M2M Traffic via Random Access Satellite links: Interactions between Transport and MAC Layers

摘要

Machine-to-machine services are witnessing an unprecedented diffusion, whichis expected to result in an ever-increasing data traffic load. In this context,satellite technology is playing a pivotal role, since it enables a widespreadprovisioning of machine-to-machine services. In particular, oil industry,maritime communications, as well as remote monitoring are sectors where the useof satellite communications is expected to dramatically explode within the nextfew years. In the light of this sudden increase of machine-to-machine datatransported over satellite, a more thorough understanding of machine-to-machineservice implementation over satellite is required, especially focusing on theinteraction between transport and MAC layers of the protocol stack. Startingfrom these observations, this paper thoroughly analyses the interaction betweenTCP and the Contention Resolution Diversity Slotted Aloha access scheme definedin the DVB-RCS2 standard, assuming the use of an MQTT-like protocol todistribute machine-to-machine services. A novel TCP model is developed andvalidated through extensive simulation campaigns, which also shed importantlights on the design choices enabling the efficient transport ofmachine-to-machine data via satellite.