A

SEMINAR REPORT ON

“WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS”

Submitted in partial fulfilment of

the requirements for the award of
B.Tech In

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

SUBMITTED BY

K.PARANI 21E41A0535

SREE DATTHA INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING & SCIENCE

(Affiliated to JNTU-Hyderabad)
JAWAHARLAL NEHRU TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, HYDERABAD,
TELANGANA
 ABSTRACT

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) enable new applications and require nonconventional paradigms

for protocol design due to several constraints. Owing to the requirement for low device complexity

together with low energy consumption (i.e., long network lifetime), a proper balance between

communication and signal/data processing Capabilities must be found. This motivates a huge effort

in research activities, standardization process, and industrial investments on this field since the last

decade.

This survey paper aims at reporting an overview of WSNs technologies, main applications and

standards, features in WSNs design, and evolutions. In particular, some peculiar applications, such

as those based on environmental monitoring, are discussed and design strategies highlighted; a case

study based on a real implementation is also reported.

Trends and possible evolutions are traced. Emphasis is given to the IEEE 802.15.4 technology,

which enables many applications of WSNs. Some example of performance characteristics of

802.15.4-based networks are shown and discussed as a function of the size of the WSN and the

data type to be exchanged among nodes.

WSN is a network responsible for collecting, processing and distributing wireless data to the

intended database storage center. Because these sensors are usually installed at remote sites, despite

the recent advances in the WSN technology, its applications still face significant challenges. Out of

these, network security threats, network architecture, data collection, deployment and network

coverage rise as the major concerns.

 INDEX

CONTENTS PAGENO

Certificate I

Declaration II

Acknowledgement III

Abstract IV

List of figures VIII

CHAPTER 1: 1
INTRODUCTION

1.1 WSN Technology 1

1.2 History 2
1.3 WSN Architecture 3

CHAPTER 2:
SENSOR
TECHNOLOGY
2.1 Definition 4

2.2 Types of sensors 5

2.3 The trend of sensors 6

CHAPTER 3: FEATURES 7
3.1 Ad hoc deployment
3.2 Unattended operation
3.3 Unmetered
3.4 Dynamic changes
CHAPTER 4: APPLICATIONS
4.1 Environmental Monitoring
4.2 Health Monitoring
4.3 Traffic Control
4.4 Smart Buildings
4.5 Security

CHAPTER 5: STRONG AND

WEAK POINTS OF WSN

5.1 The strong points of WSN

5.2 The weak points of WSN

30
CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION
 List of Figures

Figure number Name of the figure Page number

1.3.1 Wireless sensor node 3

architecture

1.3.2 Sensor node /gateway sensor 4

Node

14 sensors
42.1.1 5
Applications of wireless sensor
4.1.1
Networks

4.4.1 Smart Building

 CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
A wireless sensor network (WSN) consists of spatially

distributed autonomous sensors to monitor physical or environmental conditions, such as

temperature, sound, pressure, etc. and to cooperatively pass their data through the network to a

main location. The more modern networks are bidirectional, also enabling control of sensor activity.

The development of wireless sensor networks was motivated by military applications such as

battlefield surveillance; today such networks are used in many industrial and consumer applications,

such as industrial process monitoring and control, machine health monitoring, and so on

1.1 WSN TECHNOLOGY

The WSN is built of "nodes" – from a few to several hundreds or even thousands, where each node

is connected to one (or sometimes several) sensors. Each such sensor network node has typically

several parts: a radio transceiver with an internal antenna or connection to an external antenna, a

microcontroller, an electronic circuit for interfacing with the sensors and an energy source, usually a

battery or an embedded form of energy harvesting.

A sensor node might vary in size from that of a shoebox down to the size of a grain of dust,

although functioning "motes" of genuine microscopic dimensions have yet to be created. The cost

of sensor nodes is similarly variable, ranging from a few to hundreds of dollars, depending on the

complexity of the individual sensor nodes. Size and cost constraints on sensor nodes result in

corresponding constraints on resources such as energy, memory, computational speed and

communications bandwidth. The topology of the WSNs can vary from a simple star network to an

advanced multi-hop wireless mesh network. The propagation technique between the hops of the

network can be routing or flooding.

1.2 HISTORY

The origins of the research on WSNs can be traced back to the Distributed Sensor Networks(DSN)

program at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at around 1980. By this

time, the ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) had been operational for a

number of years, with about 200 hosts at universities and research institutes. DSNs were assumed to

have many spatially distributed low-cost sensing nodes that collaborated with each other but

operated autonomously, with information being routed to whichever node was best able to use the

information.

At that time, this was actually an ambitious program. There were no personal computers and

workstations; processing was mainly performed on minicomputers and the Ethernet was just

becoming popular. Technology components for a DSN were identified in a Distributed Sensor Nets

workshop in 1978 (Proceedings of the Distributed Sensor Nets Workshop, 1978). these included

sensors (acoustic), communication and processing modules, and distributed software. Researchers

at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) even developed a communication-oriented operating system

called Accent (Rashid & Robertson, 1981), which allowed flexible, transparent access to distributed

resources required for a fault-tolerant DSN. A demonstrative application of DSN was a helicopter

tracking system (Myers et al., 1984), using a distributed array of acoustic microphones by means of

signal abstractions and matching techniques, developed at the Massachusetts Institute of

Technology (MIT). Even though early researchers on sensor networks had in mind the vision of a

DSN, the technology was not quite ready. More specifically, the sensors were rather large and This

work was carried out during the tenure of an ERCIM “Alain Bensoussan” Fellowship Program and

is part of the MELODY Project, which is funded by the Research Council of Norway under the

contract number 187857/S10.

1.3 WSN ARCHITECTURE

The architecture of WSN consist of sensor microcontroller unit antenna and transmitter & receiver

of the system. sens0r and control units are connected to the battery for required power supply

voltage sensor sense the physical environment and send the input to the A/D converter to convert it

into digital form and then it is send to the control unit of microcontroller from where the o/p’s are

controlled by the mechanism stored in microcontroller unit

1.3.1

The topology of the WSNs can vary from a simple star network to an advanced multi-hop wireless

mesh network. The propagation technique between the hops of the network can be routing or

flooding.
1.3.2
 CHAPTER 2

SENSOR TECHNOLOGY
Sensors are the very important part of any sensor network it is the primary hub of wireless sensor

networks. All wireless technology is depend upon these sensors in our general life we use many

sensors, do u know that how much sensors are working in your system or in your mobile cell. You

cannot think about a network without sensor.

2.1.1

2.1 DEFINITION
A 'sensor' is a device that measures a physical quantity and converts it into a 'signal' which can be
read by an observer or by an instrument. For example, a mercury thermometer converts the

measured temperature into the expansion and contraction of a liquid which can be read on a

calibrated glass tube.

Sensor technology is the use of electronic devices to detect and respond to changes in the physical

environment. Sensors can measure a variety of properties, such as temperature, pressure, light,

sound, and motion.

2.2 TYPE OF SENSOR
There are a lot of different types of sensors. Sensors are used in everyday objects.

Thermal sensors

A sensor that detects temperature. Thermal sensors are found in many laptops and computers in

order to sound an alarm when a certain temperature has been exceeded.

 temperature sensors: thermometers

 heat sensors: bolometer, calorimeter

Electromagnetic sensors

An electronic device used to measure a physical quantity such as pressure or loudness and

convert it into an electronic signal of some kind (e.g. a voltage).

 electrical resistance sensors: ohmmeter

 electrical voltage sensors: voltmeter

 electrical power sensors: watt-hour meter

 magnetism sensors: magnetic compass

 metal detectors

 Radar

Mechanical sensors
Mechanical sensors have many measurement principles, but detect mechanical changes and strain or

stress, such as pressure, flow rate, vibration, distance, speed and force, electrical signals.

 Pressure sensors: barometer

 Vibration and shock sensors

Motion sensors
A motion sensor, also known as a motion detector, is an electronic device that detects the presence

of people or objects nearby

 radar gun, tachometer

Car sensors

An electronic device that monitors and tracks different aspects of a vehicle and sends information to

the Electronic Control Unit (ECU)

 reversing sensor

 rain sensor

2.3 The trend of sensors

Because of certain disadvantages of physical contact sensors, newer technology non-contact sensors

have become prevalent in industry, performing well in many applications. The recent style of non-

contact sensors shows that “Thin (g) is In”. Market trends show that form and size are important.

Users are looking for smaller and more accurate sensors. New technologies for the sensing chips are

breaking application barriers. For the future, the trend will be to continue to provide smaller, more

affordable sensors that have the flexibility to fit even more applications in both industrial and

commercial environments.

 Edge computing
IoT sensors can send analytics algorithms to edge servers, which can process data locally or send
it to a centralized site for further analysis.

 Robot technology
The possibilities for robot technology may increase significantly.

 Sensor fusion
Sensor fusion combines data from multiple sensors to provide a more accurate representation of
the environment. This can improve decision-making and automation capabilities.
 CHAPTER 3

FEATURES

In spite of the diverse applications, sensor networks pose a number of unique technical features due

to the following factors

3.1. Ad hoc deployment

Most sensor nodes are deployed in regions which have no infrastructure at all. A typical way of

deployment in a forest would be tossing the sensor nodes from an aeroplane. In such a situation, it

is up to the nodes to identify its connectivity and distribution.

A method for managing large-scale wireless networks in changing conditions. Ad hoc networks are

self-organizing, meaning they can establish cooperation between nodes without a fixed

infrastructure or central administration. They are well-suited for emergencies, such as natural

disasters or military conflicts, because they can be deployed quickly and require minimal

configuration.

Here are some characteristics of ad hoc networks

 Dynamic topology

Network nodes are mostly mobile and can move in and out of range, or join or leave the network.

 Multi-hop communication

Nodes can communicate with other nodes within their range, and nearby nodes forward packets
for nodes outside their range.

 Adaptive routing

Ad hoc networks use dynamic and adaptive routing protocols to configure quickly.
3.2. Unattended operation

In most cases, once deployed, sensor networks have no human intervention. Hence the nodes

themselves are responsible for reconfiguration in case of any changes. Unattended Wireless Sensor

Networks (UWSNs) are networks that operate without online data collection entities, also known as

Sink Collectors.

3.3. Unmetered
The sensor nodes are not connected to any energy source. There is only a finite source of

energy, which must be optimally used for processing and communication? An interesting fact is

That communication dominates processing in energy consumption. Thus, in order to make

optimal Use of energy, communication should be minimized as much as possible.

3.4 Dynamic changes

It is required that a sensor network system be adaptable to changing Connectivity (for e.g., due

to addition of more nodes, failure of nodes etc.) as well as changing Environmental stimuli. Thus,

unlike traditional networks, where the focus is on maximizing channel throughput or minimizing

node deployment, the major consideration in a sensor network is to extend the system lifetime as

well as the system robustness

 CHAPTER 4

APPLICATIONS

The original motivation behind the research into WSNs was military application. Examples of

military sensor networks include large-scale acoustic ocean surveillance systems for the detection of

submarines, self-organized and randomly deployed WSNs for battlefield surveillance and attaching

micro sensors to weapons for stockpile surveillance (Pister, 2000). As the costs for sensor nodes and

communication networks have been reduced, many other potential applications including those for

civilian purposes have emerged. The following are a few examples.

4.1.1
4.1 Environmental Monitoring
Environmental monitoring (Steere et al., 2000) can be used for animal tracking, forest surveillance,

flood detection, and weather forecasting. It is a natural candidate for applying WSNs, because the

variables to be monitored, e.g. temperature, are usually distributed over a large region. One example

is that researchers from the University of Southampton have built a glacial environment monitoring

system using WSNs in Norway (Martinez et al., 2005). They collect data from sensor nodes

installed within the ice and the sub-glacial sediment without the use of wires which could disturb

the environment.

Environmental monitoring is a tool to assess environmental conditions and trends, support policy

development and its implementation, and develop information for reporting to national

policymakers, international forums and the public.

1. Air monitoring
Wireless Sensor Networks are systems of interconnected, spatially distributed sensor nodes that

collaboratively gather and transmit environmental data. These networks are particularly well-suited

for air pollution monitoring due to their unique capabilities:

1. Decentralized Data Collection:

WSNs deploy multiple low-cost sensor nodes across a wide area, enabling localized pollution

monitoring.

2. Real-Time Monitoring:

Sensors transmit data in real-time, allowing for immediate detection of pollution spikes or trends.

3. Cost-Effectiveness:

Unlike traditional air monitoring stations, WSNs use affordable sensors and require minimal

infrastructure.

4. Scalability and Flexibility:

Networks can be easily scaled to cover large or remote areas, adapting to specific monitoring nee
2. Water monitoring

Water is an essential resource for all forms of life, and its quality and availability directly impact

public health, ecosystems, and economies. With increasing global challenges such as pollution,

climate change, and over-extraction, monitoring water quality and resources has become a priority.

Traditional water monitoring techniques often rely on manual sampling and laboratory analysis,

which are time-consuming, costly, and lack real-time data. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) offer

an innovative, automated, and cost-effective solution for continuous water monitoring.

Wireless Sensor Networks consist of interconnected sensor nodes that autonomously collect,

process, and transmit data. In water monitoring, WSNs offer a decentralized and scalable approach

to track water quality and availability in real-time.

1. Real-Time Monitoring:

Sensors continuously measure water parameters and transmit data for immediate analysis.

2. Remote Accessibility:

WSNs enable monitoring in inaccessible or hazardous locations like deep lakes, oceans, or industrial

wastewater sites.

3. Cost-Effectiveness:

Eliminates the need for frequent manual sampling and reduces operational costs.

4. High Resolution:

Dense deployment of sensor nodes provides detailed insights into spatial and temporal variations in

water quality.

5. Sensor Nodes:

Equipped with sensors for specific water parameters, communication modules, and power sources.

6. Communication Protocols:

Wireless technologies like Zigbee, LoRa, GSM, and Wi-Fi facilitate data transmission
4.2 Health Monitoring
WSNs can be embedded into a hospital building to track and monitor patients and all medical

resources. Special kinds of sensors which can measure blood pressure, body temperature and

electrocardiograph (ECG) can even be knitted into clothes to provide remote nursing for the

elderly. When the sensors are worn or implanted for healthcare purposes, they form a special

kind of sensor network called a body sensor network (BSN). BSN is a rich interdisciplinary

area which revolutionizes the healthcare system by allowing inexpensive

WSNs in health monitoring consist of small, lightweight, and wireless sensor nodes placed on or

around the patient. These nodes work collaboratively to collect health-related data and send it to

healthcare providers or caregivers for analysis and intervention.

1. Continuous Monitoring:

Provides real-time data, enabling early detection of anomalies or

emergencies.

2. Remote Monitoring:

Facilitates healthcare delivery for patients in rural or remote areas.

3. Personalized Healthcare:

Allows tailored treatment plans based on individual health trends.

4. Integration with IoT:

Enhances data accessibility and analytics through cloud-based platforms.

4.3 TRAFFIC CONTROL
Sensor networks have been used for vehicle traffic monitoring and control for some time. At

many crossroads, there are either overhead or buried sensors to detect vehicles and to control

the traffic lights. Furthermore, video cameras are also frequently used to monitor road segments

with heavy traffic. However, the traditional communication networks used to connect these

sensors are costly, and thus traffic monitoring is usually only available at a few critical points in

a city (Chong & Kumar, 2003). WSNs will completely change the landscape of traffic

monitoring and control by installing cheap sensor nodes in the car, at the parking lots, along the

roadside, etc. Street line, Inc. (Street line, Inc., n.d.) is a company which uses sensor network

technology to helpdrivers find unoccupied parking places and avoid traffic jams. The solutions

provided by Street line can significantly improve the city traffic management and reduce the

emission of carbon dioxide.

Wireless Sensor Networks enable efficient traffic monitoring by leveraging their capabilities

for real-time data collection and transmission. They are deployed in various locations, such as

intersections, highways, and parking lots, to gather traffic-related data.

1. Real-Time Monitoring:

Enables instant detection of traffic conditions, accidents, or bottlenecks.

2. Decentralized Operation:

Sensor nodes operate autonomously, reducing dependency on central systems.

3. Scalability:

Easily scalable to cover larger areas or specific problem zones.

4. Cost-Effectiveness:

Low-cost sensors and minimal infrastructure requirements make them affordable compared to

traditional systems.
4.4 SMART BUILDINGS
The New York Times Building - a Smart Building The headquarters of the New York Times is

an example of how different smart building technologies can be combined to reduce energy

consumption and to increase user comfort. Overall, the building consumes 30% less energy than

traditional office skyscrapers. Opened in November 2007 and designed by Renzo Piano, the

building has a curtain wall which serves as a sunscreen and changes color during the day. This

wall consists of ceramic rods, “a supporting structure for the screen and an insulated window

unit” (Hart, 2008).

Smart buildings are a cornerstone of modern urban infrastructure, integrating advanced

technologies to enhance energy efficiency, comfort, security, and operational efficiency.

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) play a pivotal role in the development of smart buildings by

enabling real-time data collection, monitoring, and control of various systems.

Wireless Sensor Networks are integral to the functioning of smart buildings by providing a

decentralized, flexible, and cost-effective means to monitor and control building systems.

1. Real-Time Data Collection:

Sensors gather data on environmental conditions, occupancy, energy use, and more.

2. Wireless Communication:

Eliminates the need for extensive wiring, reducing installation costs and complexity.

3. Automation and Control:

WSNs enable intelligent automation, such as turning off lights in unoccupied rooms or adjusting

HVAC settings based on real-time data.

4. Energy Efficiency:

Optimizes energy consumption through smart monitoring and control systems.

 4.4.1

The building is further equipped with lighting and shading control systems based on ICT

technologies. The lighting system ensures that electrical light is only used when required. Further

day lighting measures include a garden in the centre of the ground floor which is open to the sky as

well as a large area skylight. The electrical ballasts in the lighting system are equipped with chips

that allow each ballast to be controlled separately. The shading system tracks the position of the

sun and relies on a sensor network to automatically actuate the raising and lowering of the shades.

The high-tech HVAC system is equipped with sensors that measure the temperature. It is further

able to rely on free air cooling, i.e. fresh air on cool mornings is brought into the HVAC system.

An

automated building system monitors in parallel “the air conditioning, water cooling, heating, fire

alarm, and generation systems” (Siemens, 2008). The system relies on a large-scale sensor network

composed of different kinds of sensors which deliver real-time information. Consequently, energy

can be saved as only as few systems are turned on as needed.

4.5 SECURITY
While the future of WSNs is very prospective, WSNs will not be successfully deployed if security,

dependability and privacy issues are not addressed adequately. These issues become more important

because WSNs are usually used for very critical applications. Furthermore, WSNs are very

vulnerable and thus attractive to attacks because of their limited prices andhuman-unattended

deployment .IT provide kee management, authentication, intrusion detection, privacy protection

which makes WSN secure.

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are used in a wide range of applications, from environmental

monitoring to healthcare, military, and industrial systems. Despite their advantages in enabling real-

time data collection and communication, WSNs are vulnerable to various security threats due to

their inherent limitations in computational power, energy, and communication bandwidth. Ensuring

security in WSNs is critical to protect the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of data and the

network.

1. Confidentiality:

Protects sensitive data from unauthorized access during transmission.

Example: Encrypting data to prevent eavesdropping.

2. Integrity:

Ensures data is not altered or tampered with during transmission.

Example: Hash functions to detect data modifications.

3. Authentication:

Verifies the identity of sensor nodes to prevent impersonation or intrusion.

Example: Digital signatures or cryptographic protocols.

 CHAPTER 5

STRONG AND WEAK

POINTS OF WIRELESS
SENSOR NETWORKS

5.1 THE STRONG POINTS OF WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS

 Robustness/Ability to withstand rough environmental conditions

Because of their shrinking size, their ability to communicate through a lot of materials and the

possibility to cover the particular nodes in robust cases, WSNs can be used in a huge variety of

environments. They are designed to defy harsh weather conditions. That is one of the reason,

they are already used for things like forest fire detection or seismic monitoring

 Ability to cover wide and dangerous areas

In many areas, infrastructural issues and economic considerations prevent wired networks from

being used. For example, setting up a wired network on a battlefield would obviously be useless.

WSNs can fill this gap, because of their lack of infrastructure and their low setup costs.

 Self-Organizing

With the abilities of network discovery and multi-hop broadcast, WSNs are able to self-organize

in small amounts of time, when setup. This is interesting, because someone who sets up the

network by deploying the several nodes, does not have to be trained. He just needs to turn on

the system and the rest should be organized by the network itself.

 Ability to master node failures

WSNs are able to overcome node failures, resulting of destroyed or dead nodes, by simply using

another routing path. If, for example, during war, an enemy destroys a surveillance sensor node, this

will not affect the whole network.

 Mobility of nodes
Mobility of nodes has been a big research field in the last few years. Sensor Nodes, that, for instance,

are used to track vehicles, are permanently relocating. Modern WSN protocols and architectures are
able to handle these areal shiftings and to maintain routing.

 Dynamic network topology

WSNs are able to have a dynamic network topology, which means that the topology is variable and

determines the neighbor relationships to be maintained by the nodes. For example, if a cluster head

in the topology drops out, another sensor can jump in and take the place of the cluster head, which

leads to a change of the topology.

 Heterogeneity of nodes

The fact, that the monitored data of the sensors, is first converted into digital signals, and then

transmitted, benefits the fact, that a special WSN can contain a variety of different sensors in one

network. Every node can also have multiple different sensors implemented on it. Of course, this is

interesting for a huge amount of applications, e.g. weather surveillance or disease prevention

systems.

 Unattended operation

Designed and configured correctly, WSNs are be able to work unattended. This saves working time

and minimizes the effort that has to be done to administrator these systems. This advantage is

probably very interesting for home applications, were non-trained customers want to benefit from the

system with low effort.

5.2 THE WEAK POINTS OF WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS

 Limited energy resources

With the absence of a fixed infrastructure, wireless sensor nodes are forced to manage the small

amounts of battery provided power, they have, carefully. This limits their computational power and

memory size, and prevents them from using full bandwidth due to higher energy costs. Working

only on battery power, also means, that after a certain life span, a sensor node will die, because the

battery is empty.

 Lower data rates

One of the biggest problem of wireless networks in general are the low data rates. The amount of

data that can be transmitted in a period of time depends on the frequency that is used. A higher

frequency results in higher data rates, but at the same time causes more interference issues. This

leads to the fact, that wireless networks can not be as quick as their wired brothers.

 Communication failures

Wireless Networks have a higher error rate than their wired counterparts. They use electronic waves

to transmit packets and these waves can be affected by phenomenons like reflection, refraction,

diffraction or scattering. These phenomenons can fragment or garble the package, and that way

produce error in transmission.

 Security issues

Wireless Networks in general are much easier to attack from the outside, than wired systems are. The

wireless channel is accessible to unwanted listeners and several passive and active attacks can be

conducted. Methods like encryption are also limited by the energy resources, that tend to be small in

WSNs, which strenghtens the problems.

 CHAPTER 6

CONCLUSION
In conclusion to this report, one can say that the end of research on WSNs is not within sight.

Wireless Sensor Network technology has an incredible potential to enhance quality of life in all

aspects and is likely to be widely used in the medium-term future. To realize the full potential of this

technology, there is a lot of additional work to be done in further times. Research has to focus on

security aspects and higher reliability for these systems and guidelines for aspects of privacy

protection have to be discussed. With these challenges in mind, the fast speed, with which further

developments of the technology flood on the field, can lead to optimism and excitement on

upcoming applications.

WSNs have been identified as one of the most prospective technologies in this century. This chapter

provides information concerning both its history and current state of the art. In concrete terms, the

authors provide an overview about the hardware, software and networking protocol design of this

important technology. The authors also discuss the security and ongoing standardization of this

technology.