addSensor: A New API-Alternative Sensor Data Interface Comment
The sun has set on my first summer internship with Sensorpedia. What was I involved with during these ten fast weeks? It was a summer filled with learning unexpected topics, using the Sensorpedia API to register new sensors, filming a new Sensorpedia video (and in turn, showing my ability for gaffes), helping Sensorpedia advance through its beta stages, and creating a new application for registering sensor data.
This new application is called addSensor. As this blog title states, it is a new interface that allows users to register their sensor data to Sensorpedia without needing to learn anything about our Application Programming Interface. My addSensor application takes care of all the required programming tasks behind the scenes for the user. For more detailed information about addSensor (including screen shots and why it is important), check below this text to see the poster that I created for the 2009 ORNL summer student poster session on August 5, 2009. In the remainder of this blog, I will make two main points about this application.
First, it is dynamic. Focus was paid to creating an interface that didn’t overwhelm the user, yet had all the features necessary to create full fledged, data-rich sensor feeds. This was accomplished by making only the minimally required data fields immediately accessible, with the other fields dynamically accessible as the user’s needs dictated. It also has lots of tools (and tooltips) to help the user along the way. For example, a map can appear if requested, with a draggable marker that generates the associated latitude and longitude. Also, various preview options provide immediate confirmation of successful entry by the user. Smaller interfaces within the addSensor interface, such as calendar and time tools, help round out the overall functionality.
Second, it is a work in progress. There is an old saying in the video production field that says, “With enough time and money, you can create almost anything.” I’ve found that this saying holds true in computer science as well. Creating all of the dynamic options of addSensor certainly took some time and means that there are some parts of the application that still need attention. However, I believe that the application as a whole represents strides in the right direction toward a great tool for Sensorpedia.
Sensorpedia Poster - Jason Frank
I have many people to thank for my internship. First, thank you to those who wrote letters of recommendation for me regarding this internship. Second, thank you to the organizations that fund Sensorpedia. Thank you also to the organizations that funded my internship (ORNL, ORISE, DOE CCI). Finally, thank you to the people that I worked with at ORNL: the other summer interns, project leader Bryan Gorman, lead Sensorpedia developer David Resseguie, and everyone else around the Sensorpedia lab and the CSED. Your guidance and camaraderie made it a fantastic experience!