Recycled path routing in mobile ad hoc networks

In mobile ad hoc networks, many routing algorithms rely on some form of flooding to accomplish the route discovery process. Flooding, however, consumes many valuable network resources such as time, bandwidth, and power. Most current routing schemes expire valid routes after a time period to account for nodal movement. This paper proposes a new route discovery method, called recycled path routing (RPR), which directs broadcasts toward the destination node even in the absence of location information. The recycled path routing scheme reduces the search space for the destination node by implementing an expired route cache that is utilized by each node in the network. Routes are added to the expired route cache as they expire from the active route cache and remain there until some time interval has passed or a new route has been discovered. Since these expired routes can provide valuable insight into finding new routes, RPR uses them to direct broadcasts toward the destination node. RPR can save a significant quantity of valuable network resources because only nodes near the optimal path will rebroadcast route requests.