An efficient media access control protocol for wireless ATM networks

In a wireless ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) network, the performance of the MAC (media access control) protocol has a significant impact on network performance. The MAC protocol used in a wireless ATM network not only has to control access to the medium, but also has to support the QoS (quality of service) requested by multiple users. We describe an efficient MAC protocol with QoS support named PARROT for wireless ATM networks. PARROT is designed to provide flexible and efficient bandwidth access in wireless ATM networks. It supports both asynchronous and synchronous services. It also provides users with QoS support. Based on TDMA (time division multiple access) and S-ALOHA (slotted-ALOHA), it overcomes the inefficiency of both. The procedures and algorithms defined in PARROT provides bandwidth to users according to their QoS requirements as well as maximising the utilisation of limited bandwidth. The performance of PARROT has been evaluated by simulations. The simulation results show that the proposed protocol has high throughput and low delay.