Adaptive Beaconing System based on Fuzzy Logic Approach for Vehicular Network

It is common for vehicles in a vehicular ad hoc network (VANET) to exchange information by broadcasting beacon messages periodically. This information is required not only for routing protocols when making routing decisions, but also for safety applications. Choosing a suitable interval for broadcasting beacon messages has been considered a communication challenge since there will be a trade-off between information accuracy and channel usage. Therefore, adaptive beaconing approach is needed so that vehicles can regulate their beacon rate based on traffic condition. In this paper, we propose a fuzzy logic based beaconing system where beacon intervals are adjusted based on packet carried time, number of single-hop neighbors, and vehicles speed. Through comparison with fixed interval rate, we are able to show that the fuzzy logic based beaconing system is not only able to reduce routing overhead and packet collision, but also decrease average end-to-end delay and increase delivery rate as well.