A new routing protocol for energy efficient mobile applications for ad hoc networks.

A Mobile Ad hoc Network (MANET) is an infrastructure-less collection of nodes that are powered by portable batteries. Consumption of energy is the major constraint in a wireless network. This paper presents a new algorithm called Energy-Aware Span Routing Protocol (EASRP) that uses energy-saving approaches such as Span and the Adaptive Fidelity Energy Conservation Algorithm (AFECA). Energy consumption is further optimized by using a hardware circuit called the Remote Activated Switch (RAS) to wake up sleeping nodes. These energy-saving approaches are well-established in reactive protocols. However, there are certain issues to be addressed when using EASRP in a hybrid protocol, especially a proactive protocol. Simulation results for the EASRP protocol show an increase in energy efficiency of 12.2% and 17.45% compared with EAZRP and ZRP, respectively. The EASRP protocol also proves to be effective in by producing a better packet delivery ratio for low- and high-density networks as measured by the NS-2 simulation tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]