A Novel Motor Energy Monitoring Scheme using Wireless Sensor Networks

Advances in micro-electro-mechanical systems, wireless communications, and highly integrated electronics have enabled the implementation of low-cost wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The unique characteristics of WSNs make them the ideal structure for energy monitoring and management in industrial environments. This paper presents a novel motor energy monitoring scheme using WSNs. Low-cost IEEE 802.15.4 functioned sensor devices are installed at the motor control centers to collect the motor terminal voltages and currents. These data are then sent through a WSN to the central supervisory station, where energy usage efficiencies and health conditions of the motors are estimated using nonintrusive methods. As a continuation of the authors' pervious work, this paper specifically focuses on the experimental realization and validation of the proposed scheme. A test bed is demonstrated with prototype wireless sensors. Four induction motors with different physical conditions are fully tested and the experimental results are analyzed.