A dynamic and efficient MAP selection scheme for mobile IPv6 networks

While mobile communication systems provide certainly more flexibility to end-users, they present complex mobility management issues. To tackle mobility management issues, the concept of mobility anchor points (MAPs) was introduced and its use was proposed within the framework of the hierarchical mobile IPv6 (HMIPv6) protocol. However, due to traffic dynamics, the protocol performance remains critically affected by the selection of MAPs. This paper proposes a dynamic and efficient mobility management strategy for the selection of the most appropriate MAP with the lightest traffic load. The MAP selection is based on an estimation of MAP load transition using the exponential moving average (EMA) method. The proposed selection scheme is referred to as dynamic and efficient MAP selection (DEMAPS). The scheme performance is evaluated through simulations. Simulation results show that the DEMAPS scheme substantially reduces the number of packet drops, guarantees shorter service delays, makes better utilization of the network resources, avoids redundant transmissions, and maintains a fair and efficient distribution of the network load.