What are wireless sensor networks? Wireless Sensor Networks (WoS) is defined as an infrastructure-less and self Configured Wireless Sensor Network to monitor physical or controlled parameters, such as sound, temperature, humidity, pressure, light or pollutants, and then to collectively pass their information through the network to a central location or main switch. There are several benefits of using a WAN instead of a LAN for sensors and other remote devices: It is easier to configure, it does not need any software or hardware and it does not require dedicated circuits and support from WAN routers or network switches. The main disadvantages are:
Low power consumption. Like all appliances in your home, a wireless sensor network appliance draws power from the main supply. One of the benefits of using a WAN instead of a LAN is its lower power consumption. It has been estimated that a typical wireless sensor network can draw up to 0.6 Amperes of power from the main supply at all times. However, when measurements are performed over a period of several months, this power consumption eventually becomes insignificant, and eventually it may even help to reduce your monthly power bills. WoS appliances are known for their energy efficiency and are also very environment-friendly.
Self-enabled sensors. A self-enabled sensor network has sensors that run on their own without the need for WAN routers or network switches. In other words, this type of system is also known as “infrastructure-less” WAN. On the other hand, a WAN router allows for centralization of the data transmissions, and so forth, it also allows centralization of power consumption as well.
Contents
Types of WAN technologies
There are many different types of WAN technologies available in the market today. Some of them are CDPD, MDS, iSCSI, IKEA’s Zero Config, Fibre Channel (FC), iSCSI Initiator, LSI, Multi Jet Stream and many more. Each one has its own strengths and weakness. To ensure a smooth transition and effective usage of WAN technology, the service providers usually provide different types of add-on modules with default configurations for different types of nodes. This way, users do not have to worry about configuring different types of nodes, especially if they are new to WAN networking.
How is WAN setup? How do you use a WAN to connect to WAN? The process is simple and easy. You first start with a WAN router or switch and connect it to different local or regional servers. These servers maintain WAN routers or switches as well as different types of WAN sensors. There are different types of wireless sensors in the market such as wireless doorbells, wireless door openers, wireless cameras, wireless alarms and many more.
One of the most common types of wireless sensors is the IoT sensor. An IoT sensor is a device that helps in the detection and location of problematic or unauthorized wireless connections. The most common IoT wireless sensors are the RF proximity sensors or the Infrared proximity sensors. These sensors work through radio waves and can detect the presence of an unauthorized wireless connection. Thus, you can use a WAN to detect whether or not the particular IoT sensor is transmitting.
WAN is useful for application-oriented security. It can also help provide for automatic data collection techniques. For instance, an enterprise network can use WAN to gather statistics such as how frequently users click on the Home or Application buttons, how long the average time spent on the Home page, what percentage of the page is accessed via the Home button etc. This data can be used for analyzing the behavior of the customers. In other words, an enterprise network can also use routing techniques to track the user’s movement across the enterprise.
In fact, the main motive behind using an IoT sensor is for the data collection techniques. However, the WAN can also provide instant feedback which makes the data collection techniques much easier. Thus, it can help in reducing cost and up-time for the enterprise network. Therefore, as we can see, the overall scenario of IoT sensor networks and the overall penetration of WAN is very bright. Organizations such as schools, hospitals, and retail stores are already using these networks to collect data and store them.
