LoRa Structural Monitoring Wireless Sensor Networks.

The demand for sensor-based information has seen a rapidly increasing demand due to the massive deployment of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems. SHM allows for the analysis aimed to the prediction of forthcoming incidents and enables the evaluation of a structure's status. The advances in the Internet of Things (IoT) structures to retrieve data anytime, everywhere through the internet represents a promising paradigm for SHM. Among the various technologies and topologies that are now evolving, Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have become well suited for the implementation of monitoring systems, especially in low power wide area network (LPWAN) structures. LoRa modulation technology is a suitable technical solution for sensor node communication. In this study, two LoRa-based systems for Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) are presented, located in Sicily and Calabria, Italy. Accelerometric sensors are encapsulated into solar harvesting powered sensor nodes and are used to monitor the variation of inclinations of the mounting location. LoRaWAN gateways interface the nodes towards the internet, enabling the Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm for the monitoring solution. In this article, an overview of the system structure is given, with nodes and gateways' hardware features provided. Inclination monitoring using accelerometric data is explained, and real scenario recorded data are given. Brief power analysis for the sensor nodes is also reported.