sensorID

SensorID is a unique identifier assigned to a sensor within a system or network to distinguish it from other sensors. It enables reliable data attribution, configuration management, and maintenance tracking. Sensor IDs may be created at manufacture, assigned during deployment, or maintained in an inventory registry, and they may be stable over time or updated as inventory changes.

Common formats include UUIDs, MAC addresses, or hierarchical names such as region.site.zone.sensor or facility.building.floor.sensor. The choice of format depends on the system architecture and the need for human readability or machine interoperability.

Sensor IDs are typically carried with data readings as metadata, and are used to route data, look up calibration and firmware information, and support provenance and auditing of sensor data over its lifecycle.

Lifecycle management involves onboarding new sensors, registering them in a central registry, recording metadata (type, units, location, owner), monitoring calibration status, and handling decommissioning or replacement.

Security and governance considerations include ensuring the integrity of the ID-to-sensor mapping, controlling access to registry information, and adopting consistent naming and versioning practices to support data lineage and reliability.