Multiresolution data integration using mobile agents in distributed sensor networks

Abstract

We describe the use of the mobile agent paradigm to design an improved infrastructure for data integration in a distributed sensor network (DSN). We use the acronym MADSN to denote the proposed mobile-agent-based DSN. Instead of moving data to processing elements for data integration, as is typical of a client/server paradigm, MADSN moves the processing code to the data locations. This saves network bandwidth and provides an effective means for overcoming network latency, since large data transfers are avoided. Our major contributions are the use of mobile agent in DSN for distributed data integration and the evaluation of performance between DSN and MADSN approaches. We develop an enhanced multiresolution integration (MRI) algorithm where multiresolution analysis is applied at a local node before accumulating the overlap function by mobile agent. Compared to the MRI implementation in DSN, the enhanced integration algorithm saves up to 90% of the data transfer time. We develop objective functions to evaluate the performance between DSN and MADSN approaches. For a given set of network parameters, we analyze the conditions under which MADSN performs better than DSN and determine the condition under which MADSN reaches its optimum performance level.