Internet of Things for Indoor Air Quality Monitoring

Indoor air pollution (IAP) causes millions of deaths per year. Therefore, IAP is a serious threat to human health and well-being. People in modern societies at developed and developing countries spend approximately 90% of their routine time indoors. A wide range of pollutants originated from primary and secondary sources can contribute to IAP. This chapter focuses on the facts and factors behind indoor air quality (IAQ) along with its impact on critical groups worldwide. Moreover, it also provides insights about potential pollutants in the building environment and associated health risks. The study also presents prevention and control policies while displaying the stats about obsolete air quality systems whose tail can be found in the literature. This chapter guide readers to understand the generalized concept of IAQ along with its impact on the most vulnerable groups.

Internet of Things (IoT) is gaining increasing attention from industrial environments, academicians, and researchers over the years. It supports the development of intelligent and automated systems with enhanced capacity for data collection and communication. Several researchers have provided evidence for use of IoT in the development of smart monitoring systems with enhanced scalability, mobility, and reliability. However, a large number of researchers are also working on several open issues associated with the real-time implementation of this technology such as privacy, information security, interoperability, portability, and accessibility. If this technology is used efficiently, it can assist in real-time environmental monitoring and pervasive information access to patients and professionals. This chapter focuses on the on-going scientific inventions in this field while highlighting the applications, opportunities, challenges, and future research directions for the upcoming researchers. The information provided in this chapter may also help readers understand the gaps in literature and strengths in this technology.

The growing populations over the world are affected by increasing levels of air pollution. The decaying air quality has been a matter of concern for public health experts, industry experts, environmental governments, and the international scientific community. Internet of Things (IoT) shows great potential for measuring real-time data from the indoor environment which can further help building occupants to take relevant decisions for ventilation arrangements. There is a close association between air pollution levels and human health. However, communities face several challenges while making selections for sensors to design real-time monitoring systems. It is critical to do qualitative and quantitative analysis for the evaluation of sensors while designing efficient monitoring systems. This chapter provides state of the art relevant to the inherent connection between IAQ and IoT. The in-depth analysis highlights different design aspects of monitoring systems, including architectures, microcontrollers, sensor types, and connectivity. The main contribution of this chapter is to synthesize existing knowledge gaps, associated challenges, and possible future recommendations.

Environment pollution has been a critical concern for public health and well-being over the years. Repeated exposure to harmful pollutants released from biomass fuel combustion is the main cause of decay in the air quality levels in rural homes, especially in developing countries. However, the urban air quality is greatly affected by the advent of industrialization, repeated use of chemical-rich products, and increasing traffic on road. There is a strong relationship between air pollution and the health of the building occupants. Pollutant concentrations affect people’s lifestyle and productivity levels. Therefore, it is critical to get prior insights into the critical changes in pollutant threshold levels in indoor environments. The research community recommends the use of artificial intelligence algorithms for forecasting pollutant concentrations. The unique combination of IoT based monitoring system and an AI-based prediction model can help the building occupants to take preventive measures to avoid the negative impacts of air pollution.

The impact of environmental air quality on human health and well-being will continue to be a matter of concern in the future. The changing lifestyles, increased industrial activities, and rising traffic on road are expected to create critical scenarios for outdoor and indoor pollution. Moreover, as the immunity levels of new generations are decaying due to poor healthcare and living habits, the pollutant concentrations can be linked to serious health issues linked to gender, age, dietary habits, personality traits, stress levels, and allergic depositions. Intervention and prospective studies will be required in near future for the management of air quality in different indoor environments such as residential buildings, commercial premises, hospitals, schools, cafeterias, and gyms. This chapter provides insights into the future directions on IoT and indoor air quality management to deal with future consequences. This analysis will be useful for students, researchers, policymakers, health professionals, and government authorities.