A Distributed and Deterministic TDMA Algorithm for Write-All-With-Collision Model

TL;DR

This paper introduces a self-stabilizing, deterministic TDMA algorithm for sensor networks that assigns slots concurrently, ensuring collision-free communication and enabling reliable transformation of abstract distributed programs into the WAC model.

Contribution

It presents the first deterministic, self-stabilizing TDMA algorithm that operates with only local neighbor knowledge and converges from arbitrary states.

Findings

Converges to collision-free states from any initial configuration.

Allows transformation of abstract programs into WAC model with deterministic correctness.

Supports concurrent slot assignment among sensors.

Abstract

Several self-stabilizing time division multiple access (TDMA) algorithms are proposed for sensor networks. In addition to providing a collision-free communication service, such algorithms enable the transformation of programs written in abstract models considered in distributed computing literature into a model consistent with sensor networks, i.e., write all with collision (WAC) model. Existing TDMA slot assignment algorithms have one or more of the following properties: (i) compute slots using a randomized algorithm, (ii) assume that the topology is known upfront, and/or (iii) assign slots sequentially. If these algorithms are used to transform abstract programs into programs in WAC model then the transformed programs are probabilistically correct, do not allow the addition of new nodes, and/or converge in a sequential fashion. In this paper, we propose a self-stabilizing deterministic TDMA algorithm where a sensor is aware of only its neighbors. We show that the slots are assigned to the sensors in a concurrent fashion and starting from arbitrary initial states, the algorithm converges to states where collision-free communication among the sensors is restored. Moreover, this algorithm facilitates the transformation of abstract programs into programs in WAC model that are deterministically correct.