In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic with no designated cure or vaccine, the only way to break the infection chain is self-isolation and maintaining the physical distancing. In this paper, we present a potential application of the Internet of Things (IoT) in healthcare and physical distance monitoring for pandemic situations. The proposed framework consists of three parts: a lightweight and low-cost IoT node, a smartphone application (app), and fog-based Machine Learning (ML) tools for data analysis and diagnosis. The IoT node tracks health parameters, including body temperature, cough rate, respiratory rate, and blood oxygen saturation, then updates the smartphone app to display the user health conditions. The app notifies the user to maintain a physical distance of 2 m (or 6 ft), which is a key factor in controlling virus spread. In addition, a Fuzzy Mamdani system (running at the fog server) considers the environmental risk and user health conditions to predict the risk of spreading infection in real time. The environmental risk conveys from the virtual zone concept and provides updated information for different places. Two scenarios are considered for the communication between the IoT node and fog server, 4G/5G/WiFi, or LoRa, which can be selected based on environmental constraints. The required energy usage and bandwidth (BW) are compared for various event scenarios. The COVID-SAFE framework can assist in minimizing the corona-virus exposure risk.

The Internet of things (IoT) has become an integral part of future solutions, ranging from industrial to everyday human life applications. Adding a new level of intelligence to objects and automating decisions make this new technology appealing to everyone. However, Applications that involve data are more vulnerable to various types of attacks. As a result, researchers are constantly exploring secure connections between IoT edge nodes. On the one hand, suitable IoT nodes should be cheap and require low power, which means lower computational performance. On the other hand, a secure connection layer is power-hungry and requires powerful hardware resources. Lightweight Cryptography (LWC) algorithms are a promising solution to reduce computation complexity while maintaining a desired level of security. In the presented work, we attempt to address the issue of adding security to the IoT network layer by comparing the performance of 32 LWC algorithms with currently well-known algorithms on multiple IoT platforms (Raspberry Pi 3, Raspberry Pi Zero W, and iMX233). These 32 Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data (AEAD) algorithms have been selected from the second round of the LWC standardization process conducted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Power consumption, RAM usage, and execution time are measured for these algorithms using the targeted embedded platforms which are used as IoT sensor nodes. The results of this study will assist researchers in choosing a suitable platform and optimal LWC algorithm for IoT applications.

Wide-area monitoring applications of the Internet-of-Things (IoT) connected wireless sensor network (WSN) consists of sensor nodes (SNs) with limited hardware and energy sources. The distributed nature of such a network and the difficulty of remote access make it more demanding to design an energy-efficient WSN. Moreover, long-range and low-power wireless connectivity is a challenge in IoT-connected applications. Present WSN topologies deal mainly with fixed SNs, SN distribution, and fixed data sink (DS). The majority of the control layer is implemented in the lower hierarchical layer or in a virtual middle layer, which reduces the network lifetime due to excessive processing and data transmission activities. This article proposes a real-time lightweight dynamic clustering algorithm (LDCA) for a WSN that supports the following two scenarios with limited processing resources: 1) with mobile DSs and static SNs (such as DS and SNs mounted on unmanned aerial vehicles, autonomous vehicles) and 2) with mobile SNs and static DSs (such as livestock monitoring or autonomous robots in smart farming, and urban monitoring). The proposed algorithm is based on the received signal strength indicator and signal-to-noise ratio of a long-range (LoRa) interface and its residual energy. Mathematical models were derived for real-time clustering using LoRa. Memory requirement and clustering efficiency of the constrained SN and DS for various mobility scenario were evaluated. The proposed LDCA reduces the energy requirement to 33% compared to static clustering, by reducing the number of concurrent clusters and hops. In addition, a hardware-based approach was used to validate the LDCA algorithm, and evaluate its performance in terms of energy efficiency, packet delivery rate, and network lifetime.

A minirhizotron is an in situ root imaging system that captures components of root system architecture dynamics over time. Commercial minirhizotrons are expensive, limited to white-light imaging, and often need human intervention. The implementation of a minirhizotron needs to be low cost, automated, and customizable to be effective and widely adopted. We present a newly designed root imaging system called SoilCam that addresses the above mentioned limitations. The imaging system is multi-modal, i.e., it supports both conventional white-light and multispectral imaging, with fully automated operations for long-term in-situ monitoring using wireless control and access. The system is capable of taking 360° images covering the entire area surrounding the tube. The image sensor can be customized depending on the spectral imaging requirements. The maximum achievable image quality of the system is 8 MP (Mega Pixel)/picture, which is equivalent to a 2500 DPI (dots per inch) image resolution. The length of time in the field can be extended with a rechargeable battery and solar panel connectivity. Offline image-processing software, with several image enhancement algorithms to eliminate motion blur and geometric distortion and to reconstruct the 360° panoramic view, is also presented. The system is tested in the field by imaging canola roots to show the performance advantages over commercial systems.

Water, one of the most valuable resources, is underutilized in irrigated rice production. The yield of rice, a staple food across the world, is highly dependent on having proper irrigation systems. Alternate wetting and drying (AWD) is an effective irrigation method mainly used for irrigated rice production. However, unattended, manual, small-scale, and discrete implementations cannot achieve the maximum benefit of AWD. Automation of large-scale (over 1000 acres) implementation of AWD can be carried out using wide-area wireless sensor network (WSN). An automated AWD system requires three different WSNs: one for water level and environmental monitoring, one for monitoring of the irrigation system, and another for controlling the irrigation system. Integration of these three different WSNs requires proper dimensioning of the AWD edge elements (sensor and actuator nodes) to reduce the deployment cost and make it scalable. Besides field-level monitoring, the integration of external control parameters, such as real-time weather forecasts, plant physiological data, and input from farmers, can further enhance the performance of the automated AWD system. Internet of Things (IoT) can be used to interface the WSNs with external data sources. This research focuses on the dimensioning of the AWD system for the multilayer WSN integration and the required algorithms for the closed loop control of the irrigation system using IoT. Implementation of the AWD for 25,000 acres is shown as a possible use case. Plastic pipes are proposed as the means to transport and control proper distribution of water in the field, which significantly helps to reduce conveyance loss. This system utilizes 250 pumps, grouped into 10 clusters, to ensure equal water distribution amongst the users (field owners) in the wide area. The proposed automation algorithm handles the complexity of maintaining proper water pressure throughout the pipe network, scheduling the pump, and controlling the water outlets. Mathematical models are presented for proper dimensioning of the AWD. A low-power and long-range sensor node is developed due to the lack of cellular data coverage in rural areas, and its functionality is tested using an IoT platform for small-scale field trials.

LoRa modulation is a widely used technology known for its long-range transmission capabilities, making it ideal for applications with low data rate requirements, such as IoT-enabled sensor networks. However, its inherent low data rate poses a challenge for applications that require higher throughput, such as video surveillance and disaster monitoring, where large image files must be transmitted over long distances in areas with limited communication infrastructure. In this paper, we introduce the LoRa Resource Allocation (LRA) algorithm, designed to address these limitations by enabling parallel transmissions, thereby reducing the total transmission time (T_tx) and increasing the bit rate (BR). The LRA algorithm leverages the quasi-orthogonality of LoRa’s Spreading Factors (SFs) and employs specially designed end devices equipped with dual LoRa transceivers, each operating on a distinct SF. For experimental analysis we choose an image transmission application and investigate various parameter combinations affecting T_tx to optimize interference, BR, and image quality. Experimental results show that our proposed algorithm reduces T_tx by 42.36% and 19.98% for SF combinations of seven and eight, and eight and nine, respectively. In terms of BR, we observe improvements of 73.5% and 24.97% for these same combinations. Furthermore, BER analysis confirms that the LRA algorithm delivers high-quality images at SNR levels above −5 dB in line-of-sight communication scenarios.