Short for Ad Hoc On-Demand Distance Vector, a routing protocol for ad hoc mobile networks with large numbers of mobile nodes. The protocol's algorithm creates routes between nodes only when the routes are requested by the source nodes, giving the network the flexibility to allow nodes to enter and leave the network at will. Routes remain active only as long as data packets are traveling along the paths from the source to the destination. When the source stops sending packets, the path will time out and close.
