Call capacity for voice over Internet Protocol on wireless mesh networks

Abstract

This paper describes work in progress on call capacity optimization for voice over Internet Protocol on wireless mesh networks. In a developing country such as South Africa, evidence has shown that rural inhabitants find it difficult to afford the voice services offered by cellular networks. Voice over Internet Protocol is known for its affordability relative to cellular voice services, therefore deploying such services for rural communities will not only benefit rural inhabitants but also offer economic advantages to service providers. We are interested in the provision of voice services with rural wireless mesh networks. Unfortunately voice on mesh networks can experience packet loss and delays that cause reduction in voice quality. Transmission of small voice packets over wireless mesh networks imposes high overhead that leads to a tremendous decrease in call capacity. Therefore, we aim to study the performance of voice over 802.11 wireless mesh networks and evaluate packet aggregation mechanisms that merge small voice packets into a single large packet, in order to preserve voice quality with more calls. We will implement and evaluate packet aggregations mechanisms on a 'mesh potato' network with iterative cycles of laboratory experiments using a network simulator to collect data for performance evaluation.