Detection Probability of a Very High Throughput MAC Protocol for Satellite Intelligent Train Tracking

Abstract

This paper analyzes the detection probability and throughput of a Very High Throughput (VHT) Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol for an Intelligent Train Tracking System via a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite. The key contributions of this paper are the proposed MAC protocol and its analytical formulation of the throughput and the detection probability of trains at a LEO satellite. The throughput of the VHT LEO MAC protocol is modeled by a discrete-time Markov Chain. One of the key advantages is that the maximum throughput gain (MTG) of the VHT MAC protocol is about 171% over that of the Slotted Aloha (SA) MAC protocol. The other advantage is that the detection probability of the trains using the VHT LEO MAC protocol is much better than that of the SA MAC protocol. These advantages add on to the added reliability, robustness and resilient for an Intelligent Train Tracking System using a LEO satellite or a constellation of LEO satellites.