title: Impact of high power interference sources in planning and deployment of wireless sensor networks and devices in the 2.4 GHz frequency band in heterogeneous environments.
abstract: In this work, the impact of radiofrequency radiation leakage from microwave ovens and its effect on 802.15.4 ZigBee-compliant wireless sensor networks operating in the 2.4 GHz Industrial Scientific Medical (ISM) band is analyzed. By means of a novel radioplanning approach, based on electromagnetic field simulation of a microwave oven and determination of equivalent radiation sources applied to an in-house developed 3D ray launching algorithm, estimation of the microwave oven&#8217;s power leakage is obtained for the complete volume of an indoor scenario. The magnitude and the variable nature of the interference is analyzed and the impact in the radio link quality in operating wireless sensors is estimated and compared with radio channel measurements as well as packet measurements. The measurement results reveal the importance of selecting an adequate 802.15.4 channel, as well as the Wireless Sensor Network deployment strategy within  this type of environment, in order to optimize energy consumption and increase the  overall network performance. The proposed method enables one to estimate potential interference effects in devices operating within the 2.4 GHz band in the complete scenario, prior to wireless sensor network deployment, which can aid in achieving the most optimal network topology.
authors.affiliation: Electrical and Electronic Engineering Department, Universidad Pública de Navarra, 31006 Pamplona, Spain. peio.lopez@unavarra.es
authors.forename: Peio López
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Iturri
authors.forename: Juan Antonio
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Nazábal
authors.forename: Leire
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Azpilicueta
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Beruete
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fernández-Valdivielso
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Falcone