E-CHANET: Routing, forwarding and transport in Information-Centric multihop wireless networks

Information-Centric Networking (ICN) is a promising architecture for the future Internet that focuses on content rather than IP addresses. By leveraging named-data instead of named-hosts, ICN does not need the set up and maintenance of stable paths between end-nodes. This makes ICN particularly convenient in networks characterized by intermittent connectivity and hostile propagation conditions, such as wireless multihop networks like ad hoc and mesh networks. In this paper, we present an information-centric architecture for IEEE 802.11 wireless ad hoc networks, named E-CHANET, which performs routing, forwarding and reliable transport functions, specifically tailored to cope with the limitations and requirements of wireless distributed environments. E-CHANET performance is evaluated through simulations and a comparison with the legacy TCP/IP architecture and the basic CCN model is provided. Achieved results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed solution in mobile wireless environments. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.