Coding and interleaving schemes for Wireless Sensor Networks

The transmission of data over Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) poses significant constraints on the energy and bandwidth of the communication system. We consider the problem of decision fusion in a distributed detection system in a classical parallel fusion structure by incorporating the fading channel layer that is omnipresent in wireless sensor networks. We use channel coding and transmit diversity schemes, Equal Gain Combining (EGC) and Maximum Ratio Combining (MRC). We employ a multi-carrier modulation scheme over the wireless communication channel. This paper proposes the use of Hamming, Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) Coding, or Viterbi coding. Interleaving is also suggested in this paper using chaotic Baker map randomization for the reduction of the Bit Error Rate (BER). Moreover, the chaotic interleaving adds a degree of security to the transmitted data. Simulation results show that the application of coding and interleaving achieves a performance improvement in the wireless sensor network.