Energy-efficient MAC protocol for Wireless Body Area Networks

The Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol for a Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN) should allow body sensors to get quick access to the channel and send data to the hub, especially in emergency situations while reducing power consumption. IEEE 802.15.6 Standard proposes a MAC protocol that could be applicable to all kinds of WBAN. The WBAN MAC protocol proposed in this paper is based on the existing MAC protocol described on IEEE 802.15.6 Standard, but taking into account characteristics for some WBAN where low emergency traffic and a very high normal traffic can be expected. The proposed protocol is energy-efficient and emergency-aware and it changes transmission schedules in order to provide quality of service for emergency traffic.