Modified Beacon-Enabled IEEE 802.15.4 MAC for Lower Latency

Industrial sensing, monitoring and automation offer a lucrative application domain for networking and communications. Wired sensor networks have traditionally been used for these applications because such networks adequately meet two vital requirements, i.e., low latency and high reliability, needed for an industrial deployment. Wired sensor networks, however, are not very cost effective due to higher components' cost. These networks also lack the flexibility needed for subsequent topological changes. Wireless sensor networks (WSN), on the other hand, are less expensive and offer high degree of flexibility. Wireless networks, therefore, can offer an attractive and viable solution for industrial sensing and automation. IEEE 802.15.4 standard defines a specification for MAC and PHY layers for short-range, low bit-rate, and low-cost wireless networks. However, the specified system is inefficient in terms of latency and reliability and fails to meet the stringent operational requirem...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2008
• Where: GLOBECOM
• Authors: G. Bhatti, A. Mehta, Zafer Sahinoglu, J. Zhang, R. Viswanathan
• Keywords: Communications, GLOBECOM 2008, IEEE 802.15.4 Standard, Sensor Networks, Wireless Networks