Improving Learning Automata-based Routing in Wireless Sensor Networks

Recent research in the field of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) has demonstrated the advantages of using learning automata theory to steer the routing decisions made by the sensors in the network. These advantages include aspects such as energy saving, energy balancing, increased lifetime, the selection of relatively short paths, as well as combinations of these and other goals. In this paper, we propose a very simple yet effective technique, which can be easily combined with a learning automaton to dramatically improve the performance of the routing process obtained with the latter. As a proof-of-concept, we focus on a typical learning automata-based routing process, which aims at finding a good trade off between the energy consumed and the number of hops along the paths chosen. In order to assess the performance of this routing process, we apply it on a WSN scenario where a station S gathers data from the sensors. In this typical WSN setting, we show that our combined technique can significantly improve the decisions made with the automata; and more importantly, even though the proof-of-concept particularizes somehow the automata and their behavior, the technique described in this paper is general in scope, and therefore can be applied under different routing methods and settings using learning automata.