An Analysis Framework for Interuser Interference in IEEE 802.15.6 Body Sensor Networks: A Stochastic Geometry Approach

Abstract

Interuser interference occurs when multiple body sensor networks (BSNs) are transmitting simultaneously in close proximity to each other. Interference analysis in BSNs is challenging due to the hybrid medium access control (MAC) and the specific channel characteristics of BSNs. This paper presents a stochastic geometry analysis framework for interuser interference in IEEE 802.15.6 BSNs. An extended Matern point process is proposed to model the complex spatial distribution of the interfering BSNs caused by the hybrid MAC defined in IEEE 802.15.6. We employ a stochastic geometry approach to evaluate the performance of BSNs, considering the specific channel characteristics of BSNs near the human body. Performance metrics are derived in terms of outage probability and spatial throughput in the presence of interuser interference. We conduct performance evaluation through extensive simulations and show that the simulation results fit well with the analytic results. Insights are provided on the determination of the interference detection range, the BSN density, and the design of MAC for BSNs.