Self-Organization Based Clustering in MANETs Using Zone Based Group Mobility

The dynamic network topology and mobile nature of nodes can cause challenges regarding connectivity and routing. Clustering in mobile ad-hoc networks (MANETs) is one of the effective ways to organize a network according to the network topological changes. In this paper, we propose a self-organization-based clustering scheme in MANET using zone-based group mobility to improve scalability and stability of overall network. This proposed algorithm utilizes the bio-inspired behavioral study of birds flocking for the formation and maintenance of clusters in MANETs. A dynamic mechanism for cluster size management is taken into account to reduce network congestion and improve the performance of the MANETs in group mobility. For proper use of resources and to reduce extra energy consumption, an algorithm is also proposed to handle the isolated nodes. Simulation result shows that proposed algorithm reduces the energy consumption and improves the network lifetime along with more robustness.