A Mobile Object-Based Secret Key Distribution Scheme for Wireless Sensor Networks

Security is a paramount requirement in any modern technology. This also applies to wireless sensor networks (WSNs), where sensor nodes have severe resources scarcity. Recently the presence of mobile object (e.g., moving robot, vehicle, etc) has shown their great impact on WSNs. However, as the low-cost sensor networks become wide-spread, secret key distribution to the sensor nodes is a challenging task in such unattended WSNs. In this regards, this paper presents a mobile object-based secret key distribution scheme for resource hungry sensor nodes. The key idea is that a mobile object should visit all the sensor nodes along its pre-defined path and distribute secret keys within its broadcasting range. The proposed scheme exploits the symmetric cryptographic approach. The feasibility of proposed scheme is advocated using real test bed experiments. The analysis reveals that the proposed scheme attains high efficiency (in terms of computation and communication costs), and provides strong security.