Mobile wireless RSA overlay network as critical infrastructure for national security

The article presents an analysis on the use of wireless sensor networks for safeguarding our critical infrastructures and the management of a disaster for first response emergency scenarios. This analysis is based on a qualitative comparison of the features of a wireless sensor network to a list of requirements defined by The National Security Telecommunications Security Convergence Task Force report for the national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) of the USA. The result is that a wireless sensor network can only meet part of these requirements and therefore a more complex network that supports an overlay of mobile and fixed wireless networks, existing networking infrastructure, and sensor/robotic Web services is required. A sensor network architecture is presented that leverages the IEEE 1451 sensor model within a wireless mesh network in order to facilitate access to the sensory data, and communication between mobile robotic sensing agents (RSAs). In order to distribute the sensed data reliably to experts around the world, these highly mobile emergency response sensor networks need to leverage existing enterprise network access points. The emergency sensor mesh network and the enterprise host form a symbiotic relationship so that the sensory data can be made available to users through the host's access to the Internet.