Sensing Array - The NectarNet Sensor Layer
This page documents the physical sensing layer of NectarNet: the field instruments that sit on HIVE-13 hives and across the floral corridors. Each sensor class measures a specific physical signal, is deployed in a defined location, samples at a fixed rate, and feeds a named metric in the catalogue. Together they form the array that the NectarNet Mesh carries to MELISSA.
The Physical Sensor Layer
NectarNet's sensing array is the lowest layer of the monitoring nervous system — the hardware that touches the colony and the corridor. Sensors fall into three deployment families: in-hive instruments fixed to each instrumented colony, corridor sensors strung along wild and managed floral routes, and mobile sensing carried by the Forager drone fleet. Every node streams over the Comb Data Fabric to MELISSA and into the named metrics tracked in the Metrics catalogue.
| Sensor type | What it measures | Where deployed | Sample rate | Linked metric |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hive scale | Colony gross weight & intraday delta — nectar flow, swarming, robbing. | Under every instrumented hive baseboard. | 1 / min | Colony Weight |
| Brood-temp probe | Core brood-nest temperature & thermoregulation stability. | Brood chamber, central frame. | 4 / min | Brood Temperature |
| Acoustic / "piping" mic | Colony soundscape — fanning, queen "piping", pre-swarm hum. | Hive wall & inner cover. | Continuous (audio) | Acoustic Signature |
| Hygrometer | In-hive relative humidity & condensation risk. | Brood chamber & super. | 2 / min | Hive Humidity |
| Pollen counter | Forager pollen-load throughput & floral-resource availability. | Hive entrance gate. | Per forager pass | Floral-Resource Load |
| Neonic spectrometer | Neonicotinoid & pesticide residue in nectar, pollen, and entrance air. | Entrance sampling cell & corridor stations. | 6 / hr | Pesticide Telemetry |
| IR / low-light camera | Entrance traffic, robbing & pest intrusion in darkness or under cover. | Hive entrance & corridor watch masts. | 2 fps (event-gated) | Entrance Activity |
| Drone-relay node | Mesh link health, hop latency, and node power for the surrounding cell. | Corridor relay masts & Forager drones. | 10 / min | Fabric Latency |
Deployment Families
The same instruments are packaged differently depending on where they live — fixed on a colony, staked along a corridor, or flown.
In-Hive Sensors
The instruments fixed to each instrumented colony — hive scale, brood-temp probe, acoustic / "piping" mic, hygrometer, pollen counter, and the entrance neonic spectrometer. These form the standard field package on every monitored hive.
Corridor Sensors
Nodes strung along wild and managed floral corridors — corridor neonic spectrometer stations, IR / low-light watch masts, and the relay nodes that knit coverage together between apiaries and across open foraging ground.
Mobile / Drone Sensing
Sensing carried aloft by the Forager drone fleet — airborne neonic sampling, IR / low-light imaging, and roving drone-relay nodes that fill coverage gaps and survey corridors no fixed mast reaches.
Related
The sensing array is one layer of the wider monitoring nervous system.
- NectarNet Mesh — the three systems, alarm escalation, and mesh health.
- Metrics catalogue — definitions for every metric these sensors feed.
- Live Command Wall — current array and mesh state in real time.