Patent ID: 8099130

Claim:
An apparatus including an ad hoc wireless sensor data network for monitoring one or more selected environmental characteristics, comprising: one or more master wireless signal transceivers that communicate via a plurality of wireless signals; and a plurality of ad hoc wireless signal transceivers, each of which is disposed within a respective portion of a selected environment, that communicates with said one or more master wireless signal transceivers via said plurality of wireless signals; wherein said plurality of ad hoc wireless signal transceivers, in at least partial response to a plurality of respective sensor signals, transmits a plurality of respective ad hoc wireless signals as at least a portion of said plurality of wireless signals and selectively corresponding objectively to at least one of one or more characteristics of said selected environment, said one or more master wireless signal transceivers, responsive to reception of said plurality of respective ad hoc wireless signals, dynamically determine an actual location of at least one of said plurality of ad hoc wireless signal transceivers in a respective spatial relation to at least one of said one or more master wireless signal transceivers, and each one of said plurality of ad hoc wireless signal transceivers includes at least one signal transducer to convert one or more of said plurality of wireless signals at least in part to one or more corresponding incoming electrical signals, and to convert one or more outgoing electrical signals at least in part to one or more wireless response signals, processing and control circuitry coupled to said at least one signal transducer and responsive to said one or more incoming electrical signals by selectively processing at least a portion of said one or more incoming electrical signals and at least a selected portion of a plurality of data, providing a plurality of control signals, and providing said one or more outgoing electrical signals, memory circuitry coupled to at least said processing and control circuitry and responsive to at least a first portion of said plurality of control signals by storing at least a first portion of said plurality of data and providing at least a second portion of said plurality of data, and data collection circuitry coupled to at least said processing and control circuitry and responsive to at least a second portion of said plurality of control signals and at least one sensor signal corresponding to one or more characteristics of said respective portion of said selected environment by providing said first portion of said plurality of data, wherein said one or more outgoing electrical signals selectively correspond to at least one of said one or more characteristics.