PD-DESYNC: Practical and deterministic desynchronization in wireless sensor networks

Distributive desynchronization algorithms based on pulse-coupled oscillator (PCO) models have been proposed for achieving collision-free wireless transmissions. These algorithms do not depend on a global clock or infrastructure overheads. Moreover, they gradually converge to fair time-division multiple access (TDMA) scheduling by broadcasting a periodic pulse signal (called a 'firing') and adjusting the next firing time based on firings from other nodes. The time required to achieve constant spacing between phase neighbors is estimated in a closed form or via stochastic modeling. However, because these algorithms cannot guarantee the completion of desynchronization in a short and bounded timeframe, they are not practical. Motivated by the limitations of these methods, we propose a practical solution called PD-DESYNC that provides a short and deterministic convergence time using a flag firing to indicate the beginning of a cycle. We demonstrate that the proposed method guarantees the completion of desynchronization within three cycles, regardless of the number of nodes. Through extensive simulations and experiments, we confirm that PD-DESYNC not only outperforms other algorithms in terms of convergence time but also is a practical solution.