An intelligent doorbell system and communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of intelligent doorbell system and communication method based on roaming wireless Mesh network, it is related to the field of smart home.The system includes: doorbell camera node and at least one indoor screen node;The doorbell camera node and the at least one indoor screen node are based on roaming wireless Mesh network protocol and form a decentralized mesh network;The doorbell camera node is used to generate a call request when detecting a trigger event, and send the call request to all indoor screen nodes through the mesh network;The indoor screen node is used to respond to the call request, establish the two-way audio and video data transmission link between the indoor screen node and doorbell camera node.The present application solves the technical problems of limited coverage, limited installation location and unstable communication in complex environment caused by the dependence of intelligent doorbell on single communication path in the prior art.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of smart home technology, and in particular to a smart doorbell system and communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network. Background Technology

[0002] With the rapid development of IoT technology, smart home devices have gradually integrated into people's daily lives. As the first line of defense for home security, smart doorbells combine the traditional doorbell calling function with the remote monitoring function of network cameras, allowing users to remotely view the situation outside the door and make real-time calls with visitors via smartphones or indoor screens, greatly improving home security and convenience.

[0003] However, existing smart doorbell systems have significant limitations in wireless communication methods. Currently, the mainstream wireless communication solutions fall into two main categories: The first is the ordinary Wi-Fi doorbell solution, where the doorbell acts as a Wi-Fi station, directly connecting to the home wireless router and utilizing the existing home Wi-Fi network for data transmission. The drawback of this type is that the doorbell is usually installed on the outside of the security door, often separated from the indoor router by obstacles such as brick walls, concrete walls, or the entrance door itself. Wi-Fi signals in the 2.4GHz / 5GHz band suffer significant penetration loss. Industry tests and user feedback indicate that even when the router and doorbell are not far apart, the signal strength behind a wall often falls below 30%, and in severe cases, it may even be completely unusable. Low signal strength directly leads to problems such as video stuttering, slow real-time preview loading, and frequent offline reconnections, severely impacting the user experience. The second type is the Zigbee / Bluetooth Mesh doorbell solution, where the doorbell acts as a Zigbee or Bluetooth Mesh node, communicating with other devices in the home or the cloud through a dedicated gateway. However, the drawbacks of Option 2 are that it requires an additional dedicated gateway, increasing system cost and user deployment complexity; the Zigbee physical layer transmission rate is only up to 250Kbps, with actual usable rates typically below 100Kbps, which is completely insufficient to meet the transmission requirements of high-definition video streams from doorbells (which usually require 2-10Mbps); and the broadcast + flooding mechanism used in solutions such as Bluetooth Mesh is prone to broadcast storms or communication conflicts when the number of nodes increases, leading to a surge in unpredictable network latency. For real-time services with large data volumes like doorbell video streams, this can easily cause network congestion and latency jitter. Furthermore, existing doorbell systems often use a one-to-many or point-to-point star topology, with a fixed communication path. The reliability of the entire system depends entirely on the single path between the doorbell and the gateway / router. Once this path deteriorates due to distance, wall obstructions, or environmental interference, the entire doorbell system will fail.

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to provide a smart doorbell system to solve the technical problems of limited coverage, restricted installation locations, and unstable communication in complex environments caused by the reliance on a single communication path in existing smart doorbells. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This invention provides a smart doorbell system and communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network, which solves the technical problems of limited coverage, restricted installation locations, and unstable communication in complex environments caused by existing smart doorbells relying on a single communication path. The technical solution is as follows:

[0006] In a first aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network, comprising: a doorbell camera node and at least one indoor screen node;

[0007] The doorbell camera node and the at least one indoor screen node form a decentralized mesh network based on the roaming wireless mesh network protocol;

[0008] The doorbell camera node is used to generate a call request when a trigger event is detected, and send the call request to all indoor screen nodes through the mesh network;

[0009] The indoor screen node is used to respond to the call request and establish a two-way audio and video data transmission link between the indoor screen node and the doorbell camera node.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present invention, the doorbell camera node includes a multicast call unit, a first link quality monitoring unit, a first dynamic path switching unit, and a first unicast communication unit;

[0011] The multicast call unit is used to send the call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner when the triggering event is detected.

[0012] The first link quality monitoring unit is used to monitor the quality indicators of the first communication link from the doorbell camera node to the indoor screen node in real time during the communication process with the currently communicating indoor screen node.

[0013] The first dynamic path switching unit is used to select a first target alternative path based on path cost and switch the data stream to the first target alternative path when the first link quality monitoring unit determines that the communication quality index of the current first link is lower than a preset threshold.

[0014] The first unicast communication unit is used to establish a one-way unicast communication link between the doorbell camera node and the indoor screen node after any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, and to transmit audio and video data.

[0015] In some embodiments of the present invention, the quality indicators of the communication link include signal strength, signal quality, packet loss rate, latency, and system load information; the first link quality monitoring unit is used to determine that the current link quality has deteriorated when the link quality indicators are lower than a preset threshold.

[0016] In some embodiments of the present invention, the first dynamic path switching unit is used for:

[0017] Scan the surrounding available indoor screen nodes and obtain the link quality parameters of each available indoor screen node;

[0018] The path cost of each available indoor screen node is determined based on the link quality parameters, and the candidate path with the lowest path cost is selected as the first target alternative path; the data stream is then switched to the first target alternative path.

[0019] In some embodiments of the present invention, the indoor screen node includes a multicast response unit, a second link quality monitoring unit, a second dynamic path switching unit, and a second unicast communication unit;

[0020] The multicast response unit is used to automatically trigger a response prompt when it receives a call request sent by the multicast call unit;

[0021] The second link quality monitoring unit is used to monitor the quality indicators of the second communication link from the indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node in real time during the communication process with the doorbell camera node.

[0022] The second dynamic path switching unit is used to select a second target alternative path based on path cost and switch the data stream to the second target alternative path when the second link quality monitoring unit determines that the communication quality index of the current second link is lower than a preset threshold.

[0023] The second unicast communication unit is used to establish a one-way unicast communication link between the indoor screen node and the doorbell camera node after any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, and to transmit audio and video data.

[0024] In some embodiments of the present invention, the indoor screen node is also used as a relay node for forwarding data between other nodes.

[0025] In some embodiments of the present invention, the number of doorbell camera nodes is one or more, the number of indoor screen nodes is multiple, and the multiple doorbell camera nodes and the multiple indoor screen nodes together form the mesh network.

[0026] After one of the doorbell camera nodes is powered on, it automatically starts the roaming wireless mesh protocol stack and scans for existing roaming wireless mesh networks in the vicinity.

[0027] If a networked node is detected, then join the network where that networked node is located;

[0028] If no networked nodes are detected, the doorbell camera node will establish a new mesh network as the master node, and other nodes will join to complete the network formation.

[0029] In some embodiments of the present invention, roaming nodes are also included;

[0030] The roaming node is a movable handheld screen device. When moving to different locations, the roaming node is used to automatically switch from the currently connected doorbell camera node and / or at least one indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node and / or at least one indoor screen node with the best signal through the roaming function of the roaming wireless mesh network.

[0031] Secondly, the present invention also provides a smart doorbell communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network, applied to a smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network as described in any of the above claims, comprising:

[0032] Based on the roaming wireless Mesh protocol, a decentralized mesh network is formed by connecting doorbell camera nodes and at least one indoor screen node;

[0033] When the doorbell camera node detects a trigger event, it sends a call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner.

[0034] When any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, a two-way audio and video data transmission link is established.

[0035] In some embodiments of the present invention, it further includes:

[0036] During the communication process of the bidirectional audio and video data transmission link, the quality of the communication link is monitored in real time;

[0037] When the link quality is lower than a preset threshold, the optimal alternative path is selected based on the path cost, and the data flow is switched from the current path to the optimal alternative path.

[0038] The beneficial effects of the technical solutions provided by some embodiments of the present invention include at least the following: Based on the roaming wireless mesh protocol, a decentralized mesh network is formed by connecting the doorbell camera node and at least one indoor screen node, fundamentally avoiding the problem of the entire doorbell system being paralyzed due to the failure of a single gateway; when the doorbell camera node detects a trigger event, it sends a call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner; by simultaneously sending the call request to all networked indoor screen nodes in a multicast manner, the screens in each room ring synchronously and display the outside scene, so that the user can receive visitor notifications immediately regardless of whether they are in the living room, bedroom, or study, solving the pain point of easily missing calls when the user is not near the screen in the traditional single-point calling method. When any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's call-connection operation, a two-way audio and video data transmission link is established. The invention deeply integrates the multicast / unicast hybrid communication mechanism of the roaming wireless mesh network with the smart doorbell scenario, effectively solving the technical problems of insufficient signal penetration and poor communication reliability of traditional doorbells in complex spatial environments such as large apartments, duplexes, and villas. Attached Figure Description

[0039] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0040] Figure 1 This is a system architecture diagram of an embodiment of the smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network provided by the present invention;

[0041] Figure 2 for Figure 1 In the middle, a schematic diagram of a two-way unicast scenario;

[0042] Figure 3 for Figure 1 The diagram below illustrates a wireless multicast scenario.

[0043] Figure 4 for Figure 1 In the middle, a diagram illustrating data transmission after dynamic path;

[0044] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the smart doorbell communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network provided by the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0045] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the embodiments of this application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0046] Please see Figure 1 This application provides a smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network. For example... Figure 1 As shown, it includes: a doorbell camera node 11 and at least one indoor screen node 12;

[0047] The doorbell camera node 11 and the at least one indoor screen node 12 form a decentralized mesh network based on the roaming wireless mesh network protocol;

[0048] The doorbell camera node 11 is used to generate a call request when a trigger event is detected, and send the call request to all indoor screen nodes through the mesh network;

[0049] The indoor screen node 12 is used to respond to the call request and establish a two-way audio and video data transmission link between the indoor screen node and the doorbell camera node.

[0050] It should be noted that the doorbell camera node is installed on the outdoor door side, integrating a camera module and a doorbell button. It has a built-in first communication module supporting the roaming wireless mesh protocol. In this embodiment, the communication module preferably uses the TXW8301 series chip from Zhuhai Taixin Semiconductor Co., Ltd. The indoor screen nodes are installed in each room, equipped with an LCD display, a speaker, and a second communication module supporting the roaming wireless mesh protocol. The doorbell camera node and the indoor screen nodes form a decentralized mesh network based on the roaming wireless mesh network protocol. All intelligent nodes (cameras, screens, etc.) in the system are equal in status and cooperate to complete multi-hop data transmission.

[0051] It should be noted that the triggering events include, but are not limited to: the user pressing the doorbell button, and the doorbell camera node detecting someone approaching through human body detection (such as infrared sensing) or motion detection.

[0052] It is understood that there are one or more doorbell camera nodes and multiple indoor screen nodes, with multiple doorbell camera nodes and multiple indoor screen nodes together forming the mesh network.

[0053] Furthermore, after the doorbell system is installed, pairing and networking are performed, synchronizing relevant parameter information such as SSID, key, encrypt, rmesh_devmax, meshid, and forward to complete the establishment of the network infrastructure. Specifically, after the doorbell camera node is powered on, its built-in communication chip automatically starts the roaming wireless mesh protocol stack and scans for existing roaming wireless mesh networks in the vicinity. If there are already networked nodes nearby, such as indoor screen node 12, the doorbell camera node automatically completes authentication and joins the network; if there are no other nodes, the doorbell camera node can act as the master node to establish a new mesh network, which becomes a complete network after other nodes join. After the initial networking is completed, it will automatically form a network every time it is used, and users do not need to operate frequently.

[0054] In some embodiments of the present invention, the doorbell camera node includes a multicast call unit 111, a first link quality monitoring unit 112, a first dynamic path switching unit 113, and a first unicast communication unit 114;

[0055] The multicast call unit is used to send the call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner when the triggering event is detected.

[0056] It should be noted that when the doorbell camera node detects someone approaching or a user presses the doorbell button, the doorbell camera node sends multicast data (call request) to all screen nodes that are already networked indoors through the Roaming Mesh network.

[0057] The first link quality monitoring unit 112 is used to monitor the quality indicators of the first communication link from the doorbell camera node to the indoor screen node in real time during the communication process with the currently communicating indoor screen node.

[0058] It should be noted that the core feature of the Roaming Mesh network lies in dynamic path selection. When a node (screen) goes offline or the signal deteriorates, the system automatically switches to a backup path using the self-healing characteristics of the mesh network. This is primarily achieved through Linkcost determination. The link quality monitoring unit 112 is used to monitor the quality indicators of the first communication link from the doorbell camera node to the indoor screen node in real time during communication with the currently communicating indoor screen node. When the link quality indicator falls below a preset threshold, the link quality is deemed to have deteriorated.

[0059] The first dynamic path switching unit 113 is used to select a first target alternative path based on path cost and switch the data stream to the first target alternative path when the first link quality monitoring unit determines that the communication quality index of the current first link is lower than a preset threshold.

[0060] It's important to note that link cost is a comprehensive metric used to quantitatively evaluate the quality of the communication path between any two nodes in a wireless mesh network. It represents the overall quality of the communication path from the current node to a destination node in its routing table. A lower link cost indicates better overall communication quality and suitability for data forwarding. Link cost can be the cost of a single-hop link, i.e., the communication quality between two directly communicating adjacent nodes, also known as the direct link cost. It can also be the total cost of a multi-hop path, calculated from the current node, through the routing information in the beacon of adjacent nodes, and combined with the direct link cost from the current node to that adjacent node, to reach other nodes via that adjacent node. A path switching event is triggered when adjacent node B broadcasts routing table information in its beacon. The current node A parses the adjacent node's beacon, learns the identifier of adjacent node B, then measures the quality of the direct communication link with node B and calculates the single-hop link cost (link cost). A-B The current node A continues to parse the routing table belonging to node B carried in the beacon. For each route in the routing table of neighboring node B, it calculates the estimated path cost to the target node X via node B, and continuously optimizes the path selection in its routing table based on the periodic beacons of neighboring nodes, thereby adapting in real time to the network topology changes caused by node movement.

[0061] Specifically, in the doorbell system, a communication quality monitoring mechanism between nodes is used. Based on parameters such as RSSI signal strength, signal quality, packet loss rate, latency, and system load information, the doorbell node continuously monitors the communication link quality with the currently connected screen node. When the quality falls below a preset threshold, the doorbell node scans for other available nodes in the vicinity (such as another screen), selects the optimal alternative path based on the Linkcost value, and switches the data stream to the new path through a protocol handshake.

[0062] The first unicast communication unit 114 is used to establish a one-way unicast communication link from the doorbell camera node to the indoor screen node after any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, and to transmit audio and video data.

[0063] When a user connects to a screen in a room (e.g., by clicking to answer on LCD2), the system automatically enters unicast communication mode. The doorbell camera node and the screen node establish a one-way unicast link, switching the multicast call to point-to-point direct transmission. Both parties exchange audio and video data via unicast addresses, enabling real-time remote intercom. Other indoor screen nodes that are not connected maintain their connection to the mesh network but do not transmit video streams. This is in a Roaming Mesh network.

[0064] It should be noted that the flexible switching between multicast and unicast has the following advantages: during the call phase, multicast mode is used, all screens respond simultaneously, and no visitors are missed; during the call phase, unicast mode is switched to avoid network congestion caused by the simultaneous transmission of multiple video streams, thus ensuring call quality.

[0065] In some embodiments of the present invention, the indoor screen node includes a multicast response unit 121, a second link quality monitoring unit 122, a second dynamic path switching unit 123, and a second unicast communication unit 124.

[0066] The multicast response unit is used to automatically trigger a response prompt when it receives a call request sent by the multicast call unit;

[0067] The second unicast communication unit is used to establish a one-way unicast communication link between the indoor screen node and the doorbell camera node after any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, and to transmit audio and video data.

[0068] In this embodiment, when a user connects to a screen in a room (e.g., by clicking to answer on LCD2), the system automatically enters unicast communication mode, such as... Figure 2 As shown, the screen node establishes a bidirectional unicast link with the doorbell camera node, switching from multicast reception to point-to-point direct connection. Both parties exchange audio and video data via unicast addresses, enabling real-time remote intercom. Other indoor screen nodes that are not connected maintain their connection to the mesh network but do not transmit video streams. In a Roaming Mesh network, as... Figure 3 As shown, the multicast implementation works as follows: the doorbell camera node publishes data to a preset multicast address (GroupAddress). All indoor screen nodes subscribed to this multicast address listen to the address and automatically trigger a response upon receiving a message. After receiving the multicast data, each indoor screen node simultaneously sounds a notification tone and lights up its screen to display the view outside the door. This one-to-many parallel notification method ensures that users can receive visitor calls promptly from any room.

[0069] It should be noted that the flexible switching between multicast and unicast has the following advantages: multicast mode is used during the call phase, all screens respond simultaneously, and the answering location can be flexibly selected; unicast mode is switched during the call phase to avoid network congestion caused by the simultaneous transmission of multiple video streams and to ensure call quality.

[0070] In existing technologies, during bidirectional communication between a doorbell camera node and an indoor screen node, both the first communication link from the doorbell camera node to the indoor screen node and the second communication link from the indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node are fixed links. When the communication quality of these fixed links is unstable, the communication effect between the doorbell node and the indoor screen node will inevitably be significantly reduced. Therefore, this application embodiment not only sets up a first link quality monitoring unit and a first dynamic path switching unit on the doorbell camera node side to monitor link quality and ensure high-quality and stable transmission of the first communication link, but also sets up a second link quality monitoring unit and a second dynamic path switching unit on the indoor screen node side. Specifically:

[0071] The second link quality monitoring unit is used to monitor the quality indicators of the second communication link from the indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node in real time during the communication process with the doorbell camera node.

[0072] The second dynamic path switching unit is used to select a second target alternative path based on path cost and switch the data stream to the second target alternative path when the second link quality monitoring unit determines that the communication quality index of the current second link is lower than a preset threshold.

[0073] It should be noted that the first and second communication links can be the same or different. Each path relies on its own link quality monitoring unit for judgment. The path from A to B might involve direct data transmission, while the path from B to A might involve direct transmission or forwarding, determined by the Linkcost value. By setting up a second link quality monitoring unit and a second dynamic path switching unit to monitor and switch the quality indicators and communication links of the second communication link from the indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node, the transmission stability and efficiency from the indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node are greatly improved.

[0074] It is understandable that the first link quality monitoring unit and the second link quality monitoring unit, the first dynamic path switching unit and the second dynamic path switching unit, and the first unicast communication unit and the second unicast communication unit can be the same hardware devices, respectively arranged on the doorbell side and the indoor screen node side, or they can be different hardware devices, as long as they achieve the corresponding functions.

[0075] By setting up a first unicast communication unit and a second unicast communication unit, network congestion caused by the simultaneous transmission of multiple video streams can be avoided, thus ensuring call quality.

[0076] In some embodiments of the present invention, the indoor screen node is also used as a relay node for forwarding data between other nodes.

[0077] It should be noted that the indoor screen nodes also act as relay nodes, allowing the doorbell signal to be transmitted to distant rooms via multiple screen nodes in a relay fashion. Even if the doorbell is installed far from the router (such as at the front door of a villa or the entrance floor of a duplex), signal coverage can be ensured through relay relay by screen nodes on each floor, completely breaking the bottleneck of doorbell installation location being limited by the router's coverage range.

[0078] In some embodiments of the present invention, roaming nodes are also included;

[0079] The roaming node is a movable handheld screen device. When moving to different locations, the roaming node is used to automatically switch from the currently connected doorbell camera node and / or at least one indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node and / or at least one indoor screen node with the best signal through the roaming function of the roaming wireless mesh network.

[0080] In this embodiment, the roaming node is a portable handheld screen device, such as an indoor handheld terminal with a screen. The roaming node is equipped with a communication module that supports the roaming wireless mesh protocol. When a user moves between different rooms carrying the roaming node, for example, from the living room to the bedroom, the roaming node utilizes the roaming mesh's roaming function to automatically monitor the signal strength of surrounding nodes. When it detects that the signal of the currently connected node is below a threshold while another node has a better signal, the roaming node automatically switches from the currently connected node to the available node with the best signal. The entire switching process is seamless, maintaining an uninterrupted network connection. This allows users to continuously view the doorbell screen or talk to visitors on their handheld screen even while moving around the house, greatly improving ease of use.

[0081] In one specific embodiment of the present invention, a doorbell camera (CAM1, CAM2) is installed at the front and back doors of the user's house, and a screen (LCD1, LCD2, LCD3) is installed in each of the three rooms inside the house. After synchronizing information through the pairing function, they form a network.

[0082] When CAM1 makes a call, it simultaneously sends multicast data to LCD1 / 2 / 3, causing all three screens to ring at the same time, as described below. Figure 3As shown. CMA2 can also initiate multicast data to all screens simultaneously. After the user answers on LCD2, CAM1 and LCD2 switch to bidirectional unicast communication, while other devices maintain their connections. The camera transmits audio and video to the screen nodes, and the screen transmits audio to the camera, as described below. Figure 2 As shown, LCD2 is moved to a room farther from CAM1. Assuming the signal needs to pass through two floors, the link cost from CAM1 to LCD2 before the move was Linkcost_1 = 60. After the move, the single-hop link cost is Linkcost_2 = 500, and the multi-hop link cost is Linkcost_3 = 300. It can be seen that Linkcost_2 > Linkcost_3, so the data will choose the multi-hop path, i.e., forwarded through another device, instead of the more expensive single-hop direct transmission.

[0083] The original data flow CAM1→LCD2 will then be forwarded through the device with the lower link cost, LCD1 (assuming it's LCD1, but it could be another device), becoming CAM1→LCD1 (first hop)→LCD2 (final destination). Figure 4 As shown. This approach can utilize relay links between other screens indoors to extend signal coverage. Similarly, assuming LCD3 is far from CAM1 and requires a high link cost, it can also be relayed through other LCDs.

[0084] Based on the above-described smart doorbell system using a roaming wireless mesh network, this invention also provides a smart doorbell communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network. Please refer to [link to relevant documentation]. Figure 5 ,include:

[0085] S501, based on the roaming wireless Mesh protocol, connects the doorbell camera node and at least one indoor screen node to form a decentralized mesh network;

[0086] S502. When the doorbell camera node detects a trigger event, it sends a call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner.

[0087] S503. When any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, a two-way audio and video data transmission link is established.

[0088] In this embodiment, based on the roaming wireless mesh protocol, a decentralized mesh network is formed by connecting the doorbell camera node and at least one indoor screen node, fundamentally avoiding the problem of the entire doorbell system being paralyzed due to the failure of a single gateway. When the doorbell camera node detects a trigger event, it sends a call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner. Simultaneously sending call requests to all networked indoor screen nodes via multicast causes the screens in each room to ring synchronously and display the outside view. Users can receive visitor notifications immediately regardless of whether they are in the living room, bedroom, or study, solving the pain point of missed calls when users are not near the doorbell in traditional single-point calling methods. When any indoor screen node responds to the user's call, a two-way audio and video data transmission link is established. Thus, this invention deeply integrates the multicast / unicast hybrid communication mechanism of the roaming wireless mesh network with the smart doorbell scenario, effectively solving the technical problems of insufficient signal penetration and poor communication reliability of traditional doorbells in complex spatial environments such as large apartments, duplexes, and villas.

[0089] In some embodiments of the present invention, the method further includes: real-time monitoring of the communication link quality during the communication process of the bidirectional audio and video data transmission link;

[0090] When the link quality is lower than a preset threshold, the optimal alternative path is selected based on the path cost, and the data flow is switched from the current path to the optimal alternative path.

[0091] The above description discloses only preferred embodiments of the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention. Therefore, equivalent variations made in accordance with the claims of the present invention are still within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network, characterized in that, include: A doorbell camera node and at least one indoor screen node; The doorbell camera node and the at least one indoor screen node form a decentralized mesh network based on the roaming wireless mesh network protocol; The doorbell camera node is used to generate a call request when a trigger event is detected, and send the call request to all indoor screen nodes through the mesh network; The indoor screen node is used to respond to the call request and establish a two-way audio and video data transmission link between the indoor screen node and the doorbell camera node.

2. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 1, characterized in that, The doorbell camera node includes a multicast call unit, a first link quality monitoring unit, a first dynamic path switching unit, and a first unicast communication unit; The multicast call unit is used to send the call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner when the triggering event is detected. The first link quality monitoring unit is used to monitor the quality indicators of the first communication link from the doorbell camera node to the indoor screen node in real time during the communication process with the currently communicating indoor screen node. The first dynamic path switching unit is used to select a first target alternative path based on path cost and switch the data stream to the first target alternative path when the first link quality monitoring unit determines that the communication quality index of the current first link is lower than a preset threshold. The first unicast communication unit is used to establish a one-way unicast communication link between the doorbell camera node and the indoor screen node after any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, and to transmit audio and video data.

3. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 2, characterized in that, The quality indicators of the communication link include signal strength, signal quality, packet loss rate, latency, and system load information; the first link quality monitoring unit is used to determine that the current link quality has deteriorated when the link quality indicators are lower than a preset threshold.

4. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first dynamic path switching unit is used for: Scan the surrounding available indoor screen nodes and obtain the link quality parameters of each available indoor screen node; The path cost of each available indoor screen node is determined based on the link quality parameters, and the candidate path with the lowest path cost is selected as the first target alternative path. Then switch the data stream to the first target alternative path.

5. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 1, characterized in that, The indoor screen node includes a multicast response unit, a second link quality monitoring unit, a second dynamic path switching unit, and a second unicast communication unit. The multicast response unit is used to automatically trigger a response prompt when it receives a call request sent by the multicast call unit; The second link quality monitoring unit is used to monitor the quality indicators of the second communication link from the indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node in real time during the communication process with the doorbell camera node. The second dynamic path switching unit is used to select a second target alternative path based on path cost and switch the data stream to the second target alternative path when the second link quality monitoring unit determines that the communication quality index of the current second link is lower than a preset threshold. The second unicast communication unit is used to establish a one-way unicast communication link between the indoor screen node and the doorbell camera node after any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, and to transmit audio and video data.

6. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 1, characterized in that, The indoor screen node also serves as a relay node, used to forward data between other nodes.

7. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of doorbell camera nodes is one or more, and the number of indoor screen nodes is multiple. Multiple doorbell camera nodes and multiple indoor screen nodes together form the mesh network. After one of the doorbell camera nodes is powered on, it automatically starts the roaming wireless mesh protocol stack and scans for existing roaming wireless mesh networks in the vicinity. If a networked node is detected, then join the network where that networked node is located; If no networked nodes are detected, the doorbell camera node will establish a new mesh network as the master node, and other nodes will join to complete the network formation.

8. The smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes roaming nodes; The roaming node is a movable handheld screen device. When moving to different locations, the roaming node is used to automatically switch from the currently connected doorbell camera node and / or at least one indoor screen node to the doorbell camera node and / or at least one indoor screen node with the best signal through the roaming function of the roaming wireless mesh network.

9. A smart doorbell communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network, applied to the smart doorbell system based on a roaming wireless mesh network as described in any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, include: Based on the roaming wireless Mesh protocol, a decentralized mesh network is formed by connecting doorbell camera nodes and at least one indoor screen node; When the doorbell camera node detects a trigger event, it sends a call request to all networked indoor screen nodes via the mesh network in a multicast manner. When any of the indoor screen nodes responds to the user's connection operation, a two-way audio and video data transmission link is established.

10. The smart doorbell communication method based on a roaming wireless mesh network according to claim 9, characterized in that, Also includes: During the communication process of the bidirectional audio and video data transmission link, the quality of the communication link is monitored in real time; When the link quality is lower than a preset threshold, the optimal alternative path is selected based on the path cost, and the data flow is switched from the current path to the optimal alternative path.

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