Physical- and link-layer modeling of packet-radio network performance

An analytical model of packet-radio network performance which takes into account the properties of realistic link-layer mechanisms such as the unreliable nature of acknowledgements is presented. The methodology and the derivation of the model are discussed. Computer implementation of this model, which shows that failing to account for the nonideal behavior of acknowledgements overstates throughput by a factor of two, that allowing too many transmission attempts causes throughput to suffer, and that throughput is a strong function of the desired packet reliability and neighborhood size, is discussed