Reliability performance of wireless sensor networks for civil infrastructure – Part II: Prediction and verification

Abstract

Application studies on wireless sensor networks (WSN) are actively conducted in the construction industry. However, there are several technical limitations including signal interference caused by the characteristics of wireless sensors, reliability degradation in wireless communication and uncertainty of configuring a network topology. This may lead to a decline in reliability and performance of real-time data acquisition methods. Thus, the paper developed a model capable of predicting reliability performance of wireless signals applied to civil infrastructures. The measured and pre­dicted values of wireless signals are compared and analyzed through a field experiment carried out in an actual bridge to verify the prediction model suggested herein. As a result of the analysis, the prediction model demonstrated a variation up to 8.4% compared with actual measurements, proving the high accuracy of the prediction model. Furthermore, the reception rate at short distances within a 5 m radius is at least 90%, showing a highly reliable reception capacity. When this is applied to monitoring systems in the construction sector, it is believed that performance and reliability of such system can be secured.

Keyword : communication reliability, wireless sensor network, prediction, path loss, civil infrastructure