Abstract Accurate estimation of link quality is the key to enable efficient routing in wireless sensor networks. Current link estimators focus mainly on identifying long-term stable links for routing. They leave out a potentially large set of intermediate links offering significant routing progress. Fine-grained analysis of link qualities reveals that such intermediate links are bursty, i.e., stable in the short term. In this paper, we use short-term estimation of wireless links to accurately identify short-term stable periods of transmission on bursty links. Our approach allows a routing protocol to forward packets over bursty links if they offer better routing progress than long-term stable links. We integrate a Short Term Link Estimator and its associated routing strategy with a standard routing protocol for sensor networks. Our evaluation reveals an average of 19% and a maximum of 42% reduction in the overall transmissions when routing over long-range bursty links. Our approach is not tied to any specific routing protocol and integrates seamlessly with existing routing protocols and link estimators.

We address the challenge of link estimation and routing over highly dynamic links, thats is, bursty links that rapidly shift between reliable and unreliable periods of transmissions. Based on significant empirical evidence of over 100,000 transmissions over each link in 802.15.4 and 802.11 testbeds, we propose two metrics, expected future transmissions (EFT) and MAC3, for runtime estimation of bursty wireless links.We introduce a bursty link estimator (BLE) that based on these two metrics, accurately estimates bursty links in the network rendering them available for data transmissions. Finally, we present bursty routing extensions (BRE): an adaptive routing strategy that uses BLE for forwarding packets over bursty links if they offer better routing progress than long-term stable links. Our evaluation, comprising experimental data from widely used IEEE 802.15.4-based testbeds, reveals an average of 19 % and a maximum of 42 % reduction in the number of transmissions when routing over long-range bursty links typically ignored by routing protocols. Additionally, we show that both BLE and BRE are not tied to any specific routing protocol and integrate seamlessly with existing routing protocols and link estimators.

Copyright © 2012 Muhammad Hamad Alizai et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. We address the challenge of link estimation and routing over highly dynamic links, thats is, bursty links that rapidly shift between reliable and unreliable periods of transmissions. Based on significant empirical evidence of over 100,000 transmissions over each link in 802.15.4 and 802.11 testbeds, we propose two metrics, expected future transmissions (EFT) and MAC3, for runtime estimation of bursty wireless links.We introduce a bursty link estimator (BLE) that based on these twometrics, accurately estimates bursty links in the network rendering them available for data transmissions. Finally, we present bursty routing extensions (BRE): an adaptive routing strategy that uses BLE for forwarding packets over bursty links if they offer better routing progress than long-term stable links. Our evaluation, comprising experimental data from widely used IEEE 802.15.4-based testbeds, reveals an average of 19 % and a maximum of 42 % reduction in the number of transmissions when routing over long-range bursty links typically ignored by routing protocols. Additionally, we show that both BLE and BRE are not tied to any specific routing protocol and integrate seamlessly with existing routing protocols and link estimators. 1.

In order to correctly investigate and understand wireless sensor network (WSN) protocols such as data collection, dis-semination, and IPv6 integration, real-world experiments need to be executed in a comparable and systematic way. Current WSN sites are built around specific scenarios and environ-ments. In that sense, each site is unique with regard to its net-work properties, topological and hardware characteristics. This coupled with the real vagaries of the wireless communication very often leads to significantly different performance results of evaluation of protocols or applications within and across sites [5], [4]. Furthermore, the choice of experimentation sites which suit best a particular evaluation follows the more is better approach, rather than being systematically made. A systematic selection of experimentation sites is needed in order to ensure exposing the system under test to significantly

Comparing experimental results obtained on different wireless sensor network deployments is typically very cum-bersome and in most cases unfeasible. This is due to the lack of a methodology to describe the properties of network deployments and the experimental conditions under which experiments have been run. Our work focuses on the de-sign and development of a site properties assessment frame-work, called SiteWork, that aims at providing the means to quickly, automatically and accurately quantify their proper-ties. This poster abstract describes the preliminary design and evaluation of the basic site properties assessment mech-anisms provided by SiteWork.

Comparing experimental results obtained on different wireless sensor network deployments is typically very cumbersome and in most cases unfeasible. This is due to the lack of a methodology to describe the properties of network deployments and the experimental conditions under which experiments have been run. Our work focuses on the de-sign and development of a site properties assessment frame-work, called SiteWork, that aims at providing the means to quickly, automatically and accurately quantify their properties. This poster abstract describes the preliminary design and evaluation of the basic site properties assessment mechanisms provided by SiteWork.

In order to correctly investigate and understand wireless sensor network (WSN) protocols such as data collection, dissemination, and IPv6 integration, real-world experiments need to be executed in a comparable and systematic way. Current WSN sites are built around specific scenarios and environments. In that sense, each site is unique with regard to its network properties, topological and hardware characteristics. This coupled with the real vagaries of the wireless communication very often leads to significantly different performance results of evaluation of protocols or applications within and across sites [5], [4]. Furthermore, the choice of experimentation sites which suit best a particular evaluation follows the more is better approach, rather than being systematically made. A systematic selection of experimentation sites is needed in order to ensure exposing the system under test to significantly

Abstract not found

Abstract. In computing systems research, software tools (notably, simu-lators) provide low-cost, flexible, and low turn-around time facilities for investigations, but abstract away many hardware details. Hardware im-plementations on the other hand, provide the ultimate proofs of concept, but require hardware design expertise, are usually expensive and inflexi-ble, and are not always designed to expose all possible system parameters to researchers. They are also rarely the subject of active evolution over time as research platforms in their own right, as software tools are. The Sunflower tool suite is a suite of hardware platforms and simula-tion tools, intended to address these concerns. It comprises a full-system (embedded microarchitecture, networking, power, battery, device failure and analog signal modeling) simulator, a miniature energy-scavenging hardware platform, and a handheld computing device. The suite is in-tended to provide a set of complementary platforms for research in micro- and system-architectures for embedded systems, with emphases