Project Overview
“SmartAQnet” addresses urban air-quality and associated health-related quality-of-life issues by combining existing data sets with a networked mobile measurement strategy. It links open data (weather, development plans), remote sensing and lightweight mobile / UAV-based sensors. The project’s focus is on creating a novel measurement and analytics concept in the model region of Augsburg. Start: Apr 2017; End: Sep 2020.
Our Goal
Combine large-scale static data (environmental, open data) with mobile sensing (light-weight sensors, UAVs) to improve air-quality monitoring. Develop a prototypical technology stack for scalable mobile/participatory sensing and IoT data analytics. Enable cities/regions to base decisions on fine-granular, high-quality air-quality data rather than coarse stationary measurements.
Highlights
Use of ultra-low cost, mobile sensors and UAVs to complement conventional air-quality monitoring. Integration of open data and mobile sensing to produce richer data sets and analytics. Citizen-science element: participatory sensing workshops for building fine-dust sensors. Funded by the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI).
Impact
Provides cities/regions with more detailed, actionable air-quality data, enabling better planning (mobility, housing, work) and health interventions. Moves beyond static station-based monitoring to dynamic, distributed sensing — better capturing variability and hotspots. Enables citizen engagement and education through sensor-building and participatory workshops. Contributes to the development of IoT/data-analytics stacks for environmental monitoring that may be reused in other domains (smart cities, sustainability).
