An analytic evaluation of the Trickle algorithm: Towards efficient, fair, fast and reliable data dissemination

Wireless sensor networks require communication protocols for efficiently propagating and maintaining data in a distributed fashion. Ideally, a communication protocol is able to disseminate data quickly to all nodes in the network using as few transmissions as possible, while distributing transmission load fairly. In the context of wireless sensor networks the Trickle algorithm is a popular protocol serving as the basis for many of the current communication protocols. In this study we analyze the performance of Trickle with respect to efficiency, fairness, reliability and propagation speed. Additionally, we show how small extensions to the algorithm can improve its performance.