Hosting a building management system on a smart network camera: On the development of an IoT system

Abstract: The Internet of Things (IoT) is an umbrella term for smart things connected to the Internet. Connected sensors may be used to the benefit of smart building management systems. This thesis describes the development of a sensor based building management system prototype, lightweight enough to run on a single network camera. The focus of the research was investigating if the system prototype was scalable, and capable of storing and analyzing data gathered from a large amount of sensors relevant to the field of building management. The prototype was developed through a five-stage systems development process, and evaluated using simulations and case studies. The finished prototype was able to gather and store data from a few hundred real-time sensors using limited hardware. Tests showed that the network camera should be capable of managing at least 100 sensors. The system itself is scalable with the use of more powerful hardware. However, using a distributed architecture would be preferable if more sensors are required. This could be achieved by creating a distributed network of cameras, where each camera manages its own set of sensors. This could both increase scalability and make the system more robust and reliable.