Sensor networks composed of large numbers of self organizing embedded devices are an increasingly valuable tool for understanding our world. Deployed networks allow scientists to observe phenomena at a scale and resolution that challenge existing instrumentation. Some call this new instrument the macroscope.

My project uses sensor networks to monitor active volcanoes. Due to the high data rates and stringent fidelity requirements of this application, providing output suitable for scientific analysis requires carefully directing the limited resources available at each node. In this talk I will present Lance, a general approach to bandwidth and energy management targeting reliable data collection for sensor networks.

By combining an application-level determination of value with a system-level estimation of cost, Lance maximizes the value of the data returned to the application by optimally allocating bandwidth and energy devoted to signal collection. Lance's design decouples data collection policy from mechanism, allowing its optimization metrics to be customized to suit a variety of application goals. I will motivate and describe the Lance architecture, present results from the lab and the field, and discuss continuing efforts in this area, including single-node and network-wide architectures for distributed energy management.