Module 1

Introduction and Overview of

Wireless Sensor Networks
Definition: A sensor network is an infrastructure consisting of sensing (measuring), computing,
and communication elements that gives us the ability to instrument, observe, and react to
events and phenomena in a specified environment.

There are four basic components in a sensor network: (1) an assembly of distributed or
localized sensors; (2) an interconnecting network (usually, but not always, wireless-based);
(3) a central point of information clustering; and (4) a set of computing resources at the central
point (or beyond) to handle data correlation, event trending, status querying, and data mining.
1. Background of Sensor Network Technology
Researchers see WSNs as an ‘‘exciting emerging domain of deeply networked systems of low-
power wireless motes2 with a tiny amount of CPU and memory, and large federated networks
for high-resolution sensing of the environment’’. Sensors in a WSN have a variety of purposes,
functions, and capabilities.

The field is now advancing under the push of recent technological advances and the pull of a
myriad of potential applications. The radar networks used in air traffic control, the national
electrical power grid, and nationwide weather stations deployed over a regular topographic
mesh are all examples of early-deployment sensor networks; all of these systems, however, use
specialized computers and communication protocols and consequently, are very expensive.
Much less expensive WSNs are now being planned for novel applications in physical security,
health care, and commerce. Sensor networking is a multidisciplinary area that involves,
among others, radio and networking, signal processing, artificial intelligence, database
management, systems architectures for operator-friendly infrastructure administration, resource
optimization, power management algorithms, and platform technology (hardware and software,
such as operating systems) [1.5]. The applications, networking principles, and protocols for
these systems are just beginning to be developed.
MANETS

WSN
There is also considerable research in the area of mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs). WSNs are
similar to MANETs in some ways; for example, both involve multihop communications. However,
the applications and technical requirements for the two systems are significantly different in
several respects.

2. Comparision between MANETS and WSN

1. The typical mode of communication in WSN is from multiple data sources to a data recipient
or sink (somewhat like a reverse multicast) rather than communication between a pair of nodes.
In other words, sensor nodes use primarily multicast or broadcast communication, whereas
most MANETs are based on point-to-point communications.

2. In most scenarios (applications) the sensors themselves are not mobile (although the sensed
phenomena may be); this implies that the dynamics in the two types of networks are different.

3. Because the data being collected by multiple sensors are based on common phenomena,
there is potentially a degree of redundancy in the data being communicated by the various
sources in WSNs; this is not generally the case in MANETs.

4. Because the data being collected by multiple sensors are based on common phenomena,
there is potentially some dependency on traffic event generation in WSNs, such that some
typical random-access protocol models may be inadequate at the queueing-analysis level; this is
generally not the case in MANETs.
5. A critical resource constraint in WSNs is energy; this is not always the case in MANETs, where
the communicating devices handled by human users can be replaced or recharged relatively
often. The scale of WSNs (especially, C1WSNs) and the necessity for unattended operation for
periods reaching weeks or months implies that energy resources have to be managed very
judiciously. This, in turn, precludes high-data-rate transmission.

6. The number of sensor nodes in a sensor network can be several orders of magnitude higher
than the nodes in a MANET.
3. Applications of Sensor Networks
A short list of applications follows.

1. Military applications
Monitoring inimical forces
Monitoring friendly forces and equipment
Military-theater or battlefield surveillance
Targeting
Battle damage assessment
Nuclear, biological, and chemical attack detection
and more . . .

2. Environmental applications
Microclimates
Forest fire detection
Flood detection
Precision agriculture
and more . . .
 3. Health applications
Remote monitoring of physiological data
Tracking and monitoring doctors and patients
inside a hospital
Drug administration
Elderly assistance
and more . . .

4. Home applications
Home automation
Instrumented environment
Automated meter reading
and more . . .

5. Commercial applications
Environmental control in industrial and office
buildings
Inventory control
Vehicle tracking and detection
Traffic flow surveillance
and more . . .
6. Commercial market segments include the following:
Industrial monitoring and control
Commercial building and control
Process control
Home automation
Wireless automated meter reading (AMR) and load management (LM)
Metropolitan operations (traffic, automatic tolls, fire, etc.)
National security applications: chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear wireless sensors
Military sensors
Environmental (land, air, sea) and agricultural wireless sensors
4. BASIC OVERVIEW OF THE TECHNOLOGY
sensor networks deal with space and time: location, coverage, and data synchronization. Data
are the intrinsic ‘‘currency’’ of a sensor network. Typically, there will be a large amount of
time-stamped time-dependent data. Therefore, sensor networks often support in-network
computation. Some sensor networks use source-node processing; others use a hierarchical
processing architecture. Instead of sending the raw data to the nodes responsible for the data
fusion, nodes often use their processing abilities locally to carry out basic computations, and
then transmit only a subset of the data and/or partially processed data.

4.1 Some of the key technology and standards elements that are relevant to sensor
networks are as follows:

1. Sensors
Intrinsic functionality
Signal processing
Compression, forward error correction, encryption
Control/actuation
Clustering and in-network computation
Self-assembly
2. Wireless radio technologies
Software-defined radios
Transmission range
Transmission impairments
Modulation techniques
Network topologies
3. Standards
IEEE 802.11a/b/g together with ancillary security protocols
IEEE 802.15.1 PAN/Bluetooth
IEEE 802.15.3 ultrawideband (UWB)
IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee (IEEE 802.15.4 is the physical radio, and ZigBee is the logical
network and application software)
IEEE 802.16 WiMax
IEEE 1451.5 (Wireless Sensor Working Group)
Mobile IP
4. Standards

Tiny OS (TinyOS is being developed by the University of California– Berkeley as an open-source

software platform)

Tiny DB (a query-processing system for extracting information from a network of TinyOS

sensors)

Software applications

Operating systems

Network software

Direct database connectivity software

Data management software

5. Basic Sensor Network Architectural Elements
A Sensor is a device that responds and detects some type of input from both the physical
or environmental conditions, such as pressure, heat, light, etc. The output of the sensor is
generally an electrical signal that is transmitted to a microcontroller for further processing.

The following process describes how sensor networks operate:

A sensor node monitors the data collected by the sensor and transmits this to other sensor
nodes.
During the transmission process, data may be handled by multiple nodes as it reaches a
gateway node.
The data is then transferred to the management node.
The management node is managed by the user and determines the monitoring required
and collects the monitored data.
Typically a wireless sensor network contains hundreds of thousands of sensor nodes.
The sensor nodes can communicate among themselves using radio signals. A wireless
sensor node is equipped with sensing and computing devices, radio transceivers and
power components.
A sensor network is composed of a large number of sensor nodes that are densely
deployed. sensor nodes may be deployed in an open space; on a battlefield, in the
interior of industrial machinery; at the bottom of under water; in a biologically and/or
chemically contaminated field; in a commercial building; in a home; or in or on a
human body.
Sensor nodes are scattered in a special domain called a sensor field. Each of the
distributed sensor nodes typically has the capability to collect data, analyze them, and
route them to a (designated) sink point.

Figure 1.2 depicts a typical WSN arrangement.

Some of the characteristic features of sensor networks include the following :

Sensor nodes are densely deployed.
Sensor nodes are prone to failures.
The topology of a sensor network changes very frequently.
Sensor nodes are limited in power, computational capacities, and memory.
Sensor nodes may not have global identification because of the large amount
of overhead and the large number of sensors..
6. Categorization of Issues Related to Sensors and Their
Communication/Computing Architecture
1. Sensors Size:
Small [e.g., nanoscale electromechanical systems (MEMS)],
medium [e.g., microscale electromechanical systems (MEMS)], and
large (e.g., radars, satellites): cubic centimeters to cubic decimeters
Mobility: stationary (e.g., seismic sensors), mobile (e.g., on robot vehicles)
Type: passive (e.g., acoustic, seismic, video, infrared, magnetic) or
active (e.g., radar, ladar)
2. Operating Monitoring requirement:
distributed (e.g., environmental environment monitoring) or localized (e.g.,
target tracking)
Number of sites: sometimes small, but usually large (especially for C1WSNs)
Spatial coverage: dense, spars: C1WSN: low-range multihop or C2WSN: low-
range single-hop (point-to-point)
Deployment: fixed and planned (e.g., factory networks) or ad hoc
(e.g., air-dropped)
Environment: mild (factory floor) or adverse (battlefield)
Nature: cooperative (e.g., air traffic control) or noncooperative
(e.g., military targets)
Composition: homogeneous (same types of sensors) or heterogeneous
(different types of sensors)
Energy availability: controlled(e.g., in small sensors) or
uncontrolled (e.g., in large sensors)
3. Communication Networking: wired (on occasion) or wireless (more common)

4. Bandwidth: high (on occasion) or low (more typical) Processing Centralized (all data sent to
central site), distributed or in-network architecture (located at sensor or other sides), or
hybrid
7. Typical Sensing Node
A sensor node is made up of four basic components such as sensing unit, processing unit,
transceiver unit and a power unit which is shown in Fig. It also has application dependent
additional components such as a location finding system, a power generator and a mobilizer.

Sensing units are usually composed of two subunits: sensors and analogue to digital converters
(ADCs). The analogue signals produced by the sensors are converted to digital signals by the
ADC, and then fed into the processing unit. The processing unit is generally associated with a
small storage unit and it can manage the procedures that make the sensor node collaborate
with the other nodes to carry out the assigned sensing tasks. A transceiver unit connects the
node to the network. One of the most important components of a sensor node is the power
unit. Power units can be supported by a power scavenging unit such as solar cells. The other
subunits, of the node are application dependent.

The microprocessor has a number of functions including:

Managing data collection from the sensors
performing power management functions
interfacing the sensor data to the physical radio layer
managing the radio network protocol

A key aspect of any wireless sensing node is to minimize the power consumed by the system.
Usually, the radio subsystem requires the largest amount of power. Therefore, data is sent over
the radio network only when it is required. An algorithm is to be loaded into the node to
determine when to send data based on the sensed event. Furthermore, it is important to
minimize the power consumed by the sensor itself.
8. Generic protocol stack for sensor networks.
Generic protocol stack for sensor networks.
The physical layer addresses the needs of simple but robust modulation,
transmission, and receiving techniques. It is responsible for frequency selection,
carrier frequency generation, signal detection, and signal processing and data
encryption.
The data link layer is responsible for the multiplexing of data streams, data frame
detection, medium access flow control and error control. It ensures reliable point-
to-point and point-to multipoint connections in a communication network.
The network layer takes care of routing the data supplied by the transport layer. It
is responsible for specifying the assignment of addresses and how packets are
forwarded-Routing.
The transport layer helps to maintain the flow of data if the sensor networks
application requires it. This layer is especially needed when the system is planned
to be accessed through the Internet or other external networks.
Application layer Depending on the sensing tasks, different types. The protocol
stack consists of the application layer, transport layer, network layer, data link layer,
physical layer, power management plane, mobility management plane, and task
management plane.

Different types of application software can be built and used on the application
layer depending on the sensing tasks. This layer makes hardware and software of
the lowest layer transparent to the end-user.
Figure 1.5 depicts a generic protocol stack model that can be utilized to describe the
communications apparatus (also see Table 1.2). Table 1.3 shows some typical lower-layer
protocols that are in principle applicable to WSNs; overall, a lightweight protocol stack is sought
for WSNs.
9. Possible Lower Layer WSN Protocols
10. Commercial Generations of Sensor Networks
11. Challenges and Hurdles
For WSNs to become truly ubiquitous, a number of challenges and hurdles must be
overcome. Challenges and limitations of wireless sensor networks include, but are
not limited to, the following:

1. Hardware Constraints: A sensor may need to fit into a tight module on the order
of 2 x5 x 1 cm or even as small as a 1 x 1 x 1 cm.
a sensor node is typically comprised of four key components and four optional components.
The key components include a power unit (batteries and/or solar cells),
A sensing unit (sensors and analog-to-digital converters), a processing unit (along with storage),
and a transceiver unit (connects the node to the network).
The optional components include a location-finding system, a power generator, a control
actuator, and other application-dependent elements.
2. Power Consumption
The sensor node lifetime typically exhibits a strong dependency on battery life. In many cases,
the wireless sensor node has a limited power source (<500 mAh, 1.2 V), and replenishment of
power may be limited or impossible altogether. Battery operation for sensors used in
commercial applications is typically based on two AA alkaline cells or one Li-AA cell. It follows,
as already noted, that power management and power conservation are critical functions for
sensor networks, and one needs to design power-aware protocols and algorithms.

3. Node Unit Costs

Almost by definition, a sensor network consists of a large set of sensor nodes. It follows that
the cost of an individual node is critical to the overall financial metric of the sensor network.
Clearly, the cost of each sensor node has to be kept low for the global metrics to be
acceptable.

4. Environment
Sensor networks often are expected to operate in an unattended fashion in dispersed and/or
remote geographic locations: Nodes may be deployed in harsh, hostile, or widely scattered
environments. Such environments give rise to challenging management mechanisms. At the
other end of the spectrum, sensor nodes are occasionally deployed densely either in close
proximity with or directly inside the environment to be observed.
5. Transmission Channels
Sensor networks often operate in a bandwidth- and performance-constrained multihop
wireless communications medium. These wireless communications links operate in the radio,
infrared, or optical range. Some low power radio-based sensor devices use a single-channel RF
transceiver operating at 916 MHz; some sensor systems use a Bluetooth-compatible 2.4-GHz
transceiver with an integrated frequency synthesizer, yet other systems use 2.4 GHz
(IEEE 802.11b technology), 5.0 GHz (IEEE 802.11a technology), or possibly other bands (for IEEE
802.15.4/IEEE 802.16 and/or for international use). To facilitate global operation of these
networks, the transmission channel selected must be available on a worldwide basis.

6. Connectivity and Topology

Deploying and managing a high number of nodes in a relatively bounded environment requires
special techniques. Hundreds to thousands of sensors in close proximity (feet) may be deployed
in a sensor field. The density of sensors may be as high as 27 nodes/m3. Sensor network
applications require ad hoc networking techniques; although many protocols and algorithms
have been proposed for traditional wireless ad hoc networks, they are not well suited to the
unique features and application requirements of sensor networks. Nodes could be deployed en
mass or be injected in the sensor field individually (e.g., they could be deployed by dropping
them from an helicopter, scattered by an artillery shell or rocket, or deployed individually by a
human or a robot). Any time after deployment, topology changes may ensue, due to changes in
sensor node position; power availability, dropouts, or brownouts; malfunctioning; reachability
impairments; jamming; and so on.
At some future time, additional sensor nodes may need to be deployed to replace
malfunctioning nodes, for example; hence, although some sensor nodes may fail or be blocked
due to lack of power or have physical damage or environmental interference, this failure should
not affect the overall mission of the sensor network.

7. Standards
protocols and open standards are needed at the physical, Data link, network, and transport
layers; in addition, other management protocols and standards are required . Within-building
WSNs now tend to look to use ZigBee/IEEE802.15.4; WSNs that are in the open (outside
buildings and over a broad geography) may find other technologies useful. In particular, IEEE-
based wireless LAN standards have been given consideration. IEEE 802.11 supports 1- or 2-Mbps
transmission in the 2.4-GHz band using either frequency hopping spread spectrum or direct-
sequence spread spectrum.
12. Two basic categories of WSN:
Category 2 WSNs (C2WSNs): point-to-point or multipoint-to-point (star based) systems
generally with single-hop radio connectivity to WNs.

C2WSNs are networks in which end devices (sensors) are one radio hop away from a
terrestrially homed forwarding node (see Figure 2.1). The forwarding node is connected to the
terrestrial network via either a landline or a point-to-point wireless link. The important
characterizations are that
(1) sensor nodes (i.e., the WNs) do not support communications on behalf of any other sensor
nodes;
(2) the forwarding node supports only static routing to the terrestrial network, and/or only
one physical link to the terrestrial network is present;
(3) the radio link is measured in hundreds of meters; and (4) the forwarding node does not
support data processing or reduction on behalf of the sensor nodes. In effect, these are
relatively simple wireless systems.
Category 1 WSNs (C1WSNs): almost invariably mesh-based systems with multihop radio
connectivity among or between WNs, utilizing dynamic routing in both the wireless and
wireline portions of the network. Military theater systems typically belong to this category.

C1WSNs are networks in which end devices (sensors) are permitted to be more than one
radio hop away from a routing or forwarding node (see Figure 2.2). The forwarding node is a
wireless router that supports dynamic routing (i.e., it has a mechanism that is used to find
the best route to the destination out of a possible set of more than one route); wireless
routers are often connected over wireless links.

The important characterizations are that

(1) sensor nodes can support communications on behalf of other sensor nodes by acting as
repeaters;
(2) the forwarding node supports
dynamic routing and more than one physical link to the rest of the network is physically and
logically present;
(3) the radio links are measured in thousands of meters; and
(4) the forwarding node can support data processing or reduction on behalf of the sensor
nodes. These are relatively complex and ‘‘meshy’’ wireless systems.
13. Write different Applications of Category 1 and Category 2 WSN Applications and
Explain any one with a neat diagram.

EXAMPLES OF CATEGORY 2 WSN APPLICATIONS

1. Home Control
2. Building Automation
3. Industrial Automation
4. Medical Applications

EXAMPLES OF CATEGORY 1 WSN APPLICATIONS

1. Sensor and Robots
2. Reconfigurable Sensor Networks
3. Highway Monitoring
4. Military Applications
5. Civil and Environmental Engineering Applications
6. Wildfire Instrumentation
7. Habitat Monitoring
8. Nanoscopic Sensor Applications
Home Control Applications:
Home control applications provide control, conservation, convenience, and safety, as follows
(see Figure 2.5) :
Sensing applications facilitate flexible management of lighting, heating, and cooling systems
from anywhere in the home.
Sensing applications automate control of multiple home systems to improve conservation,
convenience, and safety.
Sensing applications capture highly detailed electric, water, and gas utility usage data.
 Sensing applications embed intelligence to optimize consumption of natural resources.
Sensing applications enable the installation, upgrading, and networking of a home control
system without wires.
Sensing applications enable one to configure and run multiple systems from a single remote
control.
Sensing applications support the straightforward installation of wireless sensors to monitor a
wide variety of conditions.
Sensing applications facilitate the reception of automatic notification upon detection of unusual
events.