Cluster-Based MAC Protocol for Collision Avoidance and TDMA Scheduling in Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks

In Underwater Wireless Sensor Networks (UWSN), the existing scheduling technique causes propagation delay or overhead issue. Also the data collision is likely to occur. In order to overcome this issue, in this paper, we propose to design a cluster-based MAC protocol for collision avoidance and TDMA scheduling in UWSN. Initially, the clusters are formed and cluster heads (CHs) are elected as per the energy-efficient hierarchical clustering algorithm. The cluster members, which are one-hop neighbors of CH, schedule the data sending times for all cluster members. The energy consumption analytical model is derived to show the average energy consumed by each CH. Finally, conflict-free scheduling is performed by using Spatial-Temporal-Confliction-Table. This allows nodes to transmit at the same time as long as their packets arrive during different times at the intended destinations. Simulation results show that the proposed MAC protocol reduces the delay and energy consumption while by increasing the packet delivery ratio.