Power Wireless Sensor Networks Research Articles

Bioelectricity in Standing Trees - A Potential Energy For Wireless Sensor Networks

It has been observed that there are sustained electrical potential difference and current between a tree trunk and its surrounding soil, which have bright application prospects for powering wireless sensor networks in forests. But the mechanism of the bioelectricity has remained controversial. In order to provide more comprehensive data for further researches and to analyze the relationship between the bioelectricity in tree trunks and their surrounding environmental parameters, an experiment has been made. The output power of selected trees, xylem pH, as well as the environmental parameters such as air temperature, air relative humidity, soil temperature, soil moisture and soil pH were measured. Results supported the hypothesis that bioelectricity in xylem has a significant relativity with soil pH. Moreover, it was found that air relative humidity, soil temperature and material of electrode affected the bioelectricity in the xylem. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.11591/telkomnika.v11i8.3148

Flexible and Large‐Area Nanocomposite Generators Based on Lead Zirconate Titanate Particles and Carbon Nanotubes

A high-output large-area lead zirconate titanate (PZT)-based nanocomposite generator (NCG) device is demonstrated using a simple, low-cost, and scalable bar-coating method. The generated output reaches up to ≈100 V and ≈10 μA and powers 12 commercial light-emitting diodes (LEDs) without external energy-storage systems. This demonstrates the feasibility of using NCG devices to power consumer electronics, self-powered devices, and wireless sensor networks using irregular mechanical agitation.

Trends of MEMS-Based Vibration Energy Harvester

Micro vibration energy harvesters have received much attention due to their potential application of low power wireless sensor networks and embedded systems. This paper studies three mechanisms to scavenge the ambient vibration energy, discusses the power management circuit and the application of the converter, investigates the prospective development and ongoing challenges in MEMS-based vibration energy harvester.

A framework for processing complex queries in wireless sensor networks

In this work, we present a framework, denoted ADAGA -- P *, for processing complex queries and for managing sensor-field regression models. The proposed mechanism builds and instantiates sensor-field models. Thus ADAGA -- P * makes query engines able to answer complex queries such as give the probability of rain for the next two days in the city of Fortaleza . On the other hand, it is well known that minimizing energy consumption in a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is a critical issue for increasing the network lifetime. An efficient strategy for saving power in WSNs is to reduce the data volume injected into the network. For that reason, ADAGA -- P * implements an in-network data prediction mechanism in order to avoid that all sensed data have to be sent to fusion center node (or base station). Thus, sensor nodes only transmit data which are novelties for a regression model applied by ADAGA -- P *. Experiments using real data have been executed to validate our approach. The results show that ADAGA -- P * is quite efficient regarding communication cost and the number of executed float-point operations. In fact, the energy consumption rate to run ADAGA -- P * is up to 14 times lower than the energy consumed by kernel distributed regression for an RMSE difference of 0.003.

Thermoelectric Energy Harvesting for Building Energy Management Wireless Sensor Networks

A thermoelectric energy harvester powered wireless sensor networks (WSNs) module designed for building energy management (BEM) applications is built and tested in this work. An analytic thermoelectric generator (TEG) electrical model is built and verified based on parameters given in manufacturer data sheets of Bismuth Telluride TEGs. A charge pump/switching regulator two-stage ultra-low voltage step-up DC/DC converter design is presented in this work to boost the <0.5 V output voltage of TEG to usable voltage level for WSN (3.3 V). The design concept, device simulation, circuits schematic, and the measurement results are presented in detail. The prototype device test results show 25% end-to-end conversion efficiency in a wide range of input temperatures/voltages. Further tests demonstrate that the proposed thermoelectric generator design can effectively power WSN module which operates with a 1.7% duty cycle (5.8 seconds measurement time interval) when the prototype is placed on a typical wall-mount heater (60°C surface temperature). The thermoelectric energy harvesting powered WSN demonstrates duty cycles significantly higher than the required duty cycle for BEM WSN applications.

A single sediment-microbial fuel cell powering a wireless telecommunication system

We report the ability of a single sediment-microbial fuel cell (MFC) to power wireless sensor network (WSN) nodes. Such a system is able to collect information from sensors and to transmit it to sinks. In particular, the PowWow platform presented here is combining an open and modular hardware design with an open-source software with a very light memory footprint and relying on event-driven programming. It includes energy harvesting capabilities and is able to adapt its radio data transmission behavior to the available energy supplied by the sediment-MFC. The MFC developed in this study successfully powered the WSN and results showed very stable performances over a long time frame with a high rate of signals sent from a source to a receptor connected to a computer. This sediment-MFC is moreover simple to produce and handle, with no membrane or artificial catalysts.

Energy management in solar cells powered wireless sensor networks for quality of service optimization

Sensor nodes equipped with solar cells and rechargeable batteries are useful in many outdoor, long-lasting applications. In these sensor nodes, the cycles of energy harvesting and battery recharge need to be managed appropriately in order to avoid sensor node unavailability due to energy shortages. To this purpose, we suggest sensor nodes to be programmed with alternative scheduling plans, each corresponding to a given energy requirement and meeting a given quality level. Thus, sensor nodes can select the scheduling plan that best suits to the expected energy production and the residual battery charge, in order to avoid sensor nodes' unavailability. We then propose an algorithm for the selection of the scheduling plan that aims at keeping the overall energy consumption neutral and that can sustain the sensor nodes' activities uninterruptedly.

A STUDY OF LOCALIZED ALGORITHM FOR SELF-ORGANIZED WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORK AND ITªS IMPLEMENTATION

Communication between two nodes is a big issue in now days. To achieve that, wireless network plays a big role. With limited source of energy, memory & computation power wireless sensor networks can be composed by mass number of sensor nodes. Where the sensors’ lifetime depend on energies. Like autonomous system in LAN, cluster can be defined for wireless sensor network, where cluster head plays the prime role for the energy conservation. So, the optimization of cluster head within cluster along with number of nodes is a big research issue. Here I have analyzed the advanced optimization algorithm for sensor network clustering theoretically. I have tried to test the proposed method as a clustering algorithm and compared it with other recent sensor network clustering algorithm named Algorithm for Cluster Establishment (ACE) Index Terms: ACE; Data sets; Localized algorithm; Migration; Spawning threshold function

Low Power Wireless Sensor Network for Building Monitoring

A wireless sensor network is proposed for monitoring buildings to assess earthquake damage. The sensor nodes use custom-developed capacitive microelectromechanical systems strain and 3-D acceleration sensors and a low power readout application-specified integrated circuit for a battery life of up to 12 years. The strain sensors are mounted at the base of the building to measure the settlement and plastic hinge activation of the building after an earthquake. They measure periodically or on-demand from the base station. The accelerometers are mounted at every floor of the building to measure the seismic response of the building during an earthquake. They record during an earthquake event using a combination of the local acceleration data and remote triggering from the base station based on the acceleration data from multiple sensors across the building. A low power network architecture was implemented over an 802.15.4 MAC in the 900-MHz band. A custom patch antenna was designed in this frequency band to obtain robust links in real-world conditions. The modules have been validated in a full-scale laboratory setup with simulated earthquakes.

Design and Implementation of Hybrid Micro Energy Harvester for Autonomous WSN Components

Successful deployment of Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) depends on the availability of power sources. Conventional battery-based WSN components has several drawbacks, such as limited life-span, bulky size and hazardous to the environment. Hence, energy harvesting from ambient sources attracts enormous attention. But energy harvesting depends on the availability of the ambient sources. In most cases energy harvesting from a single source is not enough to produce sufficient energy to power up WSN components. This paper describe about the design, and implementation consideration of a hybrid energy harvester for an autonomous sensing system. The sensing components of WSN are connected with the hybrid energy harvester on the same structure to generate required energy from the ambient environment such as solar and chemical reaction. As a case study, the power requirements of in-house developed WSN components [1] are measured. Based on the power requirement a hybrid energy harvester based autonomous system is designed [2], and a functional prototype of the system is implemented. In the implemented prototype, energy is being harvested from the ambient solar and chemical sources. From the evaluation of the developed system, it is found that powering WSN components, hybrid energy harvester produces an additional amount of 10491.93 J (equivalent to 2.91 Wh) of energy, which is capable to fill-up a 971 mA-hr storage in one day operation. This is enough for the WSN components to draw power subsequently, when there is not enough ambient sources available for next few days.

Fault tolerance in wireless sensor network using hand-off and dynamic power adjustment approach

Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is deployed to monitor physical conditions in various places such as geographical regions, agriculture lands, office buildings, industrial plants and battlefields. WSNs are prone to different types of failures due to various environmental hazards like interference and internal failures (such as battery failure, processor failure, transceiver failure, etc). In such a situation, the sensed data cannot be transmitted correctly to the data center and the very purpose of deploying WSNs is not effective. Since it is difficult to monitor the network continuously through a manual operator, the nodes in WSN need to be capable of overcoming the failures and transmit the sensed data in proper order to the data center. Sensor network should be designed such that it should be able to identify the faulty nodes, try to rectify the fault and be able to transmit the sensed data to data center under faulty condition of a network and thereby make the network fault-free and thus enhance the fault tolerant capability.In this paper, we propose a novel idea of an Active node based Fault Tolerance using Battery power and Interference model (AFTBI) in WSN to identify the faulty nodes using battery power model and interference model. Fault tolerance against low battery power is designed through hand-off mechanism where in the faulty node selects the neighboring node having highest power and transfers all the services that are to be performed by the faulty node to the selected neighboring node. Fault tolerance against interference is provided by dynamic power level adjustment mechanism by allocating the time slot to all the neighboring nodes. If a particular node wishes to transmit the sensed data, it enters active status and transmits the packet with maximum power; otherwise it enters into sleep status having minimum power that is sufficient to receive hello messages and to maintain the connectivity. The performance evaluation is tested through simulation for packet delivery ratio, control overhead, memory overhead and fault recovery delay. We compared our results with Fault Detection in Wireless Sensor Networks (FDWSNs) for various performance measures and found that AFTBI outperforms compared to the results of FDWSN.

A Piezoelectric Wind Energy Harvester for Wireless Sensor Networks

This paper proposes a miniaturized piezoelectric wind energy harvester to power wireless sensor networks. The harvester consists of a lead zirconate titanate (PZT) cantilever beam and a flexible plate. The flexible plate triggers flutter motion at a low wind speed, causing the rigid PZT cantilever beam to vibrate with large amplitude. Two styles of the harvesters were designed and tested in a wind tunnel. The critical wind speed, the output voltage and the power of the wind energy harvesters were measured. Maximum power of 0.199 and 0.666 mW were obtained at the wind speeds of 10 and 15 m/s, respectively. As an alternative power source, the harvesters have great potential to replace the battery or extend the lifespan of the wireless sensor networks.

Modified RLE with Timestamp Storage for Slow Gradient Variable Data

The ultra-low power embedded devices are generally batteryoperated and have limited data memory. The efficient use of memory is very important as the data memory of the device is limited. Run-length encoding has attracted much attention as an important data compression technique because of its simplicity and potentially low complexity. The present paper describes a Modified Run-Length Encoding (MRLE) which has the efficient use of memory, which in turn results in minimizing energy consumption of scarce battery of embedded device and to extend the life as long as possible by maximizing the time of sleep mode. The proposed encoding method can be used in critical low power wireless sensor networks.

A Survey on Distributed Topology Control Techniques for Extending the Lifetime of Battery Powered Wireless Sensor Networks

Large-scale, self-organizing wireless sensor and mesh network deployments are being driven by recent technological developments such as The Internet of Things (IoT), Smart Grids and Smart Environment applications. Efficient use of the limited energy resources of wireless sensor network (WSN) nodes is critically important to support these advances, and application of topology control methods will have a profound impact on energy efficiency and hence battery lifetime. In this survey, we focus on the energy efficiency issue and present a comprehensive study of topology control techniques for extending the lifetime of battery powered WSNs. First, we review the significant topology control algorithms to provide insights into how energy efficiency is achieved by design. Further, these algorithms are classified according to the energy conservation approach they adopt, and evaluated by the trade-offs they offer to aid designers in selecting a technique that best suits their applications. Since the concept of "network lifetime" is widely used for assessing the algorithms' performance, we highlight various definitions of the term and discuss their merits and drawbacks. Recently, there has been growing interest in algorithms for non-planar topologies such as deployments in underwater environments or multi-level buildings. For this reason, we also include a detailed discussion of topology control algorithms that work efficiently in three dimensions. Based on the outcomes of our review, we identify a number of open research issues for achieving energy efficiency through topology control.

Cooperative Hybrid ARQ in Solar Powered Wireless Sensor Networks

Energy harvesters are used in today’s Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) to harvest energy from the environment. Although an energy harvester can provide a supply source with a much greater lifetime than a battery, the amount of available energy for an energy harvesting system is a random variable. Furthermore, the proper management of energy harvesters has a considerable impact on reliability. It has been observed that cooperative error control mechanisms like Cooperative Automatic Repeat Request (C-ARQ) and Cooperative Hybrid ARQ (C-HARQ) can be used for improving the energy management and reliability in Energy Harvesting WSNs (EH-WSNs). Recently, the impact of C-ARC mechanism has been considered in an energy harvesting system (GAP4S), however, GAP4S is an EH-WSN powered by microwave with linear recharge rate and unbounded storage capacity. This work evaluates the effect of C-HARC using a new method of relay node selection in EH-WSNs which are powered by the solar energy and have variable recharge rates. Furthermore, a comparative study of C-ARQ and C-HARQ mechanisms, considering the impact of variations in transmission rate and packet error probability on the energy consumption, is provided. The results show that C-HARQ outperforms C-ARQ under the same conditions and the energy consumption of a relay node in C-HARQ is 50% less than the one in C-ARQ.

Techniques and Challenges of Data Centric Storage Scheme in Wireless Sensor Network

Storing, collecting and querying data across miniaturized battery powered Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) is a key research focus today. Distributed Data-Centric Storage (DCS), an alternate to External Storage (ES) and Local Storage (LS), is thought to be a promising and efficient storage and search mechanism. There has been a growing interest in understanding and optimizing WSN DCS schemes in recent years, where the range query mechanism, similarity search, load balancing, multi-dimensional data search, as well as limited and constrained resources have driven this line of research. In this paper, an extensive state-of-the-art study is provided including the prime WSN DCS schemes, challenges that inspired these schemes, as well as drawbacks and shortcomings of existing solutions. In contrast to previous surveys that briefly discuss the contribution of a few WSN DCS mechanisms, we provide a thematic taxonomy in which schemes are classified according to the problems dealt with including range query, similarity search, data aggregation, sensor network field non-uniformity, multi-replication, load balancing and routing algorithm.

Efficient flow‐control algorithm cooperating with energy allocation scheme for solar‐powered WSNs

AbstractRecently, solar energy emerged as a feasible supplement to battery power for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) which are expected to operate for long periods. Since solar energy can be harvested periodically and permanently, solar‐powered WSNs can use the energy more efficiently for various network‐wide performances than traditional battery‐based WSNs of which aim is mostly to minimize the energy consumption for extending the network lifetime. However, using solar power in WSNs requires a different energy management from battery‐based WSNs since solar power is a highly varying energy supply. Therefore, firstly we describe a time‐slot‐based energy allocation scheme to use the solar energy optimally, based on expectation model for harvested solar energy. Then, we propose a flow‐control algorithm to maximize the amount of data collected by the network, which cooperates with our energy allocation scheme. Our algorithms run on each node in a distributed manner using only local information of its neighbors, which is a suitable approach for scalable WSNs. We implement indoor and outdoor testbeds of solar‐powered WSN and demonstrate the efficiency of our approaches on them. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

An Experimental Study of WSN Power Efficiency: MICAz Networks with XMesh

This is an investigation of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) using Memsic's XMesh routing protocol on MICAz wireless motes. It focuses on the study of the practical aspects of WSNs' power efficiency and network characteristics, which play a critical role in real-word WSN deployments for environmental monitoring. Based on an experimental study and following a quantitative approach, this work examines XMesh's high power and low power operation modes and the data transmission intervals, among other factors. Route utilization was identified as a major contributor of the mote's battery use. A field study was conducted as a point of comparison and the results obtained were comparable to the laboratory tests with regards to the battery life and the mote's route utilization. The network reliability was found to be considerably lower in the field study. In addition, it was found that the original WSN gateway, used during the study, presented severe practical limitations regarding the system's robustness and reliability. To address these problems, we present a solution based on our integrated network and data management system, which successfully facilitates the deployment of a new WSN gateway and significantly improves the operational robustness and reliability of the WSN system.

Synchronized Communication in Low Power WBAN

Body Area Network (WBAN) requires efficient and innovative solutions for synchronized communication and to meet the energy consumption requirements for independent sensor nodes. In any wireless communication, the low message rate gives low power consumption but there is always a trade-off between power consumption and dynamic response. This paper presents the time synchronization methods and to develop a prototype to receive the time synchronized data in WBAN server from ANT wireless sensor nodes in SIGS system. The message rate used in SIGS is very low with 8 Hz, to consume less power. Hence it is essential to synchronize the system at low message rate. Whenever a data is received at WBAN / Linux server through ANT protocol, the received data is difficult to handle because of unknown sampling time. To overcome this problem and to receive time synchronized data, the new methods and prototype was designed. The time synchronization methods implemented provided good time synchronization for ANT low power wireless sensor network.

Implementation Perspectives of Wireless Sensor and Actuator Networks in Smart Grid

Today’s scarcity of power generation and complex distribution through the electric power systems can not address the trend of increasing demand and consumption of electricity. The monitoring and control of the electric power systems through wired communications require expenses in material, staff, and usually fail in the effective communication for fault diagnostic and protection. In this article we discuss the possibility for the Wireless Sensors and Actuators to address this challenge and provide an optimization of the management for the electric power systems. By embedding the positive influence over the three major power systems: power generation, power delivery, and power utilization, Wireless Sensor and Actuator Networks (WSANs) emerge as an enhancing technology for the next generation of electric power systems, Smart Grids. In this paper, we present an overview of the functionalities of the WSANs in Smart Grids, their advantages over traditional networks, and their architectural characteristics in a way of supervision and control of the power system, by improving the balance between the power supply and demand, and therefore avoiding energy shortages.