A dynamic queue MAC protocol for random access channels with multipacket reception

Abstract

A dynamic medium access control (MAC) protocol for a finite-user slotted channel with multipacket reception (MPR) capability is proposed. By adaptively changing the size of the contention class (defined as a subset of users who can access the channel at the same time) according to the traffic load and the channel MPR capability, the proposed dynamic queue protocol provides superior channel efficiency at high traffic load and minimum delay at low traffic load. It is shown that considerable throughput gain over purely random access schemes such as slotted ALOHA at heavy traffic load and significant delay improvement over scheduled multiaccess strategies such as TDMA at light traffic load are achieved by the proposed protocol.