Node density control for maximizing wireless sensor network lifetime

International audienceOne of the major concerns in wireless sensor networks is improving the network lifetime. In this paper, we investi-gate the node density impact on network lifetime. We show that the average amount of energy required to report an event to the sink decreases when wireless sensor node density increases. Moreover, we show that network lifetime increases faster than network density. Based on this result, we derive the minimal number of wireless sensor nodes required to supervise a given area during a given period. Finally, we show that these nodes must be deployed at the same time and not over different deployment phases