A Policy-based storage model for sensor networks

Policies are used for developing adaptable and flexible systems in a variety of areas. They are especially suitable for reducing the complexity of managing tasks, by providing a mechanism for automatically tuning the system without human intervention. Policy-based systems have been applied for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) for controlling several functionalities. However, none of them has been proposed as a storage model, by making a clear distinction between storage functions and their behaviour. In this paper we propose SeSP, a Sensor Storage model based on Policies. SeSP explores concepts that are common in storage models proposed for WSNs in order to reduce the number of message transmissions and thus minimize the sensors´ energy consumption. We have conducted a case study applying our policy-based system on two existing storage models: Scoop and DYSTO. Our experimental study, based on simulations, shows that SeSP can effectively reduce the number of transmissions, compared to the fixed values considered by both systems.