Topological arrangement of nodes in wireless networks suitable for the implementation of network coding

Abstract

Network coding refers to the implementation of coding methods to utilize network connections more efficiently. Network coding is commonly researched in the information theory field, but very little research is being done on the physical implementation thereof. One exception is COPE where network coding is implemented in wireless networks for unicast transmission sessions. In this dissertation, we discuss the physical arrangement of wireless nodes to form topologies suitable for the implementation of network coding. We implement linear network coding in wireless ad hoc networks for multicast transmission sessions. We calculate the areas in which each wireless node must be located for a specific network coding suitable topology to be formed. The identified topologies are simulated in OPNET Modeler and then implemented on a six node testbed, to analyse the effect of implementing network coding in these topologies. We provide results indicating the trade-off between reduced network load and higher end-to-end delay when our developed network coding algorithm is active in the respective topologies. The results indicate that the developed network coding scheme will produce better overall performance when implemented in sensor networks or highly congested ad hoc networks.