Path Establishment Algorithm for Mobile Ad Hoc Network : A novel approach

Ad-hoc on-demand routing protocols like ZRP establish and maintain routes on-demand. However, the paths established by on-demand protocols, which are optimal during route establishment phase, become sub-optimal over time due to node mobility. In this paper, we propose a Path Establishment Algorithm (PEA) that optimizes the established routes when feasible without incurring extra overhead. By utilizing promiscuous mode of operation, sender node „hears‟ the border neighbour node within each zone to forward a packet, hop counts embedded in IP-optional header of data packets to find shorter paths. PEA avoids unnecessary aggressive and ephemeral route updates, which improves the protocol performance. Routing path optimality is important as optimal path reduces the packet drop ratio, end-to-end delay, and reduces energy dissipation of end-to-end data transmission. It will also be easier to secure multicast routing. PEA for ZRP fits well for MANETs where bandwidth is limited, topology changes frequently, power is constrained and security problem is serious. Simulation results are presented to support our claim.