An Energy-Efficient k -Disjoint-Path Routing Algorithm for Reliable Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless sensor networks are subject to sensor node and link failures due to various reasons. This paper proposes an energy-efficient, k-disjoint-path routing algorithm that adaptively varies the number of disjoint paths (k) according to changing data patterns and a target-delivery ratio of critical events. The proposed algorithm sends packets through a single path (k=1) under no occurrence of critical events, whereas it sends through k disjoint paths (k>1) under the occurrence of critical events, where k is computed from a welldefined fault model and the target delivery ratio. Note that the proposed algorithm detects the occurrence of critical events by monitoring changing data patterns. Our simulations reveal that the proposed algorithm not only guarantees the target delivery ratio as much as a multi-path routing algorithm, but also makes energy consumption and average delay as low as a single-path routing algorithm.