Introducing the Emergency Propagated Reference Network (EPRN): A practical and efficient ad hoc network for emergency response

Many civilian, law enforcement or military emergency services are beginning to understand the need for rapidly deployable and dependable mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) for situations where GPS, satellite, cellular and private mobile radio (PMR) communication is not feasible. These networks can be used for a variety of tasks, including tracking personnel, communication and sensor relay. Although these setups may be temporary, it is imperative that the network can automatically heal itself and can route data via the most battery-efficient path for both user safety and operational longevity. In this article we propose a typical ad hoc Emergency Propagated Reference Network (EPRN) for use in an emergency scenario and present efficient techniques for routing data within the constraints of this specialized system