Shortest Path Routing Protocol Based on the Vertical Angle for Underwater Acoustic Networks

Abstract

Underwater Acoustic Networks (UANs) use acoustic communication. UANs are characterized by narrow bandwidth, long delay, limited energy, high bit error rate, and dynamic network topology. Therefore, UANs call for energy-efficient and latency-minimized routing protocol. In this paper, the shortest path routing protocol based on the vertical angle (SPRVA) is proposed. In SPRVA, the forwarding node determines the best next-hop according to main priority. When the main priorities of candidate nodes are the same, the alternative priority is used. The main priority is denoted by the residual energy and angle between propagation direction and depth direction, and the alternative priority is indicated by the link quality. SPRVA selects the node along the depth direction with more residual energy and better link quality as the best next-hop. In addition, a recovery algorithm is designed to avoid nodes in void areas as forwarding nodes. Simulation results show that SPRVA improves energy efficiency and decreases end-to-end communication delay.