Proximity-Based Alert Forwarding Under Varying Mobility Levels in Adhoc Networks

Mobile ad-hoc networking is considered as one of the key technologies to support communication when different emergencies or disasters strike. Unfortunately, the majority of existing ad-hoc networking solutions are based on proprietary hardware and software which severely limits their use by only those competent authorities that are well trained and properly equipped. As a consequence, patients/victims and bystanders are deprived from access to this communication means. This work details a novel ad-hoc networking solution that is purposefully designed to operate on consumer electronics such as smartphones, tablets and laptops that support the WiFi-Direct standard. The networking solution proposed is shown to be both highly scalable, robust and energy efficient due to the distributed and purely local operation of all its functionalities. The proposed solution has been implemented and tested on Android devices with several multimedia services provided in the form of a mobile app. Experimental results demonstrate the performance of the proposed solution under varying degrees of mobility associated with alternative emergency situations.