Providing internet connectivity and mobility management for MANETs

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the required functionalities on providing internet connectivity and mobility management for mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs), present discovered problems such as inconsistent contexts, and provide the corresponding solutions. It also provides a hybrid metric for the load‐balance of intra/inter‐MANET traffic over multiple internet gateways (IGWs).Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses both mathematical analyses and simulations to discover the required functionalities and problems on providing internet connectivity and mobility management for MANETs. The proposed hybrid metric for IGW selection is a replacement of the shortest hop‐count (HC) metric, and consider three factors: HC distance, intra‐MANET traffic, and inter‐MANET traffic.FindingsSimulation results show that ad hoc routing protocols, using the proposed metric, get better performance in terms of packet delivery ratio and transmission delay, at the cost of slightly increased signalling overhead.Research limitations/implicationsIn the assessment, simulation results are taken from two mobility scenarios, and the hybrid metric is integrated into only reactive ad hoc routing. Thus, more case studies need to be carried out to demonstrate the outcomes of the proposed metric compared with others.Practical implicationsThis paper provides the needed functionalities for broadening the richness of MANET applications to internet users, and vice verse.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the research on internetworking and mobility management between MANETs and the internet.