Integrated IP multicast in mobile ad hoc networks with multiple attachments to wired IP networks

Little has been accomplished to date in bringing together the traditional IP multicast model used in fixed networks and multicast routing protocols for wireless ad hoc networks. We analyse the provision of an integrated IP multicast service in which mobile hosts can seamlessly participate in IP multicast sessions regardless of their point of attachment to the network (e.g. fixed network, ad hoc network, etc.). We propose a multicast architecture in combination with a new ad hoc multicast routing protocol called MMARP. It combines the efficiency of multicast ad hoc routing protocols with the support of standard IP nodes without an impairment in the overall performance. Our empirical studies on the handover between different access routers shows that the proposed approach clearly outperforms the traditional single-hop wireless multicast handoff by several orders of magnitude.