A network entry protocol and an OFDMA symbol allocation scheme for non-transparent relay stations in IEEE 802.16j MMR networks

Abstract

A relay station (RS) in IEEE 802.16j mobile multi-hop relay (MMR) networks provides access links to far-off subscriber stations (SSs) and hidden subscriber stations. The RS also relays data from a base station and other RSs while maintaining backward compatibility with legacy subscriber stations in existing IEEE 802.16 networks. Much research is being performed to finalize the standard; however, how an RS in the MMR network is assigned OFDMA symbol resources as an MMR network is enlarged by adding more RSs is not certain. In this paper, we propose a new network entry protocol for non-transparent RSs to handle hidden SSs and far-off SSs. A new OFDMA symbol allocation scheme for RSs in the MMR network is investigated in the literature. We have also conducted a numerical analysis. The numerical analysis includes basic formulas and conditions to calculate not only the maximum number of OFDMA symbols the non-transparent RS can obtain but also the maximum hop count a base station can have.