Integration of Smart Sensors in Next-Generation Engineering Systems

Abstract

Smart sensors, which integrate sensing, processing, communication, and self-calibration capabilities, are essential for modern engineering systems such as industrial automation, healthcare, aerospace, autonomous vehicles, and smart infrastructure. This paper reviews their integration into engineering architectures, highlighting their role in real-time data acquisition, edge computing, IoT connectivity, and AI-driven analytics. Smart sensors improve accuracy, reduce latency, and support predictive maintenance and autonomous control. Advances in MEMS technology have enabled miniaturization and cost-effective large-scale deployment. The study also discusses challenges including energy constraints, interoperability, security, calibration drift, and environmental interference, while proposing solutions such as edge-cloud architectures, energy harvesting, and secure communication methods. Results demonstrate that smart sensor-based systems outperform conventional sensing systems in efficiency, fault detection, responsiveness, energy savings, and data accuracy, making them a key enabler of Industry 4.0 and future autonomous engineering applications.