Cross-Layer Interactions in Multihop Wireless Sensor Networks: A Constrained Queueing Model

In this article, we propose a constrained queueing model to investigate the performance of multihop wireless sensor networks. Specifically, the cross-layer interactions of rate admission control, traffic engineering, dynamic routing, and adaptive link scheduling are studied jointly with the proposed queueing model. In addition, the stochastic network utility maximization problem in wireless sensor networks is addressed within this framework. We propose an adaptive network resource allocation scheme, called the ANRA algorithm, which provides a joint solution to the multiple-layer components of the stochastic network utility maximization problem. We show that the proposed ANRA algorithm achieves a near-optimal solution, that is, (1 - epsilon) of the global optimum network utility where epsilon can be arbitrarily small, with a trade-off with the average delay experienced in the network. The proposed ANRA algorithm enjoys the merit of self-adaptability through its online nature and thus is of particular interest for time-varying scenarios such as multihop wireless sensor networks. Categories and Subject Descriptors: C.2.1 [Computer-Communication Networks]: Network Architecture and Design-Wireless communications