Internet of Things
Solving climate change through collaboration
As climate change intensifies, the risks and damages from extreme weather events have become increasingly critical for businesses. In response, OMRON Device & Module Solutions Company collaborated with Weathernews Inc. to develop an advanced weather Internet of Things (IoT) sensor designed to mitigate these risks. The result is a cost-effective sensor module for real-time, on-site weather monitoring, providing businesses with a powerful tool to improve efficiency and enhance resilience against climate-related disruptions, says Samira Amani, senior product marketing manager, at Omron Electronic Components Europe B.V.
W
ith climate change causing increasingly unpredictable and
extreme weather patterns and events, the need for
continuous weather monitoring to support effective disaster management has become increasingly essential. Access to local, real- time weather data is more critical than ever before. Accurate and timely weather data is increasingly vital for day-to-day operations within many sectors, including agriculture, energy infrastructure, meteorology, oil and gas, transportation and logistics, and smart cities. Conventional approaches to mitigating the risks associated with climate change are increasingly struggling to cope in the face of more extreme and deadly weather. Almost every industry is exposed to the effects of climate change. At construction sites, precautions must be taken against strong winds and heatstroke. In agriculture, reliable real-time weather data and historical trends are crucial for optimal crop management, helping to increase yields and improve decision-making around irrigation, planting, and harvesting. Outdoor event and leisure facilities need accurate weather data to ensure that activities on-site are safe. As global weather systems become more extreme and unpredictable, effective weather monitoring is becoming an increasingly challenging task. The sooner an incoming weather event can be identified, the more effectively it can be prepared for. In contrast, if it is identified too late, the effects can be catastrophic. Furthermore, general weather sensors are comparatively expensive in terms of their unit price and operating costs, requiring large-scale installation on-site. As well as higher installation and maintenance costs, they often require specialised training to
42 March 2025
mitigate or prevent any faults and failures. This presents a barrier for sites, locations and communities that require accurate weather data, yet lack the financial resources and on-site engineering expertise to purchase, install and operate the highly sophisticated sensors used by specialist meteorological facilities.
To address this growing issue, Omron recently joined forces with Weathernews, one of the world’s largest private weather information companies. Together they sought to develop a more accessible, flexible, and cost-effective multi-purpose weather sensor, which can be used to address gaps in weather data coverage, and provide precise, immediate, and highly localised weather data. This in turn
Components in Electronics
can help to improve resilience to natural disasters and the effects of climate change. Having collaborated on the development of sensing devices since 2017, and previously used the company’s products in other applications, Weathernews approached Omron to propose the development of a versatile, compact, and cost-effective sensor with minimal maintenance requirements. The project was not without its challenges. While Omron possesses considerable expertise in sensor and embedded technologies, a weather sensor was not something that the company had previously attempted. Weather and climate observation are highly complex disciplines, and accurate data requires a deep understanding of the various patterns and phenomena that can influence meteorological
behaviour. The company collaborated closely with Weathernews to gain a better understanding of the mechanics of weather, and gain insight into precisely what the market needed in a sensor solution.
Omron also carried out its own research to explore and in some cases challenge mechanisms of weather, as Weathernews Inc. technical director Yuichiro Nishi explains: “We had been impressed by OMRON’s superior technology, creativity and implementation from the planning stage of this project. For example, we are taught that the shape of raindrops is flattened when water droplets are crushed by air resistance, but OMRON, without being bound by conventional wisdom, actually photographs raindrops with a high- speed camera to understand the theory and
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