An RSSI-Based Cross Layer Protocol for Directional Ad Hoc Networks and Its Implementation

Abstract

In this paper, we propose and implement a cross layer protocol for ad hoc networks using directional antennas. In the proposed protocol called RSSI-based MAC and routing protocol using directional antennas (RMRP), RSSI is used for computing the direction of the receiver and also used for controlling backoff time. Moreover, the backoff time is weighted according to number of hops from a source node. In addition, simple routing functions are introduced in the proposed RMRP. We implement the proposed RMRP on a testbed with the electronically steerable passive array radiator (ESPAR) antenna and IEEE 802.15.4. From some experimental results, we confirm some throughput improvement and show the effectiveness of the proposed RMRP. Especially, the proposed RMRP can achieve about 2.1 times higher throughput than a conventional random backoff protocol in a multi-hop communication scenario.