Mesh Network Duty Cycle Coordination for Energy Efficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mesh network technologies face challenges in minimizing energy consumption and avoiding packet collisions, particularly in low-power devices, due to high duty cycles required for flooding and the complexity of routing in point-to-point communication.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution optimizes duty cycles in mesh networks by determining a duty cycle percentage based on the density of neighbor nodes, allowing nodes to adjust their wake and sleep periods to ensure a predetermined probability of successful message reception while conserving energy, through neighbor discovery and duty cycle request procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If flooding is used to spread information over all nodes in the network, then information dissemination coverage is improved, but energy consumption increases due to high duty cycle requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by adjusting duty cycle percentages based on local network density. Nodes in denser areas use lower duty cycles while nodes in sparser areas use higher duty cycles, optimizing energy consumption locally while maintaining overall network coverage. Each node determines its duty cycle based on the number of neighbor nodes it can reach, creating localized adaptations to network conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by making duty cycle percentages adjustable and adaptive rather than fixed. Nodes can modify their duty cycles based on changing network conditions, neighbor density, and message priority. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize energy consumption while maintaining reliable information dissemination as network conditions change.
2Speed
If many devices broadcast at the same time to propagate packets through the network, then information spread speed is improved, but packet collisions and losses increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic action by using duty cycles that create periodic wake-sleep patterns for nodes. Instead of continuous broadcasting, nodes wake up at periodic intervals to transmit and receive messages, then enter sleep mode. This periodic operation reduces simultaneous transmissions and packet collisions while maintaining information spread speed through coordinated wake periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback through the duty cycle request and adoption mechanism. Nodes exchange duty cycle request messages and adopt duty cycles from neighbors, creating a feedback loop that coordinates transmission timing. This feedback mechanism helps synchronize nodes to reduce collisions while maintaining efficient information propagation.
3Reliability
If routing information and scheduling are implemented to reduce packet collisions, then packet delivery reliability is improved, but device complexity increases due to synchronization information requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies self-service by enabling nodes to autonomously determine and adjust their own duty cycles based on local network conditions. Each node counts its neighbor nodes and calculates appropriate duty cycle percentages without requiring centralized scheduling or complex routing information. This self-service approach reduces device complexity while maintaining packet delivery reliability through distributed coordination.
4Use of energy by moving object
If routing is used to deliver packets through multi-hop networks with unicast transmissions, then energy efficiency is improved for point-to-point communication, but device complexity increases due to routing information processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the principle of using simple, disposable-like mechanisms rather than complex, persistent routing structures. Instead of implementing full routing protocols with path finding and maintenance, the system uses simple duty cycle adjustments and neighbor-based broadcasting. This approach achieves energy efficiency through targeted transmissions while avoiding the complexity of routing information processing, effectively using simple temporary coordination rather than complex persistent routing tables.
Data Source
AI summary
In one aspect, a node in a mesh network receives presence messages from neighbor node in the mesh network, and determines a number of neighbor nodes, based on the received presence messages. The node determines a duty cycle percentage to be requested of the neighbor nodes, based on the number of the neighbor nodes, the duty cycle percentage indicating a minimum percentage of time the neighbor nodes should be awake to receive messages, so as to ensure a predetermined probability of successful reception of messages transmitted by the node. The node broadcasts the duty cycle percentage for reception by the neighbor nodes. The node also receives requested duty cycle percentages from corresponding neighbor nodes, sets an operating duty cycle of the node based on a greatest duty cycle percentage of the received duty cycle percentages, and sleeps and wakes according to the set duty cycle of the node.