Connectivity Optimization for Wireless Sensor Networks Applied to Forest Monitoring

Device deployment plays a key role in the performance of any large-scale wireless sensor network (WSN) application. WSN device deployment (i.e. the numbers and positions of the devices) must consider several design factors, viz. coverage, connectivity, lifetime, etc. However, connectivity remains the most fundamental factor especially in a large scale harsh environment. In this paper, we explore the problem of relay node (RN) placement in 3D forestry space. We formulate a generalized RN deployment optimization problem aimed at maximizing the network connectivity with constraints on RNs count. We investigate how the number of RNs can affect the connectivity of a WSN in a harsh environment. Based on quantitative analysis of such effects, the paper sets a threshold on the minimum number of required RNs.