Context-aware packet switching in ad hoc networks

We present the design and performance of a new approach to packet switching for MANETs, which we call context aware protocol engines (CAPE). With CAPE, nodes disseminate information in the network by means of context-aware packet switching that enables the statistical multiplexing of bandwidth, processing and storage resources using integrated signaling covering channel access, routing and other functions, to share and store the context within which information is disseminated. Data packet headers consist of simple pointers to their context, and elections and opportunistic reservations integrated with routing are used to attain high throughput and low channel-access delay.