An IPv6 address configuration scheme for wireless sensor networks
Highlights
► The hierarchical IPv6 address structure for a sensor node is proposed. ► A sensor node can acquire a unique IPv6 address from its neighbor nodes. ► The transmission scope of the packets is controlled within one-hop scope. ► The algorithm for retrieving the address space occupied by failed nodes is proposed.
Introduction
With the extensive applications of the wireless sensor networks (WSN) and the increasing maturity of the IPv6 Internet development, all-IP communications between WSN and the IPv6 Internet have become an inevitable trend in the future [1], [2], [3]. One of the key technologies to achieve the all-IP communication between the IPv6 Internet and WSN is the IPv6 address auto-configuration for WSN [1], [4], [5]. IPv6 address auto-configuration is an important technical feature of IPv6 and it can allocate a unique IPv6 address for each interface in the absence of intervention, which is consistent with the design goals of WSN, such as self-organization and self-configuration, etc. At present, there are some problems in implementing the existing IPv6 address auto-configuration schemes in WSN due to the resource constraint of WSN. For example, the existing stateful address configuration [6] adopts the DHCP server to assign a unique IPv6 address for sensor nodes, so it brings a lot of control packets and consumes a large number of storage resources. In the existing stateless address configuration [7] based on the neighbor discovery protocol [8], each assigned IPv6 address has to perform the duplicate address detection (DAD) [9] in the network to ensure its uniqueness, which similarly results in a large number of control packet. Therefore, it is necessary to propose an IPv6 address auto-configuration for WSN.
The paper proposes an IPv6 address configuration scheme for WSN, and the paper has the following contributions:
- 1)
The hierarchical IPv6 address structure for a sensor node and the algorithm for calculating a sensor node's address space for assignment are proposed.
- 2)
Based on the proposed hierarchical IPv6 address structure, the paper proposes an IPv6 address configuration scheme for WSN. In the proposed scheme, the address space for allocation of each sensor node is unique in the whole network and can assign an IPv6 address for other nodes. Therefore, the task of the IPv6 address configuration is distributed around all sensor nodes and the address configuration for multiple sensor nodes can be preformed simultaneously, which shortens the address configuration delay.
- 3)
The transmission scope of the packets used for the address configuration is controlled within one-hop scope, and the scheme neither records the address allocation status nor performs the duplicate address detection for the assigned addresses, which reduces the address configuration cost and shortens the address configuration delay.
- 4)
The paper proposes the algorithm for retrieving the address space occupied by failed nodes.
In our previous works, we have proposed the IPv6 address configuration schemes for WSN with the hierarchical cluster-based architecture [10], [11], [12], and the differences between our previous works and the proposed scheme are as follows:
- 1)
In our previous works, the address configuration schemes are based on the hierarchical cluster-based architecture, and a cluster head acquires an IPv6 address through joining a cluster tree. In the proposed scheme, the address configuration scheme is based on the flat architecture, and a sensor node acquires an IPv6 address from its neighbor node within one-hop scope.
- 2)
In our previous works, a cluster head employs the stateless configuration strategy to configure an IPv6 address for its cluster members, and the uniqueness of a cluster member's IPv6 address has to be ensured through DAD. In the proposed scheme, a sensor node can acquire a unique IPv6 address without DAD.
- 3)
In our previous works, if a cluster member moves out of its cluster, it has to reacquire an IPv6 address though rejoining a cluster. In the proposed scheme, a sensor node's IPv6 address keeps invariable during its life span.
The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. The related works on the IPv6 address configuration for WSN are discussed in Section 2. The IPv6 address configuration scheme for WSN is described and discussed in Section 3. The performance of the proposed scheme is analyzed in Section 4, and the paper concludes with a summary in Section 5.
Section snippets
Related works
Reference [10] proposed an IPv6 address configuration scheme for WSN based on sensor nodes' location information. The scheme divided WSN into multiple clusters based on sensor nodes' location information and proposed the IPv6 address structure for sensor nodes based on their location information. In the scheme, the DAD for the IPv6 addresses assigned for the cluster members was performed within the cluster where the cluster members located. Reference [11] proposed a hierarchical and low-power
WSN architecture
The proposed scheme defines four types of nodes:
New node: a sensor node which does not acquire an IPv6 address.
Gateway node: a sensor node which connects WSN to the IPv6 Internet through an access router and can assign an IPv6 address for new nodes, and whose IPv6 address is pre-configured.
Proxy node: a sensor node which acquires an IPv6 address and can assign an IPv6 address for new nodes.
Simple node: a sensor node which acquires an IPv6 address and is unable to assign an IPv6 address for new
Theoretical analysis
The paper analyzes the address configuration cost and delay for Strong DAD [19], MANETconf [15], LISAA [25], the scheme proposed by reference [12] (abbreviated as IAC-IPv6 Address Configuration) and the proposed scheme. When a new node joins WSN and obtains a unique IPv6 address, the address configuration cost and delay for the new node's IPv6 address is as follows:
- 1)
In Strong DAD, the address configuration cost and delay of a new node acquiring an IPv6 address are mO(N) + O(d) and mO(d) + O(d)
Conclusion
The paper proposes an IPv6 address configuration scheme for WSN. In the proposed scheme, the transmission scope of the control packets is controlled within one-hop scope and the scheme neither records the address assignment states nor performs the duplicate address detection for the assigned addresses. From the perspectives of theory and simulation, the paper analyzes and compares the performance parameters of the proposed scheme, and the analytical and simulative results prove the feasibility
Acknowledgements
This work is supported by Jiangsu Natural Science Foundation (BK2009133) and Suzhou Industry Research Foundation (SYG201035).
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