A k-coverage algorithm in three dimensional wireless sensor networks

Coverage problem is a fundamental issue in wireless sensor networks, and it can be dealt with the nodes´ deployment, especially in three dimensional wireless sensor networks in which sensor nodes are not deployed randomly but placed in the locations of meticulous calculation. In this paper, we focus on the nodes´ deployment for k-coverage, which means that the coverage degree of wireless sensor network is k. We choose truncated octahedron as the space-filling polyhedron based on spatial tessellation theory. Contrary to deploying nodes in the centers of polyhedrons, we place nodes on the vertices of polyhedrons, and then select k nodes to be active in every polyhedron randomly. Simulation results show that our algorithm meets the demand of k-coverage in wireless sensor networks. The value of connectivity degree in wireless sensor network is also not smaller than k when communication radius is equal to sensing radius. The algorithm proposed in this paper will be useful for research and implementation of further three dimensional wireless sensor networks.