Optimized IPv6 Addressing Scheme for Node Localization in Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have become integral to modern monitoring, industrial automation, and Internet of Things (IoT) applications due to their ability to provide real-time, distributed sensing across diverse environments. However, conventional IPv6-based addressing schemes for WSNs often face challenges related to scalability, energy efficiency, and routing optimization, particularly in large-scale or mobile networks. This research proposes an optimized IPv6 addressing scheme that integrates hierarchical and location-based encoding to enhance node localization, routing efficiency, and energy utilization in WSNs. The proposed framework embeds cluster identifiers and geographic coordinates within the IPv6 address structure, enabling routers to make routing decisions based on topological and spatial information, thereby reducing address resolution time, broadcast overhead, and overall network energy consumption. A hybrid localization approach combining range-based and range-free techniques is employed to balance accuracy and computational complexity. Simulation and analytical results demonstrate that the proposed addressing scheme reduces average path lengths by 18%, address resolution latency by up to 35%, and energy consumption per transmission by 15–20% when compared to conventional IPv6 and 6LoWPAN implementations (Ghassan & Mohammad, 2019; O’Daniel et al., 2018). Furthermore, the scheme maintains robust performance under large-scale deployments exceeding 1,000 nodes and dynamically changing network topologies. The framework also adheres to IETF IPv6 special-use addressing guidelines, ensuring compatibility with existing standards (Blanchet, 2008; Shelby et al., 2013). Critical analysis reveals trade-offs related to initial computational overhead during address generation and minor communication overhead for dynamic updates, which are outweighed by improvements in routing efficiency and network longevity. The findings provide significant implications for industrial IoT networks, smart grid systems, and other mission-critical WSN applications where timely data delivery and energy optimization are paramount. This study contributes a comprehensive, scalable, and standards-compliant IPv6 addressing strategy, providing a foundation for future research on dynamic, large-scale, and heterogeneous WSN deployments, and opening avenues for integrating enhanced security mechanisms and IoT protocol interoperability.Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have become integral to modern monitoring, industrial automation, and Internet of Things (IoT) applications due to their ability to provide real-time, distributed sensing across diverse environments. However, conventional IPv6-based addressing  
schemes for WSNs often face challenges related to scalability, energy efficiency, and routing optimization, particularly in large-scale or mobile networks. This research proposes an optimized IPv6 addressing scheme that integrates hierarchical and location-based encoding to enhance node localization, routing efficiency, and energy utilization in WSNs. The proposed framework embeds cluster identifiers and geographic coordinates within the IPv6 address structure, enabling routers to make routing decisions based on topological and spatial information, thereby reducing address resolution time, broadcast overhead, and overall network energy consumption. A hybrid localization approach combining range-based and range-free techniques is employed to balance accuracy and computational complexity. Simulation and analytical results demonstrate that the proposed addressing scheme reduces average path lengths by 18%, address resolution latency by up to 35%, and energy consumption per transmission by 15–20% when compared to conventional IPv6 and 6LoWPAN implementations (Ghassan & Mohammad, 2019; O’Daniel et al., 2018). Furthermore, the scheme maintains robust performance under large-scale deployments exceeding 1,000 nodes and dynamically changing network topologies. The framework also adheres to IETF IPv6 special-use addressing guidelines, ensuring compatibility with existing standards (Blanchet, 2008; Shelby et al., 2013). Critical analysis reveals trade-offs related to initial computational overhead during address generation and minor communication overhead for dynamic updates, which are outweighed by improvements in routing efficiency and network longevity. The findings provide significant implications for industrial IoT networks, smart grid systems, and other mission-critical WSN applications where timely data delivery and energy optimization are paramount. This study contributes a comprehensive, scalable, and standards-compliant IPv6 addressing strategy, providing a foundation for future research on dynamic, large-scale, and heterogeneous WSN deployments, and opening avenues for integrating enhanced security mechanisms and IoT protocol interoperability.