Optimizing communication in mobile ad hoc network clustering

• We consider typical communication workload of every mobile node in mobile ad hoc network clustering.
• We also consider the additional communication workload of clusterheads in MANETs.
• We propose an algorithm that optimizes communication workload, power consumption, clusterhead lifetime, and node degree.
• Our clustering approach produces effectively balanced clusters over a diverse set of random scenarios.

Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) are gaining popularity in recent years due to their flexibility, the proliferation of smart computing devices, and developments in wireless communications. Clustering is an important research problem for MANETs because it enables efficient utilization of resources, and must strike a delicate balance between battery energy, mobility, node degree, etc. In this paper, we consider the typical communication workload of every mobile node as well as the additional communication workload of clusterheads in MANET clustering. We propose an algorithm that optimizes communication workload, power consumption, clusterhead lifetime, and node degree. Experiment results show that our clustering approach produces effectively balanced clusters over a diverse set of random scenarios.