PCA-Guided Routing Algorithm for Wireless Sensor Networks

An important performance concern for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) is the total energy dissipated by all the nodes in the network over the course of network lifetime. In this paper, we propose a routing algorithm termed as PCA-guided routing algorithm (PCA-RA) by exploring the principal component analysis (PCA) approach. Our algorithm remarkably reduces energy consumption and prolongs network lifetime by realizing the objective of minimizing the sum of distances between the nodes and the cluster centers in a WSN network. It is demonstrated that the PCA-RA can be efficiently implemented in WSNs by forming a nearly optimal K-means-like clustering structure. In addition, it can decrease the network load while maintaining the accuracy of the sensor measurements during data aggregating process. We validate the efficacy and efficiency of the proposed algorithm by simulations. Both theoretical analyses and simulation results demonstrate that this algorithm can perform significantly with less energy consumption and thus prolong the system lifetime for the networks.