Evaluation of Wireless Communication Performance Between Adjacent Nodes for Intelligent Transportation Systems Applications
Yan Zhou, Mashrur A. Chowdhury, Kuang‐Ching Wang, Kakan Chandra Dey · Transportation Research Board 92nd Annual MeetingTransportation Research Board · 2013
Different wireless communication technologies (i.e. Wi-Fi, WiMAX) have been used as alternatives or supplement to wired communication in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). Widespread deployment of wireless technologies needs clear understanding of limitations and advantages in different conditions. In this research, several field tests were performed to evaluate the performance of Wi-Fi wireless technology in multiple field conditions with varying qualities of Wi-Fi properties. Field tests revealed that modulation rates, transmission power, line of sight, distance between devices play critical role in the performance of Wi-Fi connections between two adjacent nodes in different roadway conditions. To achieve a desired level of performance between adjacent nodes in a wireless traffic sensor network, minimum network performance must be realized in the field. Traffic agencies can identify the achievable performance, such as saturated throughput, delivery ratio and received signal strength of the communication link at a particular location, by following the field test procedures presented in this paper.