A Survey on Virtualization of Wireless Sensor Networks

Md Motaharul Islam,Mohammad Mehedi Hassan,Ga-Won Lee,Eui-Nam Huh

doi:10.3390/s120202175

Md Motaharul Islam, Mohammad Mehedi Hassan + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/s120202175

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Abstract

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are gaining tremendous importance thanks to their broad range of commercial applications such as in smart home automation, health-care and industrial automation. In these applications multi-vendor and heterogeneous sensor nodes are deployed. Due to strict administrative control over the specific WSN domains, communication barriers, conflicting goals and the economic interests of different WSN sensor node vendors, it is difficult to introduce a large scale federated WSN. By allowing heterogeneous sensor nodes in WSNs to coexist on a shared physical sensor substrate, virtualization in sensor network may provide flexibility, cost effective solutions, promote diversity, ensure security and increase manageability. This paper surveys the novel approach of using the large scale federated WSN resources in a sensor virtualization environment. Our focus in this paper is to introduce a few design goals, the challenges and opportunities of research in the field of sensor network virtualization as well as to illustrate a current status of research in this field. This paper also presents a wide array of state-of-the art projects related to sensor network virtualization.

Highlights

Recent advances in wireless communications and electronics have enabled the development of low-cost, low-power, multifunctional sensor nodes that are small in size and communicate untethered over short distances
In this paper we have presented a survey on virtualization of wireless sensor networks
By allowing multiple heterogeneous wireless sensor network architectures to coexist on a shared physical substrate, virtualization of sensor networks might provide a new business model which could be cost effective in terms of deployment

Summary

Introduction

Recent advances in wireless communications and electronics have enabled the development of low-cost, low-power, multifunctional sensor nodes that are small in size and communicate untethered over short distances. A sensor network consists of a large number of sensor nodes that are densely deployed either inside the phenomenon of interest or very close to it [1,2,3,4,5]. Virtualization of Sensor Network (VSN) is a brand new research approach in the field of Wireless. We need to clarify few basic concepts and the difference between traditional WSN, conventional Virtual Sensor Network, Overlay Sensor Network and VSN. A traditional wireless sensor network consists of a large number of sensor nodes that are densely deployed either inside the phenomenon of interest or very close to it [1].

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