A Novel Random Access for Fixed-Location Machine-to-Machine Communications in OFDMA Based Systems

• Published in: IEEE communications letters 2012-09, Vol.16 (9), p.1428-1431
• Main Authors: Ko, Kab Seok, Kim, Min Jeong, Bae, Kuk Yeol, Sung, Dan Keun, Kim, Jae Heung, Ahn, Jae Young
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Cellular; Delay; Devices; Equipments and installations; Evolution; Exact sciences and technology; Frequency division multiple access; Indexes; Information, signal and communications theory; LTE; M2M; Metering; Mobile radiocommunication systems; Multiplexing; Packets (communication); Performance evaluation; Quality of service; Radiocommunications; Random access; Remote sensing; Sensors; Services and terminals of telecommunications; Signal and communications theory; Systems, networks and services of telecommunications; Tantalum; Telecommunications; Telecommunications and information theory; Telemetry. Remote supervision. Telewarning. Remote control; timing alignment; Transmission and modulation (techniques and equipments); Wireless networks; Wireless sensor networks
• ISSN: 1089-7798; 1558-2558
• DOI: 10.1109/LCOMM.2012.072012.120788

Machine-to-machine (M2M) communications typically exhibit features such as a large number of devices, low data-rates, small-sized packets, and low or no mobility, while human-to-human (H2H) communications typically support a small number of users, high data-rates, large-sized packets, and high mobility. To support M2M communications in future cellular systems, one of the most challenging problems is to resolve a collision problem in random access because of access attempts from a large number of devices. For a large class of fixed-location M2M services such as smart metering and remote sensing, each machine device has fixed uplink timing alignment (TA) due to a fixed distance between the machine device and its eNodeB. We propose a novel random access scheme based on its fixed TA information for M2M communications at a large number of fixed-location machine devices in future orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA)-based cellular systems like Long Term Evolution (LTE) system. The proposed random access scheme yields significantly lower collision probability, shorter access delay, and higher energy-efficiency, compared with the conventional random access scheme.