Performance comparison of two on-demand routing protocols for ad hoc networks

Ad hoc networks are characterized by multi-hop wireless connectivity, frequently changing network topology and the need for efficient dynamic routing protocols. We compare the performance of two prominent on-demand routing protocols for mobile ad hoc networks dynamic source routing (DSR) and ad hoc on-demand distance vector routing (AODV). A detailed simulation model with MAC and physical layer models is used to study inter-layer interactions and their performance implications. We demonstrate that even though DSR and AODV share a similar on-demand behavior the differences in the protocol mechanics can lead to significant performance differentials. The performance differentials are analyzed using varying network load, mobility and network size. Based on the observations, we make recommendations about how the performance of either protocol can be improved.

自组织网络的特点是多跳无线连接、频繁变化的网络拓扑以及对高效动态路由协议的需求。我们比较了两种用于移动自组织网络的著名按需路由协议——动态源路由（DSR）和自组织按需距离矢量路由（AODV）的性能。一个包含MAC（媒体访问控制）和物理层模型的详细仿真模型被用于研究层间交互及其对性能的影响。我们证明，尽管DSR和AODV具有相似的按需行为，但协议机制的差异可能导致显著的性能差异。通过改变网络负载、移动性和网络规模来分析性能差异。基于这些观察结果，我们就如何提高这两种协议中任何一种的性能提出了建议。