Binary consensus in sensor motes

Abstract

In this work, we adapt the binary consensus algorithm for use in wireless sensor networks. Binary consensus is used to allow a collection of distributed entities to reach consensus regarding the answer to a binary question and the final decision is based on the majority opinion. Binary consensus can play a basic role in increasing the accuracy of detecting event occurrence. Existing work on the algorithm focuses on simulation of the algorithm in a purely theoretic sense. In this work, we modify the algorithm to function in wireless sensor networks by adding a method for nodes to determine who to communicate with as well as adding a heuristic for nodes to know when the algorithm has completed. We implement and test our algorithm in real wireless sensor motes and further support our results with a wireless mote simulator.