A Comparative Analysis of Hierarchical Routing Protocols in Wireless Sensor Networks
Anar Abdel Hady, Sherine M. Abd El-Kader, Hussein S. Eissa, Ashraf Salem, Hossam Mahmoud Ahmad Fahmy · IGI Global eBooks · 2012
Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) consist of small nodes with sensing, computation, and wireless communications capabilities. Many routing, power management, and data dissemination protocols have been specifically designed for WSNs. Routing protocols in WSNs might differ depending on the application and network architecture. However, wireless sensor networks have several restrictions, e.g. limited energy supply, limited computing power, and limited bandwidth, and hence, one of the main design goals of WSNs is to carry out data communication while trying to prolong the lifetime of the network and prevent connectivity degradation by employing efficient energy management techniques. This chapter will give a detailed description of the characteristics of routing in wireless sensor networks; it describes the routing protocols used in these networks pointing out the advantages and disadvantages of each.