Design Considerations of Mission-Oriented Sensor Node Architectures

Abstract

In research and education, a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) may exist for its own sake and also the specific nodes used in such networks might be considered as study objects. However, in real applications the networks and the nodes are applied to solve real-world issues and, hence, have to be designed for their specific purpose. Since WSNs and according nodes have to cope with significant limitations and challenges, especially regarding energy budgets, it is typically considered as impractical to use a ‘one size fits all’ network configuration or a ‘one size fits all’, universal sensor node. Instead, it is necessary for every single component of a node, like processor, memory, radio transceiver, set of sensors, peripherals, and energy source to consider what is necessary and they have to be chosen according to the needs of the envisaged use case. Therefore, designing or at least selecting appropriate nodes is a crucial part for every deployment of WSNs. Based on that also the used networking technologies, the topology, the protocols, etc. have to be developed and chosen. In this chapter, first some general considerations and architectures for sensor nodes are presented. Also, some insights of’how to design’ the adequate node for specific use cases are given. The design of sensor nodes for two exemplary missions are discussed in detail. In particular the diverse missions Human Activity Monitoring and Smart Farming are used to reveal the specialty when designing mission-oriented sensor nodes.