Vid-Sim: Modeling and analysis of video encoding and transmission in wireless sensor-based surveillance

Abstract

Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks (WMSNs) face significant challenges in achieving efficient video encoding, strict resource optimization, and reliable high-quality transmission under severe constraints. Existing simulation tools are often limited in functionality and fail to accurately model the complex environmental factors such as vegetation density and atmospheric conditions, that critically affect wireless video performance. To bridge this gap, this paper introduces Vid-Sim , a comprehensive video encoding and transmission simulation tool for WMSNs. Vid-Sim integrates two key innovations: (i) an enhanced Region of Interest (ROI)-based compression strategy that enables intelligent and adaptive prioritization of critical video regions, and (ii) a high-fidelity environmental data loss model that realistically captures channel impairments and propagation effects. Together, these contributions establish Vid-Sim as a powerful, accessible, and flexible platform for performance evaluation, encoding optimization, and the robust design and deployment of WMSNs in challenging environments.