A genetic algorithm on multi-sensor networks lifetime optimization

Since data communications consume the most energy of sensor networks, it is reasonable to take efficient traffic balancing to prolong the lifetime. In addition, the traffic aggregation is a main characteristic that distinguish sensor networks from others e.g. Internet and MANET. Therefore, an optimal traffic distribution will maximize the network lifetime. Furthermore, sensor networks are generally developed for special applications. If different sensor networks deployed in the same region can cooperate with each other in data transmission, their lifetimes can be improved remarkably. In this paper, we propose a genetic algorithm to achieve optimal traffic distribution on multi-sensor networks and show its efficiency by experiments.