In-frame neighbor indexing schemes for multichannel mobile ad hoc networks

Utilization of multiple channels in ad hoc networks provides the benefits of reducing the probability of collisions, decreasing the normalized propagation delay and support of QoS. However, problems like busy waiting or deadlock existence degrade the bandwidth utilization. In this paper, we introduce two neighbor indexing schemes which assign different sequence numbers to the neighbors of every nodes to avoid the collision when communicating. Our neighbor indexing schemes are integrated into MAC protocols. The first is a basic neighbor-sequenced scheme, which we call static neighbor indexing scheme (SNI). SNI can be employed in the ad hoc network where the maximal number of neighbors every nodes could have is restricted to a fixed number. The second method we propose is the adaptive neighbor indexing scheme (ANI) which can reassign a new sequence number to a registered neighbor for reducing the maximal sequence number assigned to its neighbors. The proposed schemes can adequately adjust to station movements so as to support the high mobility network.