Data management for sensor networks

传感器网络可以广义地定义为能够处理、存储、发送和接收数据的传感设备的网络。 一个典型的传感器现在是一个微型设备，能够同时处理多个数据实体，并自主地进行无线通信。传感器网络通常被部署来监视物理现象，温度和湿度水平，在一个地理区域内，并在一个时间窗口（由网络的寿命限制）。 传感器网络的几个应用领域是：环境监测，生物污染检测，仓库管理，交通组织和战场监视。 由于传感器节点是自治的，因此具有有限的电源，因此，在这样的环境中的主要约束是用于操作网络的能量成本。 考虑到发送/接收数据的成本-通常比在内存中处理相同数据大几个数量级-一个关键问题是最小化节点之间的数据通信，同时在处理查询时利用网络中节点之间的潜在合作。 总体而言，本提案的目的是从数据库管理的角度调查SN内存储和查询数据的技术，同时最大限度地降低能源成本。 为了实现这一目标，将设计和评估几种替代方案，包括新的算法和数据结构。

Sensor networks, can be broadly defined as a network of sensing devices capable of processing, storing, sending and receiving data.   A typical sensor is now a minuscule device capable of processing several data entities simultaneously and autonomously as well as communicating  wirelessly. Sensor networks are typically deployed to monitor physical phenomena,  e.g., temperature and humidity levels, within a geographical area and over a time window (limited by the  network's lifespan).  A few application domains where the use of sensor networks is suitable are: environmental  monitoring, biological contamination detection, warehouse management, traffic organization and battlefield  surveillance.  Being autonomous, sensor nodes have a limited power supply, hence, a main constraint in such an  environment is the energy cost for operating the network.  Given the cost of sending/receiving data -typically  orders of magnitude larger than processing the same in memory- a key issue is to minimize data  communication among nodes while at the same time taking advantage of potential cooperation among nodes in the network when processing queries.   Overall, the aim of this proposal is to investigate, from a database management perspective, techniques for storing and querying data within a SN while minimizing energy cost.  To accomplish this goal  several alternatives, including new algorithms and data structures, will be designed and evaluated.