Homology groups are a prime tool for measuring the connectivity of a network, and their computation in a distributed and adaptive way is mandatory for their use in sensor networks. In this paper, we propose a solution based on the construction of an adaptive discrete vector field from where, thanks to the discrete Morse theory, the generators of the homology groups are extracted. The efficiency and the adaptability of our approach are tested against two applications: the detection and the localization of the holes in the coverage, and the selection of active sensors ensuring complete coverage.
Keywords: algebraic topology; coverage; discrete Morse theory; discrete vector field; distributed algorithm; sensor networks; sensor selection.