# Mail Man Ferry: A Novel Routing Protocol in Intermittently Connected Networks
## 1 Introduction  
Although computer networks have become easily accessible and wide-spread, mobile wireless networks still suffer from delays, interruptions, and other issues [1]. This is due to several reasons, such as the change in network topology or harsh environment, such as bad weather, and shadowing that affects the nodes' communications. In order to provide a solution for such issues, there is a need to enhance flexibility and efficiency in the communications between nodes.  
Wireless networks can be classified as fixed, ad hoc, and intermittently connected networks (ICNs). An access point is employed in the fixed network to receive and resend data between network users. This form establishes dependency on certain access point locations for wireless communication. The condition of access points existing in fixed wireless network structures has been eased and replaced by ad hoc networks. In ad hoc networks, mobile nodes exchange data without the need for fixed access points. Instead, nodes exchange data via other mobile nodes in the network until they reach their destination. Although ad hoc networks offer a solution to the fixed network structure requirement, their challenge is to keep all the mobile node locations and movements to maintain paths for future routing. This increases the overhead in the mobile nodes where an intermittently connected network has been proposed to solve the issue. The employment of ICNs omits the need for keeping records of network node locations and existing paths as a major overhead in ad hoc network.  
An Intermittently Connected Network (ICN) refers to a wireless network without a physical backbone in which end-to-end connectivity between nodes is not guaranteed. Another name for these networks is Delay Tolerant Networks (DTNs). Unlike other kinds of networks, which are commonly understood to have continuous routes between everypair of connected nodes, ICN nodes are not always connected and often only exist for a short time. Nodes in ICNs may forward a message to their destination without needing to monitor the locations of the other nodes along the path.  
Due to their ability to support mobile nodes without requiring fixed interconnections, ICNs have been the focus of extensive and ongoing study. This structure offers the adaptability required by mobile wireless networks. Applications of ICNs stimulate the growth of ICNs as a subject of study. For example, the InterPlaNetary (IPN) Internet Project and the Wizzy Digital Courier Service, connect people in remote villages and less-developed areas who do not have access to the Internet. They also connect people during mission-critical operations, such as in natural disasters and disaster areas [2].  
The remaining sections of the paper are laid out as follows: Motivation and significance of this study's contribution are discussed in Section 2. In Section 3, we describe the relevant prior work. In Section 4, the envisioned procedure is detailed. Parameters and outcomes of the simulation are discussed in Section 5. The conclusion and recommendations for further research are presented in Section 6.