A strategic management framework for extending the lifespan of wireless sensor network deployments in critical situations

Abstract

Over the past decade various technology utilisation patterns have emerged which include the wide spread usage of Internet of Things (IoT) and social network devices, integrated smart cities and utility network management systems. Wireless senor networks (WSNs) have and will continue to play a vital role in the development of such technology applications of which critical infrastructure monitoring is fast becoming prevalent application.
The main objective of the WSN deployed for critical infrastructure monitoring applications is to detect failures and charges to the infrastructure and send valuable information to end users. In order to achieve this objective, the WSN will have to be highly reliable. this reliability greatly depends on reducing the unwanted resource consumption patterns spanning CPU, memory, power and communication modules. Variations in the connectivity state and operational parameters of the constituent nodes could cause wasteful or unwanted resource consumption which needs to be managed intelligently.
An extensive study has been conducted to understand the operations (tasks) and methods which can be executed to implement self-healing or self-management within sensor nodes. A task classification has been proposed that provides an overview of what task would be required by the sensor node to function efficiently. To assist the sensor node to recognise and adapt to the changes that occur to its surroundings, various scenarios and modes of connectivity have been identified. Assessment of internal resources along with the awareness of the mode of connectivity could help the sensor node mitigate unwanted depletion of resources.
A framework has been proposed that is comprised of the connectivity, power and memory assessment modules that can assist the sensor node to alter the operational parameters appropriately in order to reduce resource consumption. Algorithms have been presented that explain how each of the assessment modules are executed. The framework also lists the various parameters that may be influenced according to the degree of the management required. The degrees of management are assisted as a result of the assessment processes and they indicate the level of intervention needed to alter the sensor node operational parameters.
Evaluation of the techniques presented in the framework has been conducted for all the modes of connectivity. The extension of the functional period enables the sensor node to continue to realise its primary objective i.e. to collect valuable environmental data and report it to the end users when possible. It has been seen that the implementation of the framework helps manage the resource consumption of the sensor node thereby extending its operational lifetime. such framework augmentation to the WSN enables ample scalability for expansion and sufficient resilience against partial failures within a segment of the WSN or in a constituent node.

Date of Award	Aug 2016
Original language	English
Supervisor	Gerard Parr (Supervisor) & Philip Morrow (Supervisor)