Energy Efficiency and MAC Protocols in Wireless Sensor Networks: Terrestrial, UAV-Assisted, and Underwater Applications

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are extensively utilized across various domains, including environmental monitoring, military operations, industrial applications, disaster management, and the Internet of Things (IoT). In this study, Terrestrial Wireless Sensor Networks (TWSN), UAVAssisted Wireless Sensor Networks (UWSN) and Underwater Sensor Networks (UWSN) are discussed and their advantages, energy management and the importance of MAC protocols are discussed. TWSNs are systems that require optimization in terms of energy efficiency due to limited battery life. UAVAssisted Wireless Sensor Networks (UWSNs) enhance communication efficiency by utilizing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to gather data from sensor nodes and prolong the network’s lifespan. Underwater Sensor Networks (UWSN) transmit data using acoustic signals and require specialized MAC protocols due to the high latency and limited bandwidth in the underwater environment. In this paper, the structural differences and technical challenges faced by these network types are discussed and solutions to improve energy efficiency are discussed.