Dynamic RPL for multi-hop routing in IoT applications

The Routing Protocol for Low Power and Lossy Networks (RPL) has become the standard routing protocol for the Internet of Things (IoT). This paper investigates the use of RPL in dynamic networks and presents an enhanced RPL for different applications with dynamic mobility and diverse network requirements. This implementation of RPL is designed with a new dynamic Objective-Function (D-OF) to improve the Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR), end-to-end delay and energy consumption while maintaining low packet overhead and loop-avoidance. We propose a controlled reverse-trickle timer based on received signal strength identification (RSSI) readings to maintain high responsiveness with minimum overhead and consult the objective function when a movement or an inconsistency is detected to help nodes make an informed decision. Simulations are done using Cooja with random waypoint mobility scenario for healthcare applications considering multi-hop routing. The results show that the proposed dynamic RPL (D-RPL) adapts to the nodes mobility and has a higher PDR, slightly lower end-to-end delay and reasonable energy consumption compared to related existing protocols.