A Glimpse at Three Wireless Networking Problems Robert Kinicki WPI Computer Science Friday, October 5^th, 2007 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Fuller Labs 320 This talk introduces three wireless networking problems: dynamic rate adaptation, node clustering for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) and power-aware MAC (Media Access Control) protocols for WSNs. Most current wireless network cards use ARF (Auto Rate Fallback) for dynamic rate adaptation. Deficiencies in ARF will be explained and the performance of two promising replacement algorithms will be analyzed. Clustering algorithms are important in new biosensor applications and more generally to maximize the lifetime of battery-powered sensor nodes in WSNs. This topic will be briefly considered. While IEEE 802.11 is the MAC layer standard for wireless networks, it is ineffective in WSNs when power consumption is critical. Many replacement designs for WSN MAC protocols have been proposed. This presentation explains the power consumption tradeoffs in the design of power-aware MAC protocols for WSNs and focuses on two or three recent proposals from the current literature. ___ This fall Robert Kinicki began his 30th year as a professor in the WPI Computer Science Department. His research interests include wireless networks, wireless sensor networks and network performance evaluation. Host: Michael Gennert Refreshments will be served. Maintained by webmaster@cs.wpi.edu Last modified: 9/27/2007Date Entered/Modified Goes Here

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