A cross-layer middleware for context-aware cooperative application on mobile ad hoc peer-to-peer network

Mobile ad hoc peer-to-peer (P2P) applications become popular for providing the file sharing, voice communicating, and video streaming services due to entertainments and disaster recovery. However, both the topology of wireless network and the overlay of P2P network are dynamic, so the middleware is proposed to integrate such architectures of service-oriented applications. Therefore, we propose context-aware cooperative application (CACA) to overcome the frequent churn and high mobility problems. CACA proposes a cross-layer middleware to integrate DHT-based lookup, anycast query, and P2P delivery via the IPv6 routing header. Through anycast query, the response delay can be shortened and the query duplication can be minimized. Via IPv6 routing header, the delivery efficiency can be improved. Through the cross-layer design, the finger table in overlay layer is combined with the routing table in network layer to heighten proximity. The simulation results demonstrate that CACA has the outstanding performances of short download delay, high playback continuity, and low signaling overhead in mobile ad hoc network.     

A cross-layer TCP enhancement in QoS-aware mobile ad hoc networks

With the increase of multimedia traffic over the Internet, current network protocols are largely concerned with the QoS requirements of delay-sensitive applications. In Mobile Ad-hoc Networks (MANETs), the majority of protocols developed to date provide QoS mechanisms by assigning high priority to delay-sensitive applications. While today’s Internet traffic is still dominated by TCP-based applications, the negative effects of the IEEE 802.11e service differentiation scheme on TCP performance in the presence of high priority traffic have not been adequately addressed in the literature. In this paper we first evaluate the performance of TCP in 802.11e MANETs when competing with high priority VoIP traffic. We then propose a novel TCP-friendly scheme, called IEDCA, to improve IEEE 802.11e EDCA mechanism. Our simulation-based performance study demonstrates that our proposed scheme IEDCA not only improves the performance of TCP significantly, it also facilitates the voice traffic transmission.     

A multi-timescale cross-layer approach for wireless ad hoc networks

Conventionally, cross-layer designs with same timescale updates can work well; however, there is a difference in layers’ timescales and each layer normally operates at its corresponding timescale when implemented in real systems. To respect this issue, in this article, we introduce a multi-timescale cross-layer design along with three sets of constraints: congestion control, link delay, and power control and with the objective of maximizing the overall utility and minimizing the total link delay and power consumption. The proposed procedure can be implemented in a distributed fashion, which not only guarantees truly optimal solutions to the underlying problem, but also adheres to the natural timescale difference among layers. Finally, the numerical results further solidify the efficacies of our proposal compared to the current frameworks.     

A context-aware cross-layer broadcast model for ad hoc networks

The standard 802.11 medium access control (MAC) performs poorly for heavy broadcast traffic. We present our context-aware cross-layer (CACL) broadcast model as an alternative. The basic CACL model uses only contextual data available to the 802.11 MAC and so is usable by any routing protocol that uses the 802.11 MAC. CACL fits the total broadcasts in any two-hop neighborhood to wireless channel capacity. We compare collision rates for CACL and the 802.11 MAC and conclude that, for a wide range of network conditions, CACL offers superior single-hop transmission rates. We also present a geographically constrained extension to CACL, CACL-G and compare it against CACL in vehicular scenarios of varying node density. Our results show that CACL-G offers increasingly superior performance over the basic CACL model as node density increases.     

Adaptive TCP congestion control and routing schemes using cross-layer information for mobile ad hoc networks

Compared with traditional networks, ad hoc networks possess many unique characteristics. For example, ad hoc networks can drop a packet due to network events other than buffer overflow. Unfortunately, the current layered network architecture makes it impossible to pass the information specific to one layer to other layers. As a result, if a packet is lost due to reasons other than buffer overflow, TCP adversely invokes its congestion control procedure. Similarly, the routing algorithm may misinterpret that a path is broken and adversely invoke the route recovery procedure.This study addresses the limitations of the current layered network architecture by adopting a cross-layer protocol design for TCP and routing algorithms in ad hoc networks. The objective of this approach is to enable the lower-layered ad hoc network to detect and differentiate all possible network events, including disconnections, channel errors, buffer overflow, and link-layer contention, that may cause packet loss. Using the information exploited by lower layers, the upper layer-3 routing algorithm, and the layer-4 TCP can take various actions according to the types of network events. Simulation results demonstrate that the combination of the cross-layer optimized TCP and routing algorithms can effectively improve the performance of TCP and DSR, regardless of whether it is in a stationary or a mobile ad hoc network.     

Triangle-based routing for mobile ad hoc networks

Routing protocols for Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) have been studied extensively in the past decade. Routing protocols for MANETs can be broadly classified as reactive (on-demand), proactive, hybrid and position-based. Reactive routing protocols are attractive because a route between a source and a destination is established only when it is needed. Such protocols, unlike proactive protocols, do not have high overhead for route maintenance and are especially suitable for networks in which not all nodes communicate frequently. One problem with existing reactive routing protocols is the propagation of redundant route request messages during route discovery. In this paper, we present a low-overhead reactive routing protocol which reduces propagation of redundant route request messages. We also compare its performance with the well-known reactive routing protocol AODV.     

Neighborhood tracking for mobile ad hoc networks

In mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs), node mobility causes network topologies to change dynamically over time, which complicates such important tasks as broadcasting and routing. In a typical efficient localized approach, each node makes forwarding decisions based on a neighborhood local view constructed simply by collecting received “Hello” messages. That kind of neighborhood local view can become outdated and inconsistent, which induces a low-coverage problem for efficient broadcasting tasks and a low-delivery ratio problem for efficient routing tasks. In this paper, we propose a neighborhood tracking scheme to guarantee the accuracy of forwarding decisions. Based on historical location information, nodes predict the positions of neighbors when making a forwarding decision, and then construct an updated and consistent neighborhood local view to help derive more precise forwarding decisions. The inaccuracy factors of our scheme are also discussed and an accessory method is provided for possible usage. Simulation results illustrate the accuracy of our proposed tracking scheme. To verify the effectiveness of our scheme, we apply it to existing efficient broadcast algorithms. Simulation results indicate that our neighborhood tracking scheme can improve the protocols coverage ratio greatly.     

Model checking mobile ad hoc networks

Modeling arbitrary connectivity changes within mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) makes application of automated formal verification challenging. We use constrained labeled transition systems as a semantic model to represent mobility. To model check MANET protocols with respect to the underlying topology and connectivity changes, we introduce a branching-time temporal logic. The path quantifiers are parameterized by multi-hop constraints over topologies, to discriminate the paths over which the temporal behavior should be investigated; the paths that violate the multi-hop constraints are not considered. A model checking algorithm is presented to verify MANETs that allow arbitrary mobility, under the assumption of reliable communication. It is applied to analyze a leader election protocol.     

Cost-effective mobile ad hoc networks management

As there are more and more mobile devices in use, different mobile networking models such as ad hoc or mesh are attracting a large research interest. Self-organizing mobile ad hoc networks (MANET) allow devices to share their services and resources without any central administration or Internet support. In this respect they can become the backbone of the wireless grid or the gateway to existing grids. To achieve these goals, MANET management must be as effective as that of wired networks. This is, however, a challenging task due to network features like mobility, heterogeneity, limited resources of hosts and feeble communication. This paper presents a set of simple, cost-effective and resilient procedures for the basic tasks of MANET creation and management.     

Robust self-keying mobile ad hoc networks

Pairwise key establishment in mobile ad hoc networks allows any pair of nodes to agree upon a shared key. This is an important security service needed to secure routing protocols, and in general to facilitate secure communication among the nodes of the network.We present two self-keying mechanisms for pairwise key establishment in mobile ad hoc networks which do not require any centralized support. The mechanisms are built using the well-known technique of threshold secret sharing, and are robust and secure against a collusion of up to a certain number of nodes. We evaluate and compare the performance of both the mechanisms in terms of the node admission and pairwise key establishment.     

A cross-layer multi-hop cooperative network architecture for wireless ad hoc networks

In this paper, a novel decentralized cross-layer multi-hop cooperative network architecture is proposed and presented. This cross-layer architecture introduces a new cooperative flooding scheme and two decentralized opportunistic cooperative forwarding mechanisms based on randomized coding, and a Routing Enabled Cooperative Medium Access Control (RECOMAC) protocol that enables cooperative forwarding, while incorporating physical, medium access control (MAC) and routing layers. RECOMAC employs randomized coding to realize cooperative diversity, so that relay selection and actuation mechanisms are alleviated and the MAC costs are reduced. The coded packets are routed in the network via the proposed cooperative forwarding schemes, which opportunistically form cooperative sets within a region, not needing a prior route to be established. Essentially, in the RECOMAC architecture, the routing layer functionality is submerged into the MAC layer to provide seamless cooperative communication, while the messaging overhead to set up routes, select and actuate relays is reduced. We evaluate the performance of RECOMAC in terms of network throughput, delay and MAC and routing overhead, in comparison to the conventional architecture based on the well-known IEEE 802.11 MAC and Ad hoc On Demand Distance Vector (AODV) routing protocols. RECOMAC is shown to provide quite significant improvement by an order of magnitude difference in all investigated performance metrics, under a variety of scenarios, considering different network sizes, static and mobile scenarios and networks with multiple flows.     

Adaptive routing protocol for mobile ad hoc networks

Artificial immune systems (AIS) are used for solving complex optimization problems and can be applied to the detection of misbehaviors, such as a fault tolerant. We present novel techniques for the routing optimization from the perspective of the artificial immunology theory. We discussed the bioinspired protocol AntOR and analyze its new enhancements. This ACO protocol based on swarm intelligence takes into account the behavior of the ants at the time of obtaining the food. In the simulation results we compare it with the reactive protocol AODV observing how our proposal improves it according to Jitter, the delivered data packet ratio, throughput and overhead in number of packets metrics.     

Markovian-based traffic modeling for mobile ad hoc networks

Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) show very significant difference with respect to other computer networks due to the presence of extremely large packet loss bursts. The development of protocols for mobile ad hoc networks, especially multimedia protocols, require extensive evaluation either through simulation or real-life tests. Such testing consumes a great amount of resources both in terms of time and trace file sizes. Therefore, finding efficient means of reducing the amount of data that is stored and processed is quite important to accelerate the evaluation of different audio/video streaming applications. If, moreover, we are able to model the loss pattern experienced, we can further accelerate the evaluation process.In this work we propose two models based on hidden Markov chains that are able to grasp both packet arrivals and packet loss patterns in MANETs. A simpler two-state model is proposed to model losses when proactive routing protocols are used, while a more complex three-state model is proposed for reactive routing protocols. We also introduce a new set for packet loss pattern measurements that can be of interest for the evaluation of audio/video streaming applications.Experimental results show that the proposed models can adequately reproduce extremely long packet loss patterns, typical of MANET environments, with a high degree of accuracy. Overall, we find that the proposed models are able to significantly reduce both the simulation time and the trace file sizes required.     

Integrating mobile IP with ad hoc networks

Extending traditional IEEE 802.11-based access points to incorporate the flexibility of mobile ad hoc networks would help make the dream of ubiquitous broadband wireless access a reality. The authors discuss several issues related to integrating the mobile Internet protocol with Manets.     

Group communications in mobile ad hoc networks

Efficient support of group communications is critical for most ad hoc network applications. However, manet group communications issues differ from those in wired environments because the wireless communications medium has variable and unpredictable characteristics, and the signal strength and propagation fluctuate with respect to time and environment. We provide an overview of group communications issues such as protocol design, state maintenance, and performance. We also discuss representative protocols and examine related issues such as reliability, power conservation, quality of service, security, and areas requiring additional research.     

移动自组网的动态编址问题

作为实现移动自组网自动配置的一个关键问题,综述了节点地址的自动配置的最新进展,描述了设计移动自组网动态地址配置协议所面临的问题,对该问题研究开展以来所提出的各种主要方法和协议进行了详细对比、分析和分类阐述,为进一步的研究提出了新的建议。     

Signal strength based routing for power saving in mobile ad hoc networks

The transmission bandwidth between two nodes in mobile ad hoc networks is important in terms of power consumption. However, the bandwidth between two nodes is always treated the same, regardless of what the distance is between the two nodes. If a node equips a GPS device to determine the distance between two nodes, the hardware cost and the power consumption increase. In this paper, we propose using a bandwidth-based power-aware routing protocol with signal detection instead of using GPS devices to determine the distance. In our proposed routing protocol, we use the received signal variation to predict the transmission bandwidth and the lifetime of a link. Accordingly, the possible amount of data that can be transmitted and the remaining power of nodes in the path after data transmission can be predicted. By predicting the possible amount of data that can be transmitted and the remaining power of nodes after data transmission, we can design a bandwidth-based power-aware routing protocol that has power efficiency and that prolongs network lifetime. In our simulation, we compare our proposed routing protocol with two signal-based routing protocols, SSA and ABR, and a power-aware routing protocol, MMBCR, in terms of the throughput, the average transmission bandwidth, the number of rerouting paths, the path lifetime, the power consumed when a byte is transmitted, and the network lifetime (the ratio of active nodes).     

Modelling incentives for collaboration in mobile ad hoc networks

This paper explores a model for the operation of an ad hoc mobile network. The model incorporates incentives for users to act as transit nodes on multi-hop paths and to be rewarded with their own ability to send traffic. The paper explores consequences of the model by means of fluid-level simulations of a network and illustrates the way in which network resources are allocated to users according to their geographical position.     

Privacy addressing and autoconfiguration for mobile ad hoc networks

Allowing truly spontaneous and infrastructureless networking, mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are the future of wireless networks. However, most autoconfiguration proposals for MANETs lack privacy support, namely anonymity or pseudonymity and unlinkability aspects, which has become important considerations in many practical applications. This paper presents a novel privacy extension approach (PEA) for MANETs, which prevents eavesdroppers from identifying a particular mobile node by its address. In addition to privacy concerns, our scheme also brings some performance benefits, e.g., reducing the possibility of address conflict when the merging of separately configured networks occurs.     

A fuzzy-based Power-aware management for mobile ad hoc networks

In recent years, people have become more dependent on wireless network services to obtain the latest information at any time anywhere. Wireless networks must effectively allow several types of mobile devices send data to one another. The Mobile Ad Hoc Network (MANET) is one important type of non-infrastructure mobile network that consists of many mobile hosts, usually cellular phones. The power consumption rate and bandwidth of each mobile host device becomes an important issue and needs to be addressed. For increasing the reliability of the manager in Hierarchical Cellular Based Management (HCBM), this paper proposed a Power-aware protocol to select a stable manager from mobile hosts by fuzzy based inference systems based on the factors of speed, battery power, and location. Further, our protocol can trigger a mobile agent to distribute the managerial workload.