Resource allocation and guarantees for real-time applications in WLANs

WLAN was developed as a cost-effective wireless technology for the residential market. The residential PC infrastructure did not require QoS from the beginning, but as WLAN is gradually moving in the enterprise and public areas, the need for QoS increases. In addition, to offer the network services transparently to end-users in a converged network environment, WLAN access networks require a resource allocation mechanism and QoS guarantees similar to 3G networks. Current QoS support in WLANs enables prioritization to e.g., differentiate between real time and elastic traffic flows. This paper complements this by showing how QoS assurance can be achieved by associating subscriptions with transmit and receive rates. The main focus is on the complete end-to-end QoS solution, including admission control and resource allocation, taking into account the varying channel conditions and the need to adapt to these conditions dynamically to guarantee a predefined QoS level.