Abstract: Wireless technology promises flexible and cost-efficient machine-to-machine communication. However, high packet loss can emerge from simultaneous transmissions of many devices, undermining the reliability required for industrial applications. This thesis analyzes and develops techniques for time-slotted multi-hop communication with focus on IEEE 802.15.4 DSME. In a holistic approach, simulations, formal and analytical analyses and testbed experiments are combined, concluding the utility of the proposed methods. For future usage in research and real-world deployments, openDSME is developed as open-source implementation of DSME and application-specific insights are provided.

Abstract: Reliable wireless solutions for large-scale automation are a major challenge today. The IEEE 802.15.4 standard forms the basis for many open and proprietary implementations. To reflect current state-of-the-art techniques, the IEEE has amended standard 802.15.4 with new MAC-layers such as TSCH, which resembles WirelessHART, and the Deterministic and Synchronous Multi-Channel Extension (DSME). This paper introduces openDSME, our implementation of IEEE 802.15.4 DSME. DSME aims at preventing packet collisions through slot reservation in networks where conventional CSMA/CA is not reliable enough. In this document, we will outline core features of DSME and openDSME, and present details of our implementation. Additionally, current research efforts on connected topics will be highlighted.

Abstract: Providing dependability is still a major issue for wireless mesh networks, which restrains their application in industrial contexts. The widespread CSMA/CA medium access can provide high throughput and low latency, but can not prevent packet loss due to collisions, especially in very large and dense networks. Time slotted medium access techniques together with a distributed slot management, as proposed by the Distributed Synchronous Multi-channel Extension (DSME) of the IEEE 802.15.4 standard, are promising to provide low packet loss, high scalability and bounded end-to-end delays. However, our implementation, openDSME, exposed some weaknesses. While the allocated slots allow for reliable data transmission, the slot management itself is conducted via CSMA/CA and is thus vulnerable to packet loss, eventually leading to an inconsistent slot allocation. This paper uses the UPPAAL framework for formal analysis and verification of the slot management process. The analysis identifies weaknesses of the slot allocation process under communication and node failures. However, it is shown that inconsistencies are eventually resolved and improvements to the procedure are proposed that reduce the negative impact of failed slot allocation procedures significantly.

Abstract: The Deterministic and Synchronous Multi-Channel Extension (DSME) of the IEEE 802.15.4 standard provides a data link layer for time division multiple access in wireless mesh networks. The authors present openDSME, a portable implementation for hardware and simulators which promises reliable message transfer suitable for applications in demanding industrial environments. A demonstration has been developed to illustrate the performance of openDSME in a simulated network and to show its benefits over CSMA/CA.

Abstract: Discrete event simulators, such as OMNeT++, provide fast and convenient methods for the assessment of algorithms and protocols, especially in the context of wired and wireless networks. Usually, simulation parameters such as topology and traffic patterns are predefined to observe the behaviour reproducibly. However, for learning about the dynamic behaviour of a system, a live interaction that allows changing parameters on the fly is very helpful. This is especially interesting for providing interactive demonstrations at conferences and fairs. In this paper, we present a remote interface to OMNeT++ simulations that can be used to control the simulations while visualising real-time data merged from multiple OMNeT++ instances. We explain the software architecture behind our framework and how it can be used to build demonstrations on the foundation of OMNeT++.

Abstract: Wireless mesh networks using IEEE 802.15.4 are getting increasingly popular for industrial applications because of low energy consumption and low maintenance costs. The IEEE 802.15.4 standard introduces DSME (Deterministic and Synchronous Multi-channel Extension). DSME uses time-slotted channel access to guarantee timely data delivery, multi-channel communication, and frequency hopping to mitigate the effects of external interferences. A distinguishing feature of DSME is its flexibility and adaptability to time-varying network traffic and to changes in the network topology. In this paper we evaluate the ability of DSME to adapt to time-varying network traffic. We examine the limits for slot allocation rates for different topologies. The evaluation is performed with openDSME, an open-source implementation of DSME.

Abstract: The Deterministic and Synchronous Multi-Channel Extension (DSME) protocol is a recent amendment to the IEEE 802.15.4 standard. It combines contention-based and time-division medium access, offers channel diversity, and is aimed to support IIoT applications with stringent requirements in terms of timeliness and reliability. In this paper, we show how to configure DSME for a given data collection task. This includes the definition of the slot and frame length and the slot and channel schedule. We formulate different scheduling strategies as linear programs minimizing latency and energy. We verify our results through theoretical analysis and simulations and compare them with state-of-the-art scheduling algorithms. The results indicate a reduced delay of up to 80% for deep networks while also increasing reliability. Additionally, the proposed scheduling strategies significantly reduce the required buffer size.

Abstract: Coping with bursty traffic is a common yet challenging task in the industrial Internet of Things (IoT). For example, 6LoWPAN 1 is a standard that defines the integration of LoWPAN 2 with IPv6, by fragmenting large IPv6 packets into several smaller MAC‐layer packets. Therefore, it is necessary to envision message delivery mechanisms, which provide support for highly varying traffic. In this paper, we analyze sending multiple packets per guaranteed time slot (GTS) in IEEE 802.15.4 DSME to alleviate traffic during the contention‐access period (CAP) and increase the reliability in scenarios with bursty traffic. The evaluation shows that increasing parameter SO extends the network throughput beyond default operating conditions and also provides overprovisioning beneficial for delivering sporadic messages. A comparison with the transmission of a single packet per GTS demonstrates a reduction of the total number of transmitted CAP messages by 99% while increasing the packet reception ratio by 48% for bursts with 20 packets.

Abstract: In 2015, the IEEE 802.15.4 standard was expanded by theDeterministic and Synchronous Multi-Channel Extension (DSME) toincrease reliability, scalability and energy-efficiency in industrial appli-cations. The extension offers a TDMA/FDMA-based channel access,where time is divided into two alternating phases, a contention accessperiod (CAP) and a contention free period (CFP). During the CAP, transmission slots can be allocated offering an exclusive access to theshared medium during the CFP. The fractionτof CFP’s time slots ina dataframe is a critical value, because it directly influences agility andthroughput. A high throughput demands that the CFP is much longerthan the CAP, i.e., a high value ofτ, because application data is only sentduring the CFP. High agility is given if the expected waiting time to senda CAP message is short and that the length of the CAPs are long enoughto accommodate necessary GTS negotiations, i.e., a low value ofτ. OnceDSME is configured according to the needs of an application,τcan onlyassume one of two values and cannot be changed at run-time. In thispaper, we propose two extensions of DSME that allow to adoptτto thecurrent traffic pattern. We show theoretically and through simulationsthat the proposed extensions provide a high degree of responsiveness totraffic fluctuations while keeping the throughput high.

Abstract: Many MAC protocols for the Industrial Internet of Things, such as IEEE 802.15.4 and its extensions, require contention-based channel access for management traffic, e.g., for slot (de)allocations and broadcasts. In many cases, subtle but hidden patterns characterize this secondary traffic, but present contention-based protocols are unaware of these patterns and therefore cannot exploit them. Especially in dense networks, these protocols often do not provide sufficient throughput and reliability for primary traffic, i.e., they cannot allocate transmission slots in time. In this paper, we propose QMA, a contention-based multiple access scheme based on Q-learning. It dynamically adjusts transmission times to avoid collisions by learning patterns in contention-based traffic. We show that QMA solves the hidden node problem without the overhead for RTS/CTS messages and, for example, increases throughput from 10 packets/s to 50 packets/s in a hidden three-node scenario without sacrificing reliability. Additionally, QMA's scalability is evaluated in a realistic scenario for slot (de)allocation in IEEE 802.15.4 DSME, where it achieves up to twice more slot (de)allocations per second.