On the development of a Multi-tier, Multimodal Wireless Sensor Network for wild life monitoring

Brazilian forests and Savannas have a rich biodiversity that still needs to be known, monitored and protected. Distributed sensing tools such as the wireless sensor networks are a natural solution. These networks have evolved quickly in recent years leading to specializations such as wireless visual sensor networks and wireless multi-tier, multimodal sensor networks, sensor networks distributed over several tier, using more than one sensing modality. This work presents the design and implementation of a multi-tier, multimodal application employing infrared and visual sensors to environmental monitoring in remote areas. A prototype using commercial off-the-shelf nodes and sensors is also implemented and some experiments are performed.