Modeling Radio Wave Propagation for Wireless Sensor Networks in Vegetated Environments: A Systematic Literature Review

The use of wireless sensor networks (WSN) for monitoring variables in agricultural environments and natural forests has been increasing in recent years. However, the sizing of these systems is affected by the inaccuracy of the radio wave propagation models used, leading to possible increased costs and measurement errors. This systematic literature review (SLR) aims to identify propagation models widely used in WSN deployments in agricultural or naturally vegetated environments and their effectiveness in estimating signal losses. We also identified today’s wireless technologies most used in precision agriculture (PA) system implementations. In addition, the results of studies focused on the development of new propagation models for different environments are evaluated. Scientific and technical analysis is presented based on articles consulted in different specialized databases, which were selected according to different combinations of criteria. The results show that, in most of the application cases, vegetative models present high error values when estimating attenuation.