List of ad hoc routing protocols

An ad-hoc routing protocol is a convention, or standard, that controls how nodes decide which way to route packets between computing devices in a mobile ad hoc network .

In ad-hoc networks, nodes are not familiar with the topology of their networks; instead, they have to discover it.The basic idea is that a new node may announce its presence and should listen for announcements broadcast by its neighbors.Each node learns about nodes nearby and how to reach them, and may announce that it, too, can reach them.

Note that in a wider sense, ad hoc protocol can also be used literally, that is, to mean an improvised and often impromptu protocol established for a specific purpose.

The following is a list of some ad hoc network routing protocols.

Contents

Pro-active (table-driven) routing

This type of protocols maintains fresh lists of destinations and their routes by periodically distributing routing tables throughout the network. The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. Respective amount of data for maintenance.
  2. Slow reaction on restructuring and failures.

Examples of pro-active algorithms are:

Reactive (on-demand) routing

This type of protocols finds a route on demand by flooding the network with Route Request packets. The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. High latency time in route finding.
  2. Excessive flooding can lead to network clogging.

Examples of reactive algorithms are:

Endaira: It is on demand source routing protocol and it is designed to address the hidden channel attack in ariadne.

Flow-oriented routing

This type of protocols finds a route on demand by following present flows. One option is to unicast consecutively when forwarding data while promoting a new link. The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. Takes long time when exploring new routes without a prior knowledge.
  2. May refer to entitative existing traffic to compensate for missing knowledge on routes.

Examples of flow oriented algorithms are:

Hybrid (both pro-active and reactive) routing

This type of protocols combines the advantages of proactive and of reactive routing. The routing is initially established with some proactively prospected routes and then serves the demand from additionally activated nodes through reactive flooding. The choice for one or the other method requires predetermination for typical cases. The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. Advantage depends on number of Mathavan nodes activated.
  2. Reaction to traffic demand depends on gradient of traffic volume.

Examples of hybrid algorithms are:

Hierarchical routing protocols

With this type of protocols the choice of proactive and of reactive routing depends on the hierarchic level where a node resides. The routing is initially established with some proactively prospected routes and then serves the demand from additionally activated nodes through reactive flooding on the lower levels. The choice for one or the other method requires proper attributation for respective levels. The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. Advantage depends on depth of nesting and addressing scheme.
  2. Reaction to traffic demand depends on meshing parameters.

Examples of hierarchical routing algorithms are:

Backpressure Routing

This type of routing does not pre-compute paths. It chooses next-hops dynamically as a packet is in progress toward its destination. These decisions are based on congestion gradients of neighbor nodes. When this type of routing is used together with max-weight link scheduling, the algorithm is throughput-optimal. See further discussion here: Backpressure Routing.

Host Specific Routing protocols

This type of protocols requires thorough administration to tailor the routing to a certain network layout and a distinct flow strategy. The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. Advantage depends on quality of administration addressing scheme.
  2. Proper reaction to changes in topology demands reconsidering all parametrizing.

Power-aware routing protocols

Energy required to transmit a signal is approximately proportional to d^\alpha, where d is the distance and {\alpha} \geq 2 is the attenuation factor or path loss exponent, which depends on the transmission medium. When \alpha=2 (which is the optimal case), transmitting a signal half the distance requires one fourth of the energy and if there is a node in the middle willing to spend another fourth of its energy for the second half, data would be transmitted for half of the energy than through a direct transmission – a fact that follows directly from the inverse square law of physics.

The main disadvantages of such algorithms are:

  1. This method induces a delay for each transmission.
  2. No relevance for energy network powered transmission operated via sufficient repeater infrastructure.

Multicast routing

Geographical multicast protocols (Geocasting)

Other protocol classes

External links

This is a list of existing definitions or even implementations of Ad hoc network routing protocols. These are links to code that can combine inexpensive commercial radios with inexpensive computers to form self-organizing radio-based network systems: