Peer-Tree: a peer-to-peer message forwarding structure for relaying messages in mobile applications

In this paper, we present a DHT-like peer-to-peer message forwarding structure used for relaying messages in applications consisting mobile entities. To facilitate relaying messages, each mobile entity sets up multiple beacons at other entities. A beacon is an ordered list of mobile entities along a path going from the entity which holds the beacon to the entity which sets up the beacon. Two functionalities are used in relaying data messages to their destinations: the beacon-seeking mechanism and the beacon-routing mechanism. Before a data message obtains a beacon, it is forwarded under the beacon-seeking mechanism which helps a data message to obtain a beacon leading to the destination of the data message. After a data message obtains a beacon, it is forwarded under the beacon-routing mechanism to forward a data message to its destination along the path prescribed in the beacon. The efficiency of this peer-to-peer message forwarding structure is evaluated by the efficiency of routing data messages when it is applied in mobile wireless networks as an embedded forwarding structure. From the evaluation, this peer-to-peer message forwarding structure exhibits high rates of successful data message delivery, low consumption on network bandwidth, and robustness to unstable conditions.