Systematic Literature Review of VANET Simulators: Comparative Analysis, Technological Advancements, and Research Challenges

Vehicular Ad-hoc Networks (VANETs) are integral to the future of smart vehicles and transportation, facilitating real-time information sharing and communication among vehicles to enhance safety, improve traffic flow, and reduce accidents. With the rise of self-driving vehicles and emerging technologies such as 5G and edge computing, new challenges arise for VANET simulators. These simulators must now accommodate dynamic environments, necessitating features such as high scalability, real-time large-scale experiment support, and node mobility. Furthermore, they should support battery management, recharging during movement, and integrate renewable energy sources. This survey evaluates current VANET simulators against these criteria, comparing their features, discussing advancements in VANET technology, and identifying ongoing research challenges. Our findings reveal that no existing VANET simulator fully supports the integration of renewable energy sources or the real-time recharging of vehicle batteries. Additionally, there is a significant gap in simulating the effects of encryption without implementing specific encryption algorithms.