Improving the Performance of Trickle-Based Data Dissemination in Low-Power Networks

TL;DR

This paper examines how MAC layer interference affects Trickle-based data dissemination in low-power networks and proposes a solution called Cleansing to improve performance.

Contribution

It identifies MAC layer timing violations of Trickle in low-power radios and introduces Cleansing to mitigate these issues.

Findings

MAC layer interference disrupts Trickle timing

CSMA/CA with ContikiMAC impacts Trickle performance

Cleansing improves data dissemination efficiency

Abstract

Trickle is a polite gossip algorithm for managing communication traffic. It is of particular interest in low-power wireless networks for reducing the amount of control traffic, as in routing protocols (RPL), or reducing network congestion, as in multicast protocols (MPL). Trickle is used at the network or application level, and relies on up-to-date information on the activity of neighbors. This makes it vulnerable to interference from the media access control layer, which we explore in this paper. We present several scenarios how the MAC layer in low-power radios violates Trickle timing. As a case study, we analyze the impact of CSMA/CA with ContikiMAC on Trickle's performance. Additionally, we propose a solution called Cleansing that resolves these issues.