RAILoB - a Routing Algorithm for Inter-cluster Load Balancing in Wireless Mesh Networks

Wireless Mesh Networks (WMNs) provide ubiquitous Internet access for mobile users by integrating wired and wireless networks and are a valuable component of new generation communication systems. As gateways towards wired networks are potential bottlenecks, load balancing between multiple gateways plays a central role in the performance of the WMNs. This is especially important for demanding interactive applications such as Voice over IP in the multi-hop WMNs environment. In this paper a Routing Algorithm for Inter-cluster Load Balancing (RAILoB) in WMNs is set out to improve traffic performance. A simulation study has been carried out to assess the performance of RAILoB with a different number of gateways. The results showed that when RAILoB is used as a load balancing mechanism, the traffic performance in multiple gateway WMNs is improved, while keeping the overhead within acceptable bounds.