An experimental performance analysis study of loss rate and jitter characteristics in wireless networks

Among the challenges in wireless networks is the high bit error rate, which is due mainly to atmospheric noise, physical obstructions found in the signal's path, multipath propagation, interference from other systems and terminal mobility. This high bit error rate makes it difficult to offer guaranteed services over the wireless link. In this paper, we present an experimental analysis study on the loss rate of wireless systems using six different scenarios. We also present an experimental study of jitter for UDP traffic over wireless Mobile IP networks. It is found that in order to provide different Quality of Service, QoS, to downstream traffic flows and control network's loss rate and jitter, it is not enough to have only DiffServ flow control mechanisms. A protocol for wireless link resource reservation and cooperation by senders is also needed. We identify the relationship of jitter, loss rate and class allocation's effect using Class Based Queueing (CBQ) and the packet sending rates in the wireless networks. It is found that loss rate and jitter can be controlled with DiffServ flow control mechanism, but it requires that the total traffic rate should be within the limit of the wireless link capacity. Various tests have been conducted under different settings and operating conditions.