Evaluating and improving Bluetooth piconet performance over Nakagami-m fading channels

Bluetooth is a promising wireless technology designed for short-range ad hoc networks. This paper addresses issues related to Bluetooth performance in Nakagami-m fading channels. This distribution can model different fading intensities through parameter m. We evaluate the throughput and the packet loss rate of Bluetooth links using asynchronous packets. Relations between packet error rate and node distances are then derived, and a new piconet scheduling algorithm based on the estimated channel state information is then proposed. This polling scheme detects fading conditions and avoids transmission in bad channel conditions. The best strategy is defined using the received signal-to-noise ratio and the Nakagami fading parameter m. Simulation results demonstrate the algorithm performance for different traffic conditions.