Optimization of power in Wireless Industrial Automation Networks

Wireless Industrial Automation Networks may comprise large number of sensors and actuators which are densely deployed in various parts of an industry to monitor and control physical parameters like pressure, temperature, humidity, flow, level, density etc.by utilizing IEEE 802.15.4 standard. Typically, a sensor node consists of sensing subsystem for data acquisition, processing subsystem for data processing and storage and wireless communication subsystem for data transmission. Power source supplies the energy needed for the device to do the programmed task. The power source consists of a battery with a limited energy budget. Also, it might be inconvenient to recharge the battery, because sensors and actuators may be installed in a hostile environment. On the other hand, the sensor network should have a lifetime long enough to fulfill the application requirements. In many cases a lifetime of a sensor node is in the order of months or years as required. In some cases it is possible to get energy from the external environment by using solar cells as power source. But the external power supply source is often unreliable so that an energy buffer is needed. Hence power is a critical resource and must be used very cautiously. Therefore, the power optimization is an important issue in the design of wireless sensor based systems. This paper depicts some of the standard practices to be enforced in the components of the sensor node and analyzed the routing level approaches to achieve the power optimization in Wireless Industrial Automation Networks.