EMP: A Network Management Protocol for IP-based Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have attracted significant research interest in recent years because of their suitability to a wide range of real world applications. The envisioned Internet Protocol (IP) support for WSNs requires interoperability with existing management solutions, like Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), in order to provide remote management functionality and assure the correct operation of the WSN. It is essential to provide a network management system that is interoperable with standard network management solutions, customizable, and extensible to various WSN applications. In this paper we present work in progress on our EmNetS Network Management Protocol (EMP), a lightweight and SNMP-compliant IP-based WSN (IP-WSN) management solution. We present detailed operational architecture and a Management Information Base (MIB) which is extensible to IP-WSN applications. We also present implementation details and preliminary results from our laboratory testbed.