Streaming in MANET: Proactive Link Protection and Receiver-Oriented Adaptation

Abstract

Multimedia streaming applications can significantly boost the value of mobile ad hoc networks (MANET). Live streaming, however, means continuous data delivery, which is a major challenge in MANET. Because of host mobility, a streaming path may be broken easily, causing streaming interruption. In this paper, we address this problem with a light-weighted yet robust streaming protocol. Our technique distinguishes itself from existing ones with two innovative features: proactive link protection (PLP) and receiver-oriented adaptation (ROA). PLP allows a mobile host in a streaming path to find an alternative link before its current one becomes broken. This feature minimizes the chance of having to discover a new path in urgent to replace a broken link. While PLP protects the streaming continuity, ROA ensures the streaming efficiency by minimizing the hop number of a streaming path. Specifically, ROA dynamically adjusts the path of a live stream to make it as straight as possible along the direction from the source to the receiver. We evaluate the proposed technique through simulation, and our extensive study indicates that the new technique can support robust streaming applications with a minimal control overhead.