ReUse: Reliable and efficient RSU-enabled relay vehicle selection using harmony search and EDAS for message dissemination in VANETs

Abstract

Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) are expected to provide the driver and passengers of a vehicle a number of safety and non-safety services in the very near future. The safety and non-safety related information are forwarded by the vehicles in the network so that the information reaches the intended vehicles. The vehicles can use either the broadcast links for forwarding the information or via roadside units (RSUs). As the safety (emergency) information intended for vehicles must be sent over the network in real time, the vehicles in the network must use a broadcast method for communication. However, the broadcast storm problem in the network leads to improper utilization of network resources. In this work, to alleviate the consequences of the broadcast storm, we propose an efficient relay vehicle selection mechanism ReUse for selecting the promising relay vehicle(s) in the network for data dissemination. The relay vehicle(s) is(are) chosen from the prime area of transmission range of the source vehicle depending on a number of factors including mobility, link quality, buffer size, and number of neighbours. In our work, two multicriteria decision tools named as Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) and Evaluation based on Distance from Average Solution (EDAS) are used together for obtaining criteria weights and utilizing them for ranking the vehicles of the prime area for the selection of relay vehicles. The suggested approach beats existing relay vehicle selection schemes in terms of reachability, redundancy rate, collision rate, delay, PDR, PSR, and throughput, according to simulation results.