Performance modeling of the LEACH protocol for mobile wireless sensor networks

In many wireless sensor network applications, nodes are mobile, while many protocols proposed for these networks assume a static network. Thus, it is important to evaluate if a traditional protocol designed for a static network can tolerate different levels of mobility. This paper provides an analytic model to investigate the effect of mobility on a well-known cluster-based protocol, LEACH. The model evaluates data loss after construction of the clusters due to node mobility, which can be used to estimate a proper update interval to balance the energy and data loss ratio. Thus, the results can help the network designer to adjust the topology update interval given a value of acceptable data loss threshold. A practical approach to increase the mobility tolerance of the protocol is applying a buffer zone to the transmission ranges of the nodes. The model is extended in order to consider the effect of buffer zone. To validate the analytic evaluations, extensive simulations are conducted and correctness of the evaluations is tightly verified.

Research highlights
► A well-known protocol for wireless sensor networks, LEACH is analyzed against mobility.
► The model evaluates data loss after construction of the clusters due to node mobility.
► The model sets a topology update interval to balance the energy and data loss ratio.
► Mobility tolerance is increased by the buffer zone method before results are analyzed.
► The optimum value of buffer zone is obtained through the model.