Simple and channel efficient scheme for voice data integration over PRMA

A channel efficient, slot stealing scheme for data integrated into packet reservation multiple access (PRMA) systems is proposed in the paper. In the proposed system, data terminals transmit their packets only on the time slots which are not used by voice terminals, while voice terminals operate according to the PRMA protocol with either fixed or varying retransmission probability. The maximum achievable gain by the slot stealing scheme (in terms of the maximum data subsystem throughput and data source rate) and its performance parameter (data packet delay) are analysed. The authors also propose a simple and practical estimation algorithm to implement the slot stealing scheme. System performances, such as voice packet dropping probability, system throughput and data packet delay, are simulated. Results show that the voice quality in terms of packet dropping probability is insignificantly affected by the presence of the data terminals; however, the channel throughput can be improved significantly. Finally, a comparison between the slot stealing voice data PRMA and the conventional joint voice data PRMA is made