Impacts of 2.4 GHz ISM Band Interference on IEEE 802.15.4 Wireless Sensor Network Reliability in Buildings

Published

September 9, 2012

Author(s)

Wenqi Guo, William M. Healy, Mengchu Zhou

Abstract

With the recent emergence of standards, wireless solutions are ready to be deployed in building automation networks. IEEE 802.15.4 is a standard for short range wireless networks. Its major applications fields are home and building automation, as well as industrial sensor and actuator networks. IEEE 802.15.4 operates primarily in the license-free 2.4 GHz ISM (Industrial, Scientific and Medical) band. This feature makes the technology easily applicable, but also potentially vulnerable to interference by other wireless technologies working in this band such as WLAN-systems of IEEE 802.11, Bluetooth, and microwave ovens. There are many possible co-existence scenarios with different network size, configurations, interference sources, and environmental conditions. To investigate the impacts of interference sources on the performance of IEEE 802.15.4 wireless sensor networks, this work performs several experiments with commercially available equipment. The results give a rough indication of the mutual interference of the different systems when any two of the networks operate simultaneously and in range. This work collects important communication parameters to evaluate the impacts of other interference sources on IEEE 802.15.4 networks. These test results should help wireless system designers better understand the performance and challenges of real office/building wireless applications.

Citation

IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement

Volume

61

Issue

9

Pub Type

Journals

Keywords

wireless sensors, building monitoring, interference

Citation

Guo, W. , Healy, W. and Zhou, M. (2012), Impacts of 2.4 GHz ISM Band Interference on IEEE 802.15.4 Wireless Sensor Network Reliability in Buildings, IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement (Accessed April 25, 2024)