A Real-Time and Efficient MAC Protocol for Smart Grid Wireless Communications

Abstract

Communication and information technologies play crucial roles in the smart grid system. Wireless communications offer many unique features to utilities. Real-time capability and high efficiency under heavy load are vital capabilities for smart grid wireless communications. However, the existing medium access control (MAC) protocols for low-rate and short-range wireless transfer in the literature mainly aim to achieve the objectives of low energy consumption and self-configuration and rarely address these requirements under heavy traffic intensity. This paper presents a real-time, efficient, and lightweight MAC (RE-MAC) protocol to support smart grid applications, based on priority node polling and a hybrid scheme. The upper bounds of packet delay are determined using the embedded Markov chain method, and the simulation results demonstrate that the protocol can achieve predictable, real-time, and efficient performance.