A statistical estimation of average IP packet delay in cellular data networks

A novel technique for estimating the average delay experienced by an IP packet in cellular data networks with an SR-ARQ loop is presented. This technique uses the following input data: a statistical description of the radio channel, ARQ loop design parameters and the size of a transported IP packet. An analytical model is derived to enable a closed form mathematical estimation of this delay. To validate this model, a computer based simulator was built and tests showed good agreement between the simulation results and the model. This new model is of particular interest in predicting the packet delay for conversational traffic such as that used for VoIP applications.