Energy-efficient communication in wireless cable sensor networks

In this paper, we introduce a new type of sensor: Cable sensor. Unlike traditional point sensors, this type of sensor has a rectangular sensing region with a processor installed on it to do processing and communication. The wireless network formed by this kind of sensor is called wireless cable sensor network (WCSN). We study energy-efficient communication algorithms in WCSNs. We address it in two ways: One is through reducing the total transmission power of processors while maintaining the connectivity of the network and the other is through scheduling cable sensors to let them take turns to go to sleep without affecting the coverage and connectivity of the network. In the first approach, we initially develop a distributed algorithm called DTRNG based on the relative neighborhood graph. Later we enhance it to Algorithm DTCYC. Mathematical proofs show that Algorithm DTCYC provides an optimal solution that can not only minimize the total processor transmission power but maintain the connectivity of the network as well. In the second approach, we propose a cable mode transition algorithm (CMT) which determines the minimum number of active sensors to maintain Kcoverage as well as K-connectivity required by the application. We discuss the relationship between coverage and connectivity and prove the theorems that lay the foundation for our algorithm. Simulation results demonstrate that our algorithm is efficient in saving energy.