Performance evaluation of AODVH: An Ad hoc networking scheme for hybrid nodes

Mobile Ad hoc networks (MANETs) are composed of a collection of independent nodes usually connected by low bandwidth Radio Frequency (RF) links which are challenging for transmitting video and high bandwidth applications for rescue workers in emergency situations. Earlier we proposed a routing protocol, called AODVH to use for high bandwidth communication for search and rescue operations in a disaster area which consists of hybrid nodes using Free Space Optical (FSO) and RF links, with FSO being the primary link and RF as backup in the case of failure of “FSO only” paths. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the performance of AODVH using ns-2 simulations with varying network size and compare with three other Ad hoc routing protocols. We also implemented and tested AODVH in the laboratory using a testbed consisting of Linux based Ad hoc nodes. Results show that AODVH performs better in terms of packet loss, end-to-end delay, overhead, packet delivery ratio, route discovery frequency and throughput when compared to with the other three protocols.