N-ZERO_144_144 (1)

DARPA’s new Near Zero Power RF and Sensor Operations (N-ZERO) program aims to develop wireless, event-driven sensing capabilities that would allow physical, electromagnetic and other sensors to remain dormant—effectively asleep yet aware—until an event of interest awakens them. N-ZERO’s persistent sensing capability could increase mission life, reduce battery size and reduce the maintenance costs of unattended wireless sensors. This image illustrates how N-ZERO-equipped sensors could cut reliance on active power in various environments including critical infrastructure protection, threat detection in an urban area, forest fire detection and perimeter monitoring. The image highlights critical infrastructure in particular to show that these wireless sensors could help identify cracks and prevent further serious damage or danger. The wireless sensors could then gather the specific data and trigger a separate processor to analyze the data and take appropriate action.