An energy-efficient routing protocol for wireless sensor networks

Energy consumption of communication is a key factor of the lifetimes of wireless sensor networks. This paper presents an energy-efficient routing protocol for wireless sensor network. In the protocol, each sensor node detects the distance between the base station and itself. Then, it calculates a tier ID in according to the distance. A lower tier ID indicates a shorter distance between the base station and the node. Nodes with higher tier IDs send data to their neighbors with lower tier IDs, where data is compressed and forwarded toward nodes of even lower tiers. Eventually the data reaches the nodes at the lowest tier, then the system selects a node sending data to the base station. Because long-distance communication between the base station and the node is energy-consuming, it will have its energy drained off faster than other nodes. The protocol employs a mechanism to shift the long-distance communication among all network nodes. Thus, energy consumption is evenly distributed among all network nodes.