Towards 3D indoor airflow monitoring based on differential pressure measurements

Every year large amounts of energy are used in the industry for Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems. These systems ensure good working conditions for human workers and machines alike. To decrease the amounts of energy used while maintaining the working conditions, a detailed picture of the actual situation inside factories and other buildings is needed. We propose a low-cost 3D airflow sensor that is based on three off-the-shelf differential pressure sensors together with an Industrial Wireless Sensor Network (IWSN) to collect data about environmental conditions. This enables the monitoring of emission propagation through buildings and provides data to control HVAC systems accordingly. Due to the low-cost and simple design, our sensor can be deployed in high quantities to provide comprehensive data with a high spatial resolution.