METHOD FOR CONNECTING MESH NODES TO A MESH COMMUNICATION NETWORK BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Abstract

1. A method of connecting a mesh node to a mesh communications network including a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes, the mesh node being configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a default physical layer (PHY), and configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a long-range PHY, the reach of the long-range PHY being greater than the reach of the default PHY, the method comprising: determining, by the mesh node, that a long-range PHY is required to connect to the mesh communications network; broadcasting a long-range support message using the long-range PHY, thereby requesting connection to the mesh communications network; and receiving, by the mesh node, a support response to the long-range support message from a mesh node in the mesh communications network, thereby indicating support for connection of the mesh node to the communications network using the long-range PHY.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to connecting mesh nodes to a mesh communication network, and more particularly to connecting mesh nodes to a mesh communication network whenever the mesh node is outside of a particular range of the mesh communication network. [Background technology]

[0002] Mesh communication networks use multi-hop techniques to extend coverage and enable connectivity between nodes that cannot communicate directly with each other. For example, Bluetooth mesh uses managed flooding to forward messages over either connectionless advertising bearers or connection-oriented GATT bearers. Advertising bearers utilize legacy advertising transmitted over three primary advertising channels. Both bearers use a fixed wireless data rate of 1 Mbps.

[0003] Bluetooth mesh nodes periodically transmit beacons, called secure network beacons, to identify the subnet and its security status. The frequency of beacon transmissions is typically adjusted so that all nodes should receive a beacon for a given subnet every 10 seconds. For a node, the absence of a received secure network beacon is an indication that it is not within range of other nodes in the subnet and may not be able to communicate with other nodes in the network.

[0004] Bluetooth mesh also supports heartbeat messages. Heartbeat messages are sent / published by nodes to allow other nodes to determine the topology of the subnet. Failure to receive a heartbeat message from a node that is expected to publish a heartbeat message indicates that there is no path or connectivity between the node publishing the heartbeat message and the other node.

[0005] The extended advertising feature was released in version 5.0 of the Bluetooth® Core Standard specification. This allows for message sizes of up to 1650 bytes. At the same time, support for additional data rates of 125 kbps, 500 kbps, and 2 Mbps was introduced in addition to the already available 1 Mbps rate. These rates can be used for both advertising and connecting. In the future, this may be complemented by even higher data rates, such as 4 Mbps and 6 Mbps, and possibly even lower rates.

[0006] One drawback of current mesh communication networks is that mesh nodes are not always able to connect to a mesh communication network that comprises multiple interconnected mesh nodes. Summary of the Invention

[0007] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a method for connecting mesh nodes to a mesh communications network including a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes. It is a further object of the present disclosure to provide an associated method and computer program.

[0008] In a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for connecting mesh nodes to a mesh communications network comprising a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes, the mesh nodes being configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a default physical layer (PHY) and configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a long-range PHY, the long-range PHY having a reachability range greater than the reachability range of the default PHY, the method comprising: determining, by the mesh node, that the long range PHY is required to connect to the mesh communications network; broadcasting, by the mesh node, a long range support message using the long range PHY, thereby requesting connection to the mesh communications network; ● receiving, by the mesh node, a support response to the long range support message from a second mesh node in the mesh communications network, thereby indicating support for the connection of the mesh node to the communications network using the long range PHY.

[0009] The present inventors have discovered a way to increase the likelihood that a particular mesh node will be able to connect to a mesh communications network. The inventors have recognized that a mesh node may request connection to a mesh communications network using a long-range PHY, i.e., a PHY tailored to provide long-range communications. This allows for a longer distance between a transmitter and a receiver compared to conventional PHYs.

[0010] For example, when a Bluetooth® mesh communications network is expanded with support for long-range PHYs and extended advertising mesh bearers, a mechanism may be employed to appropriately determine the rate(s) to be utilized by a transmitting node in the network. This disclosure addresses, among other things, the problem of appropriately utilizing long-range, low-rate PHYs with data rates below the default Bluetooth® mesh rate of 1 Mbps. Low rates, such as 125 kbps, are useful for creating connections between mesh nodes in poor coverage situations. However, due to the low data rate and long time-on-air (spatial propagation time), low rates should only be used when actually needed.

[0011] One situation in which such a mechanism may be desirable is when installing a new mesh node outside of the mesh communications network, such as a garden light that must communicate with an indoor mesh node. If the mesh node is unable to reach the mesh node in the mesh communications network using its default PHY, i.e., the default 1 Mbps rate, it may need to use a long-range PHY, e.g., a lower rate, to create a connection to the mesh node in the mesh communications network.

[0012] Another situation is when the topology within a mesh communications network changes, for example, due to one or several mesh relay nodes ceasing operation. This type of topology change may disconnect different portions of the mesh communications network from each other, but if some nodes begin communicating using a long-range PHY, e.g., a lower rate (longer distance), it may be possible to create connections between mesh nodes in different mesh communications network portions and re-establish network connectivity.

[0013] Essentially, the present disclosure is directed to three steps. The first step is for an unconnected mesh node to determine that a long-range PHY is required to connect to the mesh communications network. The unconnected mesh node may first attempt a traditional method using a traditional or default PHY to connect to the mesh communications network. If such a traditional method is unsuccessful, the unconnected mesh node may go ahead and attempt the long-range PHY. Thus, the unconnected mesh node may broadcast a long-range support message using the long-range PHY, thereby requesting connection to the mesh communications network. In other words, the unconnected mesh node requests that its neighboring mesh nodes set up a long-range bearer. Finally, the long-range bearer is used to connect to the mesh communications network.

[0014] According to the present disclosure, a mesh communications network includes a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes, including the second mesh node identified above, whereby the second mesh node is part of the mesh communications network.

[0015] In a mesh communication network, a mesh node may periodically send out a beacon, for example, called a secure network beacon, to identify its subnet and security status. All nodes in the mesh communication network, including the identified second mesh node, may receive such a beacon. Thus, a mesh communication network may be defined by multiple interconnected nodes in the same subnet, i.e., multiple nodes that can receive each other's beacons. According to the present disclosure, the identified second mesh node belongs to the mesh communication network.

[0016] According to one embodiment, the mesh node receives a plurality of support responses to the long range support message from a plurality of mesh nodes in the mesh communications network, and the method further comprises: ● The mesh node selects one of the plurality of mesh nodes in the mesh communications network from which the mesh node was able to receive the plurality of support responses to the long-distance support message, and connects the mesh node to the mesh communications network.

[0017] Note that multiple mesh nodes in a mesh communications network may receive a particular broadcast long-range support message. In such a case, those multiple mesh nodes may also provide a support response to the requesting mesh node indicating that they support long-range. The unconnected mesh node, i.e., the requesting mesh node, may then select one of the multiple mesh nodes to use as its point of attachment to the mesh communications network.

[0018] Thus, the requesting mesh node can select one of multiple mesh nodes to use as its point of attachment to the mesh communications network. To do so, the requesting mesh node can send an acknowledgment to the selected mesh node, causing the selected mesh node to recognize that it is the mesh node selected to provide long-range support.

[0019] Once a connection between a mesh node and a mesh communication network is established, the mesh node is considered to be connected to the mesh communication network through the selected mesh node in the mesh communication network.

[0020] In one example, messages sent using the long-range PHY have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY.

[0021] The range of a message can be extended by transmitting the message at a lower rate, which may be, for example, a lower QAM constellation used, or the like.

[0022] In a further example, the determining step comprises: - determining, by the mesh node, that the mesh node is out of range of the mesh communications network by detecting a lack of receipt of a message from the mesh communications network.

[0023] A mesh node may determine the need for long-range support, for example, by monitoring received secure network beacons and mesh messages, and optionally heartbeat messages.

[0024] The absence of secure network beacons and mesh messages may indicate that the mesh node is not within range of any other mesh nodes within the subnet of the mesh communications network, and that the mesh node may require communication via a long-range bearer, i.e., using a long-range PHY.

[0025] However, receipt of secure network beacons and mesh messages may not guarantee that subnets of the mesh communications network are connected, i.e., that a route exists from a mesh node to any other mesh node within the subnet of the mesh communications network. In a setting where a mesh node expects to receive heartbeat messages or the like from a central mesh node in the mesh communications network, failure to receive such heartbeats may be interpreted by the mesh node as an indication that its extended communications support is required, i.e., that it should use its long-range support.

[0026] In another example, the mesh node is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY and to establish a long distance bearer using the long distance PHY, and the method includes: - Establishing, by said mesh node, said long range bearer to said mesh node in said mesh communications network using said long range PHY.

[0027] A bearer is used to transfer data between endpoints. In this particular case, a bearer may be set up between a mesh node requesting connection to a mesh communications network and a mesh node within the mesh communications network that supports long-range bearers. The bearer is set up using a long-range PHY.

[0028] According to a further embodiment, the mesh communications network is a Bluetooth mesh communications network and the mesh nodes are Bluetooth mesh nodes.

[0029] In yet another example, the mesh node is configured to establish a long distance bearer using the long distance PHY, the long distance bearer being one of the following: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; ● Connection-oriented GATT bearer, ● Connectionless advertising bearer between a low-power node and its associated friend mesh nodes.

[0030] The GATT bearer allows devices that do not support the advertising bearer to communicate with mesh nodes in a mesh communication network using a protocol known as the proxy protocol. A mesh node that relays mesh messages between mesh nodes that use the advertising bearer and mesh nodes that use the GATT bearer is known as a proxy node. A proxy node can support the GATT bearer and can establish connections with mesh nodes that only support the GATT bearer. After a connection is established between the proxy node and a device that holds a GATT bearer, the proxy node can advertise its mesh proxy service.

[0031] Another bearer layer in a Bluetooth mesh communications network is the advertising bearer, which in certain Bluetooth mesh networks may utilize Bluetooth GAP advertising and scanning to receive and broadcast messages from other mesh nodes.

[0032] In a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for supporting connection of mesh nodes to a mesh communications network comprising a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes, wherein mesh nodes in the mesh communications network are configured to connect to the mesh nodes using a default physical layer (PHY) and configured to connect to the mesh nodes using a long-range PHY, a reach of the long-range PHY being greater than a reach of the default PHY, the method comprising: receiving a long range support message from the mesh node by the mesh node in the mesh communications network using the long range PHY, thereby requesting connection of the mesh node to the mesh communications network; • transmitting, by the mesh node within the mesh communications network, a support response to the long range support message, thereby indicating support of the connection of the mesh node to the communications network using the long range PHY.

[0033] In a next step, the mesh node in the mesh communications network may receive an acknowledgment from the mesh node that has requested connection to the mesh communications network using a long range PHY that the requesting mesh node wishes to use that mesh node to connect to the mesh network.

[0034] If a mesh node within the mesh communications network does not receive such an acknowledgement, the requesting mesh node may assume that it will use another mesh node within the mesh communications network for long-range connectivity.

[0035] It should be noted that the advantages of the different method examples relating to the first aspect of the present disclosure are also applicable to the method relating to the second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0036] Accordingly, a second aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a mesh node in a mesh communications network receiving a long range support message, in that particular case, the mesh node in the mesh communications network does not need to actively use the long range PHY, but should be configured to listen to the long range PHY so that it can receive that particular long range support message.

[0037] In one example, messages sent using the long-range PHY have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY.

[0038] Note that this disclosure is not directed to reducing the rate of a particular message to obtain long range, which may also be obtained by providing higher transmit power or by using beamforming techniques, etc.

[0039] According to another embodiment, a mesh node in the mesh communications network is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY and to establish a long range bearer using the long range PHY, the method comprising: ● Establishing, by the mesh node in the mesh communications network, the long range bearer to the mesh node using the long range PHY.

[0040] According to a further embodiment, the mesh communications network is a Bluetooth mesh communications network and the mesh nodes are Bluetooth mesh nodes.

[0041] In yet another example, the mesh nodes in the mesh communications network are configured to establish a long-range bearer using the long-range PHY, the long-range bearer being one of the following: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; ● A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or ● Connectionless advertising bearer between a low-power node and its associated friend mesh nodes.

[0042] In a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a mesh node configured to connect to a mesh communications network including a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes using a default physical layer (PHY), and configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a long-range PHY, wherein a reach of the long-range PHY is greater than a reach of the default PHY, and wherein the mesh node: ● a process device configured to determine that the long range PHY is required to connect to the mesh communications network; and a transmitting device configured to broadcast a long range support message using the long range PHY to request connection to the mesh communications network; ● A receiving device configured to receive a support response to the long range support message from a mesh node in the mesh communications network, thereby indicating support for the connection of the mesh node to the communications network using the long range PHY.

[0043] As described above, the receiving device may be configured to receive multiple support responses from multiple mesh nodes in the mesh communications network. Accordingly, the processing device may be configured to select the multiple mesh nodes as those that wish to connect to the mesh communications network. Such selection may be based, for example, on received power level, latency, or the like. Finally, the transmitting device may be configured to transmit an acknowledgement to the selected mesh node, causing the selected mesh node to acknowledge that it wishes to be used for connection to the mesh communications network.

[0044] It should be noted that the advantages described with respect to the embodiments of the first aspect of the present disclosure are also applicable to the embodiments of the third aspect of the present disclosure.

[0045] According to one embodiment, a receiving device is configured to receive a plurality of support responses to the long range support message from a plurality of mesh nodes in the mesh communications network, the mesh nodes comprising: ● Further comprising a decision device configured to select one of the plurality of mesh nodes in the mesh communications network from which the mesh node was able to receive the plurality of support responses to the long-range support message in order to connect the mesh node to the mesh communications network.

[0046] In a further example, messages sent using the long-range PHY have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY.

[0047] In another example, the process equipment determining that the mesh node is out of range of the mesh communications network by detecting a failure to receive a support response in response to a message sent using the default PHY; determining that the mesh node is out of range of the mesh communications network by detecting an inability to receive messages from the mesh communications network.

[0048] In yet another example, the mesh node is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY and to establish a long distance bearer using the long distance PHY, and the process device is configured to: • further configured to establish the long range bearer to the mesh node within the mesh communications network using the long range PHY;

[0049] According to yet another embodiment, the mesh communications network is a Bluetooth mesh communications network and the mesh nodes are Bluetooth mesh nodes.

[0050] In another example, the mesh node is configured to establish a long-distance bearer using the long-distance PHY, the long-distance bearer being one of the following: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; ● A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or ● Connectionless advertising bearer between a low-power node and its associated friend mesh nodes.

[0051] In a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, a mesh node in a mesh communications network configured to support connection of a mesh node to the network, the mesh node including a plurality of mesh nodes interconnected using a default physical layer (PHY), the mesh node being configured to connect to the mesh node using a long-range PHY, wherein a reach of the long-range PHY is greater than a reach of the default PHY, and the mesh node in the mesh communications network is configured to: a receiving device configured to receive a long range support message from the mesh node using the long range PHY, thereby requesting connection of the mesh node to the mesh communications network; • a transmitting device configured to transmit a support response of the long range support message, thereby indicating support of the connection of the mesh node to the communication network using the long range PHY.

[0052] It should be noted that the advantages described with respect to the embodiments of the first aspect of the present disclosure are also applicable to the fourth aspect of the present disclosure.

[0053] In one example, messages sent using the long-range PHY have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY.

[0054] In a further example, long range support messages are received at a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY.

[0055] According to another embodiment, the mesh node in the mesh communications network is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY and to establish a long range bearer using the long range PHY, the mesh node further comprising: - A processing device configured to establish the long distance bearer to the mesh node using the long distance PHY.

[0056] According to a further embodiment, the mesh communications network is a Bluetooth mesh communications network and the mesh nodes are Bluetooth mesh nodes.

[0057] According to one embodiment, the mesh node is configured to establish a long distance bearer using the long distance PHY, the long distance bearer being one of the following: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; ● A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or ● Connectionless advertising bearer between a low-power node and its associated friend mesh nodes.

[0058] In a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program product including a computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which, when executed by a mesh node, cause said mesh node to perform a method according to any of the methods provided above. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0059] [Figure 1] discloses examples of the ranges that can be obtained when using different transmission rates in a mesh communication network.

[0060] [Figure 2] discloses a schematic diagram of a mesh node attempting to join a mesh communication network.

[0061] [Figure 3] discloses a schematic diagram of a mesh communication network in which a particular mesh node has failed.

[0062] [Figure 4] discloses an example of a method according to the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0063] FIG. 1 discloses example 1 of the range obtained when using different transmission rates in a mesh communications network, and more specifically a Bluetooth® mesh communications network.

[0064] Six different data rates3 are plotted in Figure 1: 6000kbps, 4000kbps, 2000kbps, 1000kbps, 500kbps, and 125kbps.

[0065] The 125 kbps and 500 kbps rates are often referred to as long-range PHYs. On the other hand, the trade-off between rate and spatial propagation time also applies to Bluetooth® Low Energy, and one typically wants to use the highest possible data rate to maximize speed and minimize spatial propagation time.

[0066] When a Bluetooth mesh communications network is extended to support extended advertising capabilities, such as the addition of extended advertising mesh bearers and PHYs, the Bluetooth mesh network can take advantage of the larger messages and support for all available rates provided by extended advertising. Links between unconnected nodes can be established by using lower data rates, if necessary. Utilizing higher rates also increases transmission rates, where feasible, thus allowing for the benefit of higher throughput and higher network capacity.

[0067] The inventors have discovered that when mesh communication networks, for example Bluetooth® mesh, are extended with support for long range PHYs and extended advertising mesh bearers, they may require a mechanism to properly determine the rate to be utilized by transmitting nodes in the network.

[0068] In this particular example, a long-range PHY is discussed, e.g., using a low-rate PHY. A long-range PHY using a low speed, e.g., 125 kbit / s, is useful for establishing connections between nodes in poor coverage conditions.

[0069] Thus, the horizontal axis 2 in Figure 1 indicates the range of messages exchanged. Low-rate signaling can be used to extend the reachability range, e.g., the rate designated 5 can be used by mesh nodes to establish connections to the mesh communications network.

[0070] FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram 101 of a mesh node 106 intended to connect to mesh communication networks 103, 102, 107, 108.

[0071] Thus, Figure 2 shows a situation where a long-range bearer, i.e. a bearer using a long-range PHY, is required. In Figure 2, a mesh node designated 106 located outside the mesh network is using a default PHY and a default bearer, e.g., a default 1 Mbps bearer as shown in Figure 1, and is out of communication range of all other mesh nodes 103, 102, 107, 108.

[0072] In this situation, the mesh node 106 does not receive any secure network beacons or detect any mesh network traffic, or at least such activity is very infrequent or unreliable. The mesh node 106 also does not receive any heartbeats from the controller mesh node, designated 102, which is assumed to periodically issue heartbeat messages. The lack of secure network beacons and mesh traffic detected for the disconnected mesh node 106, as well as the absence of heartbeats from the controller mesh node 102, indicates that the mesh node 106 is out of range of the other mesh nodes 103, 102, 107, and 108.

[0073] It should be noted that the default bearer range, i.e., the range associated with, for example, a default 1 Mbps bearer, is indicated with reference numeral 104, and the range associated with, for example, a long distance bearer, e.g., a 125 kbps bearer, is indicated with reference numeral 105.

[0074] Therefore, the present disclosure aims to ensure that an unconnected mesh node 106 has the potential to gain connection to the mesh communications network.

[0075] The mesh communication networks are illustratively designated by reference numerals 103, 102, 107, and 108.

[0076] A mesh communications network may be defined by interconnected mesh nodes. The controller mesh node of the mesh communications network is identified by the reference numeral 102. All other mesh nodes 107, 108, and 103 of the mesh communications network can communicate with each other, as indicated by the solid lines connecting the mesh nodes to each other. Thus, this resembles a mesh communications network.

[0077] In accordance with the present disclosure, long-range support is provided to the requesting mesh node 106 by the second mesh node 107. The second mesh node 107 is therefore part of the mesh communications network, as indicated by reference numerals 102, 103, 107, and 108.

[0078] The mesh node 106 is configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a default physical layer PHY, as indicated by reference numeral 104, and is configured to connect to the mesh communications network using a long range PHY, as indicated by reference numeral 105.

[0079] FIG. 2 shows that the range of the default bearer 104 is smaller than the range of the long distance bearer 105 .

[0080] The method includes a first step of determining, by the mesh node, that the long-range PHY is required to connect to the mesh communications network. Such a determination may be accomplished, for example, by the mesh node 106 determining that it is no longer able to receive heartbeat messages, etc. The mesh node 106 may expect to periodically receive messages, such as heartbeats or beacons, being exchanged in the mesh communications network. When it can no longer detect these types of messages, the mesh node 106 may recognize that it is no longer within range of the mesh communications network.

[0081] The next step is for the mesh node 106 to broadcast a long range support message using the long range PHY, thereby requesting connection to the mesh communications network, which means that the mesh node 106 uses a long range PHY, e.g., a low rate message, as a low range bearer 105, to attempt to connect to the mesh communications network.

[0082] In this particular case, mesh node 106 may receive a support response to the long range support message from mesh node 107 of the mesh communications network, thereby indicating support for the mesh node's connection to the communications network using the long range PHY.

[0083] The mesh node 107 can be considered a second mesh node according to the above aspects of the present disclosure.

[0084] It should be noted that the mesh node 106 may receive other support responses to the long-range support message from other mesh nodes within the mesh communications network. The mesh node having reference number 108 may be able to reach the mesh node 106 and may therefore send a support response back to the mesh node 106.

[0085] The mesh node 106 may select one of a plurality of mesh nodes 107, 108 in the mesh communications network from which the mesh node 106 was able to receive a plurality of support responses to the long-range support message to connect the mesh node 106 to the mesh communications network.

[0086] FIG. 3 shows a schematic diagram 201 of a mesh communications network when a particular mesh node 204 has failed.

[0087] In FIG. 3, a failed node 204 separates the mesh networks 202, 205 into two different parts, and nodes located in the different parts can no longer communicate.

[0088] Nodes located in the upper right corner of the network receive secure network beacons, detect mesh messages, and also receive regular heartbeat messages issued by the control mesh node 203. Therefore, these nodes cannot easily detect that the mesh network has been disconnected. However, mesh nodes 205 in the lower left corner of the mesh communication network receive secure network beacons and mesh messages, but do not receive heartbeats from the control mesh node 203. Therefore, mesh nodes 205 in this part of the network can conclude that there are neighboring mesh nodes around them, but there is no path to the control mesh node 203 issuing heartbeat messages.

[0089] A mesh node requiring a long distance bearer may be referred to as a long distance node (LRN), and a mesh node capable of supporting an LRN over a long distance bearer is referred to as a long distance support node (LRSN).

[0090] FIG. 4 shows a message sequence illustrating the request support protocol. In step 304, the LRN 303 broadcasts a long-distance support request message to neighboring mesh nodes 302 using a long-distance advertising bearer. The request message may be limited to a single hop, i.e., it may not be forwarded by any neighboring relay nodes. The request message may also include requested and optional capabilities that the LRSN should provide. For example, the LRN may request a specific type of bearer, such as advertising, connection, or the like. Furthermore, to support the state of FIG. 3, the LRN may further require that the LRSN have a route to the control mesh node 203 that issues heartbeats, i.e., that the LRSN receive heartbeats from the control mesh node 203.

[0091] Any LRSN 302 that receives the long distance request message and has the capability to support the LRN responds by sending a support response message in step 305. The support response message may be unicast to the LRN and may contain information about the LRSN's properties and capabilities. Since many LRSNs can respond to the same request message, the transmission scheduling of the response message is randomized in time. Relevant characteristics and capabilities include resources such as connection parameters for GATT bearers or message storage capabilities for friend nodes, and distance to nodes sending heartbeat messages.

[0092] The LRN evaluates the different support responses received and, in step 306, transmits a support response for the selected LRSN. The support response can be unicast. The selection of the LRSN is based on information contained in the support response message as well as local properties measured by the LRN, such as the RSSI of the received support message. If no support response message is received or if the received offers are not suitable, the LRN rejects all offers and no support response is transmitted. In such a case, the LRN can transmit another request message later, possibly modifying its support requirements.

[0093] Communications in a mesh network using long-range PHYs can take several different forms, including long-range advertising bearers, long-range GATT bearers, and long-range LPN-Friend relationships.

[0094] The long-range advertising bearer utilizes extended advertising capabilities but may otherwise be comparable to the existing Bluetooth mesh advertising bearer. Messages sent over the advertising bearer are broadcast, i.e., can be received by all nodes within range that belong to the same subnet and support a long-range PHY. Messages sent over the advertising bearer are not acknowledged (on the link layer).

[0095] Long-range PHY may also be implemented via a GATT connection. Messages sent over the connection are unicast and acknowledged.

[0096] Long range support can also be realized in the form of an LPN-Friend node, which is equivalent to the current Friend relationship, but where communication utilizes a long range PHY.

[0097] The present disclosure proposes a solution that facilitates the utilization of long-range bearers across selected connections in a mesh communications network without requiring manual configuration. The solution comprises a mechanism for a mesh node to detect the need for long-range support, followed by a request for long-range support from a neighboring mesh node and communication over the connection, thereby connecting the requesting and supporting mesh node using the long-range bearer. Optionally, the solution utilizes a central control node that publishes heartbeat messages used to analyze mesh network connectivity.

[0098] It should be noted that the above examples are illustrative rather than limiting, and that those skilled in the art can design many alternatives without departing from the scope of the appended claims. The word "comprising" does not exclude the presence of elements or steps other than those listed in a claim, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality; a single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several units listed in a claim.

[0099] Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting their scope.

Claims

1. 1. A method for connecting a mesh node (106, 205, 303) to a mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) comprising a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes, the mesh node (106, 205, 303) being configured to connect to the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) using a default physical layer (PHY) (4, 104) and configured to connect to the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) using a long-range PHY (5, 105), the reach of the long-range PHY (5, 105) being greater than the reach of the default PHY (4, 104), the method comprising: determining, by said mesh node (106, 205, 303), that said long-range PHY (5, 105) is required to connect to said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); broadcasting a long-range support message by said mesh node (106, 205, 303) using said long-range PHY (5, 105), thereby requesting connection to said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); receiving, by said mesh node (106, 205, 303), a plurality of support responses to said long-range support message from a plurality of second mesh nodes (107, 302) within said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203), thereby indicating support for said connection of said mesh node (106, 205, 303) to said mesh communications network using said long-range PHY (5, 105); selecting, by said mesh node (106, 205, 303), one of said plurality of second mesh nodes (107, 302) in said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) from which said mesh node (106, 205, 303) was able to receive said plurality of support responses to said long-range support message, for connecting said mesh node (106, 205, 303) to said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); sending an acknowledgement to the selected one second mesh node; A method comprising:

2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein messages sent using the long-range PHY (5, 105) have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY (4, 104).

3. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the long range support messages are transmitted at a lower rate compared to messages transmitted using the default PHY (4, 104).

4. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein said determining comprises: - determining, by said mesh node (106, 205, 303), that said mesh node (106, 205, 303) is out of range of said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) by detecting a lack of reception of a message from said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203).

5. 10. The method of claim 1 further comprising: - initiating, by said mesh node (106, 205, 303), the establishment of a connection to said second mesh node (107, 302) in said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) using said long-range PHY (5, 105).

6. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is a Bluetooth mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) and the mesh nodes (106, 205, 303, 107, 302) are Bluetooth mesh nodes.

7. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the mesh node (106, 205, 303) is configured to establish a long-distance bearer using the long-distance PHY (5, 105), the long-distance bearer comprising: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; - A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or a connectionless advertising bearer between the low power node and its associated friend mesh nodes.

8. 1. A method for supporting connection of a mesh node (106, 205, 303) to a mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) comprising a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes, wherein a second mesh node (107, 302) in the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is configured to connect to the mesh node (106, 205, 303) using a default physical layer (PHY) (4, 104) and to connect to the mesh node (106, 205, 303) using a long-range PHY (5, 105), the reach of the long-range PHY (5, 105) being greater than the reach of the default PHY (4, 104), the method comprising: receiving, by the second mesh node (107, 302) in the mesh communications network, from the mesh node (106, 205, 303) using the long-range PHY (5, 105), a long-range support message, thereby requesting connection of the mesh node (106, 205, 303) to the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); sending, by the second mesh node (107, 302) in the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203), a support response to the long-range support message, thereby indicating support of the connection of the mesh node (106, 205, 303) to the mesh communications network using the long-range PHY (5, 105); receiving an acknowledgement from said mesh node (106, 205, 303) once said second mesh node (107, 302) is selected from among a plurality of second mesh nodes (107, 302); A method comprising:

9. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein messages sent using the long-range PHY (5, 105) have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY (4, 104).

10. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the long range support messages are received at a lower rate compared to messages received using the default PHY (4, 104).

11. 9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the second mesh node (107, 302) in the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY (4, 104) and to establish a long-range bearer using the long-range PHY (5, 105), the method further comprising: - establishing, by said second mesh node (107, 302) in said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203), said long range bearer to said mesh node (106, 205, 303) using said long range PHY (5, 105).

12. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is a Bluetooth mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) and the mesh nodes (106, 205, 303, 107, 302) are Bluetooth mesh nodes.

13. 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the second mesh node (107, 302) in the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is configured to establish a long-range bearer using the long-range PHY (5, 105), the long-range bearer comprising: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; - A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or a connectionless advertising bearer between the low power node and its associated friend mesh nodes.

14. 1. A mesh node (106, 205, 303) configured to connect to a mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) comprising a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes using a default physical layer (PHY) (4, 104) and configured to connect to said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) using a long-range PHY (5, 105), wherein a reachability range of said long-range PHY (5, 105) is greater than a reachability range of said default PHY (4, 104), and wherein said mesh node (106, 205, 303) - a process device configured to determine that said long-range PHY (5, 105) is required to connect to said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); - a transmitting device (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) configured to broadcast a long range support message using said long range PHY (5, 105), thereby requesting connection to said mesh communications network; a receiving device configured to receive a plurality of support responses to the long-range support message from a plurality of mesh nodes (106, 205, 303) within the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203), thereby indicating support for the connection of the mesh nodes (106, 205, 303) to the mesh communications network using the long-range PHY (5, 105); a decision device configured to select one of the plurality of mesh nodes in the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) from which the mesh node (106, 205, 303) was able to receive the plurality of support responses to the long-range support message in order to connect the mesh node (106, 205, 303) to the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); and - a mesh node, wherein said transmitting device is configured to transmit an acknowledgement to said selected one mesh node (107, 302).

15. 15. The mesh node (106, 205, 303) of claim 14, wherein messages sent using the long-range PHY (5, 105) have a lower rate compared to messages sent using the default PHY (4, 104).

16. 15. The mesh node (106, 205, 303) of claim 14, wherein the process device further comprises: determining that the mesh node (106, 205, 303) is out of range of the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) by detecting that a support response is not received in response to a message sent using the default PHY (4, 104); a mesh node configured to perform one of the following: determining that the mesh node (106, 205, 303) is out of range of the mesh communication network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) by detecting a lack of reception of a message from the mesh communication network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203).

17. 15. A mesh node (106, 205, 303) according to claim 14, wherein the mesh node (106, 205, 303) is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY (4, 104) and to establish a long distance bearer using the long distance PHY (5, 105), and the processing device further comprises: - A mesh node configured to establish said long range bearer to said mesh node (106, 205, 303) in said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) using said long range PHY (5, 105).

18. 15. A mesh node (106, 205, 303) according to claim 14, wherein the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is a Bluetooth mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203), and wherein the mesh node (106, 205, 303) is a Bluetooth mesh node.

19. 15. A mesh node (106, 205, 303) according to claim 14, wherein said mesh node (106, 205, 303) is configured to establish a long distance bearer using said long distance PHY (5, 105), said long distance bearer comprising: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; - A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or a mesh node that is either: a connectionless advertising bearer between a low-power node and its associated friend mesh node;

20. a second mesh node (107, 302) in a mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) configured to support connection of a mesh node (106, 205, 303) to a mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) comprising a plurality of interconnected mesh nodes using a default physical layer (PHY) (4, 104) and to connect to said mesh nodes (106, 205, 303) using a long-range PHY (5, 105), wherein a reach of said long-range PHY (5, 105) is greater than a reach of said default PHY (4, 104), and wherein said second mesh node (107, 302) in said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) - a receiving device configured to receive a long range support message from said mesh node (106, 205, 303) using said long range PHY (5, 105), thereby requesting connection of said mesh node (106, 205, 303) to said mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203); a transmitting device configured to transmit a support response to said long range support message, thereby indicating support of said connection of said mesh node (106, 205, 303) to said mesh communications network using said long range PHY (5, 105); and - the receiving device is configured to receive an acknowledgement from the mesh node (106, 205, 303) when the second mesh node (107, 302) is selected from among a plurality of second mesh nodes (107, 302).

21. 21. The second mesh node (107, 302) of claim 20, wherein messages transmitted using the long-range PHY (5, 105) have a lower rate compared to messages transmitted using the default PHY (4, 104).

22. 21. The second mesh node (107, 302) of claim 20, wherein the long range support messages are received at a lower rate compared to messages transmitted using the default PHY (4, 104).

23. 21. A second mesh node (107, 302) according to claim 20, wherein the second mesh node (107, 302) in the mesh communications network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is configured to establish a default bearer using the default PHY (4, 104) and to establish a long-range bearer using the long-range PHY (5, 105), the second mesh node (107, 302) further comprising: - A second mesh node having a processing device configured to establish said long distance bearer to said mesh node (106, 205, 303) using said long distance PHY (5, 105).

24. 21. A second mesh node (107, 302) according to claim 20, wherein the mesh communication network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) is a Bluetooth mesh communication network (102, 103, 107, 108; 202, 203) and the mesh node (106, 205, 303, 107, 302) is a Bluetooth mesh node.

25. 23. A second mesh node (107, 302) according to claim 22, wherein said second mesh node (107, 302) is configured to establish a long distance bearer using said long distance PHY (5, 105), said long distance bearer comprising: ● Connectionless advertising bearer; - A connection-oriented GATT bearer, or a connectionless advertising bearer between the low power node and its associated friend mesh node.

26. A computer program product which, when executed by a mesh node (106, 205, 303), causes the mesh node (106, 205, 303) to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 13.

Images