IEEE 802.11s Mesh Network Analysis for Post Disaster Communication

Abstract

Wireless mesh networks (WMN) provide rapidly deployable, cost effective and flexible communication infrastructures. WMNs are particularly useful in the case of disaster, allowing rescuers to build communication infrastructures that may facilitate their work and help them in saving lives. IEEE 802.11s is today the reference standard for wireless mesh networks (WMNs). The aim of this paper is to evaluate the performance of IEEE 802.11s in disaster scenarios when a robust Wireless infrastructures has to be built quickly out of nothing. In such scenarios, parameters like the time elapsed from the distribution of nodes in the area and the successful transmission of the first data packet, or the network delay, may be essential in order to save lives. The aim of this paper is to evaluate such parameters.