Reducing power consumption of image transmission over IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee sensor network

Reduction of power consumption and network's autonomy prolongation are crucial for a WSN. This is typically performed with low duty cycle of sensor nodes. A special challenge in WSNs is transmission of a large amount of data, like images and video, that is becoming more and more required in various applications. This paper presents a study of fragmented image transmission with IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee protocol where power consumption is reduced by maximal frame filling and disabling MAC acknowledgment with implementation of control field on APL layer. Protocol modification by implementing transmission control on APL layer is necessary in order to achieve successful image transmission, even for the original protocol. Disabling MAC acknowledgment enables communication power reduction of around 7.6%. Another advantage is active time shortening of 1.6%, which prolongs network's lifetime.