TinyNET—a tiny network framework for TinyOS: description, implementation, and experimentation

TL;DR: TinyNET is presented, a modular framework allowing development and quick integration of protocols and applications for Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) in TinyOS in a layered fashion, while still enabling cross–layer interactions.

Abstract: In this paper we present TinyNET, a modular framework allowing development and quick integration of protocols and applications for Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) in TinyOS. The motivation behind TinyNET is two-fold: on one hand it allows to adopt a divide-and-conquer approach in the development of any TinyOS application; on the other hand it provides a flexible administration of network protocols. As a sample development using TinyNET, we consider an environmental monitoring application, and test it over a floor-wide WSN testbed. Data are converge-casted toward a sink node, which gathers all data collected by the sensors. Routing toward the sink is achieved by means of a hop count (HC) based algorithm. Our framework also integrates support for the 6LowPAN standard (providing, e.g., per-sensor queries and pings). Thanks to TinyNET, s these messages will make transparent use of the underlying network protocols. Also, TinyNET transparently manages the network components and related messages, allowing different applications to share the same network stack; furthermore, it translates TinyOS interfaces so that any previously developed application can be easily ported. These features make it possible to have a global vision over any application, as well as to focus on each of its separate components. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Part of this work has been presented at the 5th International Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing Conference (IWCMC), Leipzig, Germany, June 2009. TinyNET provides a handy tool for managing network protocols in TinyOS in a layered fashion, while still enabling cross–layer interactions. This paper describes the TinyNET architecture and provides a sample implementation of an environmental monitoring application, which exploits the flexibility of our framework.