1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to communication networks, with special utility for mobile wireless networks, such as a mobile ad-hoc network (MANET).
2. Description of the Related Art
Networks of general purpose computer systems and specialized devices connected by external communication links are well known and widely used in commerce. The networks often include one or more network devices that facilitate the passage of information between the computer systems and devices. A network node is a network device or computer or specialized device connected by the communication links. An end node is a network node that is configured to originate or terminate communications over the network. An intermediate network node facilitates the passage of data between end nodes.
Communications between nodes are typically effected by exchanging discrete packets of data. Information is exchanged within data packets according to one or more of many well known, new or still developing protocols. In this context, a protocol consists of a set of rules defining how the nodes interact with each other based on information sent over the communication links. According to internetwork protocols, each node is given a logical internetwork address and intermediate network nodes called routers track which internetwork address is reachable through which communication link. A well known internetwork protocol is the Internet Protocol (IP). Information used by the routers is distributed using one or more of several well known routing protocols. A well known routing protocol is Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) which exchanges full topology information about every node and communication link in an area.
To reduce the consumption of network resources and improve scalability, some routing protocols divide a large network up into smaller subnetworks. By aggregating routing information, the amount of network resources consumed to maintain routing data and make routing decisions can be reduced and network scalability can be enhanced. For example, OSPF divides a large network up into multiple areas and exchanges full topology information only within one area. At a boundary with a different area, address reachability data is aggregated and exchanged with an adjacent node in the different area.
The connected communications links and division of routers into areas is a manual process performed by human network administrators. As a result, the division is subjective based on the administrator's perceptions and is not guaranteed to be optimal in any objective sense. As networks become larger, sub-optimal divisions can lead to significant wasted resources and increased costs to service the same customer base for a given network. In some circumstances, sub-optimal divisions can lead to instability and lack of resiliency in the network. Furthermore, in mobile ad hoc networks, in which routers enter and leave wireless communications frequently, it is impossible for a human administrator to keep up with the connections, and to redistribute area boundaries and aggregation nodes.