An optimized multiple access control protocol for a 'little LEO' satellite store-and-forward global data network

The reservation method used in a TD-SRMA protocol determines the protocol's efficiency. The typical reservation methods proposed are SALOHA and VCR-SALOHA (varying calling rate SALOHA). SALOHA is relatively simple to realize but it cannot adapt well to the dynamic traffic pattern in a 'little LEO' satellite network. VCR-SAOHA can better adapt the dynamic traffic, but its highest efficiency on average is still 0.38. To improve the reservation efficiency, a new reservation method, AP-SALOHA (adaptive polling and SALOHA), is proposed. In AP-SALOHA, polling is used for the stations, which have high probability to upload a message, and SALOHA is used for the stations, which have low probability to upload messages. Different from SALOHA and VCR-SALOHA, the length of a reservation period in AP-SALOHA varies according to the network traffic. Analysis and simulation show that AP-SALOHA provides better throughput performance. About 19% improvement over VCR-SALOHA can be achieved.