A New Multi-Path Routing Methodology Based on Logit-Type Probability Assignment

We present a new multi-path routing methodology, MLBrouting, that is based on the multinomial logit model, which is well known in the random utility field. The key concept of the study is to set multiple paths from the origin to the destination, and distribute packets in accordance with multinomial logit type probability. Since MLB-routing is pure multi-path routing, it reduces the convergence on some links and increases bandwidth utilization in the network. Unlike existing multi-path routing schemes, which pre-set alternate paths, the proposed method can dynamically distribute packets to every possible path and thus is more efficient. Furthermore, it should be mentioned that this methodology can be implemented as either a link-state protocol or a distance-vector protocol. Therefore, it well supports the existing Internet. Simulations show that this methodology raises network utilization and significantly reduces end-toend delay and jitter. key words: multi-path routing, multinomial logit model, link-state protocol, distance-vector protocol