Reliability analysis of the random access channel of LTE with access class barring for smart grid monitoring traffic

The efficient and reliable handling of numerous communicating devices responsible for the monitoring and control of the distribution grid constitutes one of the key challenges for the realization of the smart grid. Cellular technology relying on LTE-based standards has been identified as a promising option to support advanced distribution-grid operations with stringent communication requirements. In this paper, a reliability analysis of wide-area monitoring systems in cellular-enabled distribution grids is presented. The LTE random access channel (RACH) procedure enhanced with an access class barring (ACB) scheme is modeled via a Markov chain taking into account a realistic model of the varying traffic behavior of monitoring devices. Based on the proposed analytical framework, we derive the reliability expression which depends on various RACH and ACB parameters and the monitoring traffic characteristics. With the aid of extensive simulations, we validate the accuracy of our analytical model. Finally, a performance evaluation in terms of reliability is carried out under different network and traffic configurations and several insights can be drawn for the reliable support of monitoring traffic.