Extra back-off flow control in multi-hop wireless networks

CSMA is the predominant distributed access protocol for wireless mesh networks. Originally designed for single-hop settings, CSMA can exhibit severe performance problems in multi-hop networks in terms of stability and end-to-end throughput. To ensure a smoother flow of packets, we examine an enhancement referred to as Extra Back-off (EB) flow control. In this enhanced scheme a node remains silent for a certain extra back-off time (imposed on top of the usual back-off time that is part of CSMA) after it has transmitted a packet, to give both the downstream and upstream neighbors the opportunity to transmit. EB flow control entails only a small modification to CSMA, preserving its distributed character. In order to examine the performance of EB flow control, we analyze a novel class of Markov models at the interface between classical tandem queues and interacting particle systems. The results demonstrate that EB flow control provides an effective mechanism for improving the end-to-end throughput performance.