Toward real-time 3D modeling system with cubic-millimeters wireless sensor nodes

We are working toward actualizing a real-time 3D modeling system called iClay. This modeling system uses a sensor network that distributes many 1mm
³
-class sensor nodes in plastic clay. The distributed sensors sense the distances between them, and the sensor network collects the node-to-node distance information to recognize the clay shape by node localization. This paper first reviews fundamental technologies necessary for developing the iClay system and introduce the current status of the development. Next, we focus on a wireless transmitter, which is one of the key technologies for the iClay system, and presents a compact OOK transmitter that uses coils for radiation as well as oscillation, eliminating the need for an external antenna. The prototyped the transmitter with 2.8 mm × 2.8 mm × 4.2 mm volume achieves 205 pJ/b at 1 Mbps communication.