Tackling the issues of powering mobile IoT sensors and systems using off-grid sources of energy: the case of real-time, web-based temperature monitoring system for cold chain management in Malawi

Design and implementation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices and systems face the need of these systems to be self-powered. This is due to a number of characteristic and fundamental factors such as responsiveness, system mobility, portability, energy supply source adaptability. IoT covers a wide range of devices and systems, and an important subset of these involves real-time monitoring and control, particularly for both home and industrial applications. Other than just powering fixed sensor systems, the integration of such systems to mobile or transportation systems is a very important attributed characteristic but becomes a bit of a challenge to both designers and users in choosing the right option of power supply to the IoT systems. This paper illustrates some of such challenges and some of the efforts implemented to counter them in the design and implementation of a temperature monitoring system for transportation systems of dairy products in Malawi.