Delay Analysis for a Reliable Message Delivery in Sparse Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks

In this paper, we address the relation between message delivery delay and reliability for the communication between a vehicle and a road side unit (RSU). We focus on sparse or low density vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs), where timely message delivery and reliable transmission are of significant importance. We present an exact message delivery delay distribution for a two-lane road, where vehicles in one direction act as message carriers for the ones in the other direction and have the freedom to leave the road from randomly distributed exits with a certain probability. Our analysis offers a tool for an intelligent transportation system (ITS) service provider to determine the minimal separation between two consecutive RSUs for meeting a probabilistic requirement of the message delay. Simulation results show the accuracy of our analysis.