The objective of this research is to develop algorithms for improving coverage and connectivity in heterogeneous wireless sensor networks. The approach involves a deterministic study of the impact of relay node placement on connectivity and survivability, and a probabilistic study of the impact of node cooperation and mobile relays on probabilistic coverage and intermittent connectivity in large-scale sensor networks.
The intellectual merit of this research is two-fold. First, this research studies relay node placement under realistic constraints and, thus, goes beyond prior research that assumes that relay nodes can be stacked on top of other nodes and that there are no "forbidden" areas. Both optimal and approximate solutions for the placement of relay nodes meeting connectivity and survivability requirements are developed. Second, this project exploits new techniques for using node cooperation and mobile relays for improving probabilistic coverage and intermittent connectivity. This research involves the potentially novel integration of hybrid network components including sensor nodes, static relay nodes, and data "mules."
With respect to broader impact, the project integrates research into educational experiences for students at the undergraduate and graduate levels, especially students from underrepresented groups. The research also has the potential to improve the capabilities of sensor networks with a variety of important applications.
The project is led by Professor Guoliang Xue (PI) and Professor Junshan Zhang (Co-PI). The objective of this research is to develop algorithms for improving coverage and connectivity in heterogeneous wireless sensor networks. The approach involves a deterministic study of the impact of relay node placement on connectivity and survivability, and a probabilistic study of the impact of node cooperation and mobile relays on probabilistic coverage and intermittent connectivity in large-scale sensor networks. Both optimal and approximate solutions for the placement of relay nodes meeting connectivity and survivability requirements are developed. In terms of intellectual merits, the PIs and participants have completed the proposed research tasks. This includes new and improved approximation algorithms for connectivity in wireless sensor networks by relay node placement, new algorithms for barrier coverage, and emerging opportunities in smartphone sensing/authentication. High quality papers are published in top-tier conferences including ACM MOBICOM, ACM MOBIHOC, IEEE INFOCOM, and IEEE SECON, as well as top-tier journals including IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking, IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing, IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications, and IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications. In terms of broader impact, graduate students and REU students are trained. Three PhD students benefited from this project. Dejun Yang joined the Colorado School of Mines as the Ben L. Fryrear Assistant Professor of Computer Science in 2013. Miao He joined Texas Tech University as an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Xi Fang joined Microsoft. A Hispanic student, Gabriel Silva, participated as an REU student in this project. He participated in the research, published, and joined Microsoft after graduation. PI Guoliang Xue was elected to IEEE Fellow in 2011. Co-PI Junshan Zhang was elected to IEEE Fellow in 2012.
