Vehicular network simulation propagation loss model parameter standardization in ns-3 and beyond

Vehicular Networks (VANETs) continue to mature and their installation is becoming a reality. Meanwhile, simulation has become an indispensable tool for validating design and providing insight into how complex systems work. Yet the results of a simulation are only as good as the simulator's configuration. The network simulator 3 (ns-3) provides a host of propagation loss models, some of which are applicable to VANETs. In this work, we evaluate these models and then offer standard values for the propagation loss model parameters in an effort to normalize VANET simulation and provide researchers the ability to compare their work. The proposed values are then demonstrated to achieve the desired effective range as empirically determined in other work.