Ambient networks gateway selection architecture

Many anticipate a future wireless world filled by a multitude of user devices and wireless technologies. Effective management of this kind of heterogeneous, mobile, and rapidly changing ad hoc networks will be a challenging task. We present and evaluate the Ambient Networks Gateway Selection Architecture (GSA), which provides support for gateway discovery, management, and selection for mobile nodes within dynamic routing groups. A routing group (RG) is a cluster of nodes in physical proximity, aware of the group membership, with a common goal of optimizing mobility management and routing functionality in the group. A gateway is a mobile node that provides packet relaying and connectivity services to other nodes in the RG. GSA can be also used outside the Ambient Networks architecture, and we present how it can be used with two existing mobility management protocols, namely Mobile IP and Host Identity Protocol, especially in the case of moving networks. Our simulation studies show the benefits gained from group formation when compared to same functionalities implemented in every individual node. We also compare the GSA hybrid signaling strategy with proactive and reactive approaches; the simulation results show that the hybrid approach scales better when the routing group size grows.