CERP: Cooperative and Efficient Routing Protocol for Wireless Sensor Networks

Area of Science:

• Computer Science
• Networking
• Wireless Sensor Networks

Background:

• Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) face significant energy constraints, necessitating efficient routing protocols.
• Cooperative routing strategies leverage wireless broadcast properties to improve routing efficacy.
• Existing protocols like RPL require enhancements for optimal performance in resource-limited WSNs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel power-conscious routing approach for resource-restricted WSNs.
• To develop an innovative relay node selection technique within clustered networks to reduce energy consumption and ensure data dependability.
• To integrate this methodology into the Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks (RPL), creating the Cooperative and Efficient Routing Protocol (CERP).

Main Methods:

• Developed an innovative relay node selection technique exploiting cooperative communications in clustered WSNs.
• Integrated the technique into the RPL protocol, resulting in the CERP protocol.
• Conducted performance evaluations using an Arduino-based sensor node and the Contiki operating system in real-world scenarios.

Main Results:

• The CERP protocol effectively identifies and selects optimal relay nodes for energy-minimal and reliable packet transmission.
• Performance evaluations demonstrated that CERP enhances RPL reliability by 10% and achieves 18% greater energy savings.
• Practical scenario testing confirmed the efficacy and dependability of the proposed strategy.

Conclusions:

• The proposed CERP strategy significantly improves energy conservation and data reliability in WSNs compared to standard RPL.
• CERP contributes to prolonging sensor node battery life while maintaining dependable communication.
• The findings support the evolution of power-conscious routing strategies for sustainable WSN deployment.