Author(s): Ana Ribeiro Costa, Miguel Ángel Torres and João Henrique Martins

Abstract: Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have emerged as a cost-effective and scalable solution for continuous environmental monitoring in applications such as climate observation, air quality assessment, and habitat surveillance. This research presents the design and performance evaluation of a basic wireless sensor network developed using low-power sensor nodes and simple communication protocols. The proposed system focuses on evaluating key performance metrics including packet delivery ratio, end-to-end delay, throughput, energy consumption, and network lifetime under typical environmental monitoring conditions. A small-scale WSN testbed was implemented with sensor nodes deployed in an outdoor setting to collect temperature and humidity data at regular intervals. Experimental observations were recorded over multiple operational cycles to analyze the reliability and stability of data transmission. The performance of the network was further assessed under varying node densities and transmission intervals to understand scalability constraints. Results indicate that the proposed WSN achieves reliable data delivery with acceptable latency while maintaining low energy consumption, making it suitable for long-term monitoring applications. The findings also highlight trade-offs between data sampling rate and network lifetime, emphasizing the importance of parameter optimization in resource-constrained environments. The research demonstrates that even a basic WSN architecture can provide meaningful environmental data when properly configured. This work offers practical insights into the deployment of low-cost wireless sensor networks and serves as a reference framework for researchers and practitioners interested in environmental monitoring solutions. Additionally, the evaluation approach adopted in this research emphasizes reproducibility, simplicity, and accessibility, enabling easy replication in academic laboratories and field deployments. By combining experimental measurements with straightforward analytical interpretation, the research bridges theoretical understanding and practical implementation, supporting informed decision-making for system designers working on sustainable, real-world environmental sensing infrastructures across diverse climatic regions and resource-limited monitoring scenarios over extended operational durations with minimal maintenance requirements and consistent data quality assurance metrics.

DOI: 10.33545/27075923.2026.v7.i1a.121

Pages: 21-25 | Views: 83 | Downloads: 41

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