Performance evaluation of Channel-Aware MAC protocol in smart grid

Abstract

An Intelligent Distributed Channel-Aware Medium Access Control (IDCA-MAC) protocol is proposed for Home Area Network (HAN), in general, and for Electrical Devices Networks (EDN), in particular, in smart grids. In an EDN, electrical devices generate critical packets, and these must be communicated to their respective mesh clients. The proposed IDCA-MAC protocol employs simultaneous transmission of data packets through a single collision domain. Also, the electrical devices and the mesh client are assumed to be equipped with Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technology. The proposed protocol is compatible with the existing IEEE 802.11 standard, and uses channel-aware Medium Access Control (MAAware) and the Zig-Zag decoding algorithm. Simulations are carried out using the NS-2 network simulator, and the performance of IDCA-MAC protocol is evaluated for various smart grid scenarios that are of practical significance. It is shown that the protocol is very effective and can be easily adopted in existing smart grids for improved throughput and performance.

Modeling and delay analysis of wireless HANs in smart grids over fading channels subjected to multiple access schemes and interference

“…Wireless Home Area Network (WHAN) models have recently been investigated as a type of important networking technology to be deployed in smart grid [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7]. These networks must be able to cope with power grid concerns.…”

“…The approaches used in these studies have aimed to improve the throughput of the entire network. According to the literature [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], between 2010 and 2012, researchers investigated and developed HAN based on Power Line Communication (PLC). From 2012 to 2014 [10], [11], [12], [13], [14], [15], [16], [7], many studies focused on the scalability and optimization of network resources such as capacity of the network and metering structures.…”