Bridge performance in a multitier wireless network for healthcare monitoring

Advances in computer and communication technology have enabled online healthcare monitoring using miniature sensing devices attached to a patient´s body. Data collected in this manner is then delivered in real time, through one or more wireless hops, to the hospital network. In this article we discuss some design alternatives for the wireless portion of an integrated healthcare monitoring system, in particular issues related to its topology, the choice of wireless communication technology for tiers with well defined function, and the bridging between tiers. We also present some performance results for a two-tier topology with isolation of high-data-rate traffic from low-data-rate traffic, in which the patient´s body area network is implemented using 802.15.4 low-data-rate WPAN technology, while connection in the next higher tier (i.e., from the body area network to a hospital ward network or home network) uses the ubiquitous 802.11 WLAN technology.