Wireless Sensor Networks: Connecting
Theory with Practice
Dr. Jeffrey Frolik
Department of Electrical Engineering
Date:
Time:
Location: 367 Votey
Abstract
In recent years, the diverse applications for and benefits of wireless sensor networks (WSN) have been touted by researchers and the general press alike. While much work to date has focused on low-cost, energy efficient hardware designs, network architectures and collaborative algorithms, very little effort has been dedicated to characterizing the wireless environment for applications. However, to implement any wireless system a full understanding of the communication channel is requisite. It should be noted that WSN are unique due to application specific deployments (e.g., near-ground, in-building, at air/water boundaries or embedded in composite structures) and as such current channel models for other wireless systems (e.g., cellular or satellite communications) are not applicable. In this talk we will first survey areas of active research in this nascent area and then discuss complementary work at UVM in understanding the constraints placed at the physical (PHY) layer. The talk concludes by looking at some existing real-world applications and the methodologies they employ.