable Sensing Platform) has 415 paper and 27 patents citations. The position will be co-directed by Dr. Laura Arjona, postdoctoral researcher at Paul G. Allen Center, who is actively working with CRFID tags for a wide range of applications. Dr. Arjona created one of the first software-defined custom RFID readers that can communicate with CRFID sensors such as the WISP, not just conventional RFID tags. Thus, she owns several years of expertise in dealing with CRFID collisions and is now developing a communication with neural sensors using RFID technology. Dr Arjona will provide all the strength of the Paul G. Allen Center and Impinj to provide a solid support to the applicant when dealing with CRFID.

Two different companies (TELEFONICA and AVANGROUP) have shown interest in providing a 3 year co-financing opportunity on services and applications for the new paradigm of Industry 4.0. CRFID fits this paradigm by providing WIRELESS and PASSIVE sensors that can obtain data from inaccessible or dangerous places, with an easy installation, providing it to a MES or to any cloud service. Thus, the proposed topic in this position is very well related to the interests of the two companies. TELEFONICA is one of the pioneer international companies developing IoT solutions. This company is interested in exploring new opportunities involving the development and deployment of PASSIVE and WIRELESS sensor networks under this paradigm. TELEFONICA is the patron of “Cátedra Deusto en Industria Digital” which mission is the generation of talent around Industry 4.0 technologies. AVANGROUP Business Solutions is a software factory (50 employees) with local representative activity in the development of INDUSTRY 4.0 solutions for monitorization and control for industrial companies (Siemens, Sidenor,…). AVANGROUP provides the development of integral solutions, from software to the sensors deployment. AVANGROUP has shown a clear interest in the deployment of CRFID sensor networks to propose innovative and differentiating applications among all the software factories. This research position exemplifies a particular interest of these two companies that are willing to fund it during the coming years.

Industrial doctorate is not envisaged since the programme requires the researcher to be hired by the University of Deusto. However, the industrial partner will be involved in the research and training of the PhD student since the beginning.

The potential of these applications is related to the ability of the CRFID sensor to be WIRELESSLY READ and to work WITHOUT A POWER SUPPLY source. This brings the possibility to attach or introduce the CRFID sensors into inaccessible places, such as inside walls, or car tyres, or even attaching them to a crane; and they still can be identified and their sensors read. Several exploitable scenarios are proposed: – Scenario 1: Pallets transporting perishable assets such as food. Food is organized in “smart” boxes that integrate a CRFID sensor. All along the supply chain, several readers receive data from all the boxes in the pallet. Thus, food is monitored from its recollection to the shop. – Scenario 2: CRFID sensors deployed in inaccessible areas of a factory, such as a crane or a moving element, to wirelessly provide data from machines to a MES or the cloud. – Scenario 3: a CRFID accelerometers network to detect resonance in road infrastructure (bridges, buildings). These sensors can be hidden inside pillars or asphalt thanks to their wireless ability to be read. – Scenario 4: Implantable biomedical devices are certainly one of the hottest application areas of CRFID because of the great potential that wireless power and data communication capabilities, bring to this field. In that sense, CRFID is ideal for applications like neural recording where implanted sensors do not require any source of energy of their own except for the external RF field.

The following fields will be revolutionized with the inclusion of CRFID: Logistics. CRFID sensors will track and measure the goods and will store intermediate information into their memory along the supply chain. Attractive for delicate, or perishable assets, the goods will be monitored to inform the producer or the customer at any time. Health. CRFID tags can be used as an adhesive bandage to provide data of wounds or vital constants of a patient. These sensors would be very easy to deploy, avoiding the need of wires, ultimately improving the patient’s comfort. Biomedical engineering. CRFID sensors will accelerate the recent technological developments as WEARABLE or IMPLANTABLE devices that are safe and reliable treatment options to develop biomedical applications. This will allow to perform physiological sensing, computation and communication of the sensed data to the user wirelessly and adapt the treatment. Industry 4.0. CRFID sensors can be easily deployed to provide data from machines to a MES wirelessly. Thus, CRFID would allow to obtain information from inaccessible or dangerous areas thanks to their wireless and passive features. Human patterns recognition CRFD sensors in textiles, or close to the human body. These sensors can be located in clothes or shoes, and will provide data about the movements or the sweating patterns of the user. This information will be processed to improve postural health and ultimately to contribute towards a better lifestyle.

According to a conservative projection by Cisco, by the year 2020 each person on earth will be associated with an average of seven smart sensors. The increase in smart connected sensing is already visible today in the form of smart homes and other distributed networks of commercially available sensors and systems. The project described in this proposal will contribute towards the accessibility of CRFID sensors to a wider population. The development of efficient, reduced cost, and robust sensors will make it possible that a wider population will benefit from their numerous applications. In addition to this, Deusto is committed to social justice and inclusion. It recognises gender equality as a key driver for sustainable development, inclusive growth and academic opportunity for women. Moreover, to seek real inclusion for people with specific support needs, the project will ensure equal rights and opportunities with respect to access to the programme and the acquisition of skills expected to achieve the PhD. Since the main purpose of this proposal is to design and implement new types of sensors, efficient sensors would be designed to improve the lives of vulnerable groups of people. These people would benefit from the information provided by these sensors with the purpose of achieving a healthier and more comfortable lifestyle. This is the case of the health applications where obtaining data from underskin, implants or the surface, but avoiding wires which can make the patient’s life easier.