Single-node cluster reduction in WSN and energy-efficiency during cluster formation

A large Ad Hoc network can be represented as several sets of clusters. Each cluster contains one or more nodes and has its clusterhead (or caryomme) chosen following an election based on an appropriate criterion. The clustering in wireless networking adds scalability, reduces the computation complexity of routing protocols, allows data aggregation and then enhances the network performance. Several studies have focused on clustering algorithms, providing some mechanisms well suited to wireless sensor networks (WSN). The MaxMin clustering algorithm proposed by [1] was generalized, corrected and validated in [2],[3] which added the use of criteria functions to choose appropriate clusterheads. We take part in this work by examining comparative results of different criteria that reveal single-node cluster phenomena. A single-node cluster is a cluster of which the only member is its clusterhead itself. In WSN clustering, the density of single-node clusters is a performance criterion. We use MaxMin in a cold chain monitoring application which shows that single-node clusters have negative impacts on the energy consumption. In this paper we compare several criteria including the "remaining energy" and the "link quality indicator (LQI)". We propose an effective manner of using the LQI which is among the best performant criteria. We also propose a simple mechanism to reduce single-node cluster phenomena which highly enhances the energy efficiency.