Realistic simulations of VANETs

Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) wireless networks consisting of moving vehicles vanet VANETs are a key technology in a concept of Connected Vehicles.

Real-world experiments of large-scale VANETs are impossible, thus computer simulations are necessary. Simulation of VANETs is complex, because the underlying network topology reproduces a specific mobility of vehicles, that impacts the connectivity among nodes. Moreover, networks are highly dynamic, time-variant and often of large scale.

In order to simulate VANETs, a network simulator and a microscopic traffic simulator can be used:

• Network simulator is responsible for reproducing the wireless ad hoc network with realistic communication standard (IEEE 802.11p).
• Microscopic traffic simulator that reproduces mobility of individual vehicles considering the surrounding environment and traffic restrictions.

The two simulators should interact with each other. There are two ways of connecting the simulators:

• Offline – One-way interaction in which positions of vehicles at every simulation step in the traffic simulator determine positions of nodes in the network simulator, thus making internet nodes moving as vehicles.
  

• Online – Two-way interaction in which data available from internet packets in the internet network impacts movement of vehicles, e.g. vehicles can decide to decelerate or change their route based on the received data.
  

Check the open source simulation platform for VANETs on OVNIS github project.