Virtual base stations for wireless mobile ad hoc communications:: an infrastructure for the infrastructure-less

In this paper, we propose a new protocol for wireless mobile ad hoc networks, which establishes a dynamic wireless mobile infrastructure. The proposed protocol, namely, the virtual base stations (VBS) protocol, mimics and maintains the operation of the conventional fixed infrastructure in cellular networks. In the VBS protocol, a mobile node is elected from a set of nominees to act as a temporary base station within its zone. We provide proofs for the correctness of the VBS protocol, and show lower and upper bounds for its global convergence time. Likewise, we study the characteristics and performance of VBS by means of simulation. It is shown that VBS scales well to large networks of mobile stations, and that it outperforms other infrastructure-formation protocols in terms of stability. The VBS protocol would facilitate the development of a comprehensive and promising framework for quality of service (QoS) management in wireless mobile ad hoc networks once the proper integration of the MAC protocol with the routing and call admission control mechanisms is established. The VBS architecture lays the groundwork for assigning bandwidth, and/or implementing priorities, and hence for QoS-based routing by conveying the quality of a path prior to call setup. Copyright (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.