Collision Recovery techniques for Wireless LANs

Collisions in wireless networks are a significant
source of packet loss. Most medium access control
techniques assume that a collision means total packet
loss. However, we will show that this assumption is
not always true, and we investigate how to leverage
this fact.

We first investigate fundamentally what happens when
a collision occurs. We begin by deriving a physical
layer algorithm that can identify which bits have
been corrupted by collision. This algorithm
accurately locates all collision induced errors when
the channel signal to noise ratio is high enough for
reliable communication. By leveraging this algorithm,
we can produce a wide range of benefits. For example,
by providing collision
location information, we can enhance forward error
correcting codes so that they may effectively
completely remove the collision, saving a packet that
would otherwise be discarded.

Autorentext

Sam Keene received his Ph.D in electrical engineering from Boston
University in August 2008. His research interests include
wireless communications and networking, signal processing and
remote sensing. In fall of 2009, Dr. Keene will join The Cooper
Union as an assistant professor in electrical engineering

Klappentext

Collisions in wireless networks are a significant
source of packet loss. Most medium access control
techniques assume that a collision means total packet
loss. However, we will show that this assumption is
not always true, and we investigate how to leverage
this fact.

We first investigate fundamentally what happens when
a collision occurs. We begin by deriving a physical
layer algorithm that can identify which bits have
been corrupted by collision. This algorithm
accurately locates all collision induced errors when
the channel signal to noise ratio is high enough for
reliable communication. By leveraging this algorithm,
we can produce a wide range of benefits. For example,
by providing collision
location information, we can enhance forward error
correcting codes so that they may effectively
completely remove the collision, saving a packet that
would otherwise be discarded.