A fuzzy three-level clustering method for lifetime improvement of wireless sensor networks

One of the most important issues in wireless sensor networks (WSNs) is to reduce energy consumption and increase the network lifetime. Proper election of cluster head is one of the approaches to reduce energy consumption in the network. Among existing methods, low-energy adaptive cluster hierarchy (LEACH) is the most prevalent routing algorithm, in which the cluster head is elected based on a given threshold. In LEACH algorithm, only the cluster heads are allowed to send information to the base station (BS). In this paper, a novel routing protocol based on super cluster head election using fuzzy logic in three levels (SCHFTL) is proposed, in which a super cluster head is elected among the cluster heads. The super cluster head election is performed based on a fuzzy description in three levels using Mamdani inference engine. Effectiveness of the proposed SCHFTL routing protocol is verified through MATLAB simulations in terms of death, time of the first node and network lifetime compared with LEACH, cluster head election mechanism using fuzzy logic (CHEF) and fuzzy-based master cluster head election leach (F-MCHEL) protocols.