RFP: Repository Based Forwarding Protocol for Opportunistic Networks

Opportunistic networking is one of the most interesting evolutions of mobile ad hoc networks. In this kind of wireless network, mobile nodes such as mobile phones and PDAs, use the mobility of devices as well as wireless forwarding between intermediate nodes to communicate with each other, hence a complete route between source and destination is not required at any point in time. The design of efficient forwarding protocols for opportunistic networks is a research challenge due to the absence of a priori information about the topological development of the network over time. Forwarding protocols in opportunistic networks usually employ only mobile devices to facilitate data forwarding. In this paper we examine the use of fixed infrastructure (or repositories) together with user mobility information to facilitate data forwarding in opportunistic networks. We propose a repository based forwarding protocol (RFP), and compare it with the epidemic routing protocol. The results show a quantifiable and significant benefit in performance when evaluated on practical scenarios.