Multi-hop Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are subject to network latency, that is highly affected by the transmission delay. Real-time applications, such as healthcare monitoring systems, based on this network technology need to meet time-quality requirements. In this paper, we address the issue of communication latency using Multi-sink WSN (MS-WSN) deployment and cross-layer protocols. MAC-aware routing protocols are proposed, for soft real-time applications, with packets being preventively routed through the lowest latency paths in unicast schemes. Moreover, with the network size growth, buffer occupancy is impacted generating, incrementally, high network latency. We propose buffer control mechanisms to manage this. Obtained simulation results show better average delay, improved of 58%, and better average maximum buffer occupancy, decreased of 89%.
['Lucas Leão', 'Violeta Felea', 'Hervé Guyennet']
MAC-Aware Routing in Multi-Sink WSN with Dynamic Back-Off Time and Buffer Constraint