Toward path reliability by using adaptive multi-path routing mechanism for multimedia service in mobile Ad-hoc network

Traditional multi-path routing mechanisms aim to establish complete node or link disjoint paths. However, under some circumstances if multiple paths cannot be established based on the current network topology, the traditional multi-path routing mechanism will degenerate into single path routing mechanism, thus the advantages of multi-path routing cannot be exhibited. To enhance the end-to-end path reliability, an adaptive multi-path routing mechanism with path segment is proposed, in which multi-path can be established at part of the end-to-end path. In this way the reliability of the path can be enhanced. This path segment mechanism can divide the end-to-end path into several short segments, and a parallel forwarding mechanism is proposed for guaranteeing the quality of service of multimedia services over the wireless network. Simulations show that the network performance metrics such as the packet delivery ratio, the end-to-end delay and the number of route discoveries are all improved by using the adaptive multi-path routing mechanism.