wilamowski-b-m-irwin-j-d-industrial-communication-systems-2011

6-12 Industrial Communication Systems
multitier approach is to utilize heterogeneous elements. In this approach, resource-constrained, low-power
elements are in charge of performing simpler tasks, such as detecting scalar physical measurements,
while resource-rich, high-power devices (such as gateways) perform more complex tasks [2]. In multitier
approaches, the system partitioning/clustering is applied to reduce power dissipation in the sensor nodes
by spreading some of the complex energy-consuming computation among resource-rich nodes that are
not energy constrained. Generally, IWSNs support several heterogeneous and independent applications
with different requirements. Therefore, it is necessary to develop flexible and hierarchical architectures
that can accommodate the requirements of all these applications in the same infrastructure [2].
In harsh industrial conditions, device failures can occur because of energy depletion or destruction.
In industrial applications, it is also possible to have sensor networks with highly mobile nodes.
Furthermore, sensor nodes and the network experience varying task dynamics, and they may be a target
for deliberate jamming. Therefore, sensor network topologies are prone to frequent changes after deployment.
In this respect, additional sensor nodes can be redeployed at any time to replace the malfunctioning
nodes or due to changes in task dynamics. Addition of new nodes poses a need to reorganize the network.
Coping with frequent topology changes in an ad hoc network that has myriads of nodes and very stringent
power consumption constraints requires special communication protocols.
6.5.3.2 Data Aggregation and Fusion
In IWSNs, local processing of raw data before directly forwarding reduces the amount of communication
and improve the communication efficiency (information per bit transmitted). Data aggregation
and fusion are typical localized mechanisms for the purpose of in-network data processing in IWSNs.
These mechanisms minimize traffic load (in terms of number and/or length of packets) through eliminating
redundancy. Specifically, when an intermediate node receives data from multiple source nodes,
instead of forwarding all of them directly, it checks the contents of incoming data and then combines
them by eliminating redundant information under some accuracy constraints. In this way, dense spatial
sampling of events and optimized processing and communication through data fusion can be achieved.
6.5.3.3 Cross-Layer Design
In multi-hop IWSNs, there is an interdependence among functions handled at all layers of the communication
protocol stack [2,12,26,40]. Functionalities handled at different layers are inherently coupled
due to the shared nature of the wireless communication channel. The physical, MAC, routing, and
transport layers together affect the contention for available network resources. The physical layer has a
direct effect on multiple access of nodes in wireless channels by changing the interference levels at the
receivers. The MAC layer determines the network bandwidth allocated to each node, which naturally
influences the performance of the physical layer in terms of successfully detecting the desired signals.
On the other hand, as a result of transmission schedules, high packet delays and low bandwidth can
occur, forcing the routing layer to modify its route decisions. Different routing decisions change the set
of nodes to be scheduled, and thereby impact the performance of the MAC layer. Moreover, congestion
control and transmission power control are also inherently coupled, as the capacity available on each
link depends on the transmission power [2]. Therefore, technical challenges caused by harsh industrial
conditions and application-specific QoS requirements in IWSNs call for new research on cross-layer
optimization and design methodologies to leverage potential improvements in exchanging information
between different layers of the communication stack. However, it is still important to keep some form
of logical separation of these functionalities to preserve modularity, and ease of design and testing [24].
6.6 Conclusions and Future Work
The collaborative nature of IWSNs brings several advantages over traditional wired industrial monitoring
and control systems, including self-organization, rapid deployment, flexibility, and inherent intelligent
processing capability. Despite the great progress on development of IWSNs, quite a few issues still
© 2011 by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC