Demonstration Abstract: Enabling Robust Data Collection in Unplanned Cross-Technology Interference of Urban Environments

Abstract

It is widely known that cross-technology interference (CTI) adversely affects the reliability of 802.15.4 (ZigBee) communications. With the 2.4 GHz ISM band getting increasingly congested because of multiple wireless technologies like IEEE 802.11 (WiFi), 802.16 (WiMax), and Bluetooth and common appliances like a microwave and a cordless phone sharing it, data collection becomes exceedingly challenging especially in unplanned CTI prevalent in urban environments. This demonstration presents Oppcast, a robust and energy-efficient data collection protocol which carefully exploits a combination of spatial and channel diversity to eliminate the need for performing expensive channel estimation in advance. By exploiting multiple routes over multiple channels, packets can be reliably communicated to the sink even in severely interfered environments.