Using optimum transmission range to design energy efficient systems for the neuRFon/spl trade/ Netform

NeuRFon/spl trade/ Netform is a sensor network made up of very low cost, low power, wireless devices (neuRFon/spl trade/ devices) that are relatively static, and are pervasively deployed throughout the environment. In this paper, we are interested in finding the relationship between the optimum one-hop transmission distance and the transceiver device parameters that will minimize the total system energy. Our analysis assumes that the individual neuRFon/spl trade/ devices do not have power control and therefore will transmit at a common range. Our results show that the optimum one-hop transmission distance is independent of the physical network topology, the number of transmission sources, and the total transmission distance. It only depends on the propagation environment and the device parameters. The implications and usefulness of this result on present day transceiver devices are also discussed.