An algorithm for controlling packet size in IEEE 802.16e networks

This paper proposes an algorithm to be used in IEEE 802.16e networks for adapting MAC PDU size to wireless channel behavior when ARQ is adopted at MAC layer. The algorithm is based on an analytical approach for dynamically evaluating the optimal packet size. The latter is derived from an expression of the ARQ protocol efficiency, obtained by exploiting a finite-state Markov error model which also takes into account Adaptive Modulation/Coding. The effectiveness of the designed algorithm in improving TCP performance has been evaluated.