Voice capacity in IEEE 802.11 networks

We are currently witnessing a boom in the deployment and usage of wireless local area networks (WLANs). Once only seen within the enterprise, WLANs are increasingly making their way into residential, commercial, industrial, and public areas. The recent efforts of carriers to integrate WLANs into their wide-area service offerings are testimony to their growing role in the future of wireless networking. Voice continues to be the most predominant wireless application, and, in order to integrate fully with existing and future cellular systems, WLANs must deliver a high quality voice service. We present an experimental evaluation of VoIP capacity in an IEEE 802.11b network. Moreover, we identify and quantify the contributing factors that limit the capacity to less than 10 voice calls per access point.