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The Art of Wireless Sensor Networks pp 51–94Cite as

Design of Low Data-Rate Environmental Monitoring Applications

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Part of the book series: Signals and Communication Technology ((SCT))

Abstract

The majority of low-cost and off-the-shelf Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) solutions cannot adequately address issues related to an unattended deployment in a harsh environment, especially if the network needs to scale and achieve high density or high coverage or both. This is usually the case in environmental applications. In this chapter, this problem is investigated and extensive discussion on the pros and cons of a specific WSN design is presented. However, before moving from generic and well-established WSN solutions to customization, a detailed analysis of the gains of having a tailored design is necessary. Accordingly, a case study involving sparse deployments in outdoors is used to illustrate the process.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Contextual definition for a weakly connected network: considering the communication range of the nodes, there is at least one path that connects all nodes.

  2. 2.

    The number of nodes, application/network duty-cycles, network topology, and selected WSN protocols will also be associated with potential bandwidth, contention, and similar issues. However, another metrics besides AIND-ANON must be developed to address these needs.

  3. 3.

    The term large WSN in this context is associated to a high number of nodes, or to a large coverage area, or both.

  4. 4.

    Although the worst-case to be supported is 300 m, the AIND for this specific case is 69.2 m. Therefore, we want to consider a more realistic case where \(\text {MCR}=100\) m (rather than 300 m) considering the capabilities of existing WSN radios. The exceptions can be potentially solved with higher transmit power levels, special antennas, or the use of additional intermediate nodes as repeaters. However, for this preliminary analysis we want to see how critical would be the typical WSN solution (collaborative protocols) assuming the use of typical hardware and neglecting the worst scenarios.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Electrical Engineering–Electrophysics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Agnelo Rocha da Silva & M. Moghaddam

  2. EECS Department, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    M. Liu

Authors
  1. Agnelo Rocha da Silva
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  2. M. Moghaddam
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  3. M. Liu
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to M. Liu .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. College of Engineering and Computer Science, Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Michigan-Dearborn, Dearborn, Michigan, USA

    Habib M. Ammari

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Silva, A., Moghaddam, M., Liu, M. (2014). Design of Low Data-Rate Environmental Monitoring Applications. In: Ammari, H. (eds) The Art of Wireless Sensor Networks. Signals and Communication Technology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40009-4_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-40009-4_3

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