Centralized Scheduling Algorithms for 802.16 Mesh Networks

Abstract

Current mesh networks use 802.11a technology to interconnect the mesh backbone [3,4]. However, 802.11a technology is a decade old and was not designed for mesh networks. In particular, 802.11 Medium Access Control (MAC) lacks theextensions to provide quality of service (QoS) in multihop wireless environments [5]. IEEE 802.16 introduces QoS in the mesh with time division multiple access (TDMA) MAC technology [1]. In 802.16, access points negotiate their end-to-end bandwidth with the POP. IEEE 802.16 MAC enforces end-to-end QoS by scheduling wireless transmissions on the links connecting the access point to the POP.