NUPFA: A Novel Non-Uniform Power Formation Algorithm for BLE Mesh Networks

This study presents a novel nonuniform power formation algorithm (NUPFA) for Bluetooth low-energy (BLE) networks. With two stages, NUPFA constructs the scatternet in a distributed manner. In the first stage, the master and slave nodes discover each other using low-level power to form an initial scatternet. In the second stage, each master alternatively scans or advertises using normal power to interconnect dual links among any two piconets until the whole scatternet is constructed. Using nonuniform power configuration, an energy-efficient scatternet is generated, since packet transmission power can be reduced in each piconet to minimize overall power consumption. With additional scatternet links, more routing paths can be utilized to reduce the path length and enhance network efficiency. simulation results show that compared with the existing cluster-based on-demand routing protocol (CORP) and Bluetooth Mesh schemes, the NUPFA protocol achieves superior energy efficiency for packet transmission. Also, the dual link features can effectively reduce packet latency, thereby improving the overall performance of BLE mesh networks.