Hybrid solutions for data dissemination in vehicular networks

For information dissemination in highly dynamic vehicular networks, two technological approaches can be considered: Cellular communication standards are continually evolving to incorporate the requirements of vehicular applications. An alternative is ad-hoc communication which is restricted to direct, short range communication between vehicles/road-side units. Currently, no single technology can fulfill all communication requirements that also vary significantly for different application classes. To bridge the gap between requirements and available technologies, hybrid schemes can be applied. Following an overview of existing proposals, this article introduces a novel hybrid networking concept. It observes the current context of the vehicle and, in contrast to other hybrid schemes, selects the optimal communication technology on a per-packet basis. Furthermore, a reputation system estimating trust scores for the hybrid system is outlined.