Some challenges when implementing the optimized link state routing (OLSR) protocol on real-life devices and simulators are unmanageable: link quality, rapid energy depletion, and high processor loads. The causes of these challenges are link state processing, unsuitable multipoint relay (MPR) nodes, and information base maintenance. This paper proposes a structured, energy-efficient link sensing and database maintenance technique. The improved OLSR in the paper replaces the OLSRv2’s HELLO, HELLO, and Topology Control (TC) message sequence with a new sequence. MPR nodes are not mandated to broadcast TC messages if the number of nodes and their OLSRv2 addresses remain unchanged after subsequent broadcasts or if no node reported 2-hop symmetric connections. The paper further proposes an MPR selection technique that considers four parameters: node battery level, mobility speed, node degree, and connection to the base station for optimum relay selection. It combines the four parameters into one metric to reduce energy dissipation and control routing overhead. The modifications were implemented in NS-3, and the simulation results show that our improved OLSR outperforms the existing OLSR, OLSRv2 and other improved routing protocols in energy consumption, routing overhead, the packet delivery ratio and end-to-end delay, as compared to the related literature.
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