The Architecture of WiFi-Based WSN for AMR System and E-HWMP Routing Protocol

With the development of SoC technology in recent years, the ultra-low power WiFi System on SoC Chip has emerged. As a result, WiFi-based Wireless Sensor Networks come into use, especially used in Automatic Meter Reading. While because the nodes of Wireless Sensor Networks have limited energy supply, smaller storage capability and slower calculation ability, the current WiFi technology cannot be directly applied to WiFi-based Wireless Sensor Networks. The protocols should be upgraded and the security algorithms should be improved to meet the new requests. Firstly, this article describes the network architecture of WiFi-based WSN for AMR system and discusses the reason for using this analogous Mesh architecture. Secondly, the new Hardware architecture of WiFi-based WSN node is designed to realize the AMR system and verify the research work. The node can collect the data of power meter by WiFi and can be powered by a Lithium Battery. Thirdly, on the basis of study work of WiFi original routing protocol HWMP, a new method on improving the energy saving ability of HWMP to adapt the new features of WiFi-based WSN is proposed. And the simulation work on the new routing protocol E-HWMP has been done with NS2 and the simulation results show that the life cycle of the network has been extended to some degree. Copyright © 2014 IFSA Publishing, S. L.