Khatam-Al-Nabieen University
Computer Science Faculty
Wireless Network
[email protected]
+93 (0) 748743688
Wireless Sensor Network (WSN)
❑ A Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is a specialized type of network consisting of
small, energy-efficient devices (called sensor nodes) that are deployed to monitor
and collect information from a physical environment.
❑ These networks are highly distributed, and each sensor node is capable of sensing,
computing, and communicating wirelessly with other nodes.
❑ The goal of WSNs is to monitor specific conditions (like temperature, sound,
pressure, etc.) and send that data to a central system for analysis.
Wireless Sensor Network Challenges
❑ Security: Wireless communication is vulnerable to eavesdropping, data tampering,
and denial-of-service (DoS) attacks.
❑ Security protocols in WSNs must provide confidentiality, integrity, and authentication
while being energy-efficient.
❑ Fault Tolerance: WSNs should be resilient to node failures. In large deployments,
nodes may fail due to energy depletion or environmental factors.
❑ The network should continue to function and adapt, often by rerouting data through
alternate paths.
Wireless Sensor Network Challenges
❑ Latency and Real-Time Performance: In certain applications, such as real-time
monitoring or emergency response, data must be delivered with minimal delay.
❑ Balancing low latency with energy efficiency is a major design consideration.
Wireless Sensor Network - Sensor Nodes
Each sensor node in a WSN performs several functions:
• Sensing Unit: The primary task of the sensor is to collect data from its environment using sensors
like temperature sensors, humidity sensors, pressure sensors, or motion detectors. These sensing
units convert physical signals (e.g., heat, light, or movement) into electrical signals that can be
processed.
• Processing Unit: Once the sensor captures data, it processes this information using a
microcontroller or a small microprocessor. The processing unit may filter, compress, or aggregate
the data to reduce redundancy or save energy before transmission.
Wireless Sensor Network - Sensor Nodes
• Communication Unit: Each node has a wireless transceiver for communication. This unit enables
the node to send and receive data from other nodes or the central base station. Due to limited
power, WSNs often rely on low-power communication technologies such as Zigbee, LoRa, or
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE).
• Power Unit: Nodes are often powered by batteries or energy-harvesting devices (like solar
panels). Since the nodes are often deployed in remote areas, replacing batteries can be costly or
infeasible, making energy efficiency critical. Power consumption is minimized during sensing,
computation, and communication.
• Storage Unit: Some nodes may include small memory units for temporarily storing data before
transmitting or processing.
WSN - Applications
WSNs have a wide range of applications across multiple industries:
• Environmental Monitoring: WSNs are used to monitor air quality, weather conditions, and
pollution levels in remote or difficult-to-access areas, such as forests, oceans, and deserts. This
includes applications like forest fire detection, flood monitoring, and wildlife tracking.
• Smart Agriculture: Farmers use WSNs to monitor soil moisture, temperature, and humidity in
precision agriculture, enabling more efficient water use and increasing crop yields.
• Industrial Monitoring: WSNs can monitor the condition of machinery, equipment, and processes
in factories, reducing maintenance costs and improving operational efficiency through predictive
maintenance.
WSN - Applications
Healthcare and Wearable Devices: Wireless sensor networks are widely used in health monitoring
systems, allowing for real-time tracking of vital signs (heart rate, body temperature, etc.) for patients,
either in hospitals or at home.
Military Applications: WSNs are used for battlefield surveillance, enemy tracking, and equipment
monitoring, providing real-time information to enhance tactical decision-making.
Smart Homes and Smart Cities: WSNs play a crucial role in building intelligent infrastructure,
monitoring energy consumption, traffic patterns, street lighting, and environmental conditions in smart
cities.
WSN – Protocols and Standards
To facilitate communication and ensure compatibility, WSNs often adhere to specific standards and
protocols:
• IEEE 802.15.4: This is a standard that specifies the physical layer and media access control
(MAC) layer for low-rate wireless personal area networks (LR-WPANs). Zigbee is a protocol that
operates on top of IEEE 802.15.4.
• Zigbee: A widely used communication protocol for low-power, low-data-rate applications. Zigbee is
popular in IoT applications, especially for smart homes and industrial environments.
WSN – Protocols and Standards
Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE): BLE is designed for short-range, low-power communication and is
commonly used in consumer devices such as fitness trackers, medical devices, and smart appliances.
LoRa/LoRaWAN: Long Range (LoRa) networks are designed for long-range, low-power
communication. LoRaWAN is a media access control (MAC) protocol that defines communication
between LoRa gateways and end devices, suitable for large-scale, low-power IoT applications..
WSN - Communication and Data Transmission
• WSNs use wireless communication technologies such as radio waves to transmit data between
sensor nodes and the base station. Communication is often the most power-consuming part of a
WSN. Thus, efficient data transmission methods and protocols are designed to minimize energy
consumption while maintaining the network's functionality.
• Single-Hop vs Multi-Hop Communication: In a single-hop network, each node communicates
directly with the base station (sink node). In contrast, in a multi-hop network, nodes send data to
intermediate nodes, which forward the data to the base station. Multi-hop communication is more
common in large-scale WSNs, as it helps conserve energy by reducing the need for long-distance
transmissions.
WSN – Routing Protocols
The unique characteristics of WSNs, such as limited power resources and potentially large-scale
deployments, require specialized routing protocols to optimize data transmission. These protocols
ensure efficient delivery of data from sensors to the base station while minimizing energy
consumption. Key categories of routing protocols include:
• Data-Centric Protocols: These protocols focus on the data being generated and processed.
Instead of addressing data to specific nodes, they are requested based on attributes. An example
is Directed Diffusion, where nodes disseminate interest messages to attract data that matches
specific attributes.
WSN – Routing Protocols
• Hierarchical Protocols: Nodes are organized into clusters with specific roles to reduce energy
consumption. LEACH (Low-Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy) is a popular protocol where
cluster heads are dynamically selected to balance the energy load among nodes.
• Location-Based Protocols: These protocols use geographic location information to aid in routing.
Geographic Routing ensures that data is transmitted based on the physical position of nodes,
often minimizing hops and power usage.
WSN – Network Topology
• The arrangement and structure of the nodes in the WSN define the network topology, which
significantly impacts the network's efficiency, scalability, and reliability. Key topologies include:
• Star Topology: Each node communicates directly with a central base station or coordinator. This
setup is simple but not scalable, as nodes further away from the base station may experience poor
communication or excessive energy consumption.
• Mesh Topology: In this topology, every node can communicate with any other node within its
transmission range. Data is relayed across multiple nodes until it reaches the base station. This
enhances scalability, resilience, and energy efficiency, especially in larger networks.
• Cluster-based Topology: In larger WSNs, nodes are organized into clusters, each with a cluster
head. The cluster head aggregates data from its member nodes and forwards it to the base
station, reducing the number of transmissions across the network.
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