Queueing analysis of buffered slotted multiple access protocols

Much of the literature on the performance evaluation of multiple access protocols has assumed a buffer capacity of one unit. This assumption is not realistic. In practice the buffer capacities used are larger than one unit in order to reduce the probability of packet rejection. This is more crucial for multiple access protocols, which allow moderate to high values of the expected throughput (URN, Random TDMA etc.).In this paper, a model appropriate for the analysis of buffered slotted multiple access schemes is proposed. The method can be applied to several multiple access protocols such as the URN protocol, the ALOHA protocol, Random TDMA etc. The cases of infinite and finite buffer capacity are examined separately but under the same basic assumptions. The analysis is based on the assumption that each user process can be modelled as an M/G/1 queueing system. The proposed method requires a small amount of computation and is characterized by a high speed, a fact that simplifies the buffer's design as well. The solution obtained is extremely accurate and exhibits excellent agreement with simulation results, which corroborate the accuracy of the model. The special case when the buffer capacity is equal to 1 is examined. In that case, the present approach also allows for computation of the packet delay distribution.