IEEE 802.11n Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs) employ Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO), which significantly boosts the raw data rate at the Physical layer (PHY). But the potential of enhancing Medium Access Control (MAC) layer efficiencies by MIMO is still in its early stage and is the aim of the research in this thesis. Many existing works in this field mainly employ distributed MIMO spatial multiplexing/Multi-User Detection (MUD) technique and stream sharing to enable multiple simultaneous transmissions. Most works require synchronization among multiple transmissions, split the channel, and aim for single-hop networks. In this thesis, a novel Hybrid Carrier Sense (HCS) framework is proposed, mainly at the MAC layer to exploit the power of MIMO. HCS senses the channel availability jointly by the virtual carrier sense and physical carrier sense. HCS does not require synchronization among nodes; each node independently and locally determines when to start its transmission. HCS not only shares the channel, but also exploits the bi-directional handshakes of the wireless transmissions and increases the number of simultaneous stream transmissions. For a network with M antennas in each node, HCS can accommodate 2x(M-1) streams instead of M streams achieved by all other existing works. Moreover, HCS is aimed for multi-hop wireless ad hoc networks, in which the hidden terminal, exposed terminal, and deafness problems greatly degrade network performance. The HCS framework incorporates solutions to these problems. HCS is implemented in an NS2 network simulator and the performance evaluation shows that HCS significantly outperforms MIMO-enabled IEEE 802.11 (in which MIMO is only used for enhancing the raw data rate in the physical layer), resulting in higher aggregate throughput, packet delivery ratio and fairness in multi-hop wireless ad hoc networks. The HCS framework will be in wide use in the future generation of wireless networks and opens up more research possibilities. Some ideas in the HCS framework can be applied not only for MIMO, but also for many other techniques surveyed in this thesis; or we may combine them with HCS to further boost the network performance. / Thesis (Ph.D, Electrical & Computer Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2013-10-15 21:46:15.983

Multi-hop wireless networks based on 802. 11 are being used more widely as an alternative technology for last-mile broadband Internet access. Their benefits include ease of deployment and lower cost. Such networks are not without problems. Current research on such networks aims at a number of challenges, including overcoming capacity limitation and poor fairness. <br /><br /> The focus of our research is for achieving fairness in multi-channel multi-hop wireless networks. First, we review the literature for different methods for representing link-contention areas, and the existing single-channel fairness computational model. Second, we generalize the fairness constraints applied to each link-contention area, defined in the existing single-channel fairness reference model, to multi-channel models. Third, by adopting the concepts of link-usage matrix and medium-usage matrix to represent network topology and flow status, and using Collision Domain theory and Clique Graph theory to represent link-contention area, we develop a computational model to compute optimal MAC-layer bandwidth allocated to each flow in a multi-channel multi-hop WMN. We simulate various network configurations to evaluate the performance of the fairness algorithm based on the above computational model in different scenarios. We have found that in the multi-channel environment, our extension to the Collision Domain model generally provides a more accurate estimation of network capacity. Based on this model, we have extended the source-rate-limiting mechanism, which limits the flow rate to its fair share computed by the computational model. Experimental results that validate these findings are presented in this thesis.

Ad hoc networks represent the current de-facto alternative for infrastructure-less environments, due to their self-configuring and resilience characteristics. Ad hoc networks flexibility benefits, such as unrestrained computing, lack of centralisation, and ease of deployment at low costs, are tightly bound with relevant deficiencies such as limited resources and management difficulty. Ad hoc networks witnessed high attention from the research community due to the numerous challenges faced when deploying such a technology in real scenarios. Starting with the nature of the wireless environment, which raises significant transmission issues when compared with the wired counterpart, ad hoc networks require a different approach when addressing the data link problems. Further, the high packet loss due to wireless contention, independent of network congestion, requires a different approach when considering quality of service degradation and unfair channel resources distribution among competing flows. Although these issues have already been considered to some extent by researchers, there is still room to improve quality of service by reducing the effect of packet loss and fairly distributing the medium access among competing nodes. The aim of this thesis is to propose a set of mechanisms to alleviate the effect of packet loss and to improve fairness in ad hoc networks. A transport layer algorithm has been proposed to overcome the effects of hidden node collisions and to reduce the impact of wireless link contention by estimating the four hop delay and pacing packet transmissions accordingly. Furthermore, certain topologies have been identified, in which the standard IEEE 802.11 faces degradation in channel utilisation and unfair bandwidth allocation. Three link layer mechanisms have been proposed to tackle the challenges the IEEE 802.11 faces in the identified scenarios to impose fairness in ad hoc networks through fairly distributing channel resources between competing nodes. These mechanisms are based on monitoring the collision rate and penalising the greedy nodes where no competing nodes can be detected but interference exists, monitoring traffic at source nodes to police access to the channel where only source nodes are within transmission range of each other, and using MAC layer acknowledgements to flag unfair bandwidth allocation in topologies where only the receivers are within transmission range of each other. The proposed mechanisms have been integrated into a framework designed to adapt and to dynamically select which mechanism to adopt, depending on the network topology. It is important to note that the proposed mechanisms and framework are not alternatives to the standard MAC protocol but are an enhancement and are triggered by the failure of the IEEE 802.11 protocol to distribute the channel resources fairly. All the proposed mechanisms have been validated through simulations and the results obtained from the experiments show that the proposed schemes fairly distribute channel resources fairly and outperform the performance of the IEEE 802.11 protocol in terms of channel utilisation as well as fairness.

Within the nuclear industry, there have been numerous instances of radio transmissions interfering with sensitive plant equipment. Instances documented vary from minor instrument fluctuations to major plant transients including reactor trips. With the nuclear power industry moving toward digital technologies for control and reactor protection systems, concern exists regarding their potential susceptibility to contemporary wireless telecommunications technologies. This study evaluates the susceptibility of Comanche Peak's planned turbine controls upgrade to IEEE 802.11 compliant wireless radio emissions. The study includes a review of previous research, industry emissions standards, and technical overview of the various IEEE 802.11 protocols and details the testing methodology utilized to evaluate the digital control system. The results of this study concluded that the subject digital control system was unaffected by IEEE 802.11 compliant emissions even when the transmitter was in direct contact with sensitive components.

Wireless Networks is a very growing market. However, the security measures are not strong enough; the WEP security protocol is flawed. The 802.11 Task Group I is working on new security measures in order to strengthen the access control of users, the privacy and the integrity of data. We will describe the WEP flaws and the new security measures of 802.11 Task Group I. Finally, we will propose a new architecture to improve user identification for the wireless network of our department.

The convenience of IEEE 802.11-based wireless access networks has led to widespread deployment. However, these applications are predicated on the assumption of availability and confidentiality. Error-prone wireless networks afford an attacker considerable flexibility to exploit the vulnerabilities of 802.11-based mechanism. Two of most famous misbehaviors are selfish and malicious attacks. In this thesis we investigate two attacks: Spurious CTS attack (SCTS) and Jamming ACK attack (JACK). In the SCTS, malicious nodes may send periodic Spurious CTS packets to force other nodes to update their NAV values and prevent them from using the channel. In the JACK, an attacker ruins legitimate ACK packets for the intention of disrupting the traffic flow and draining the battery energy of victim nodes quickly. Correspondingly, we propose solutions: termed Carrier Sensing based Discarding (CSD), and Extended Network Allocation Vector (ENAV) scheme. We further demonstrate the performance of our proposed schemes through analysis and NS2 simulations.

Future broadband wireless networks should be able to support not only best effort traffic but also real-time traffic with strict Quality of Service (QoS) constraints. In addition, their available resources are scare and limit the number of users. To facilitate QoS guarantees and increase the maximum number of concurrent users, wireless networks require careful planning and optimization. In this monograph, we studied three aspects of performance optimization in wireless networks: resource optimization in WLAN infrastructure networks, quality of experience control in wireless mesh networks, and planning and optimization of wireless mesh networks. An adaptive resource management system is required to effectively utilize the limited resources on the air interface and to guarantee QoS for real-time applications. Thereby, both WLAN infrastructure and WLAN mesh networks have to be considered. An a-priori setting of the access parameters is not meaningful due to the contention-based medium access and the high dynamics of the system. Thus, a management system is required which dynamically adjusts the channel access parameters based on the network load. While this is sufficient for wireless infrastructure networks, interferences on neighboring paths and self-interferences have to be considered for wireless mesh networks. In addition, a careful channel allocation and route assignment is needed. Due to the large parameter space, standard optimization techniques fail for optimizing large wireless mesh networks. In this monograph, we reveal that biology-inspired optimization techniques, namely genetic algorithms, are well-suitable for the planning and optimization of wireless mesh networks. Although genetic algorithms generally do not always find the optimal solution, we show that with a good parameter set for the genetic algorithm, the overall throughput of the wireless mesh network can be significantly improved while still sharing the resources fairly among the users. / Die Anbindung an das Internet erfolgt zunehmend über drahtlose Netze. Deren Ressourcen sind allerdings limitiert, was die Anzahl der unterstützten Nutzer stark einschränkt. Zudem ist ein Trend dieser Nutzer weg von der Verwendung reiner Datendienste zu Diensten mit Echtzeitanforderungen wie Voice over IP (VoIP) zu erkennen, deren Dienstgüteanforderungen eingehalten werden müssen. Heutige drahtlose Zugangsnetze sind jedoch nur für den herkömmlichen Datenverkehr ausgelegt. Der IEEE 802.11 WLAN Standard unterscheidet zwar zwischen verschiedenen Dienstklassen, gibt aber keine Dienstgütegarantien. Um die Dienstgüte (Quality of Service, QoS), bzw. die vom Nutzer erfahrene Dienstgüte (Quality of Experience, QoE) zu garantieren, müssen die zukünftigen drahtlosen Netze daher sorgfältig geplant und optimiert werden. Um die limitierten Ressourcen auf der Luftschnittstelle effektiv zu nutzen und um Dienstgüteanforderungen für Echtzeitanwendungen einzuhalten, bedarf es eines adaptiven Ressourcenmanagements. Dabei sind sowohl drahtlose Infrastruktur, als auch drahtlose Mesh-Netze zu betrachten. Durch den randomisierten Medienzugriff und die hohe Dynamik im System ist eine a-priori Wahl der Zugangsparameter nicht sinnvoll. Vielmehr wird ein Managementsystem benötigt, das die Zugangsparameter dynamisch in Abhängigkeit der Last in einem Netz wählt. Während dies für drahtlose Infrastrukturnetze ausreicht, müssen in drahtlosen Mesh-Netzen zusätzlich noch Interferenzen von Nachbarpfaden und Eigeninterferenzen berücksichtigt werden. Desweiteren ist eine sorgfältige Planung der Kanalzuweisung und des Routings notwendig, um einerseits den Durchsatz in drahtlosen Mesh-Netzen zu maximieren und andererseits die Ressourcen fair zwischen den Stationen aufzuteilen. Da es dabei eine Vielzahl von Parametern zu berücksichtigen gilt, sind neue Optimierungsmethoden notwendig, die es ermöglichen, auch große Mesh-Netze in annehmbarer Zeit zu planen und zu optimieren. Diese Doktorarbeit arbeitet die folgenden drei Optimierungsmöglichkeiten für drahtlose Zugangsnetze aus: Optimierung der Zugangsparameter in drahtlosen Infrastrukturnetzen, Optimierung von drahtlosen Mesh-Netzen unter Berücksichtigung der QoE und Planung und Optimierung von drahtlosen Mesh-Netzen mit Berücksichtigung einer fairen Ressourcenallokation. Die Ergebnisse und Untersuchungen dieser Arbeit gliedern sich entsprechend dieser Optimierungsmöglichkeiten.

Im Internet der Zukunft werden Menschen nicht nur mit Menschen, sondern auch mit „Dingen“, und sogar „Dinge“ mit „Dingen“ kommunizieren. Zusätzlich wird das Bedürfnis steigen, immer und überall Zugang zum Internet zu haben. Folglich gewinnen drahtlose Sensornetze (WSNs) und drahtlose Mesh-Netze (WMNs) an Bedeutung, da sie Daten über die Umwelt ins Internet liefern, beziehungsweise einfache Internet-Zugangsmöglichkeiten schaffen. In den vier Teilen dieser Arbeit werden unterschiedliche Modellierungs- und Optimierungsmethoden für WSNs und WMNs vorgestellt. Der Energieverbrauch ist die wichtigste Metrik, wenn es darum geht die Kommunikation in einem WSN zu optimieren. Da sich in der Literatur sehr viele unterschiedliche Energiemodelle finden, untersucht der erste Teil der Arbeit welchen Einfluss unterschiedliche Energiemodelle auf die Optimierung von WSNs haben. Aufbauend auf diesen Überlegungen beschäftigt sich der zweite Teil der Arbeit mit drei Problemen, die überwunden werden müssen um eine standardisierte energieeffiziente Kommunikations-Lösung für WSNs basierend auf IEEE 802.15.4 und ZigBee zu realisieren. Für WMNs sind beide Probleme von geringem Interesse, die Leistung des Netzes jedoch umso mehr. Der dritte Teil der Arbeit führt daher Algorithmen für die Berechnung des Max-Min fairen (MMF) Netzwerk-Durchsatzes in WMNs mit mehreren Linkraten und Internet-Gateways ein. Der letzte Teil der Arbeit untersucht die Auswirkungen des LRA-Konzeptes. Dessen grundlegende Idee ist die folgende. Falls für einen Link eine niedrigere Datenrate als theoretisch möglich verwendet wird, sinkt zwar der Link-Durchsatz, jedoch ist unter Umständen eine größere Anzahl von gleichzeitigen Übertragungen möglich und der Gesamt-Durchsatz des Netzes kann sich erhöhen. Mithilfe einer analytischen LRA Formulierung und einer systematischen Studie kann gezeigt werden, dass eine netzwerkweite Zuordnung robusterer Datenraten als nötig zu einer Erhöhung des MMF Netzwerk-Durchsatzes führt. Desweitern kann gezeigt werden, dass sich LRA positiv auf die Leistungsfähigkeit eines IEEE 802.11 WMNs auswirkt und für die Optimierung des Netzes genutzt werden kann. / In the future Internet, the people-centric communication paradigm will be complemented by a ubiquitous communication among people and devices, or even a communication between devices. This comes along with the need for a more flexible, cheap, widely available Internet access. Two types of wireless networks are considered most appropriate for attaining those goals. While wireless sensor networks (WSNs) enhance the Internet’s reach by providing data about the properties of the environment, wireless mesh networks (WMNs) extend the Internet access possibilities beyond the wired backbone. This monograph contains four chapters which present modeling and optimization methods for WSNs and WMNs. Minimizing energy consumptions is the most important goal of WSN optimization and the literature consequently provides countless energy consumption models. The first part of the monograph studies to what extent the used energy consumption model influences the outcome of analytical WSN optimizations. These considerations enable the second contribution, namely overcoming the problems on the way to a standardized energy-efficient WSN communication stack based on IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee. For WMNs both problems are of minor interest whereas the network performance has a higher weight. The third part of the work, therefore, presents algorithms for calculating the max-min fair network throughput in WMNs with multiple link rates and Internet gateway. The last contribution of the monograph investigates the impact of the LRA concept which proposes to systematically assign more robust link rates than actually necessary, thereby allowing to exploit the trade-off between spatial reuse and per-link throughput. A systematical study shows that a network-wide slightly more conservative LRA than necessary increases the throughput of a WMN where max-min fairness is guaranteed. It moreover turns out that LRA is suitable for increasing the performance of a contention-based WMN and is a valuable optimization tool.

IEEE 802.11 networks successfully satisfy high data demands and are cheaper compared to cellular networks. Modern mobile computers and phones are equipped with 802.11 and are VoIP capable. Current network designs do not dynamically accommodate changes in the usage. We propose a dynamic power control algorithm that provides greater capacity within a limited geographic region. Most other power algorithms necessitate changes in 802.11 requiring hardware changes. Proposed algorithm only requires firmware updates to enable dynamic control of APs transmit power. We use earlier studies to determine the limit of the number of users to optimize power. By lowering transmit power of APs with large number of users, we can effectively decrease the cell size. The resulting gap is then covered by dynamically activating additional APs. This also provides greater flexibility and reduces the network planning costs. / by Serkan Dural. / Thesis (M.S.C.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2009. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2009. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

El reciente aumento en la implementación de redes inalámbricas nos obliga a contemplar con más cuidado el aspecto de la seguridad en este tipo de redes. Así como en el caso de las típicas redes de datos con cables (siendo la tecnología Ethernet la más utilizada para estos casos), tiene que asegurarse que los usuarios de una red inalámbrica se encuentren conectados a ésta de una manera segura, teniendo en cuenta que ahora el medio de transmisión ya no se restringe a un cable, sino que se encuentra en todo el ambiente que lo rodea. Debe de comprobarse que el usuario sea quien dice ser (autenticación), que solo tenga acceso a los recursos que le corresponda (autorización) y también llevar a cabo un registro de las actividades que haga dentro de la red (contabilidad); realizando todo esto de una manera segura y sin que sujetos ajenos a la red puedan estar leyendo información confidencial ni mucho menos tratar de modificarla. En esta tesis se tiene pensado explicar el diseño e implementación que se debería de llevar a cabo dentro de un escenario dado para la instalación de una red inalámbrica segura que contemple la administración de sus usuarios por medio de una plataforma de gestión Web basada en PHP, integrada a un servidor de directorios LDAP con compatibilidad hacia implementaciones libres y cerradas de dicho protocolo, un servidor de autenticación RADIUS y un servidor de base de datos MySQL. Se estudiarán los principales aspectos aplicados en redes inalámbricas Wi-Fi, poniendo especial énfasis en la seguridad de la red y de sus usuarios con mecanismos tales como: WPA2 (IEEE 802.11i), 802.1X, EAP, RADIUS, entre otros. / Tesis