Performance analysis of broadcast protocols in ad hoc networks based on self-pruning

Self-pruning is an effective scheme for efficient broadcasting in ad hoc wireless networks. In a self-pruning broadcast protocol, a node may not forward a broadcast packet if a certain self-pruning condition is satisfied based on the neighborhood information. In a static network with an ideal MAC layer, only a subset of nodes forward the broadcast packet and still guarantee the complete network delivery. Various protocols have been proposed with different self-pruning conditions. Recently, a generic self-pruning protocol was proposed by Wu and Dai (2003), which combines the strength of previous conditions and is more effective. In this paper, we first propose an enhanced version of the generic protocol, which is more elegant in interpreting existing protocols and has a simpler correctness proof. Then, we evaluate the performance of the family of self-pruning protocols under various network situations with ns2. The objective is to observe the efficiency and reliability of these protocols as a function of network density, congestion, and mobility, and provide a guideline of implementation in the "real world". Our performance analysis reveals that the protocol reliability is barely affected by packet collision. However, most self-pruning protocols suffer from low delivery ratio in highly mobile networks. We further explore various techniques that improve the delivery ratio and show that both high efficiency and reliability can be achieved in highly mobile networks.