Feasibility of Energy Detection of the IEEE 802.15.4 Waveform

Abstract

At its core, the “Internet of Things”, or IoT, is the connection of devices over the Internet that allows them to communicate with each other and other Internet-enabled devices and systems. Devices such as televisions, thermostats, and cameras are now used in ways that transcend their original purposes. These devices now contain sensors and have IP addresses which allow them to gather data, communicate with us, and communicate with each other over a network. Zigbee, one of the well-known IoT technologies used in home automation, is the focus of this effort. This project looks at the feasibility of using energy detection as a method of spectrum sensing to detect the physical layer ZigBee waveform. Utilizing the GNU Radio software framework and USRP and ZedBoard hardware platforms, this work shows that the Zigbee waveform can be detected using energy detection. It also shows the threshold and signal to noise ratio needed for the energy detector to have 90% probability of detection and 10% probability of false alarm.