Random access heterogeneous MIMO networks

This paper presents the design and implementation of 802.11n+, a fully distributed random access protocol for MIMO networks. 802.11n+ allows nodes that differ in the number of antennas to contend not just for time, but also for the degrees of freedom provided by multiple antennas. We show that even when the medium is already occupied by some nodes, nodes with more antennas can transmit concurrently without harming the ongoing transmissions. Furthermore, such nodes can contend for the medium in a fully distributed way. Our testbed evaluation shows that even for a small network with three competing node pairs, the resulting system about doubles the average network throughput. It also maintains the random access nature of today's 802.11n networks.

[1]  Gerard J. Foschini,et al.  Layered space-time architecture for wireless communication in a fading environment when using multi-element antennas , 1996, Bell Labs Technical Journal.

[2]  Dina Katabi,et al.  Interference alignment and cancellation , 2009, SIGCOMM '09.

[3]  Robert W. Brodersen,et al.  Degrees of freedom in multiple-antenna channels: a signal space approach , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.

[4]  Shlomo Shamai,et al.  Degrees of Freedom Region of the MIMO $X$ Channel , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.

[5]  Dina Katabi,et al.  Zigzag decoding: combating hidden terminals in wireless networks , 2008, SIGCOMM '08.

[6]  Akbar M. Sayeed,et al.  Deconstructing multiantenna fading channels , 2002, IEEE Trans. Signal Process..

[7]  Amir K. Khandani,et al.  Communication Over MIMO X Channels: Interference Alignment, Decomposition, and Performance Analysis , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.

[8]  Jeffrey G. Andrews,et al.  User admission in MIMO interference alignment networks , 2011, 2011 IEEE International Conference on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing (ICASSP).

[9]  Kate Ching-Ju Lin,et al.  A light-weight wireless handshake , 2012, CCRV.

[10]  Dong Chao,et al.  Universal Software Radio Peripheral , 2010 .

[11]  Carl D. Meyer,et al.  Matrix Analysis and Applied Linear Algebra , 2000 .

[12]  Per Ola Börjesson,et al.  OFDM channel estimation by singular value decomposition , 1996, Proceedings of Vehicular Technology Conference - VTC.

[13]  Mathini Sellathurai,et al.  Opportunistic Interference Projection in Cognitive MIMO Radio with Multiuser Diversity , 2010, 2010 IEEE Symposium on New Frontiers in Dynamic Spectrum (DySPAN).

[14]  Dina Katabi,et al.  SourceSync: a distributed wireless architecture for exploiting sender diversity , 2010, SIGCOMM '10.

[15]  John Terry,et al.  OFDM Wireless LANs: A Theoretical and Practical Guide , 2001 .

[16]  T. Guess,et al.  Optimum decision feedback multiuser equalization with successive decoding achieves the total capacity of the Gaussian multiple-access channel , 1997, Conference Record of the Thirty-First Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems and Computers (Cat. No.97CB36136).

[17]  Lixin Shi,et al.  Fine-grained channel access in wireless LAN , 2010, SIGCOMM '10.

[18]  Sergio Verdú,et al.  Linear multiuser detectors for synchronous code-division multiple-access channels , 1989, IEEE Trans. Inf. Theory.

[19]  Rainer Händel,et al.  Integrated broadband networks : an introduction to ATM-based networks , 1991 .

[20]  Raymond Knopp,et al.  A practical method for wireless channel reciprocity exploitation through relative calibration , 2005, Proceedings of the Eighth International Symposium on Signal Processing and Its Applications, 2005..

[21]  Syed Ali Jafar,et al.  Interference Alignment and Degrees of Freedom of the $K$-User Interference Channel , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory.

[22]  Mérouane Debbah,et al.  From Spectrum Pooling to Space Pooling: Opportunistic Interference Alignment in MIMO Cognitive Networks , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing.

[23]  Wei Wang,et al.  SAM: enabling practical spatial multiple access in wireless LAN , 2009, MobiCom '09.

[24]  Abhijeet Bhorkar,et al.  A Robust Approach to Carrier Sense for MIMO Ad Hoc Networks , 2009, 2009 IEEE International Conference on Communications.

[25]  Edward W. Knightly,et al.  Design and experimental evaluation of multi-user beamforming in wireless LANs , 2010, MobiCom.

[26]  David Wetherall,et al.  Predictable 802.11 packet delivery from wireless channel measurements , 2010, SIGCOMM '10.