Information-centric content retrieval for delay-tolerant networks

Abstract

The shift from host-centric to information-centric networking (ICN) promises seamless communication in mobile networks. However, most existing works either consider well-connected networks with high node density or introduce modifications to ICN message processing for delay-tolerant networking (DTN). In this work, we present agent-based content retrieval, which provides information-centric DTN support as an application module without modifications to ICN message processing. This enables flexible interoperability in changing environments. If no content source can be found via wireless multi-hop routing, requesters may exploit the mobility of neighbor nodes (called agents) by delegating content retrieval to them. Agents that receive a delegation and move closer to content sources can retrieve data and return it back to requesters. We show that agent-based content retrieval may be even more efficient in scenarios where multi-hop communication is possible. Furthermore, we show that broadcast communication may not be necessarily the best option since dynamic unicast requests have little overhead and can better exploit short contact times between nodes (no broadcast delays required for duplicate suppression).