A CSMA/CA based MAC protocol for hybrid Power-line/Visible-light communication networks:Design and analysis

Hybrid Power-line/Visible-light Communication(HPVC)network has been one of the most promising Cooperative Communication(CC)technologies for constructing Smart Home due to its superior communication reliability and hardware efficiency.Current research on HPVC networks focuses on the performance analysis and optimization of the Physical(PHY)layer,where the Power Line Communication(PLC)component only serves as the backbone to provide power to light Emitting Diode(LED)devices.So designing a Media Access Control(MAC)protocol remains a great challenge because it allows both PLC and Visible Light Communication(VLC)components to operate data transmission,i.e.,to achieve a true HPVC network CC.To solve this problem,we propose a new HPC network MAC protocol(HPVC MAC)based on Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Avoidance(CSMA/CA)by combining IEEE 802.15.7 and IEEE 1901 standards.Firstly,we add an Additional Assistance(AA)layer to provide the channel selection strategies for sensor stations,so that they can complete data transmission on the selected channel via the specified CSMA/CA mechanism,respectively.Based on this,we give a detailed working principle of the HPVC MAC,followed by the construction of a joint analytical model for mathematicalmathematical validation of the HPVC MAC.In the modeling process,the impacts of PHY layer settings(including channel fading types and additive noise feature),CSMA/CA mechanisms of 802.15.7 and 1901,and practical configurations(such as traffic rate,transit buffer size)are comprehensively taken into consideration.Moreover,we prove the proposed analytical model has the solvability.Finally,through extensive simulations,we characterize the HPVC MAC performance under different system parameters and verify the correctness of the corresponding analytical model with an average error rate of 4.62%between the simulation and analytical results.

Adaptive resource allocation for multi-user multi-server power-line communication OFDM systems

The bits and power allocation model of adaptive power-rate mixture for multi-user multi-server power-line communication systems was analyzed with the restrictions of maximal total power,fixed rate for each real time (RT) user,minimal rate for each non-real time (NRT) user,maximal bits and power for each subcarrier in each orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol. An algorithm of resource dynamic allocation in the first OFDM symbol of each frame and resource optimal adjustment in the latter OFDM symbol of each frame was proposed. In the first OFDM symbol of every frame,resource is firstly assigned for RT users so as to minimize their total used power until satisfying their fixed rates; secondly the remainder resource of power and subcarriers are assigned for NRT users so as to minimize their total used power until satisfying their minimal rates also; lastly the remainder resource is again assigned for NRT users according to the proportional fairness strategy so as to maximize their total assigning rate. In the latter OFDM symbol of each frame,bits are swapped and power is adjusted for every user based on the resource allocation results of anterior OFDM symbol. The algorithm is tested in the typical power-line channel scenarios and the simulation results indicate that the proposed algorithm has better performances than the classical multi-user resource allocation algorithms and it realizes the multiple aims of multi-user multi-server resource allocation for power-line communication systems.

A novel PLC channel modeling method and channel characteristic analysis of a smart distribution grid

Power line carrier(PLC)technology plays an increasingly important role in the realization of cost-effective communication in a smart distribution grid.No current channel modeling method is universally applicable to more complex topologies that may emerge in smart grids,such as ring and mesh topologies.This paper presents a novel PLC channel modeling method based on the information node concept,and the universality and feasibility of the proposed method are demonstrated with applications in modeling networks with ring and mesh topologies.The factors that affect the channel characteristics of the networks and the laws that govern their behaviors for different types of topologies are analyzed.The validity and effectiveness of the proposed method are proven using simulation and laboratory tests.This paper provides the necessary theoretical basis and technical means to design the PLC modulation method for smart distribution grids.