Smart wireless asset tracking

A system for localizing a bad condition in a crowded asset environment, the system comprising:

• a plurality of wireless transceivers, wherein each of the plurality of wireless transceivers is associated with a sensor monitoring a condition of an asset, and wherein each of the plurality of wireless transceivers is operable to provide an adjustable transmission power;
• and
• a sensor receiver communicatively coupled to each of the plurality of wireless transceivers, the sensor receiver operable to monitor the conditions of the assets by receiving transmissions from the plurality of wireless transceivers operating in a long range operating mode which adjusts a transmission power to a high output power;
• and
• wherein each of the plurality of wireless transceivers is operable to:
• in a long range operating mode which adjusts a transmission power to a high output power, communicate monitoring data associated with the condition of the asset to the sensor receiver;
• in the long range operating mode, communicate an alarm to the sensor receiver;
• in response to the alarm and a signal from the sensor receiver, switch directly from the long range operation mode to a localization operating mode to localize the sensor generating the alarm in the localization operating mode, wherein the transmission power is set to a non-zero, low output power;
• and
• wherein the sensor receiver is further operable to localize the sensor generating the alarm using the localization operating mode with transmission power set to the low output power;
• wherein the signal from the sensor receiver is based on a received value from one of the wireless transceivers, the received value indicating the condition of the asset, the low transmission power output lower than the high output power.

A system for localizing a bad condition in a crowded asset environment, the system comprising:

• a plurality of assets, wherein each of the plurality of assets is associated with a sensor monitoring a condition of the asset;
• a plurality of wireless transceivers, each of the plurality of wireless transceivers associated with one or more of the sensors, and wherein each of the plurality of wireless transceivers is operable to provide an adjustable transmission power;
• wherein each of the plurality of wireless transceivers is operable to:
• in a long range operating mode which adjusts a transmission power to a high output power, communicate monitoring data associated with the condition of the asset to a sensor receiver;
• in the long range operating mode, communicate an alarm to the sensor receiver;
• in response to the alarm and a signal from the sensor receiver, switch directly from the long range operation mode to a localization operating mode to localize the sensor generating the alarm in the localization operating mode, wherein the transmission power is set to a non-zero, low output power;
• localize the sensor generating the alarm using the localization operating mode with transmission power set to the low output power;
• and
• in response to a second signal received from the sensor receiver once the sensor generating the alarm has been localized, return to operating in the long range operating mode;
• wherein the signal from the sensor receiver is based on a received value from one of the wireless transceivers, the received value indicating the condition of the asset, the low transmission power output lower than the high output power.