Title: A dynamic context-based routing protocol for effective packet forwarding in opportunistic network

Authors: Amit Dutta; Satya Jyoti Borah; Jagdeep Singh; Kekuokho Mor

Addresses: Department of Computer Applications, Assam Don Bosco University (ADBU), Guwahati, Assam, India ' Department of Computer Science and Engineering, NERIST, Nirjuli, Itanagar, India ' Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology, Longowal, India ' Department of Computer Science and Engineering, NERIST, Nirjuli, Itanagar, India

Abstract: Opportunistic networks (OppNets) pose unique challenges and difficulties in message forwarding due to node mobility and intermittent connectivity. The major challenge in OppNets is the selection of a suitable neighbour node to carry forward data packets from the source to the destination node. To address this, a novel routing protocol, termed as dynamic context-based routing protocol for effective packet forwarding in OppNet (DCRP), is proposed. This protocol considers contexts of a node such as frequency of encounter, mean contact duration, mean inter-contact time, distance, buffer space, packet forwarding rate, and energy. The simulations using the Opportunistic Network Environment (ONE) simulator show that DCRP demonstrates better routing capabilities compared to other benchmark protocols like EBC, EDR and Epidemic. It achieves lower average latency, reduced hop counts, fewer messages dropped, and improved buffer time averages, making it a better solution for efficient message routing in opportunistic networks.

Keywords: opportunistic networks; context aware; routing protocol; information centric; security; inter contact time; ONE simulator; real mobility data trace.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSNET.2025.146782

International Journal of Sensor Networks, 2025 Vol.48 No.2, pp.83 - 97

Received: 20 Jun 2024
Accepted: 03 Mar 2025
Published online: 17 Jun 2025 *

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