IoT Based Smart City Bus Stops

• Main Authors: Miraal Kamal, Manal Atif, Hafsa Mujahid, Tamer Shanableh, A. R. Al-Ali, Ahmad Al Nabulsi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-10-01
• Series: Future Internet
• Subjects: internet of things; intelligent transportation systems; air pollution; energy efficiency
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-5903/11/11/227

The advent of smart sensors, single system-on-chip computing devices, Internet of Things (IoT), and cloud computing is facilitating the design and development of smart devices and services. These include smart meters, smart street lightings, smart gas stations, smart parking lots, and smart bus stops. Countries in the Gulf region have hot and humid weather around 6−7 months of the year, which might lead to uncomfortable conditions for public commuters. Transportation authorities have made some major enhancements to existing bus stops by installing air-conditioning units, but without any remote monitoring and control features. This paper proposes a smart IoT-based environmentally - friendly enhanced design for existing bus stop services in the United Arab Emirates. The objective of the proposed design was to optimize energy consumption through estimating bus stop occupancy, remotely monitor air conditioning and lights, automatically report utility breakdowns, and measure the air pollution around the area. In order to accomplish this, bus stops will be equipped with a WiFi-Based standalone microcontroller connected to sensors and actuators. The microcontroller transmits the sensor readings to a real-time database hosted in the cloud and incorporates a mobile app that notifies operators or maintenance personnel in the case of abnormal readings or breakdowns. The mobile app encompasses a map interface enabling operators to remotely monitor the conditions of bus stops such as the temperature, humidity, estimated occupancy, and air pollution levels. In addition to presenting the system’s architecture and detailed design, a system prototype is built to test and validate the proposed solution.