A highly reliable multi-path routing scheme for ad hoc wireless networks

Abstract

This paper presents a new routing scheme for ad hoc wireless networks that provides fresh routing information along active routes with affordable cost. The proposed routing mechanism, called proactive route maintenance (PRM), is used to replace the naive route mechanism in existing reactive (on-demand) routing protocols to enhance route reliability and reduce the frequency of expensive route discoveries. The assumption behind PRM is the communication locality in ad hoc wireless networks. That is, most data packets are transported along a few active routes. Data packets are forwarded via multiple optimal paths to meet certain QoS requirements, such as fault tolerance and load balance. Routing information is disseminated along active routes and advertised only by active nodes that forward data packets. Alternative paths are dynamically discovered and maintained by active nodes and their 1-hop neighbors (called passive nodes). The routing overhead in passive nodes is light. PRM maintains reliable end-to-end connections even in dynamic networks with relatively low overhead, and has desirable properties including high delivery ratio, low latency, fair load distribution, self-healing and self-optimization.