Quality of service aware MAC based on IEEE 802.11 for multihop ad-hoc networks

Real-time multimedia applications necessitate predictable network resources. Quality of service (QoS) support for such applications in mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) requires acceptable channel conditions, QoS-aware mechanisms for channel access, identification of proper forwarding (transit) nodes, as well as measures for congestion prevention and management in those nodes. This paper proposes a new QoS-aware medium access control (MAC) protocol that takes the above requirements into consideration. This novel protocol is based on the legacy IEEE 802.11, and thus can be easily integrated into existing systems without much difficulty. Simulation results confirm that our approach results in improved throughput for real-time periodic traffic, while providing deterministic delay performance.