The communication range between a civilian Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and a Ground Control Station (GCS) is affected by the government regulations that determine the use of frequency bands and constrain the amount of power in those frequencies. The application of multiple UAVs in search and rescue operations for example demands a reliable, long-range inter-UAV communication. The inter-UAV communication is the ability of UAVs to exchange data among themselves, thus forming a network in the air. This ability could be used to extend the range of communication by using a decentralized routing technique in the network. To provide this ability to a fleet of autonomous dirigible UAVs being developed at the University of Ottawa, a new communication framework was introduced and implemented. Providing a true mesh networking based on a novel routing protocol, the framework combines long-range radios at 900 MHz Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) band with the software integrated into the electronics platform of each dirigible. With one radio module per dirigible the implemented software provides core functionalities to each UAV, such as exchanging flight control commands, telemetry data, and photos with any other UAV in a decentralized network or with the GCS. We made use of the advanced networking tools of the radio modules to build capabilities into the software for route tracing, traffic prioritization, and minimizing self-interference. Initial test results showed that without acknowledgements, packets can be received in the wrong order and cause errors in the transmission of photos. In addition, a transmission in a presence of a third broadcasting node slows down by 4-6 times. Based on these results our software was improved to control to flow of transmit data making the fragmentation, packetization, and reassembly of photos more reliable. Currently, using radios with half-wavelength dipole antennas we can achieve a one-hop communication range of up to 5 km with the radio frequency line-of-sight (RF LOS). This can be extended further by adding as many radio nodes as needed to act as intermediate hops.

It is well known that TCP performs poorly in wireless mesh networks. There has been intensive research in this area, but most work uses simulation as the only evaluation method; however, it is not clear whether the performance gains seen with simulation will translate into benefits on real networks. To explore this issue, we have implemented ATP (Ad-hoc Transport Protocol), a transport protocol designed specifically for wireless ad hoc networks. We have chosen ATP because it uses a radically different design from TCP and because reported results claim significant improvement over TCP. We show how ATP must be modified in order to be implemented in existing open-source wireless drivers, and we perform a comprehensive performance evaluation on mesh testbeds under different operating conditions. Our results show that the performance of ATP is highly sensitive to protocol parameters, especially the epoch timeout value. To improve its performance we design an adaptive version that utilizes a self-adjustable feedback mechanism instead of a fixed parameter. A comprehensive measurement study demonstrates the advantages of our adaptive ATP under various operating conditions. For networks with high bit-rate, low quality links, our adaptive version of ATP demonstrates an average of more than 50% gain in goodput over the default ATP for a single flow case. With respect to fairness, the adaptive ATP generally outperforms the default ATP by an order of magnitude in most results.

Today, the radio spectrum is rarely fully utilized. This problem is valid in more domains, e.g., time, frequency and geographical location. To provide an efficient utilization of the radio spectrum, the Cognitive Radio Networks (CRNs) have been advanced. The key idea is to open up the licensed spectrum to unlicensed users, thus allowing them to use the so-called spectrum opportunities as long as they do not harmfully interfere with licensed users. An important focus is laid on the limitation of previously reported research efforts, which is due to the limited consideration of the problem of competition among unlicensed users for spectrum access in heterogeneous CRNs. A software framework is introduced, which is called PRioritized Opportunistic spectrum Access System (PROAS). In PROAS, the heterogeneity aspects of CRNs are specifically expressed in terms of cross-layer design and various wireless technologies. By considering factors like ease of implementation and efficiency of control, PROAS provides priority scheduling based solutions to alleviate the competition problem of unlicensed users in heterogenous CRNs. The advanced solutions include theoretical models, numerical analysis and experimental simulations for performance evaluation. By using PROAS, three particular CRN models are studied, which are based on ad-hoc, mesh-network and cellular-network technologies. The reported results show that PROAS has the ability to bridge the gap between research results and the practical implementation of CRNs.

<p>When using Voice over IP (VoIP) in Wireless Mesh Networks the overhead induced by the IEEE 802.11 PHY and MAC layer accounts for more than 80% of the channel utilization time, while the actual payload only uses 20% of the time. As a consequence, the Voice over IP capacity is very low. To increase the channel utilization efficiency and the capacity several IP packets can be aggregated in one large packet and transmitted at once. This paper presents a new hop-by-hop IP packet aggregation scheme for Wireless Mesh Networks.</p><p>The size of the aggregation packets is a very important performance factor. Too small packets yield poor aggregation efficiency; too large packets are likely to get dropped when the channel quality is poor. Two novel distributed protocols for calculation of the optimum respectively maximum packet size are described. The first protocol assesses network load by counting the arrival rate of routing protocol probe messages and constantly measuring the signal-to-noise ratio of the channel. Thereby the optimum packet size of the current channel condition can be calculated. The second protocol, which is a simplified version of the first one, measures the signal-to-noise ratio and calculates the maximum packet size.</p><p>The latter method is implemented in the ns-2 network simulator. Performance measurements with no aggregation, a fixed maximum packet size and an adaptive maximum packet size are conducted in two different topologies. Simulation results show that packet aggregation can more than double the number of supported VoIP calls in a Wireless Mesh Network. Adaptively determining the maximum packet size is especially useful when the nodes have different distances or the channel quality is very poor. In that case, adaptive aggregation supports twice as many VoIP calls as fixed maximum packet size aggregation.</p>

IEEE 802.11/802.16無線網路的MAC機制為儘可能爭取傳輸機會，此機制於壅塞的網狀網路環境中將造成傳輸速率過高及非必要封包碰撞的問題，進而嚴重降低網路傳輸效能。 / 本篇論文的目的旨在改善無線網狀網路環境中，因IEEE 802.11/ 802.16本身的MAC機制所導致的效能低落問題。我們利用賽局理論中零和賽局以強化競爭方式並計算及應用合理傳輸機會(Transmission Opportunities)及傳輸時機(Transmission Timing)，再依此將傳輸速率調降至合理的數值以降低無效封包的傳輸率。同時，此傳輸機會及傳輸時機將作為路徑選擇的重要依據。末了，我們利用網路模擬器NS2 (Network Simulator ver. 2)驗證及評估本論文所提出之方法的效能。 / The MAC mechanism of IEEE 802.11 and 802.16 competes as much transmission opportunities as possible. In a congested wireless mesh network, this greedy competition will result in inappropriate data rates and unintentional packet collision problems, and thus reduce network performance seriously. / The objective of this research is aimed to solve these two problems to enhance the performance of wireless mesh networks. We propose a zero-sum-game based contention-enhancement in MAC mechanism to estimate rational transmission opportunities and transmission timing dynamically. These estimations will then be used in reducing unsuitable packet data rates and selecting better routing paths. At last, we use NS2 (Network Simulator ver.2) to evaluate the system performance of our proposed methods.

Context: Wireless Mesh Network (WMN) is a form of ad-hoc network with flexible backhaul infrastructure and configuration, provides adaptive wireless internet connectivity to end users with high reliability. WMN is a wireless network consisting of mesh clients, mesh routers and gateways which are organized in a mesh topology with decentralized nature can consume more energy for data transmission. The networking performance of WMNs can be degraded due to the fact of high energy consumption for data transmission. Therefore, energy efficiency is the primary factor for attaining eminent performance. Organizing efficient routing and proper resource allocation can save huge amount of energy. Objectives: The main goal of this thesis is to reduce the energy consumption in WMNs. To do this, a new energy efficient routing algorithm is suggested. Adaptive rates based on rate allocation strategy and end to end delay metric are used mainly for optimal path selection in routing, which may in turn reduces the resource utilization and energy consumption. Method: An energy efficient routing algorithm is implemented by using the Ad hoc OnDemand Distance Vector (AODV) routing protocol. The RREQ packet in AODV is modified by adding a new field known as delay parameter which measures end to end delay between nodes. Adaptive rates obtained from Rate allocation policy are considered in the routing process to reduce energy consumption in the network. Energy measurement of the WMN and its performance is evaluated by measuring the metrics such as Throughput, End-to-End delay, Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR). For performing the simulation process, in this thesis, Network Simulator - 3 (NS-3) which is an open source discrete-event network simulator in which simulation models can be executed in C++ and Python is used. Using NetAnim-3.107 animator in NS-3-25.1, traffic flows between all the nodes are displayed. Results: The results are taken for existing algorithm and proposed algorithm for 25,50,75 and 100 nodes. Comparison of results shows that the total energy consumption is reduced for proposed algorithm for in all four scenarios. Conclusion: Energy efficient routing algorithm is implemented in different scenarios of radio access networks and energy is saved. Due to this algorithm even the performance metrics, Throughput, End-to-End delay, Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR) have shown eminent performance.

The ongoing Smart Grid (SG) initiative proposes several modifications to the existing power grid in order to better manage power demands, reduce CO2 emissions and ensure reliability through several new applications. One part of the SG initiative that is currently being implemented is the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) which provides two-way communication between the utility company and the consumers' smart meters (SMs). The AMI can be built by using a wireless mesh network which enables multi-hop communication of SMs. The AMI network enables collection of fine-grained power consumption data at frequent intervals. Such a fine-grained level poses several privacy concerns for the consumers. Eavesdroppers can capture data packets and analyze them by means of load monitoring techniques to make inferences about household activities. To prevent this, in this dissertation, we proposed several privacy-preserving protocols for the IEEE 802.11s-based AMI network, which are based on data obfuscation, fully homomorphic encryption and secure multiparty computation. Simulation results have shown that the performance of the protocols degrades as the network grows. To overcome this problem, we presented a scalable simulation framework for the evaluation of IEEE 802.11s-based AMI applications. We proposed several modifications and parameter adjustments for the network protocols being used. In addition, we integrated the Constrained Application Protocol (CoAP) into the protocol stack and proposed five novel retransmission timeout calculation functions for the CoAP in order to increase its reliability. Upon work showing that there are inconsistencies between the simulator and a testbed, we built an IEEE 802.11s- and ZigBee-based AMI testbed and measured the performance of the proposed protocols under various conditions. The testbed is accessible to the educator and researchers for the experimentation. Finally, we addressed the problem of updating SMs remotely to keep the AMI network up-to-date. To this end, we developed two secure and reliable multicast-over-broadcast protocols by making use of ciphertext-policy attribute based signcryption and random linear network coding.

Wireless Mesh Networks are increasingly becoming popular as low cost alternatives to wired networks for providing broadband access to users (the last mile connectivity). A key challenge in deploying wireless mesh networks is designing networks with sufficient capacity to meet user demands. Accordingly, researchers have explored various schemes in an effort to build high throughput mesh networks. One of the key technologies that is often employed by researchers to build high throughput wireless mesh networks (WMN) is equipping nodes with smart antennas. By exploiting the advantages of reduced interference and longer transmission paths, smart antennas have been shown to significantly increase network throughput in WMN. However, there is a need to identify and establish an upper-bound on the maximum throughput that is achievable by using smart antennas equipped WMN. Such a bound on throughput is important for several reasons, the most important of which is identifying the services that can be supported by these technologies. This thesis begins with a focus on establishing this bound. Clearly, it is evident that smart-antennas cannot increase network throughput beyond a certain limit for various reasons including the limitations imposed by existing smart an- tenna technology itself. However with the spiralling demand for broadband access, schemes must be explored that can increase network throughput beyond the limit imposed by smart antennas. An interesting and robust method to achieve this increased throughput is by en- abling multiple gateways within the network. Since, the position of these gateways within the network bears a significant influence on network performance, techniques to “opti- mally” place these gateways within the network must be evolved. The study of multiple gateway placement in multi-hop mesh networks forms the next focus of this study. This thesis ends with a discussion on further work that is necessary in this domain.

Wireless Mesh Networks are increasingly becoming popular as low cost alternatives to wired networks for providing broadband access to users (the last mile connectivity). A key challenge in deploying wireless mesh networks is designing networks with sufficient capacity to meet user demands. Accordingly, researchers have explored various schemes in an effort to build high throughput mesh networks. One of the key technologies that is often employed by researchers to build high throughput wireless mesh networks (WMN) is equipping nodes with smart antennas. By exploiting the advantages of reduced interference and longer transmission paths, smart antennas have been shown to significantly increase network throughput in WMN. However, there is a need to identify and establish an upper-bound on the maximum throughput that is achievable by using smart antennas equipped WMN. Such a bound on throughput is important for several reasons, the most important of which is identifying the services that can be supported by these technologies. This thesis begins with a focus on establishing this bound. Clearly, it is evident that smart-antennas cannot increase network throughput beyond a certain limit for various reasons including the limitations imposed by existing smart an- tenna technology itself. However with the spiralling demand for broadband access, schemes must be explored that can increase network throughput beyond the limit imposed by smart antennas. An interesting and robust method to achieve this increased throughput is by en- abling multiple gateways within the network. Since, the position of these gateways within the network bears a significant influence on network performance, techniques to “opti- mally” place these gateways within the network must be evolved. The study of multiple gateway placement in multi-hop mesh networks forms the next focus of this study. This thesis ends with a discussion on further work that is necessary in this domain.

Dans cette thèse, nous nous concentrons sur la conception et l’optimisation de performances inter-couches dans les réseaux maillés radio multi-canal multi-interface. Afin de profiter de l'augmentation de la capacité de ces réseaux, un certain nombre de problèmes doit être résolu. La première contribution de cette thèse est une nouvelle classification et une évaluation formelle des différentes stratégies d’assignation de canaux et d’interfaces. Nous adressons en particulier la connectivité en termes de formation de topologie, densité de connexions et découverte de voisinage. La deuxième contribution présente des algorithmes de broadcast fonctionnant pour n’importe quelle stratégie d’assignation multi-canal multi-interface. Ces algorithmes garantissent qu’un paquet de broadcast est délivré avec une probabilité minimale à tous les voisins. La troisième contribution de cette thèse propose d’évaluer la capacité (débit) obtenue à travers les différentes solutions d’assignation de canaux et d’interfaces. Plus précisément, nous proposons trois formulations de programmation linéaire mixte pour modéliser le routage et les contraintes de partage de bande passante en présence d'interférences. Nous dérivons ensuite des bornes supérieures et inférieures pour deux stratégies MAC différentes. Notre dernière contribution propose de développer une solution de routage inter-couches pour les réseaux maillés multi-canal multi-interface. En particulier, nous proposons une métrique de qualité de lien estimant la bande passante résiduelle d'un lien. Un protocole de routage adapté permet ensuite de trouver les routes offrant le meilleur débit. Toutes nos contributions sont validées par des nombreuses simulations qui démontrent l'efficacité de nos solutions. En résumé, cette thèse fournit une analyse en profondeur des réseaux maillés radio multi-canal multi-interface, ainsi que des lignes directrices pour les concepteurs de réseaux afin de déployer des réseaux performants. / In this PhD thesis, we focus on the design and performance optimization of multi-channel multi-interface wireless mesh networks. To take advantage of the increased capacity in such networks, a number of issues has to be handled properly. The first contribution of this thesis is a novel classification and formal evaluation of different channel and interface assignment strategies. In particular, we focus on connectivity in terms of topology formation, density of connections, and neighbor discovery. Our second contribution presents broadcast algorithms able to handle any of the multi-channel multi-interface assignment strategies. These algorithms guarantee a broadcast packet to be delivered with a minimum probability to all neighbors. The third contribution of this thesis consists in evaluating the network capacity (i.e., throughput) obtained through the different channel and interface assignments schemes. More specifically, we propose three mixed integer linear programming formulations to model the routing and bandwidth sharing constraints in presence of interference. We derive then upper and lower bounds for different MAC strategies. The fourth and last contribution of this thesis is the development of a novel cross-layer routing solution for multi-channel multi-interface mesh networks. In particular, we propose a link-quality aware metric to estimate the residual bandwidth of a link. An on-demand routing protocol selects the routes offering the best throughput. All our contributions are validated through extensive simulations that demonstrate the efficiency of our solutions. In summary, this thesis provide insight into the improvement of multi-channel multi-interface wireless mesh networks, as well as guidelines for network designers in planning efficient deployments.