Extreme value FEC for reliable broadcasting in wireless networks

—The advent of practical rateless codes enables implementation of highly efficient packet-level forward error correction (FEC) strategies for reliable data broadcasting in loss-prone wireless networks, such as sensor networks. Yet, the critical question of accurately quantifying the proper amount of redundancy has remained largely unsolved. In this paper, we exploit advances in extreme value theory to rigorously address this problem. Under the asymptotic regime of a large number of receivers, we derive a closed-form expression for the cumulative distribution function (CDF) of the completion time of file distribution. We show the existence of a phase transition associated with this CDF and accurately locate the transition point. We derive tight convergence bounds demonstrating the accuracy of the asymptotic estimate for the practical case of a finite number of receivers. Further, we asymptotically characterize the CDF of the completion time under heterogeneous packet loss, by estab...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2010
• Where: JSAC
• Authors: Weiyao Xiao, David Starobinski
• Keywords: Completion Time, Extreme Value, JSAC 2010, Packet-level Forward Error