A multi-service wireless lamp post backbone for smart cities - centralized vs distributed control

This paper proposes an empirically-based methodology for spatial down-scaling of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). WSNs are often deployed in environments not easily accessible, highly unpredictable and where running experiments is generally very expensive and time consuming. The latter calls for the need to develop down-scaled testbeds, deployed in a controlled environment, where tests can be conducted under predictable and replicable conditions. In this paper we present a methodology to realise the down-scaling of a real testbed on an experimental platform developed at the University of Bologna in the framework of the ”European Laboratory of Wireless Communications for the Future Internet” (EuWIn). The real testbed we refer to is composed of 24 devices, deployed on the lamp posts of the small town of Casalgrande (Italy), running a smart city application. The proposed procedure for the down-scaling is implemented and results achieved on the real testbed and those achieved on EuWIn are compared. The comparison is performed in terms of network topologies and packet error rate. Results demonstrate the utility of EuWIn for down-scaling purposes and the efficacy of the proposed methodology.