Impact of Wireless Channel Model on 802.15.6 Standard Performance for Wireless Body Sensor Networks

Wireless Body Sensor Network (WBAN) is a set of wearable and implantable devices capable of measuring physiological parameters and monitoring patient with chronic disease where early diagnosis is highly demanded. Several models introduced the general characterization of WBAN devices path loss considering possible shadowing due to obstruction of the signal (by the human body or any other obstacles) as well as the different postures of the human body. This paper aims at reporting an overview of WBSNs technologies, particular applications, system architecture and channel modeling. Emphasis is given to the IEEE 802.15.6 standard which enables the development of WBAN for medical and nonmedical applications. The standard's performance within a time based variation and log-distance path loss is presented based on various simulations.