Distributed Mobile Agents for reliable cluster management in MANETs

Abstract

A mobile wireless ad hoc network is formed dynamically without a need for a pre-existing infrastructure. This kind of dynamic networks has been used in commercial, cultural, and environmental applications including emergency situations. Managing such networks is a challenging task. In this paper, I propose a management solution that achieves reliable cluster management in clustered ad hoc networks. The solution is based on mobile agent technology. The cluster head performs many jobs to manage the cluster. My proposed idea is to distribute the CH jobs among some nodes called job-carriers. I implement each job in a mobile agent which resides on one of the job-carriers. Election of the job-carriers is based on a periodically calculated number called Connectivity Number (CN). Each node calculates its CN by counting its neighbors that fall in the 1-hop range of the cluster. The highest-CN nodes have the chance to be job-carriers. Simulation results show accomplishing semi-static structure and enhancing the performance of the ad hoc network.