Cosmic time calibrator for wireless sensor network

Abstract

Time synchronization of sensor nodes is critical for optimal operation of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). Since clocks incorporated into each node tend to drift, recurrent corrections are required. Most of these correction schemes involve clients periodically receive RF timing signals from a time server. However, an RF-based scheme is prone to glitches or failure unless operating in a region with almost entirely unobstructed space; hence it only operates well in a limited range of environments. For example, GPS requires open-sky environments. Moreover, the precision of land-based RF schemes is limited to a few micro seconds. In this work, we report on a more versatile and new type of recurrent clock resynchronization scheme called cosmic time calibrator (CTC) and its development and testing. CTC utilizes cosmic-ray muon signals instead of RF signals. Muons are penetrative and continuously precipitating onto the Earth’s surface, and they tend to travel linearly through encountered matter at approximately the speed of light in vacuum. Therefore, muons themselves can periodically transfer the precise timing information from node to node; hence, the performance of the inter-nodal communication device such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is minimized/unnecessary for an online/offline WSN analysis. The experimental results have indicated that a resynchronization frequency and precision of 60 Hz and ± 4.3 ns (S.D.) can be achieved. Modelling work of the WSN-based structural health monitoring of aerospace structures has shown that CTC can contribute to the development of new critical and useful applications of WSN in a wider range of environments.