Determining the number of nodes in a volcano monitoring system by using WSN

Volcano monitoring systems by using Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) must ensure an adequate network performance, which - in fact - depends on the number of network nodes. This paper is focused on determining the number of nodes, which collectively are able to yield an adequate network performance. We implemented function optimization methods and QoS metric analysis to find the effective number of sensors. It is guaranteed that the network is competent and meets the requirements of volcano monitoring systems. The process was arranged in three phases: Network WSN on the ns-2 simulator was implemented with randomized distribution. The transmission of information was collected for 2 minutes of simulation, showing tolerable results of average delay in units of milliseconds. The second stage corresponds to the deduction of the algebraic objective function, and the last includes the application of nonlinear optimization methods on objective function. The results show that the optimal number of nodes is 10, it ensures packet loss less than 20%.