Comparison of Internet and Dedicated Communication Protocols for Instrumentation and Measurement Systems using Short Range Wireless Networks

Short-range wireless networks (SRWN) are becoming more and more popular for ubiquitous sensor and actuator connectivity in instrumentation and measurement systems. Currently, a significant number of different protocols glut the markets, leaving the system designer and the end user with the burden of choice. In many cases, these protocols cover layer 1 to 7. Some of them are standardized and open protocols, others remain proprietary. Instead of those dedicated solutions, it is well possible to run an Internet protocol stack directly over the SRWN, which covers the physical and data link layers. Although this approach promises direct interoperability on the networking layer, there are different proposals currently being discussed. This contribution presents and compares the different technological approaches to run the Internet protocol stack over SRWN and compares them with the most relevant dedicated solutions. The IP-based approaches include TCP vs. UDP, IPv6 vs. IPv4 vs. nanoIP, and the use of the different routing protocols. The contribution discusses the advantages and caveats of these approaches, and compares them against the dedicated protocols