February 3, 2009 - Deborah Estrin

Title: Mobile Sensing Systems: From ecosystems to human systems

Abstract:
Miniaturization and Moore’s law enabled us to combine sensing, computation and wireless communication in integrated, low-power devices, and to embed networks of these devices in the physical world. By placing sensing devices up close to the physical phenomena we have been able to study details in space and time that were previously unobservable. Looking back over the past few years have made significant progress toward the vision of programmable, distributed sensing systems by using: judicious application of server-side and in situ processing, human in the loop as well as automated systems, mobility at multiple scales, and data and models as context for in situ measurements,. We are now applying these lessons learned and technical approaches to human as well as natural systems, in particular by exploring use of the installed base of image, acoustic, location, activity sensors that we all carry around in our pockets or on our belts—mobile phones. This talk will present work in progress and lessons learned from several prototype applications and system being explored at The NSF Science and Technology Center for Embedded Networked Sensing (CENS).