Investigation of efficient resource allocation schemes for WiMAX networks

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Master of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University on 9 July 2008.WiMax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) is a promising wireless technology with the aim of providing the last mile wireless broadband access designed for both fixed and mobile consumers as an alternative solution to the wired DSL and cable access schemes. The purpose of this research project is to investigate efficient resource allocation algorithms for WiMax. To achieve this goal, we investigate efficient PHY layer Partial Usage of SubCarriers (PUSC) allocation as well as MAC layer piggyback bandwidth request mechanisms. At the PHY layer we proposed improvements on the Uplink and Downlink PUSC subcarrier allocation scheme. For the Uplink PUSC we suggested a method by allocating different frequencies to neighbouring cells in combination with the Integer Frequency Reuse (IFR) and Fractional Frequency Reuse (FFR) in order to reduce interferences and collisions. The simulation results exhibit that collision rates can be reduced to zero for both IFR and FFR patterns with the proposed improvement by assuming that perfect power control is used in the system. In addition, there is no collision at cell edges. The results also show that FFR patterns achieve lower inter-cell interference and higher capacities as compared to the IFR patterns. For the Downlink PUSC we introduced an offset scheme with the purpose of increasing the number of users in the system. At the MAC layer we propose an improvement on the piggyback bandwidth request mechanism by increasing the size of the piggyback bandwidth request in order to reduce the number of bandwidth requests and hence improve the resource utilisation. The simulation results demonstrate that our improved scheme achieves higher throughput, less delay and packet loss rates as compared to the standardised piggyback bandwidth request mechanism

Modeling And Dynamic Resource Allocation For High Definition And Mobile Video Streams

Video streaming traffic has been surging in the last few years, which has resulted in an increase of its Internet traffic share on a daily basis. The importance of video streaming management has been emphasized with the advent of High Definition: HD) video streaming, as it requires by its nature more network resources. In this dissertation, we provide a better support for managing HD video traffic over both wireless and wired networks through several contributions. We present a simple, general and accurate video source model: Simplified Seasonal ARIMA Model: SAM). SAM is capable of capturing the statistical characteristics of video traces with less than 5% difference from their calculated optimal models. SAM is shown to be capable of modeling video traces encoded with MPEG-4 Part2, MPEG-4 Part10, and Scalable Video Codec: SVC) standards, using various encoding settings. We also provide a large and publicly-available collection of HD video traces along with their analyses results. These analyses include a full statistical analysis of HD videos, in addition to modeling, factor and cluster analyses. These results show that by using SAM, we can achieve up to 50% improvement in video traffic prediction accuracy. In addition, we developed several video tools, including an HD video traffic generator based on our model. Finally, to improve HD video streaming resource management, we present a SAM-based delay-guaranteed dynamic resource allocation: DRA) scheme that can provide up to 32.4% improvement in bandwidth utilization

Performance analysis of 4G wireless networks using system level simulator

Doutoramento em Engenharia ElectrotécnicaIn the last decade, mobile wireless communications have witnessed an explosive growth in the user’s penetration rate and their widespread deployment around the globe. In particular, a research topic of particular relevance in telecommunications nowadays is related to the design and implementation of mobile communication systems of 4th generation (4G). 4G networks will be characterized by the support of multiple radio access technologies in a core network fully compliant with the Internet Protocol (all IP paradigms). Such networks will sustain the stringent quality of service (QoS) requirements and the expected high data rates from the type of multimedia applications (i.e. YouTube and Skype) to be available in the near future. Therefore, 4G wireless communications system will be of paramount importance on the development of the information society in the near future. As 4G wireless services will continue to increase, this will put more and more pressure on the spectrum availability. There is a worldwide recognition that methods of spectrum managements have reached their limit and are no longer optimal, therefore new paradigms must be sought. Studies show that most of the assigned spectrum is under-utilized, thus the problem in most cases is inefficient spectrum management rather spectrum shortage. There are currently trends towards a more liberalized approach of spectrum management, which are tightly linked to what is commonly termed as Cognitive Radio (CR). Furthermore, conventional deployment of 4G wireless systems (one BS in cell and mobile deploy around it) are known to have problems in providing fairness (users closer to the BS are more benefited relatively to the cell edge users) and in covering some zones affected by shadowing, therefore the use of relays has been proposed as a solution. To evaluate and analyse the performances of 4G wireless systems software tools are normally used. Software tools have become more and more mature in recent years and their need to provide a high level evaluation of proposed algorithms and protocols is now more important. The system level simulation (SLS) tools provide a fundamental and flexible way to test all the envisioned algorithms and protocols under realistic conditions, without the need to deal with the problems of live networks or reduced scope prototypes. Furthermore, the tools allow network designers a rapid collection of a wide range of performance metrics that are useful for the analysis and optimization of different algorithms. This dissertation proposes the design and implementation of conventional system level simulator (SLS), which afterwards enhances for the 4G wireless technologies namely cognitive Radios (IEEE802.22) and Relays (IEEE802.16j). SLS is then used for the analysis of proposed algorithms and protocols.FC

Energy efficiency in next generation wireless networks: methodologies, solutions and algorithms

Mobile Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) networks will offer in the forthcoming years multiple and differentiated services to users with high mobility requirements, connecting via portable or wearable devices which rely on the use of batteries by necessity. Since such devices consume a relatively large fraction of energy for transmitting/receiving data over-the-air, mechanisms are needed to reduce power consumption, in order to increase the lifetime of devices and hence improve user’s satisfaction. Next generation wireless network standards define power saving functions at the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, which allow user terminals to switch off the radio transceiver during open traffic sessions for greatest energy consumption reduction. However, enabling power saving usually increases the transmission latency, which can negatively affect the Quality of Service (QoS) experienced by users. On the other hand, imposing stringent QoS requirements may limit the amount of energy that can be saved. The IEEE 802.16e standard defines the sleep mode is power saving mechanism with the purpose of reducing energy consumption. Three different operation classes are provided, each one to serve different class of traffic: class I, best effort traffic, class II real time traffic and class III multicast traffic. Several aspects of the sleep mode are left unspecified, as it is usually done in standards, allowing manufacturers to implement their own proprietary solutions, thus gaining a competitive advantage over the rivals. The work of this thesis is aimed at verifying, the effectiveness of the power saving mechanism proposed into IEEE 802.16e standard, focusing on the mutual interaction between power saving and QoS support. Two types of delay constrained applications with different requirements are considered, i.e., Web and Voice over IP (VoIP). The performance is assessed via detailed packet-level simulation, with respect to several system parameters. To capture the relative contribution of all the factors on the energy- and QoS-related metrics, part of the evaluation is carried out by means of 2k · r! analysis. Our study shows that the sleep mode can achieve significant power consumption reduction, however, when real time traffic is considered a wise configuration of the parameters is mandatory in order to avoid unacceptable degradation of the QoS. Finally, based on the guidelines drawn through the analysis, we extend our contribution beyond a simple evaluation, proposing a power saving aware scheduling framework aimed at reducing further the energy consumption. Our framework integrates with existing scheduling policies that can pursue their original goals, e.g. maximizing throughput or fairness, while improving the energy efficiency of the user terminals. Its effectiveness is assessed through an extensive packet level simulation campaign

An improved resource allocation scheme for WiMAX using channel information

In recent years, tremendous progress has been made in wireless communication systems to provide wireless coverage to end users at different data rates. WiMAX technology provides wireless broadband access over an extended coverage area in both fixed and mobility environments. Most of the existing resource allocation schemes allocate resources based on respective service class of the incoming users’ requests. However, due to variation in channel conditions, user mobility and diverse resource requirements QoS based resource allocation either results in over or under utilization of allocated resources. Therefore, resource allocation is a challenging task in WiMAX. This research proposes an improved resource management mechanism that performs resource allocation by taking into consideration not only the user service class but also the respective channel status. Based on these two parameters, this research aims to achieve improved resource allocation in terms of resource utilization, fairness and network throughput. First, a Channel Based Resource Allocation scheme is introduced where priority in resource allocation is given to users’ requests with relatively higher service classes and better channel status. To maintain fairness in resource allocation process, a Fair Resource Allocation Based Service mechanism is developed where priority is given to users’ requests having less additional resources demand. Finally, to improve throughput of the network, a Channel Based Throughput Improvement approach is proposed which dynamically selects a threshold level of channel gain based on individual channel gain of users. During resource allocation process, users above the threshold level are selected for resource allocation such that priority is given to users with high channel gain. Different simulation scenario results reveal an overall improved resource utilization from 87% to 91% and the throughput improves up to 15% when compared to existing schemes. In conclusion the performance of resource utilization is improved if channel status is considered as an input parameter

A Survey on Scheduling in IEEE 802.16 Mesh Mode

Cataloged from PDF version of article.IEEE 802.16 standard (also known as WiMAX) defines the wireless broadband network technology which aims to solve the so called last mile problem via providing high bandwidth Internet even to the rural areas for which the cable deployment is very costly. The standard mainly focuses on the MAC and PHY layer issues, supporting two transmission modes: PMP (Point-to-Multipoint) and mesh modes. Mesh mode is an optional mode developed as an extension to PMP mode and it has the advantage of having an improving performance as more subscribers are added to the system using multi-hop routes. In 802.16 MAC protocol, mesh mode slot allocation and reservation mechanisms are left open which makes this topic a hot research area. Hence, the focus of this survey will mostly be on the mesh mode, and the proposed scheduling algorithms and performance evaluation methods

Efficient design of WIMAX/802.16 mesh networks

Broadband wireless networks are becoming increasingly popular due to their fast and inexpensive deployment and their capabilities of providing flexible and ubiquitous Internet access. While the majority of existing broadband wireless networks are still exclusively limited to single hop access, it is the ability of these networks to forward data frames over multi-hop wireless routes which enabled them to easily extend the network coverage area. Unfortunately, achieving good multi- hop throughput has been challenging due to several factors, such as lossy wireless links caused by interference from concurrent transmissions, and intra-path interference caused by transmissions on successive hops along a single path. A wireless mesh network WMN consists of a number of stationary wireless mesh routers, forming a wireless backbone. The wireless mesh routers serve as access points (APs) for wireless mobile devices, and some of them also act as gateways to the Internet via high speed wireless links. Several technologies are currently being considered for mesh (multi-hop) networks, including, IEEE 802.11 (both single channel and multi-channel), IEEE 802.16/WiMAX, and next generation cellular networks (LTE). In this work, we focus on the IEEE 802.16. To maximize the network performance of mesh networks (e.g., throughput), it is essential to consider a cross-layer design, exploiting the dependency between protocol layers such as the routing network layer and the scheduling resource allocation MAC layer. Therefore this PhD thesis considers a cross-layer design approach for designing efficient wireless mesh networks; we first develop mathematical models (link-based and path-based) for the problem of joint routing tree construction and link scheduling in WiMAX-based mesh networks with the objective of minimizing the schedule length to satisfy a set of uplink and downlink demands. This is achieved by maximizing the number of concurrent active transmissions in the network by efficiently reusing the spectrum spatially. Second, we exploit the broadcasts nature of the wireless medium and enhance our design models by incorporating opportunistic network coding into the joint routing tree construction and link scheduling problem. Identifying coding-aware routing structures and utilizing the broadcasting feature of the wireless medium play an important role in realizing the achievable gain of network coding. Last, the uprising mobile WiMAX (802.16e amendment) has introduced more difficulties and challenges into the network design problem; thus, ensuring larger connection lifetime and better routing stability become of greater interest for the joint routing and scheduling problem. This is addressed by augmenting the previously designed models. Throughout this thesis, we assume centralized scheduling at the base station (BS) and we develop, for the joint problems, integer linear programming (ILP) models which require the enumeration of all feasible solutions to reach the optimal solution. Given their complexities, we rely on optimization decomposition methods using column generation for solving each model in an efficient way

Dynamic bandwidth scheduling and burst construction algorithm for downlink in (4G) mobile WiMAX networks

Advanced wireless systems, also called fourth generation (4G) wireless systems, such as Mobile Worldwide interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), are developed to provide broadband wireless access in true sense. Therefore, it becomes mandatory for such kind of systems to provide Quality of Service (QoS) support for wide range of applications. In such types of systems, wireless base stations are responsible for distributing proper amount of bandwidth among different mobile users, thus satisfying a user’s QoS requirements. The task of distributing proper amount of bandwidth rests upon a scheduling algorithm, typically executed at the base station. 2G and 3G wireless systems are able to provide only voice, low data rate, and delay insensitive services, such as Web browsing. This is due to the lack of development in digital modulation and multiple access schemes, which are two major aspects of physical layer of these systems. Digital modulation is used to combat with location-dependent channel errors which get introduced in the data transmitted by base station on a wireless channel to a mobile station. Hence, different locations of every mobile station in a cell coverage area require different modulation and coding schemes for error-free transmission. Link adaptation is a technique that makes the use of variable modulation and coding schemes possible, according to varying location of mobile stations. This technique is used by 4G systems to achieve error free transmissions. 2G and 3G systems are not capable of achieving error-free transmissions in many cases due to significantly fewer or no choice of modulation and coding schemes for different locations of mobile stations. In such cases, most of the time, wireless channel is either error-prone or error-free for mobile station. Scheduling algorithms developed for 2G and 3G systems focussed on providing long term average rate requirements of users, which are satisfied at the expense of zero transmission for mobile users experiencing bad or error prone channel. This approach was adopted to achieve efficient use of wireless channel capacity. This was the best approach adopted by majority of scheduling algorithms because delay sensitive applications were not supported in such systems and hence bounded delay was not a matter of concern. Hence, the majority of the algorithms focussed on providing long term average rate requirements while maximizing cell throughput. This helped in making efficient use of wireless channel capacity at the expense of zero transmission for mobile users experiencing bad channel and compromising delay performance. These approaches, however, will not be suitable for 4G systems as such systems support wide range of applications ranging from delay-insensitive to highly delay-sensitive. Hence in this thesis, a dynamic bandwidth scheduling algorithm called Leaky Bucket Token Bank (LBTB) is proposed. This algorithm exploits some advanced features of 4G systems, like link adaptation and multiple access scheme, to achieve long term average rate requirements for delay-insensitive applications and bounded delay for delay-sensitive applications. Advanced features of 4G systems also bring more challenges. One such challenge is Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), a multiple access scheme deployed in 4G systems. In OFDMA, scheduled data for different mobile stations is packed into bursts and mapped to a two dimensional structure of time and frequency, called OFDMA frame. It has been observed that the way bursts are mapped to OFDMA frame affects the wakeup time of mobile stations receiving data and therefore causes power consumption. Wakeup time is the time duration in OFDMA frame for which the mobile station becomes active. Since OFDMA frame is a limited and precious radio resource, the efficient use of such radio resource is necessary. Efficient use requires that the wastage of such radio resource be minimized. Hence in this thesis, a burst construction algorithm called Burst Construction for Fairness in Power (BCFP) is also proposed. The algorithm attempts to achieve fairness in power consumption of different mobile stations by affecting their wakeup time. It also attempts to minimize wastage of radio resources. For comparing the performance of joint proposed algorithms (LBTB+BCFP), the proposed burst construction algorithm (BCFP) is joined to the two other existing scheduling algorithms namely: Token Bank Fair Queuing (TBFQ) and Adaptive Token Bank Fair Queuing (ATBFQ). TBFQ is an algorithm developed for 3G wireless networks whereas, ATBFQ is an extension to the TBFQ and is developed for 4G wireless networks. Therefore, the performance of the proposed algorithms jointly together (LBTB+BCFP) is compared with the joint TBFQ and proposed burst construction algorithm (TBFQ+BCFP), as well as joint ATBFQ and proposed burst construction algorithm (ATBFQ+BCFP). We compare the performance in terms of average queuing delay, average cell throughput, packet loss, fairness among different mobile users, fairness in average wakeup times (average power consumption), and fraction of radio resources wasted. The performance of proposed burst construction algorithm (BCFP) is also compared with Round Robin algorithm in terms of fairness in average power consumption as well as fraction of radio resources wasted, for varying number of users