Using human-centric wireless sensor networks to support personal security

Abstract

Violence and crime in large urban areas are a worldwide problem that is still open. After several attempts to reduce its occurrence and impact, there seems to be an agreement that crime preventive actions, which can be taken by citizens and security organizations, are the best way to address it. This paper proposes the use of human-centric wireless sensor networks to help address this problem, and the proposed solution is complementary to those already used by security organizations. The architecture and main components of these networks are described in detail. The article also describes a software system that implements most of the components of these networks. Such a system helps people be aware of the risks that appear to exist in a certain place at a certain time. Based on that information, citizens can take appropriate and on-time preventive actions. A preliminary evaluation of the system has been conducted, and the obtained results are also presented and discussed. © Springer-Verlag 2013.