Abstract
Future Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) will be composed of a large number of densely deployed sensors. A key feature of such networks is that their nodes are untethered and unattended. Distributed techniques are expected in WSNs. Connected Dominating Sets (CDSs) have been widely used for virtual backbone construction in WSNs to control topology, facilitate routing, and extend network lifetime. This paper proposes a new distributed algorithm for CDS construction in WSNs. The algorithm represents an extension for our previously proposed centralized algorithm. The algorithm is intended to construct a CDS with the smallest ratio when compared to its centralized version. Simulation shows that our distributed approach has a maximum ratio of 1.53 to the centralized approach in term of CDS size, and it satisfies all of the geometrical properties of its canalized version. Based on this ratio, this distributed algorithm has an approximation factor of 7.65 to the optimal CDS. This approximation outperforms the existing distributed CDS construction algorithms.