An analytical model for beaconing in VANETs

IEEE 802.11 CSMA/CA is generally considered to be well-understood, and many detailed models are available. However, most models focus on Unicast in small-scale W-LAN scenarios. When modelling beaconing in VANETs, the Broadcast nature and the (potentially) large number of nodes cause phenomena specific to large-scale broadcast scenarios not captured in present models of the 802.11 DCF. In a VANET scenario, transmissions from coordinated nodes are performed in so-called Streaks, without intermediate backoff counter decrement. We adapt the model by Engelstad and Østerb⊘ and provide several improvements specific to VANET beaconing. The resulting analytical model is shown to have good fit with simulation results.