Efficient path key establishment for wireless sensor networks

Key predistribution schemes have been proposed as means to overcome wireless sensor network constraints such as limited communication and processing power. Two sensor nodes can establish a secure link with some probability based on the information stored in their memories, though it is not always possible that two sensor nodes may set up a secure link. In this paper, we propose a new approach that elects trusted common nodes called “Proxies” which reside on an existing secure path linking two sensor nodes. These sensor nodes are used to send the generated key which will be divided into parts (nuggets) according to the number of elected proxies. Our approach has been assessed against previously developed algorithms, and the results show that our algorithm discovers proxies more quickly which are closer to both end nodes, thus producing shorter path lengths. We have also assessed the impact of our algorithm on the average time to establish a secure link when the transmitter and receiver of the sensor nodes are “ON.” The results show the superiority of our algorithm in this regard. Overall, the proposed algorithm is well suited for wireless sensor networks

A Simple and Efficient Method to Mitigate the Hot Spot Problem in Wireless Sensor Networks

Much work on wireless sensor networks deals with or considers the hot spot problem, i.e., the problem that the sensor nodes closest to the base station are critical for the lifetime of the sensor network because these nodes need to relay more packet than nodes further away from the base station. Since it is often assumed that sensor nodes will become inexpensive, a simple solution to the hot spot problem is to place additional sensor nodes around the base stations. Using a simple mathematical model we discuss the possible performance gains of adding these supplementary nodes. Our results show that for certain networks only a limited number of additional nodes are required to fourfold network lifetime. We also show that the possible gain depends heavily on the fraction of nodes already present in the vicinity of the base station

An Identity Based Key Management Scheme in Wireless Sensor Networks

Pairwise key establishment is one of the fundamental security services in sensor networks which enables sensor nodes in a sensor network to communicate securely with each other using cryptographic techniques. It is not feasible to apply traditional public key management techniques in resource-constrained sensor nodes, and also because the sensor nodes are vulnerable to physical capture. In this paper, we introduce a new scheme called the identity based key pre-distribution using a pseudo random function (IBPRF), which has better trade-off between communication overhead, network connectivity and resilience against node capture compared to the other key pre-distribution schemes. Our scheme can be easily adapted in mobile sensor networks. This scheme supports the addition of new sensor nodes after the initial deployment and also works for any deployment topology. In addition, we propose an improved version of our scheme to support large sensor networks.Comment: 7 pages, Published in Proceedings of 4th Asian International Mobile Computing Conference (AMOC 2006), Kolkata, India, pp. 70-76, January 4-7, 200

Distributed Service Discovery for Heterogeneous Wireless Sensor Networks

Service discovery in heterogeneous Wireless Sensor Networks is a challenging research objective, due to the inherent limitations of sensor nodes and their extensive and dense deployment. The protocols proposed for ad hoc networks are too heavy for sensor environments. This paper presents a resourceaware solution for the service discovery problem, which exploits the heterogeneous nature of the sensor network and alleviates the high-density problem from the flood-based approaches. The idea is to organize nodes into clusters, based on the available resources and the dynamics of nodes. The clusterhead nodes act as a distributed directory of service registrations. Service discovery messages are exchanged among the nodes in the distributed directory. The simulation results show the performance of the service discovery protocol in heterogeneous dense environments

Resource Aware Sensor Nodes in Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless sensor networks are continuing to receive considerable research interest due, in part, to the range of possible applications. One of the greatest challenges facing researchers is in overcoming the limited network lifetime inherent in the small locally powered sensor nodes. In this paper, we propose IDEALS, a system to manage a wireless sensor network using a combination of information management, energy harvesting and energy monitoring, which we label resource awareness. Through this, IDEALS is able to extend the network lifetime for important messages, by controlling the degradation of the network to maximise information throughput