TCP in the Internet of Things: from ostracism to prominence

© 2018 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.TCP has traditionally been neglected as a transport-layer protocol for the Internet of Things (IoT). However, recent trends and industry needs are favoring TCP presence in IoT environments. In this article, we describe the main IoT scenarios where TCP will be used. We then analyze the historically claimed issues of TCP in the IoT context. We argue that, in contrast to generally accepted wisdom, most of those possible issues fall in one of the following categories: i) are also found in well-accepted IoT end-to-end reliability mechanisms, ii) can be solved, or iii) are not actual issues. Considering the future prominent role of TCP in the IoT, we provide recommendations for lightweight TCP implementation and suitable operation in such scenarios, based on our IETF standardization work on the topic.Postprint (author's final draft

Machine Learning in Wireless Sensor Networks: Algorithms, Strategies, and Applications

Wireless sensor networks monitor dynamic environments that change rapidly over time. This dynamic behavior is either caused by external factors or initiated by the system designers themselves. To adapt to such conditions, sensor networks often adopt machine learning techniques to eliminate the need for unnecessary redesign. Machine learning also inspires many practical solutions that maximize resource utilization and prolong the lifespan of the network. In this paper, we present an extensive literature review over the period 2002-2013 of machine learning methods that were used to address common issues in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The advantages and disadvantages of each proposed algorithm are evaluated against the corresponding problem. We also provide a comparative guide to aid WSN designers in developing suitable machine learning solutions for their specific application challenges.Comment: Accepted for publication in IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorial

Designing and Implimentation of Spatial IP Address Assignment Scheme for a Wireless Network

Wireless sensor networks are composed of large numbers up to thousands of tiny radio- equipped sensors. Every sensor has a small microprocessor with enough power to allow the sensors to autonomously form networks through which sensor information is gathered. Wireless sensor networks makes it possible to monitor places like nuclear disaster areas or volcano craters without requiring humans to be immediately present. Many wireless sensor network applications cannot be performed in isolation; the sensor network must somehow be connected to monitoring and controlling entities. This research paper investigates a novel approach for connecting sensor networks to existing networks: by using the TCP/IP protocol suite in the sensor network, the sensors can be directly connected to an outside network without the need for special proxy servers or protocol converters. Bringing TCP/IP to wireless sensor networks is a challenging task, however. First, because of their limited physical size and low cost, sensors are severely constrained in terms of memory and processing power. Traditionally, these constraints have been considered too limiting for a sensor to be able to use the TCP/IP protocols. In this research paper, I show that even tiny sensors can communicate using TCP/IP. Second, the harsh communication conditions make TCP/IP perform poorly in terms of both throughput and energy efficiency. With this research paper, I suggest a number of optimizations that are intended to increase the performance of TCP/IP for sensor networks. The results of the work presented in this research paper have a significant impact on the embedded TCP/IP networking community. The software evolves as part of the research paper has become widely known in the community. The software is mentioned in books on embedded systems and networking, is used in academic courses on embedded systems, is the focus of articles in professional magazines, is incorporated in embedded operating systems, and is used in a

REISCH: incorporating lightweight and reliable algorithms into healthcare applications of WSNs

Healthcare institutions require advanced technology to collect patients' data accurately and continuously. The tradition technologies still suffer from two problems: performance and security efficiency. The existing research has serious drawbacks when using public-key mechanisms such as digital signature algorithms. In this paper, we propose Reliable and Efficient Integrity Scheme for Data Collection in HWSN (REISCH) to alleviate these problems by using secure and lightweight signature algorithms. The results of the performance analysis indicate that our scheme provides high efficiency in data integration between sensors and server (saves more than 24% of alive sensors compared to traditional algorithms). Additionally, we use Automated Validation of Internet Security Protocols and Applications (AVISPA) to validate the security procedures in our scheme. Security analysis results confirm that REISCH is safe against some well-known attacks

Supporting Cyber-Physical Systems with Wireless Sensor Networks: An Outlook of Software and Services

Sensing, communication, computation and control technologies are the essential building blocks of a cyber-physical system (CPS). Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are a way to support CPS as they provide fine-grained spatial-temporal sensing, communication and computation at a low premium of cost and power. In this article, we explore the fundamental concepts guiding the design and implementation of WSNs. We report the latest developments in WSN software and services for meeting existing requirements and newer demands; particularly in the areas of: operating system, simulator and emulator, programming abstraction, virtualization, IP-based communication and security, time and location, and network monitoring and management. We also reflect on the ongoing efforts in providing dependable assurances for WSN-driven CPS. Finally, we report on its applicability with a case-study on smart buildings

Survey on Lightweight Primitives and Protocols for RFID in Wireless Sensor Networks

The use of radio frequency identification (RFID) technologies is becoming widespread in all kind of wireless network-based applications. As expected, applications based on sensor networks, ad-hoc or mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) can be highly benefited from the adoption of RFID solutions. There is a strong need to employ lightweight cryptographic primitives for many security applications because of the tight cost and constrained resource requirement of sensor based networks. This paper mainly focuses on the security analysis of lightweight protocols and algorithms proposed for the security of RFID systems. A large number of research solutions have been proposed to implement lightweight cryptographic primitives and protocols in sensor and RFID integration based resource constraint networks. In this work, an overview of the currently discussed lightweight primitives and their attributes has been done. These primitives and protocols have been compared based on gate equivalents (GEs), power, technology, strengths, weaknesses and attacks. Further, an integration of primitives and protocols is compared with the possibilities of their applications in practical scenarios

Compression-based Data Reduction Technique for IoT Sensor Networks

في شبكات أجهزة استشعار إنترنت الأشياء ، يعد توفير الطاقة أمرًا مهمًا جدًا نظرًا لأن عقد أجهزة استشعار إنترنت الأشياء تعمل ببطاريتها المحدودة. يعد نقل البيانات مكلفًا للغاية في عقد أجهزة استشعار إنترنت الأشياء ويهدر معظم الطاقة ، في حين أن استهلاك الطاقة أقل بكثير بالنسبة لمعالجة البيانات. هناك العديد من التقنيات والمفاهيم التي تعنى بتوفير الطاقة ، وهي مخصصة في الغالب لتقليل نقل البيانات. لذلك ، يمكننا الحفاظ على كمية كبيرة من الطاقة مع تقليل عمليات نقل البيانات في شبكات مستشعر إنترنت الأشياء. في هذا البحث ، اقترحنا طريقة تقليل البيانات القائمة على الضغط (CBDR) والتي تعمل في مستوى عقد أجهزة استشعار إنترنت الأشياء. يتضمن CBDR مرحلتين للضغط ، مرحلة التكميم باستخدام طريقة SAX والتي تقلل النطاق الديناميكي لقراءات بيانات المستشعر ، بعد ذلك ضغط LZW بدون خسارة لضغط مخرجات المرحلة الاولى. يؤدي تكميم قراءات البيانات لعقد المستشعر إلى حجم ابجدية الـ SAX إلى تقليل القراءات ، مع الاستفادة من أفضل أحجام الضغط ، مما يؤدي إلى تحقيق ضغط أكبر في LZW. نقترح أيضًا تحسينًا آخر لطريقة CBDR وهو إضافة ناقل حركة ديناميكي (DT-CBDR) لتقليل إجمالي عدد البيانات المرسلة إلى البوابة والمعالجة المطلوبة. يتم استخدام محاكي OMNeT ++ جنبًا إلى جنب مع البيانات الحسية الحقيقية التي تم جمعها في Intel Lab لإظهار أداء الطريقة المقترحة. توضح تجارب المحاكاة أن تقنية CBDR المقترحة تقدم أداء أفضل من التقنيات الأخرى في الأدبياتEnergy savings are very common in IoT sensor networks because IoT sensor nodes operate with their own limited battery. The data transmission in the IoT sensor nodes is very costly and consume much of the energy while the energy usage for data processing is considerably lower. There are several energy-saving strategies and principles, mainly dedicated to reducing the transmission of data. Therefore, with minimizing data transfers in IoT sensor networks, can conserve a considerable amount of energy. In this research, a Compression-Based Data Reduction (CBDR) technique was suggested which works in the level of IoT sensor nodes. The CBDR includes two stages of compression, a lossy SAX Quantization stage which reduces the dynamic range of the sensor data readings, after which a lossless LZW compression to compress the loss quantization output. Quantizing the sensor node data readings down to the alphabet size of SAX results in lowering, to the advantage of the best compression sizes, which contributes to greater compression from the LZW end of things. Also, another improvement was suggested to the CBDR technique which is to add a Dynamic Transmission (DT-CBDR) to decrease both the total number of data sent to the gateway and the processing required. OMNeT++ simulator along with real sensory data gathered at Intel Lab is used to show the performance of the proposed technique. The simulation experiments illustrate that the proposed CBDR technique provides better performance than the other techniques in the literature

DAR Model: A Novel Symmetric Key Enabled Security architecture for reliable data transfer in Wireless Sensor Networks

Security is an indispensable aspect in every transaction happening in the network transmissions. Wireless Sensor Networks are pretty vulnerable to the security attacks. Hence a highly efficient architectural model is very much essential in designing the sensor networks. Cryptographic algorithms play a vital role in providing encryption and decryption to the data being transmitted consequently with which security is offered in an elegant manner. In this paper, a reliable design comprising three pioneering algorithms enabled with symmetric key is architected for secure communication in wireless sensor networks from a node to the base station. The design involves two phases. In the former phase two algorithms which are effective in all perspectives are used for data transmission from node to cluster head and in the latter phase another proficient algorithm is used for communication between cluster head to base station. The three algorithms used are Data Encryption Standard (DES), Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) and RC4. Both block and stream cipher algorithms are used to fine tune the performance; and in addition, the data has been compressed with unprecedented techniques to reduce the burden on encryption. This led to an amazing performance in terms of security parameters

A network access control framework for 6LoWPAN networks

Low power over wireless personal area networks (LoWPAN), in particular wireless sensor networks, represent an emerging technology with high potential to be employed in critical situations like security surveillance, battlefields, smart-grids, and in e-health applications. The support of security services in LoWPAN is considered a challenge. First, this type of networks is usually deployed in unattended environments, making them vulnerable to security attacks. Second, the constraints inherent to LoWPAN, such as scarce resources and limited battery capacity, impose a careful planning on how and where the security services should be deployed. Besides protecting the network from some well-known threats, it is important that security mechanisms be able to withstand attacks that have not been identified before. One way of reaching this goal is to control, at the network access level, which nodes can be attached to the network and to enforce their security compliance. This paper presents a network access security framework that can be used to control the nodes that have access to the network, based on administrative approval, and to enforce security compliance to the authorized nodes