TCP/IP link layer error mitigation for MIMO wireless links

This paper investigates the effect of link-layer error mitigation support in MIMO wireless linking systems, and compares connection approaches between SISO and MIMO at different BER operating points substantiated by analysis of captured channels. In particular, this paper concentrates on a packet-based TDD approach, with a link-layer error mitigation scheme based on selective-repeat ARQ of segmented IP packets. Analytical expressions are derived for transfer efficiency over such a system, and simulation results presented to verify performance in terms of application delay experienced by users under various error conditions. This is repeated for SISO and for three alternative MIMO connection arrangements. Result show the degree of improvement available through the incorporation of link-layer error mitigation based upon the selective repetition of erroneous sub-IP packets, and in particular that presenting decomposed MIMO bit-pipes exhibiting diverse error conditions to the link layer, may be advantageous.     

TCP over wireless with link level error control: analysis anddesign methodology

This paper considers the problem of supporting TCP, the Internet data transport protocol, over a lossy wireless link whose quality varies over time. In order to prevent throughput degradation, it is necessary to “hide” the losses and the time variations of the wireless link from TCP. A number of solutions to this problem have been proposed in previous studies, but their performance was studied on a purely experimental basis. This paper presents an approximate analysis, validated by computer simulations, for TCP performance over wireless links. The analysis provides the basis for a systematic approach to supporting TCP over wireless links. The specific case of a Rayleigh-faded wireless link and automatic repeat request-based link-layer recovery is considered for the purpose of illustration. The numerical results presented for this case show that a simple solution, that of using an appropriately designed link-layer error-recovery scheme, prevents excessive deterioration of TCP throughput on wireless links     

Improved simulation method for urban free-space optical links based on the finite Markov state model

An improved method is proposed to simulate the scintillation introduced by the turbulence, based on the finite Markov state model. As a contrast to the literatures, uniformly distributed variables take place during a certain state, which contributes to equivalent simulation of the intensity fluctuations with fewer states than the traditional Markov model. It’s also discovered that the proposed Markov model with 20 states provides a satisfactory approximation to the experimental results in the auto-covariance analysis. Moreover, the outage probability and mean fading time are more accurate than those of the traditional Markov model with equivalent states.     

Error rate performance analysis of coded free-space optical links over gamma-gamma atmospheric turbulence channels

Error control coding can be used over free-space optical (FSO) links to mitigate turbulence-induced fading. In this paper, we derive error performance bounds for coded FSO communication systems operating over atmospheric turbulence channels, considering the recently introduced gamma-gamma turbulence model. We derive a pairwise error probability (PEP) expression and then apply the transfer function technique in conjunction with the derived PEP to obtain upper bounds on the bit error rate. Simulation results are further demonstrated to confirm the analytical results.     

Error rate performance of coded free-space optical links over strong turbulence channels

Error control coding can be used over free-space optical (FSO) links to mitigate turbulence-induced fading. We present error rate performance bounds for coded FSO communication systems operating over atmospheric turbulence channels, which are modeled as a correlated K distribution under strong turbulence conditions. We derive an upper bound on the pairwise error probability (PEP) and then apply the union-bound technique in conjunction with the derived PEP to obtain upper bounds on the bit error rate. Simulation results are further demonstrated to verify the analytical results.     

On the impact of link layer retransmission schemes on TCP over 4G satellite links

We study the impact of reliability mechanisms introduced at the link layer on the performance of transport protocols in the context of 4G satellite links. Specifically, we design a software module that performs realistic analysis of the network performance, by utilizing real physical layer traces of a 4G satellite service. Based on these traces, our software module produces equivalent link layer traces, as a function of the chosen link layer reliability mechanism. We further utilize the link layer traces within the ns‐2 network simulator to evaluate the impact of link layer schemes on the performance of selected Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) variants. We consider erasure coding, selective‐repeat automatic request (ARQ) and hybrid‐ARQ link layer mechanisms, and TCP Cubic, Compound, Hybla, New Reno and Westwood. We show that, for all target TCP variants, when the throughput of the transport protocol is close to the channel capacity, using the ARQ mechanism is most beneficial for TCP performance improvement. In conditions where the physical channel error rate is high, hybrid‐ARQ results in the best performance for all TCP variants considered, with up to 22% improvements compared to other schemes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A novel Markov analytical model for the TCP/AQM systems

A novel closed-loop feedback TCP/AQM(Transfer Control Protocol/Active Queue Management) model is proposed in this paper using a discrete-time Markov chain,and a way to calculate the equilibrium distribution of this model is given.In the model,system time is divided into time slots,the bottleneck router queue model and TCP window size model in each slot are analyzed.Finally,by combining adjacent slots,an integrated TCP/AQM analytical model is developed.By this model,the average values of packets dropping rat...     

Bit error rate and reliability analysis of cooperative communication in free-space optical systems

We have investigated the performance and reliability improvement of cooperative free-space optical (FSO) communication over single input single output (SISO) system in this paper. The bit error rate (BER) analysis with quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), gamma–gamma channel model and pointing error has been demonstrated for SISO and cooperative system. The performance improvement with different combining techniques in cooperative system for different channel environments has been shown in the paper. Markov models for reliability analysis of FSO systems in SISO and cooperative communication have been developed. We have obtained significant increase in availability and mean time between failures with cooperative communication over SISO model.     

A bit error rate analysis for TCP traffic over parallel free space photonics

Inter-satellite links (ISL) are a useful technology to transmit data to space stations and to communicate between satellites. However, there are serious limitations due to long delays and poor channel performance, resulting in high bit error rates (BER). In this paper, parallel transmission and the scaling of the Transport Control Protocol (TCP) window in free space optics (FSO) communications are analyzed in order to overcome these disadvantages in optical inter-satellite links. Latency and BER are the dominant effects that determine link performance. Thus, a physical, link, network and transport cross-layer analysis for FSO over ISL is presented in this paper. This analysis shows the advantages and disadvantages of using optical parallel transmission and TCP window scaling for free space optical links between stations and satellite constellations. The key contribution of this work is to simulate the effects of the BER and to link the results to packet error rate (PER) to determine the goodput for TCP transmissions by using a cross-layering approach. The results give evidence that wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) can mitigate the effects of long delay and high BER for a FSO communication using TCP.     

Comprehensive performance analysis of a TCP session over a wireless fading link with queueing

A link model-driven approach toward transmission control protocol (TCP) performance over a wireless link is presented. TCP packet loss behavior is derived from an underlying two-state continuous time Markov model. The approach presented here is (to our knowledge) the first that simultaneously considers (1) variability of the round-trip delay due to buffer queueing; (2) independent and nonindependent (bursty) link errors; (3) TCP packet loss due to both buffer overflow and channel errors; and (4) the two modes of TCP packet loss detection (duplicate acknowledgments and timeouts). The analytical results are validated against simulations using the ns-2 simulator for a wide range of parameters; slow and fast fading links; small and large link bandwidth-delay products. For channels with memory, an empirical rule is presented for categorizing the impact of channel dynamics (fading rate) on TCP performance.     

A new ATM adaptation layer for TCP/IP over wireless ATM networks

This paper describes the design and performance of a new ATM adaptation layer protocol (AAL‐T) for improving TCP performance over wireless ATM networks. The wireless links are characterized by higher error rates and burstier error patterns in comparison with the fiber links for which ATM was introduced in the beginning. Since the low performance of TCP over wireless ATM networks is mainly due to the fact that TCP always responds to all packet losses by congestion control, the key idea in the design is to push the error control portion of TCP to the AAL layer so that TCP is only responsible for congestion control. The AAL‐T is based on a novel and reliable ARQ mechanism to support quality‐critical TCP traffic over wireless ATM networks. The proposed AAL protocol has been validated using the OPNET tool with the simulated wireless ATM network. The simulation results show that the AAL‐T provides higher throughput for TCP over wireless ATM networks compared to the existing approach of TCP with AAL 5. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Performance analysis of relay-aided free-space optical communication system over gamma-gamma fading channels with pointing errors

The average bit error rate(ABER) performance of a decode-and-forward(DF) based relay-assisted free-space optical(FSO) communication system over gamma-gamma distribution channels considering the pointing errors is studied. With the help of Meijer’s G-function, the probability density function(PDF) and cumulative distribution function(CDF) of the aggregated channel model are derived on the basis of the best path selection scheme. The analytical ABER expression is achieved and the system performance is then investigated with the influence of pointing errors, turbulence strengths and structure parameters. Monte Carlo(MC) simulation is also provided to confirm the analytical ABER expression.     

Performance evaluation of TCP/RLP protocol stack over CDMA wireless link

Due to the high frame error rate in wireless communication channels, an additional link layer protocol, Radio Link Protocol (RLP), has been introduced in the newly approvedData Services Option Standard for Wideband Spread Spectrum Digital Cellular System. In this paper, we investigate performance issues of a typical Cod Division Multiple Access (CDMA) wireless link using the protocol stack given in the standard. In particular, we focus on the dynamics of the TCP and RLP layers of the protocol stack since the fluctuation of system performance is largely caused by Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ) mechanisms implemented at these two layers. We compare the network performance of default parameter setting to those of other possible parameter settings. Analytical and simulation results presented in this paper can provide guidance to those attempting to further improve performance of interest.     

Pointing error effects on performance of free-space optical communication systems using SC-QAM signals over atmospheric turbulence channels

In this paper, we theoretically analyze pointing error effects on performance of free-space optical (FSO) communication systems using subcarrier intensity quadrature amplitude modulation (SC-QAM) signals over atmospheric turbulence channels. Unlike previous studies, we take into account both atmospheric turbulence channels and the pointing error effect. In order to model atmospheric turbulence channels, we employ a log-normal distribution for weak-to-moderate turbulent condition and a gamma–gamma distribution for strong turbulent condition. Moreover, we study the pointing error effect by taking into account the influence of beamwidth, aperture size and jitter variance. In addition, we use a combination of these models to analyze the combined effect of atmospheric turbulence and pointing error to FSO/SC-QAM systems. Finally, we derive analytical expressions to evaluate the average symbol error rate (ASER) performance of such systems. Numerical results present the impact of pointing error on the performance of FSO/SC-QAM systems and how we use proper values of aperture size and beamwidth to improve the performance of such systems. In addition, simulation results of FSO/SC-QAM performance over strong atmospheric turbulence and pointing errors show that the closed-form expression can provide a precision for evaluating ASER of such systems.     

Optimal design of hybrid FEC/ARQ schemes for TCP over wireless links with Rayleigh fading

In this paper, we investigate interactions between TCP and wireless hybrid FEC/ARQ schemes. The aim is to understand what is the best configuration of the wireless link protocol in order to guarantee TCP performance and channel efficiency. Interactions between TCP and different link layer mechanisms are evaluated by means of an analytic model that reproduces: 1) a Rayleigh fading channel with FEC coding, 2) a generic selective repeat ARQ Protocol, and 3) the TCP behavior in a wired-cum-wireless network scenario. The analytic model is validated-by means of ns-based simulations. The analysis represents a contribution to the optimal design of link layer parameters of wireless networks crossed by TCP/IP traffic. The main findings can be summarized as follows: 1) fully reliable ARQ protocols are the best choice for both TCP performance and wireless link efficiency and 2) optimal values of FEC redundancy degree from the point of view of energy efficiency maximizes TCP performance as well.     

A cross-layer optimized adaptive modulation and coding scheme for transmission of streaming media over wireless links

In this paper, a novel cross-layer Adaptive Modulation and Coding scheme that optimizes the overall packet loss (by both transmission errors and excessive delays) probability under a given arrival process is developed. To this end, an improved Large Deviations approximation for the fraction of packets that suffer from excessive queuing delay is proposed. This approximation is valid for G/G/1 queues with infinite buffers that are driven by stationary arrival and service processes which satisfy certain conditions. Such models can capture the time correlations in the amount of traffic generated by streaming media sources and the time varying service capacity of a wireless link. Through numerical examples, the proposed AMC policy is shown to achieve a significant reduction in the overall packet loss rate compared to previously proposed schemes. This algorithmic performance gain can be translated into a sizeable decrease in the required transmit power or an analogous increase in the rate of the arrival process, subject to a given maximum packet loss rate Quality of Service constraint. Furthermore, the proposed AMC policy can be combined with ARQ in order to achieve an even lower overall packet loss probability.     

A stochastic model for the behavior of multiple TCP NewReno sources over optical burst switching network

This work proposes a stochastic model to characterize the transmission control protocol (TCP) over optical burst switching (OBS) networks which helps to understand the interaction between the congestion control mechanism of TCP and the characteristic bursty losses in the OBS network. We derive the steady-state throughput of a TCP NewReno source by modeling it as a Markov chain and the OBS network as an open queueing network with rejection blocking. We model all the phases in the evolution of TCP congestion window and evaluate the number of packets sent and time spent in different states of TCP. We model the mixed assembly process, burst assembler and disassembler modules, and the core network using queueing theory and compute the burst loss probability and end-to-end delay in the network. We derive expression for the throughput of a TCP source by solving the models developed for the source and the network with a set of fixed-point equations. To evaluate the impact of a burst loss on each TCP flow accurately, we define the burst as a composition of per-flow-bursts (which is a burst of packets from a single source). Analytical and simulation results validate the model and highlight the importance of accounting for individual phases in the evolution of TCP congestion window.     

Comparative study of various TCP versions over a wireless link with correlated losses

We investigate the behavior of the various transmission control protocol (TCP) algorithms over wireless links with correlated packet losses. For such a scenario, we show that the performance of NewReno is worse than the performance of Tahoe in many situations and even OldTahoe in a few situations because of the inefficient fast recovery method of NewReno. We also show that random loss leads to significant throughput deterioration when either the product of the square of the bandwidth-delay ratio and the loss probability when in the good state exceeds one, or the product of the bandwidth-delay ratio and the packet success probability when in the bad state is less than two. The performance of Sack is always seen to be the best and the most robust, thereby arguing for the implementation of TCP-Sack over the wireless channel. We also show that, under certain conditions, the performance depends not only on the bandwidth-delay product but also on the nature of timeout, coarse or fine. We have also investigated the effects of reducing the fast retransmit threshold.     

Markov error structure for throughput analysis of adaptive modulation systems combined with ARQ over correlated fading channels

We introduce an analytical method that uses a finite-state Markov chain (FSMC) as an error model, for estimating the performance of adaptive modulation systems (AMSs) combined with automatic repeat request (ARQ) schemes in correlated slow fading channels. For the throughput performance evaluation of wireless packet networks, conventionally, we have assumed independent block fading, which may also be suitable to represent fast fading channels. However, in slow fading channels, error rates of consecutive packets are highly correlated and we cannot simply assume independent error structure in performance evaluations. We propose a multistate Markov error structure for AMS in correlated fading channels, which is also described by a finite-state Markov chain (FSMC) and we also present throughput-estimation methods for AMS combined with ARQ, using the proposed Markov error structure.     

全双工光载无线通信链路模型研究

提出了一个新的全双工光载无线通信链路模型。方案的下行链路采用两个马赫曾德尔调制器级联以产生六倍频毫米波;采用单边带调制,有效防止了码元走离现象,提高了传输距离;上行链路复用了下行链路中的一阶光边带以作为上行基带信号的载波,从而无需在基站中额外配置激光源;采用延时零拍法解调,减少了对毫米波本地振荡器的需求,降低了系统的成本。仿真结果表明,所提出的全双工模型中,仅用10 GHz频率的调制信号就能产生60 GHz的毫米波,大大降低了调制信号频率,且下行链路传输距离可达250 km,而上行链路传输距离大于300 km。