Mobile Internet Router for Multihop Ad hoc Networks

Future wireless ad hoc networks will use mobile routers to provide Internet connectivity to mobile ad hoc users. A mobile router also allows mobility of an entire ad hoc network, e.g. in plains, trains, cars, and other vehicles, where mobile users may use an Internet access within an ad hoc network domain. Mobile Internet access is also required for various mobile networks such as Personal Area Networks (PAN) and Body Area Networks (BAN). This paper describes the realization of a Mobile Internet Router and experimentally demonstrate the mobility of an entire multihop ad hoc network. The Mobile Internet Router must support so-called vertical handoffs for seamless mobility of an entire ad hoc network which roams between different access technologies. In this study, the concept design of a Mobile Internet Router is presented that uses Mobile IP for mobility support and connects a multihop ad hoc network (AODV) with wireless LAN (IEEE 802.11b) and a cellular system (GPRS). This paper examines the design of the proposed Mobile Internet Router and how it improves the routing performance of mobile ad hoc networking.