Modeling and simulation of the IEEE 802.11e wireless protocol with hidden nodes using Colored Petri Nets

Estefanía Coronado,Fernando L Pelayo,María-Emilia Cambronero,Luis Orozco-Barbosa,Valentín Valero

doi:10.1007/s10270-020-00817-2

Estefanía Coronado, Fernando L Pelayo + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10270-020-00817-2

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Abstract

Wireless technologies are continuously evolving, including features such as the extension to mid- and long-range communications and the support of an increasing number of devices. However, longer ranges increase the probability of suffering from hidden terminal issues. In the particular case of Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), the use of Quality of Service (QoS) mechanisms introduced in IEEE 802.11e compromises scalability, exacerbates the hidden node problem, and creates congestion as the number of users and the variety of services in the network grow. In this context, this paper presents a configurable Colored Petri Net (CPN) model for the IEEE 802.11e protocol with the aim of analyzing the QoS support in mid- and long-range WLANs The CPN model covers the behavior of the protocol in the presence of hidden nodes to examine the performance of the RTS/CTS exchange in scenarios where the QoS differentiation may involve massive collision chains and high delays. Our CPN model sets the basis for further exploring the performance of the various mechanisms defined by the IEEE 802.11 standard. We then use this CPN model to provide a comprehensive study of the effectiveness of this protocol by using the simulation and monitoring capabilities of CPN Tools.

Highlights

IEEE 802.11 networks are used in daily operations in both professional and personal spheres, including video streaming, social media and Internet of Things (IoT) applications
The evaluation presented has two goals: (1) to show the capabilities of Colored Petri Net (CPN) as a performance evaluation and protocol analysis tool; and (2) to evaluate the effectiveness and/or shortcomings of the protocol mechanisms being introduced in the IEEE 802.11 standard
We use a break point monitor to stop the simulation at the maximum simulation time (15 seconds), several count transition occurrence data collector monitors, which allow us to count the firings of the specified transitions, and two write-in file monitors, which allow us to gather the final markings of the specified places of the CPN, by writing them into text files

Summary

Introduction

IEEE 802.11 networks are used in daily operations in both professional and personal spheres, including video streaming, social media and Internet of Things (IoT) applications. DCF is unable to provide traffic differentiation for the variety of services and lacks of efficiency when the number of users increases To partially mitigate this problem, Quality of Service (QoS) mechanisms in the IEEE 802.11e amendment [1] were introduced through the Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) function as an extension of DCF. Despite Wireless Local Access Networks (WLANs) were initially designed to provide short range connectivity, the tendency of the society to be permanently connected has made this wireless technology being extended to cover mid- and long-range communications and a higher number of devices through amendments such as IEEE 802.11ah [2] This is especially relevant in outdoor deployments, i.e., urban and rural areas [3], to enable longer transmission coverage. If after this period the medium is still busy, they must start the Backoff algorithm, a channel access arbitration algorithm that estimates the period of time that a station must wait before attempting retransmission due to the deferred operation.

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