Charging-aware mobility modeling for wirelessly chargeable intermittently connected MANETs

Abstract

Recently remarkable progress has been made on the development of wireless charging technologies. Their augmentation to Intermittently Connected Mobile ad hoc Networks (ICMNs) can boost the network performance with the benefit of elongated nodal lifespans. This benefit, however, is also accompanied by new potential challenges for protocol designers, as the mobile nodes can assume unconventionally dynamic, heterogeneous, and interdependent movement patterns due to dis/charging processes. The interplay between mobility, energy, and communication can skew the efficacy of existing routing protocols. In this paper, we devise a series of grid-based mobility models to mimic the possible charging-aware moving behaviors of wirelessly chargeable ICMNs that are assisted by renewable charging resources. Properties of the mobility models are investigated through simulation with classic routing protocols for ICMNs (i.e. epidemic routing and randomized flooding). Results show that the charging-aware mobility can enable the nodes to maintain high energy and good packet delivery ratios, depending on the aggressiveness of transmission and distribution of chargers.