Multi-channel MAC protocol based on network partitioning for wireless sensor networks

Abstract

The limited amount of available orthogonal channels and noise interference are two major issues to constrain performances of multi-channel MAC protocols in wireless sensor networks (WSN).In conjunction with features of data gathering networks,a partitioning-based multi-channel MAC protocol was designed.Initially it partitioned network into several sub-trees with lower collision factor,without increasing the total value of interference around the whole network.Furthermore,it adopted a coarse-grained channel assignment strategy on basis of graph coloring theory,in order to ensure each sub-tree work on a relative optimal channel.Simulation results show that the proposed MAC protocol can significantly improve throughput and reduce end-to-end latency and packet loss.

Keywords

• wireless sensor networks;media access control;multi-channel;network partition