Abstract

Natural disasters often disrupt communiacation networks, which is problematic for responders as they are unable to communicate with one another, delaying the initiation of critical impact mitigation for hours or, in some cases, days. Resilient mobility protocols provide ad hoc, delay-tolerant links as the immediate need for reliable communication is most critical. This paper addresses the design, implementation, and evaluation of rapid recovery-dedicated mobility protocols. Our solution incorporates drones and taxis, alongside police smartphones, to construct a self-repairing mesh network deployed with the mobility of a grounded cell. Real-time adaptive routing and predictive mobility over a rapid time horizon, coupled with aggression in queueing theory from network communications, ensure message packet delivery at all times, despite the presence of urban canyons and impcted districts. We benchmarked delivery success rates, the network's mobility impact as a function of energy consumption, and a variety of synthetic floods, fires, and quakes across the entire spectrum of dynamism. The mobility-aware configuration sustained delivery in all cases, presenting a stark contrast to the performance of a static network. The integration of mobility and resilience features from our tool provides advanced preparation for unplanned emergencies. Continuous communication across devices improves specialists' situational awareness, enabling the efficient execution of rescue missions in disaster aftermath scenarios.