The Role of Wireless Sensor Networks in Military Operations: A Survey

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are today a key technology of contemporary military applications due to their cost-effectiveness, scalability, and ability to provide real-time actions. WSNs are widely used in military applications for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, environmental monitoring, and battlefield awareness thanks to the spatially distributed autonomous sensor nodes that sense, process, and transmit important information. So that they can provide enhanced decision support, minimal operational risks, and enhanced mission accomplishment. Although they have advantages, the application of WSNs in hostile and dynamic military operations is confronted with many challenges. Security, privacy, fault tolerance, real-time operation, scalability, and self-organization are of utmost importance in this respect. Apart from, energy efficiency, node mobility, data reliability, and attack tolerance are key factors influencing their operational usability. Current research works have proposed various solutions, like AI-integrated data processing, block chain-based security mechanisms, and bio-inspired optimization algorithms to address the above issues. The aim of this work is to provide a detailed overview of the application of WSNs in military application, their building blocks, types of applications, and operational requirements. It also explains the state-of-the-art technology development at present and critically examines existing solutions to overcome main limitations. Through the examination of the recent, and future works, this research offers a better comprehension of how WSNs can evolve into more adaptive, secure, and effective military systems. The research findings are expected to serve as a roadmap for researchers and practitioners who seek to design next-generation military sensor networks.