Multi-lane vehicle-to-vehicle networks with time-varying radio ranges: Information propagation speed properties

We study the information propagation speed in multi-lane vehicle-to-vehicle networks such as roads or highways. We focus on the impact of time-varying radio ranges and of multiple lanes of vehicles, varying in speed and in density. We assess the existence of a vehicle density threshold under which information propagates on average at the fastest vehicle speed and above which information propagates dramatically faster. We first prove that no such phase transition occurs if there is only one lane, regardless of the density of vehicles, when one takes into account real-time radio communication range variations at the MAC layer. We then prove that, on the other hand, a phase transition exists as soon as there are multiple lanes with different vehicle speeds and appropriate densities. We characterize conditions under which the phase transition occurs and we derive bounds on the corresponding threshold as a simple relationship between the vehicle density on the fastest lane and the sum of densities on the other lanes. Our results intrinsically encompass a wide range of vehicular network scenarios, including one-way and two-way roads, as well as special cases such as road side units and/or parked cars being used as relays. We confirm our analytical results using simulations.