Building sensor network for monitoring environmental conditions

A method for monitoring water flowing through water use devices in a plurality of individual units within a collection of geographically proximate units in a multi-unit building or complex, comprising:

• providing a network of sensors, wherein some of the sensors are associated with a single water use device within an individual unit, each sensor associated with a single water use device having a sensor board configured to perform the following upon a water flow event through the water use device a) create a sensor time signature, b) create a time stamp associated with the sensor time signature, c) create a data packet including the sensor time signature, time stamp and identity of the water use device, and d) wirelessly transmit the data packet;
• wherein the network of sensors includes a network of moisture sensors mounted to walls in individual units, each moisture sensor having a conductive probe embedded in the wall to which it is mounted and configured to detect moisture in the wall, each moisture sensor having a master control unit (MCU), a crystal oscillator clock, and a radio board, and wherein the master control unit (MCU) is programmed to generate a leak signal via the radio board if the probe detects moisture in the wall for longer than a predetermined time frame determined by the crystal oscillator clock;
• wherein at least some of the water use devices are toilets and the associated toilet sensors connect to water inlets for the toilets, and wherein the toilet sensors connected to water inlets for toilets are positioned in series in water supply lines to each toilet, and each toilet sensor includes a vibration detection device coupled to sense movement of a respective toilet flush handle, wherein the toilet sensor incorporates a microcontroller which is programmed to broadcast a leaky toilet signal only if water flows through the supply line without vibration detected at the toilet flush handle;
• providing a mesh of repeaters within the collection of geographically proximate units each connected to a power source, including one repeater in proximity to a subset of the network of sensors, wherein the repeaters each have a circuit board, a radio transceiver, a processor and memory;
• retrieving data packets from the network of sensors at one or more of the repeaters, and wirelessly relaying the sensor data packets using the repeaters;
• collecting the data packets at a central Internet gateway device located at the collection of geographically proximate units, wherein the gateway device has a circuit board, a radio transceiver, a processor and memory;
• and
• transmitting the data packets to an internet-based database manager having software that analyzes the data packets and determines if a water use device associated with any one data packet is malfunctioning.