Unsaturated Throughput Analysis of IEEE 802.11 in Presence of Non Ideal Transmission Channel and Capture Effects

TL;DR

This paper develops a comprehensive throughput model for IEEE 802.11 in non-saturated conditions, considering channel imperfections and capture effects in Rayleigh fading environments, validated by simulations.

Contribution

It extends existing MAC layer models by incorporating transmission errors and capture effects, providing a more accurate throughput analysis under realistic conditions.

Findings

The model accurately predicts throughput in non-ideal channels.

Simulation results closely match theoretical predictions.

Capture effects significantly influence throughput in high interference environments.

Abstract

In this paper, we provide a throughput analysis of the IEEE 802.11 protocol at the data link layer in non-saturated traffic conditions taking into account the impact of both transmission channel and capture effects in Rayleigh fading environment. The impact of both non-ideal channel and capture become important in terms of the actual observed throughput in typical network conditions whereby traffic is mainly unsaturated, especially in an environment of high interference. We extend the multi-dimensional Markovian state transition model characterizing the behavior at the MAC layer by including transmission states that account for packet transmission failures due to errors caused by propagation through the channel, along with a state characterizing the system when there are no packets to be transmitted in the buffer of a station. Finally, we derive a linear model of the throughput along with its interval of validity. Simulation results closely match the theoretical derivations confirming the effectiveness of the proposed model.