Sociological Orbits for Efficient Routing in Intermittently Connected Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

Routing in Intermittently Connected Networks (ICN) is a challenging problem due to the uncertainty and time varying nature of network connectivity. In this work, we focus on a special class of ICN formed by mobile ad hoc users called ICMAN. We first consider a new and practical probabilistic mobility model where the nodes move between a set of “hubs” in a partially repetitive and nondeterministic pattern to form the so-called “sociological orbits”. Second, to leverage the sociological orbit based mobility pattern in routing within ICMAN, we propose a series of multi-path Sociological Orbit aware Location Approximation and Routing (SOLAR) protocols. We present theoretical analysis of the mobility model and routing algorithms under consideration, and show that the proposed routing algorithms can outperform other conventional routing approaches in an ICN by taking advantage of the sociological orbit based mobility pattern.