A Hybrid Routing Protocol for Wireless Distributed Networks

Trends in networking are shifting from distributed to logically centralized networks. Software defined networking (SDN) is the key technology behind this shift. This new paradigm not only proves the ease of network management in wired networks but also results into graceful evolution of networking protocols. Moreover, wireless distributed networks (WDNs) and software defined radios (SDRs) are also shifting towards the centralized approach. However, due to distributed control nature of WDNs, already prevailing routing algorithms cannot cope the design principle of centralized routing algorithms. Hence, a new routing algorithm that incorporates SDN in WDNs is required. In this paper, we propose a logically centralized approach for WDNs called centralized approach to mobile ad hoc network (CATMAN). It is a self-healing and hybrid routing protocol. It combines distributed and logically centralized network control along with the flavors of reactive, proactive, and opportunistic routing protocols. CATMAN is designed to automatically switch between logically centralized routing protocol and distributed routing protocol based on the types of available network nodes. The protocol significantly reduces control overhead and hence improves bandwidth utilization. While route computations, this protocol deliberately avoids the nodes with weaker batteries, optimizing the effective life of whole network. The simulation results showed that the CATMAN protocol outperform better approach to mobile ad hoc network (BATMAN) protocol by signaling overhead reduction up to 570%.