A multipath routing algorithm for mobile wireless sensor networks

Providing reliable and yet energy efficient routing protocols is of an utmost importance in Wireless Sensor Networks. Wireless Sensor Networks imply multi-hop data forwarding over unreliable and moving nodes. When selecting the appropriate routing paradigm, the main challenge is to find the right equilibrium between the quality of data delivery and the energy invested. Insufficient quality of data delivery may fail the application deployed over the wireless sensor network, while an energy wasteful protocol may significantly shorten the lifetime of the network, thus making the deployment inefficient for its purpose. In this paper we propose a new routing algorithm for WSN's, named the Data Centric Braided Multipath (DCBM) algorithm. The algorithm is designed to achieve and maintain route resiliency through multiple interleaving routing paths, capable to cope with node mobility. Simulations show that the algorithm maintains a delivery ratio similar to the previously suggested protocols, but requires significantly lower control packet overhead. The algorithm has several additional desirable properties, like loop reduction and localized path repair.