Energy-Free Sensing and Context Recognition Using Photovoltaic Cells

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Shintani, Kaede, Rizk, Hamada, Yamaguchi, Hirozumi
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Shintani, Kaede
Rizk, Hamada
Yamaguchi, Hirozumi
author_facet Shintani, Kaede
Rizk, Hamada
Yamaguchi, Hirozumi
contents The field of energy-free sensing and context recognition has recently gained significant attention as it allows operating systems without external power sources. Photovoltaic cells can convert light energy into electrical energy to power sensing devices, but their power may not be sufficient to ensure energy-free sensing due to the varying power needs of sensors and high computational demands. In this paper, we propose the use of photovoltaic cells as a standalone sensor for the recognition of different contexts, including user identification, step counting, and location tracking. The system utilizes the photocurrent readings generated by the photovoltaic cells to capture the unique mobility patterns of different users. By analyzing these patterns, the system can accurately identify the user, count the number of steps taken, and track the user's location. We propose a computationally efficient DTW to match the variable length sequences of photocurrent readings to a database of known patterns and identify the closest subject and location matches. The system was rigorously evaluated in a realistic environment, and the results indicate that it can accurately estimate step count, identify subjects, and localize them with an accuracy of 88%, 90%, and 43cm, respectively. This is achieved while the proposed system is non-intrusive and can operate without external power sources, making it a promising technology for energy-free sensing and context recognition.
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id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2503_05406
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publishDate 2025
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spellingShingle Energy-Free Sensing and Context Recognition Using Photovoltaic Cells
Shintani, Kaede
Rizk, Hamada
Yamaguchi, Hirozumi
Signal Processing
The field of energy-free sensing and context recognition has recently gained significant attention as it allows operating systems without external power sources. Photovoltaic cells can convert light energy into electrical energy to power sensing devices, but their power may not be sufficient to ensure energy-free sensing due to the varying power needs of sensors and high computational demands. In this paper, we propose the use of photovoltaic cells as a standalone sensor for the recognition of different contexts, including user identification, step counting, and location tracking. The system utilizes the photocurrent readings generated by the photovoltaic cells to capture the unique mobility patterns of different users. By analyzing these patterns, the system can accurately identify the user, count the number of steps taken, and track the user's location. We propose a computationally efficient DTW to match the variable length sequences of photocurrent readings to a database of known patterns and identify the closest subject and location matches. The system was rigorously evaluated in a realistic environment, and the results indicate that it can accurately estimate step count, identify subjects, and localize them with an accuracy of 88%, 90%, and 43cm, respectively. This is achieved while the proposed system is non-intrusive and can operate without external power sources, making it a promising technology for energy-free sensing and context recognition.
title Energy-Free Sensing and Context Recognition Using Photovoltaic Cells
topic Signal Processing
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.05406