Robust distributed active power control technique for IEEE 802.15.4 wireless sensor networks - A quantitative feedback theory approach

A novel, practically implementable robust Distributed Active Power Control (DAPC) technique is presented for IEEE 802.15.4 wireless sensor networks by using Quantitative Feedback Theory (QFT). The proposed DAPC framework is based on tracking a target Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) where the effects of radio channel uncertainty and interference between sensor nodes are considered as an unknown output disturbance. The key features of this technique are summarized as follows: (1) quantifiable improvements are achieved in terms of outage probability and power consumption, (2) exact information in relation to the network operating conditions, e.g., radio channels gains and interference between users, is not required, and (3) the proposed graphical design environment simplifies the trade-off between system performance metrics. Experimental results are provided that highlight the effectiveness of the proposed approach when compared with some existing DAPC techniques.