Directional Antenna Node for WSAN Routing Efficiency
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current wireless sensor and actor networks (WSANs) face inefficiencies in routing protocols, leading to increased complexity, energy consumption, and delay due to separate protocols for different traffic patterns, which are not suitable for constrained sensor node devices.
Innovation Solution
A node equipped with a directional antenna that determines the presence of actor nodes or neighbor nodes in specific regions to select efficient directional anycast routing paths, using relative-location information to forward packets effectively and adaptively switch between beam patterns to ensure packet delivery.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If separate protocols are used for different traffic patterns in WSANs, then specific communication requirements can be met, but the network complexity increases and performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a unified routing protocol that can handle multiple traffic patterns (sensor-sink, sensor-sensor, sensor-actor, actor-actor communication) through a single protocol framework. The protocol uses a common structure with traffic-type identification fields, allowing it to adapt to different communication requirements without requiring separate protocols for each traffic pattern, thereby reducing network complexity while maintaining versatility
2Productivity
If traditional routing protocols are used in WSANs, then basic packet forwarding is achieved, but energy consumption increases and packet delivery delay increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by enabling sensor nodes to make localized routing decisions based on traffic type identification and geographic information about actor nodes. Instead of relying on complex global routing tables, each node independently determines the optimal next hop by checking local caches for actor locations and using geographic position data, which reduces energy consumption while maintaining efficient packet forwarding
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-calculating and caching actor node location information in sensor nodes before actual packet transmission. When actor nodes move or new actors join the network, their location information is proactively updated and distributed to relevant sensor nodes, so that when packets need to be routed, the forwarding decisions can be made immediately using pre-available information, reducing both energy consumption and delivery delay
3Productivity
If actor nodes are used to improve routing efficiency, then energy consumption decreases and packet delivery delay decreases, but the requirement for location information and coordination increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses actor nodes as intermediaries that maintain location information about other actors and relay routing information to sensor nodes. Instead of requiring sensor nodes to directly detect and track all actor positions, the actor nodes themselves serve as the information source and coordination point, simplifying the detection and measurement requirements while enabling efficient routing through geographic information
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are a node and a method of transmitting packets from the node. The disclosed node may use a directional antenna for transmitting a packet. The node includes a determining unit and a forwarding unit. The determining unit may determine whether or not there is an actor node present in a region traversed by a packet forwarding direction, where the packet forwarding direction is determined from relative-location information of a destination node with respect to a source node, the region is one of a plurality of regions divided by particular angles, and the plurality of regions have multiple beam patterns of the node formed therein. The forwarding unit may transmit the packet to an actor node present in the region traversed by the packet forwarding direction or transmit the packet to a neighbor node present in the region traversed by the packet forwarding direction.