Optimizing Routing Efficiency in Wireless Sensor Networks with Link Score and Delay Awareness

Abstract

Abstract This paper proposes a novel delay-aware routing protocol for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) that considers link quality in addition to hop count to improve the network performance. The proposed protocol, called Link Score based Delay Aware Routing (LSDAR), calculates the link score for each potential next hop based on its residual energy, delay, and packet delivery ratio. The link score is used to select the best next hop with the lowest delay and highest link quality. Simulation results show that the proposed protocol outperforms existing protocols in terms of network lifetime, end-to-end delay, and packet delivery ratio, while also reducing the number of data packet collisions and improving energy efficiency. Through simulation evaluations, it was discovered that SBLDAR can enhance the network lifetime of the considered protocols while simultaneously preserving the average data transmission delay. LSDAR was found to have nearly 75% greater throughput and saved 60% of the total energy consumed when compared to existing protocols. Therefore, the proposed LSDAR protocol is a promising solution for delay-sensitive applications in WSNs.