In addition to exhibiting projects from clubs and organizations, we sincerely welcome contributions from individual makers who are working on creative and innovative projects.  Jesse Craig is one such maker.  Jesse is lives on the lower Cape and will be exhibiting his wireless mesh network project, SenseMesh.  A wireless mesh network differs from a traditional wireless network in that instead of having a limited number of wired access points, the network connection is distributed among “nodes” that communicate with each other to share the network connection across a large area.

Jesse says, “SenseMesh is a wireless sensor network mesh that integrates nodes with various sensors to provide a stream of real-time data. The data can include information like temperature, humidity, acceleration, and pressure. The network is both self-healing and self-organizing, providing for a robust means of communicating data across moderate distances. Technologies used include: ZigBee, I2C, Microchip PIC, LiPo batteries, and Solar power.

My near term plans for the sensor mesh are to monitor things around the house, like the temperature outside, soil moisture levels in the garden, temperature and humidity in the chicken coop, etc.  A lofty goal is a project I have been considering to combine the sensor mesh with wearable computing. Wireless communication is a requirement for something wearable and a mesh lets the network self-extend and adapt as people in the network move around. Imagine a room where the people in it are wearing sensors that measure body temperature and humidity inside one’s clothes (to detect sweating), then adjusts the thermostat to a value optimal for the most people.”

Cool!

Are you working on a project in your home workshop that you think that others might be interested in?  Let it see the light of day at the Cape Cod Mini Maker Faire!

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