The deployment of autonomous underwater devices has increased dramatically in the last several years, presenting a strong and growing need for a network protocol to mediate acoustic communications between devices. This network protocol must also provide an infrastructure for acoustic navigation, while ensuring that provisions for communication and navigation do not interfere with each other. To approach this difficult problem, we begin with a discussion of the limitations of traditional networking protocols when subjected to the complexities introduced by the underwater acoustic environment. We then present ICoN, a proposed network protocol, designed to integrate acoustic communication and navigation and optimized to operate in the low-bandwidth, high-loss underwater environment. A working description of ICoN and a discussion of its features are followed by analysis of the protocol through simulation, indicating its potential for improved performance over traditional networking protocols. The simulation results are reinforced through real-world experimental validation of ICoN, which, though limited, appears to confirm the effectiveness of the new protocol. We conclude with possible future extensions to ICoN, discussing various methods that might increase its potency in dealing with more demanding underwater acoustic applications.
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