In this paper we provide a performance analysis framework for wireless industrial networks by deriving a service curve and a bound on the delay violation probability. For this purpose we use the (min,×)stochastic network calculus as well as a recently presented recursive formula for an end-to-end delay bound of wireless heterogeneous networks. The derived results are mapped to WirelessHART networks used in process automation and were validated via simulations. In addition to WirelessHART, our results can be applied to any wireless network whose physical layer conforms the IEEE 802.15.4 standard, while its MAC protocol incorporates TDMA and channel hopping, like e.g. ISA100.11a or TSCH-based networks. The provided delay analysis is especially useful during the network design phase, offering further research potential towards optimal routing and power management in QoS-constrained wireless industrial networks.
Realistic traffic modeling plays a key role in efficient Dynamic Spectrum Access (DSA) which is considered as enabler for the employment of wireless technologies in critical industrial automation applications (IAA). The majority of models of spectrum usage are not suitable for this specific use case as they are based on measurement campaigns conducted in urban or controlled laboratory environments. In this work we present a time-domain traffic model for industrial communication in the 2.4 GHz industrial, scientific, medical (ISM) band based on measurements in an industrial automotive production site. As DSA is usually implemented on Software Defined Radios (SDR), our measurement campaign is based on SDR platforms rather than sophisticated spectrum analyzers. We show through the estimation of the Hurst parameter that industrial wireless traffic possesses inherent self-similarity that could be exploited for efficient DSA. We also show that wireless traffic could be modeled as a semi-Markov model with channel on and off durations Log-normally and Pareto distributed, respectively. We finally estimate the parameters of the derived models using Maximum Likelihood estimation.
Cognitive radio (CR) is a key enabler of wireless in industrial applications especially for those with strict quality-of-service (QoS) requirements. The cornerstone of CR is spectrum occupancy prediction that enables agile and proactive spectrum access and efficient utilization of spectral resources. Hidden Markov Models (HMM) provide powerful and flexible tools for statistical spectrum prediction. In this paper we introduce a HMM-based spectrum prediction algorithm for industrial applications that accurately predicts multiple slots in the future. Traditional HMM prediction approaches use two hidden states enabling the prediction of only one step ahead in the future. This one step is most often not enough due to internal hardware delays that render it outdated. We show in this work that extending the number of hidden states and formulating the prediction problem as a maximum likelihood (ML) classification approach enables a prediction span of multiple slots in the future even with fine spectrum sensing resolution. We verify the suitability of our approach to industrial wireless through extensive simulations that utilize a realistic measurement-based traffic model specifically tailored for industrial automotive settings.
The IETF, concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture, nowadays also looks into industrial automation processes. The contributions of a variety of IETF activities, initiated during the last ten years, enable now the replacement of proprietary standards by an open standardized protocol stack. This stack, denoted in the following as 6TiSCH-stack, is tailored for industrial internet of things (IIoTs). The suitability of 6TiSCH-stack for Industry 4.0 is yet to explore. In this paper, we identify four challenges that, in our opinion, may delay or hinder its adoption. As a prime example of that, we focus on the initial 6TiSCHnetwork
formation, highlighting the shortcomings of the default procedure and introducing our current work for a fast and reliable formation of dense network.
The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) will leverage on wireless network technologies to integrate in a seamless manner Cyber-Physical Systems into existing information systems. In this context, the 6TiSCH architecture, proposed by IETF, represents the current leading standardization effort to enable timed and reliable data communication within IPv6 networks for industrial applications. In wireless networks, Link Quality Estimation (LQE) is a crucial task to select the best routes for data forwarding, regardless of unpredictable time varying conditions. Although, many solutions for LQE have been proposed in literature, the majority of them are not designed specifically for 6TiSCH networks. In this paper, we analyze the performance of existing LQE strategies on 6TiSCH networks.
First, we run a set of simulations to measure the performance of one existing LQE strategy in 6TiSCH. Our simulations show that such strategy can result in measurements with low accuracy due to the 6TiSCH default timeslot allocation strategy. Consequently, we propose an extension of the 6TiSCH Minimal Configuration that allocates specific timeslots for the transmission of probing messages to mitigate the problem. The proposed methodology is demonstrated to effectively reduce the LQE error.
The cornerstone of cognitive systems is environment awareness which enables agile and adaptive use of channel resources. Whitespace prediction based on learning the statistics of the wireless traffic has proven to be a powerful tool to achieve such awareness. In this paper, we propose a novel Hidden Markov Model (HMM) based spectrum learning and prediction approach which accurately estimates the exact length of the whitespace in WiFi channels within the shared industrial scientific medical ISM) bands. We show that extending the number of hidden states and formulating the prediction problem as a maximum likelihood (ML) classification leads to a substantial increase in the prediction horizon compared to classical approaches that predict the immediate (short-term) future. We verify the proposed algorithm through simulations which utilize a model for WiFi traffic based on extensive measurement campaigns.
