Wireless Sensor Networks : Technology, Protocols, and Applications

12 INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW OF WIRELESS SENSOR NETWORKS
electronics/entertainment, and asset management. Commercial market segments
include the following:
Industrial monitoring and control
Commercial building and control
Process control
Home automation
Wireless automated meter reading (AMR) and load management (LM)
Metropolitan operations (traffic, automatic tolls, fire, etc.)
National security applications: chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear
wireless sensors
Military sensors
Environmental (land, air, sea) and agricultural wireless sensors
Suppliers and products tend to cluster according to these categories.
1.1.3 Focus of This Book
This book focuses on wireless sensor networks. 6,7 We look at basic WSN technology
and supporting protocols, with emphasis placed on standardization. The treatise provides
an exposition of the fundamental aspects of wireless sensor networks from a
practical engineering perspective. The text provides an introductory up-to-date survey
of WSNs, including applications, communication, technology, networking protocols,
middleware, security, and management. Both C1WSNs and C2WSNs are addressed.
The present chapter aims at assessing, from an introductory perspective, sensor
technology as a whole, including some of the recent history of the field. We also
address some of the challenges to be faced and addressed by the evolving practice.
In Chapter 2 we discuss near-term and longer-range applications of WSNs and look
at network sensor applications for both business- and government-oriented applications.
In Chapter 3 we look at basic sensor systems and provide a survey of sensor
technology, including classification in terms of microsensors (tiny sensors), radar sensors,
nanosensors, and other sensors. We address sensor functionality, sensing and
actuation units, processing units, communication units, power units, and other application-dependent
units. We also look at design issues, the operating environment and
hardware constraints, transmission media, radio-frequency integrated circuits, power
constraints, communications network interfaces, network architecture and protocols,
network topology, performance issues, fault tolerance, scalability, and self-organization
and mobility capabilities. Sensor arrays and networks are also discussed.
Chapter 4 begins a discussion of sensor network protocols. We address physical
layer issues such as channel-related concerns, radio-frequency bands, bandwidth,
6 Some sensor networks are not wireless; although many of the issues are similar, others are not. Our
discussion focuses on the wireless situation.
7 Control and actuation are covered here only in passing.