Review and evaluation of WSN simulation tools in a cloud based environment

A wireless sensor network (WSN) is a collection of sensor nodes which can monitor the physical activities and attributes of a whole spectrum of objects and environments. The purpose of collecting this data and processing it in a meaningful manner requires that it adds significant value to the end user. WSN are deployed ever more frequently and applications vary from providing an early alert system on the activity of a volcano, to controlling the movements of livestock so that farming output can be maximized using virtual fencing. There are many challenges facing wireless sensor networks, with one being found in the uniqueness of each application, and challenges arise when WSN developers try to adequately test such applications when they are deployed with varying numbers of nodes, in all ranges of environmental conditions. To implement such systems in hardware involves a huge financial investment and from a development perspective prevents the developer from changing hardware platforms or communications protocols throughout the testing phase without incurring further financial hardship. Due to this fact, tools which can accurately simulate the behavior and performance of real world WSN applications are in high demand and a crucial aspect in the continued growth of WSN in the Internet of Things (IoT). This paper presents a cloud based system which makes various simulation platforms available to multiple users who wish to test WSN routing protocols or the hardware constraints of the various WSN platforms. This simulation testbed is hosted on a Dell PowerEdge R720 server in the communications laboratory in the University of Limerick and it is made available to users through the use of a virtual machine. This offers users access to many of the popular WSN simulation environments with vast computing resources and storage but at far reduced costs for protocol simulation.