Wattsworth: An Open-Source Platform for Decentralized Sensor Networks

Abstract

Internet of Things (IoT) sensor networks have the potential to deliver major benefits across a wide variety of industries, but designing the necessary data collection, processing, and presentation infrastructure can make them cost prohibitive. This has led to a Faustian bargain with centralized vendors who offer platform-as-a-service (PaaS) IoT solutions. Customers cede control of their sensors and all data they collect to a third party in exchange for convenient analytics. This type of perpetual subscription is a compelling revenue model that has stifled industry innovation in alternative architectures. This article presents Wattsworth, an open-source, decentralized alternative to PaaS-based IoT. Data collection, processing, and presentation are distributed across the network using a modular architecture. Lightweight “Data Apps” provide customizable user interfaces ensuring the information is relevant and actionable. Case studies of Wattsworth deployments across a variety of hardware platforms from single board computers to cloud-based servers demonstrate its utility in decentralized IoT applications. Full documentation, source code, and installation media are available online at https://wattsworth.net .