Supporting QoS in IEEE 802.11e wireless LANs over fading channel

Transferring real-time traffic such as voice and video over wireless LAN networks (WLAN) requires stringent delay and jitter requirements. Recently IEEE 802.11e standard has been emerged to support QoS in WLAN. One of the methods to provide QoS in this standard is Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) which benefits form the concept of traffic categories. However, EDCA is a contention based method; therefore it can not guarantee strict QoS required by real-time services without proper network control mechanisms. In this paper, we analyze the effect of loss and delay caused by fading channel on EDCA performance. Then, we propose a modification to the media access scheme, called CAFD (Collision Avoidance with Fading Detection) to elevate the performance against channel failures. Moreover an adjustment for the maximum number of retransmissions is proposed to maintain the delay and jitter requirements of the real-time traffic. The performances of the proposed methods are evaluated by simulations.     

Modeling finite buffer effects on TCP traffic over an IEEE 802.11 infrastructure WLAN

The network scenario is that of an infrastructure IEEE 802.11 WLAN with a single AP with which several stations (STAs) are associated. The AP has a finite size buffer for storing packets. In this scenario, we consider TCP-controlled upload and download file transfers between the STAs and a server on the wireline LAN (e.g., 100 Mbps Ethernet) to which the AP is connected. In such a situation, it is well known that because of packet losses due to finite buffers at the AP, upload file transfers obtain larger throughputs than download transfers. We provide an analytical model for estimating the upload and download throughputs as a function of the buffer size at the AP. We provide models for the undelayed and delayed ACK cases for a TCP that performs loss recovery only by timeout, and also for TCP Reno. The models are validated in comparison with NS2 simulations.     

改进的非理想信道IEEE802.11DCF性能分析模型

为了提高分析的精确性,考虑发送成功的站点可能连续发送和重传次数限制的影响,给出了分析非理想信道下IEEE 802.11 DCF性能的改进二维马尔可夫链模型,用该模型对IEEE 802.11 DCF访问机制进行分析,求出饱和吞吐量和平均帧时延表达式。并通过仿真加以验证。     

Implementation and performance study of IEEE 802.21 in integrated IEEE 802.11/802.16e networks

In this paper, we propose a framework for the implementation of the IEEE 802.21 Media Independent Handover (MIH) standard and evaluate its performance through experiments in integrated 802.11/802.16e networks. The IEEE 802.21 standard defines three types of MIH services (event, command, and information) that facilitate the mobility management and handover process in heterogeneous networks. To support MIH services, we develop a MIH-capable mobile node and the MIH information service server. Then, we introduce the Connection Manager (CM) which utilizes MIH services. Two main roles of CM are supporting seamless vertical handovers and efficient access point (AP) discoveries. From the experimental results in the real test-bed, we can know that the MIH services can be used to reduce packet losses during a vertical handover and to reduce the AP discovery time and energy consumption of mobile nodes.     

IEEE802.11基础型网络中隐藏站点检测

在IEEE802.11基础型网络中,站点通过侦听接入点的工作过程,可以实时获得足够信息来判定是否存在隐藏站点。利用这一特性,提出了一种在IEEE802.11基础型网络中检测隐藏站点的算法,并通过NS2仿真对多种场景下该算法的性能进行验证。仿真结果表明,该算法可显著提高网络的性能。     

Feedback channel in linear noiseless dynamic systems controlled over the packet erasure network

This paper is concerned with tracking state trajectory at remote controller, stability and performance of linear time-invariant noiseless dynamic systems with multiple observations over the packet erasure network subject to random packet dropout and transmission delay that does not necessarily use feedback channel full time. Three cases are considered in this paper: (1) without feedback channel, (2) with feedback channel intermittently and (3) with full time availability of feedback channel. For all three cases, coding strategies that result in reliable tracking of state trajectory at remote controller with asymptotically zero mean absolute estimation error are presented. Asymptotic mean absolute stability of the controlled system equipped with each of these coding strategies is shown; trade-offs between duty cycle for feedback channel use, transmission delay and performance, which is defined in terms of the settling time, are studied.     

Performance analysis of IEEE 802.11 WLANs with rate adaptation in time-varying fading channels

The IEEE 802.11 supports multiple transmission bit rates by using different modulation and coding schemes. Due to different bit error characteristics and transmission efficiencies of the rates, stations may benefit from an adaptive use of them for a varying channel condition, called rate adaptation. The accuracy of rate adaptation is expected to be highly affected by a time varying nature of typical radio channels due to multipath fading. This paper presents an analytic model of the IEEE distributed coordination function (DCF) with the automatic rate fallback (ARF) rate adaptation algorithm, which is the most widely used one in the 802.11 market, under time-correlated Rayleigh fading. The key idea behind the approach is to exploit the first-order Markovian approximation of Rayleigh fading channels, based on which transmission failure probabilities are obtained depending on the current and previous transmission status. By using those probabilities, the ARF process of a station is modeled as a Markov chain, then, the rate distribution obtained by solving the Markov chain is fed to a DCF model. The proposed DCF model is described in a per-station manner, thus enables the analysis of heterogeneous channel conditions and medium access control (MAC) configurations among stations.     

IEEE 80211e中基于自适应信道预留的接纳控制算法*

为了在WLAN标准IEEE 802.11e中高效、高质量地传输各类业务,以及保证业务之间的公平性,提出一种基于自适应信道预留的接纳控制算法。算法中首先采用资源共享的方法提前为业务预留适当的信道资源,使用信道利用率作为接入准则,当网络资源不足时采用自适应地调节已经接入业务流的服务质量来满足新请求的业务流的服务质量需求。结果表明,该算法保证了各业务之间的公平性以及服务质量需求,而且最大程度地接入了更多的业务流,提高了网络的整体性能。     

Runtime optimization of IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs performance

IEEE 802.11 is the standard for wireless local area networks (WLANs) promoted by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Wireless technologies in the LAN environment are becoming increasingly important and the IEEE 802.11 is the most mature technology to date. Previous works have pointed out that the standard protocol can be very inefficient and that an appropriate tuning of its congestion control mechanism (i.e., the backoff algorithm) can drive the IEEE 802.11 protocol close to its optimal behavior. To perform this tuning, a station must have exact knowledge of the network contention level; unfortunately, in a real case, a station cannot have exact knowledge of the network contention level (i.e., number of active stations and length of the message transmitted on the channel), but it, at most, can estimate it. We present and evaluate a distributed mechanism for contention control in IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs. Our mechanism, named asymptotically optimal backoff (AOB), dynamically adapts the backoff window size to the current network contention level and guarantees that an IEEE 802.11 WLAN asymptotically achieves its optimal channel utilization. The AOB mechanism measures the network contention level by using two simple estimates: the slot utilization and the average size of transmitted frames. These estimates are simple and can be obtained by exploiting information that is already available in the standard protocol. AOB can be used to extend the standard 802.11 access mechanism without requiring any additional hardware. The performance of the IEEE 802.11 protocol, with and without the AOB mechanism, is investigated through simulation. Simulation results indicate that our mechanism is very effective, robust, and has traffic differentiation potentialities.     

An analytic study of tuning systems parameters in IEEE 802.11e enhanced distributed channel access

In this paper, we derive, based on the analytical model developed by Cali et al., a multi-class model to study how to adaptively tune parameters in IEEE 802.11e EDCA and support service differentiation in WLANs. Through analytical modeling, we demonstrate that by assigning appropriate different attempt probabilities (or contention window sizes) to stations of different classes, it is feasible to provide (proportional) service differentiation and achieve pre-specified targeted throughput ratios among different classes, while at the same time, maximizing the total system capacity. We also extend the derived theoretical model to analyze the role of AIFS and TXOP values on service differentiation perceived by different traffic classes. We show that, to achieve QoS guarantees (i.e., throughput differentiation) and high channel utilization, it may not be desirable to allow tuning of multiple parameters (e.g., both the contention window sizes and the AIFS values). Instead, the design dimension should be kept small by turning only one set of parameters, while keeping the other two sets of parameters for all the access categories fixed (i.e., setting the AIFS values of all access categories to 2, which is equivalent to AIFS = DIFS).We also elaborate on how to incorporate our derived theoretical results into IEEE 802.11e. These include (i) how to reduce the computational complexity and practically calculate results on-line, (ii) how to convert the optimal parameters derived in the model that characterizes the p-persistent version of IEEE 802.11e to those in IEEE 802.11e (which is based on the notion of the contention window to determine whether or not to transmit in a slot), and (iii) how to on-line measure parameters needed for calculating the best value of the contention window size. Both the analytical models and the proposed approaches for practically incorporating theoretical findings into IEEE 802.11e EDCA are validated through detailed ns-2 simulations and empirical experimentation on a Linux-based MADWifi driver for wireless LAN devices with the Atheros chipset.     

Modeling the short-term unfairness of IEEE 802.11 in presence of hidden terminals

IEEE 802.11 exhibits both short-term and long-term unfairness. The short-term fairness automatically gives rise to long-term fairness, but not vice versa. When we thoroughly investigated a simple scenario with hidden terminals, we found it to be unfair on the short-term basis, though it provides fair access on a long-term basis. It implies that the protocol cannot be used to provide fair access for delay sensitive traffic even in a simple scenario. In this paper, we analyze the short-term behavior using the embedded-Markov chain method to answer the following two questions: (i) once a node gets control of the medium, what is the average number of packets this node can transmit consecutively without experiencing any collision, (ii) once a node loses its control of the medium, what is the average time the node has to wait before it gets control of the medium again. The first question reflects on how long a node can capture the medium, whereas the second question reflects on how long a node may be starved. The analytical model is validated by the simulation results. Our work is distinct from most of the work published in the literature in two aspects: we focus on the short-term behavior rather than the long-term, and the analytical method is adopted for the study.     

无线IEEE 802.11网络多信道MAC性能建模与分析

IEEE 802.11动态频谱接入网络是当前协议和模型在无线网络研究中一直受到广泛的关注.虽然它的物理层支持多信道,但其MAC层对多信道的支持仍面临挑战.目前的多信道MAC研究大多基于仿真实验,缺乏性能分析模型.本文设计了一种简单通用的信道切换机制,将IEEE802.11MAC扩展成为一种多信道MAC.本文提出了三维马尔可夫链分析模型描述多信道MAC性能,刻画单信道内重传次数和多信道间切换对性能的影响,支持基本和RTS/CTS两种接入方式.仿真结果表明,该多信道MAC模型能够很好地预测系统的饱和吞吐量,系统性能随着重传次数的增加能得到提高,而切换信道数量的增加并不能总是带来性能的提高.     

饱和状态下IEEE 802.11e EDCA机制的建模分析

建立了一个合适的IEEE 802.11e EDCA信道接入机制的数学分析模型。首先深入研究了IEEE 802.11e EDCA机制;在此基础上提出了一种新型的饱和状态下EDCA分析模型。该模型采用二维Markov链的分析方法,分别考虑了不同业务在进行退避时,检测到信道忙的概率以及不同业务退避到零,发送数据帧时发生冲突的概率在多业务竞争中产生的影响。进一步地,对该模型进行了延迟分析。数学分析和仿真实验的对比表明,该模型能够很好地描述IEEE 802.11e EDCA信道接入机制的MAC接入延迟。     

复杂信道下IEEE802.11混合机制阈值分析

分析了差错信道下IEEE802.11b DCF在饱和状态下的吞吐率以及帧长度对吞吐率的影响.研究表明,在一定地误码率下基本访问机制和RTS/CTS两种机制,都存在一个最优帧长使得系统的吞吐率可以达到最大,而且最优值随节点数变化不大.     

Data traffic load balancing and QoS in IEEE 802.11 network: Experimental study of the signal strength effect

The performances of multimedia applications built on wireless systems depend on bandwidth availability that might heavily affect the quality of service. The IEEE 802.11 standards do not provide performed mechanism for bandwidth management through data load distribution among different APs of the network. Then, an AP can be heavily overloaded causing throughput degradation.     

Modelling and performance evaluation of the IEEE 802.11 DCF for real-time control

Popular wireless networks, such as IEEE 802.11/15/16, are not designed for real-time applications. Thus, supporting real-time quality of service (QoS) in wireless real-time control is challenging. This paper adopts the widely used IEEE 802.11, with the focus on its distributed coordination function (DCF), for soft-real-time control systems. The concept of the critical real-time traffic condition is introduced to characterize the marginal satisfaction of real-time requirements. Then, mathematical models are developed to describe the dynamics of DCF based real-time control networks with periodic traffic, a unique feature of control systems. Performance indices such as throughput and packet delay are evaluated using the developed models, particularly under the critical real-time traffic condition. Finally, the proposed modelling is applied to traffic rate control for cross-layer networked control system design.     

基于OPNET的IEEE802．11信道接入技术仿真研究

信道接入控制技术是实现无线网络节点共享无线信道空间的关键技术。IEEE802．11作为无线局域网的一个重要协议标准,定义了两种信道接入控制方式,分别是分布式协调方式和中心协调方式。本文主要研究了以IEEE802．11协议标准为对象的无线局域网两种信道接入技术的学习和讨论,并运用先进的网络仿真工具OPNET对信道接入技术进行了仿真研究,总结了不同信道接入技术下的无线局域网的网络性能。指出设计网络时需要根据不同情况来选用不同的方式来进行通信。     

Dynamic and distributed packet aggregation to solve the performance anomaly in 802.11 wireless networks

In the widely used IEEE 802.11 standard, the so-called performance anomaly is a well-known issue. Several works have tried to solve this problem by introducing mechanisms such as packet fragmentation, backoff adaptation, or packet aggregation during a fixed time interval. In this article, we present and thoroughly analyze PAS, a dynamic and distributed approach solving the performance anomaly problem. PAS is based on packets’ aggregation using a dynamic time interval, which depends on the wireless channel occupation time perceived by each node. Since each station senses the medium independently, this makes PAS a totally distributed solution. Even more, PAS may coexist with standard IEEE 802.11 nodes without any particular adaptation, yet being able to improve performance. Our solution differs from other propositions in the literature because of its dynamic and distributed nature, which makes it suitable in the context of multi-hop networks. Furthermore, it allows increasing fairness, reactivity, and in some cases efficiency. In this article, we thoroughly analyze and emphasize the performance evaluation of our proposal.     

On the side-effects of proprietary solutions for fading and interference mitigation in IEEE 802.11b/g outdoor links

Experimental results are typically envisioned as the ultimate validation reference for any theoretical and/or simulation modelling assumptions. However, in the case of Wireless LANs, the situation is not as straightforward as it might seem. In this paper, we discuss to what (large) extent measurement results may depend on proprietary undocumented algorithms implemented in the vendor-specific card/driver employed. Specifically, we focus on the experimental study of IEEE 802.11b/g outdoor links based on the widely used Atheros/MadWiFi chipset/driver pair. We show that significant and unexpected performance degradation may occur as a consequence of two Atheros’ proprietary algorithms: Transmit Antenna Diversity and Ambient Noise Immunity. Our findings appear quite critical in sight of the fact that part of the WLAN research community is often unaware of the existence of these proprietary mechanisms. Such lack of awareness is critical as it can lead to biased experimental trials and/or to erroneous interpretation of experimental results.