Wireless Mesh Network Analysis System for Dynamic Topology Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wireless mesh networks face challenges in developing, deploying, and managing due to their dynamic topology, where devices' roles and responsibilities change over time, making it difficult to capture, analyze, and visualize network data effectively.
Innovation Solution
A network analysis system that captures and analyzes packet records in real-time or for later analysis, generating correlated records to represent packet transmission order, and visualizes network topology, packet flows, and measurement data, using a correlator processor, analysis device, and visualization device to facilitate network performance measurement and troubleshooting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If wireless mesh networks implement dynamic topology with changing device roles, then network adaptability and versatility are improved, but network complexity and difficulty of management increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a network analysis system as an intermediary between the dynamic wireless mesh network and human operators. This system includes capture devices that monitor network traffic, a correlator that processes packet records, and visualization components that present network state. The intermediary automatically handles the complexity of dynamic topology changes, device role transitions, and routing adjustments, allowing operators to manage the network without directly dealing with its inherent complexity while maintaining full adaptability
2Measurement precision
If packet records are captured and analyzed in real-time, then network measurement precision and troubleshooting capability are improved, but system resource consumption and processing complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the network analysis functionality into distinct modular components: capture devices that collect packet records, a correlator that processes and correlates records from multiple sources, and visualization components that display results. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and enables distributed processing across multiple systems, reducing the processing burden on any single device while maintaining high measurement precision through coordinated analysis
3Quantity of substance
If multiple capture devices monitor network packets simultaneously, then data collection completeness is improved, but synchronization difficulty and correlation complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where capture devices receive synchronization information from the correlator based on observed network traffic patterns. The correlator analyzes packet records from multiple capture devices, identifies timing offsets, and adjusts synchronization accordingly. This feedback loop continuously refines the synchronization of multiple capture devices, ensuring complete data collection while automatically managing the complexity of coordinating multiple simultaneous monitoring points
Data Source
AI summary
A system for analyzing a packet-based network includes a wireless network analysis processing device that is configured to receive correlated packet records representative of the order in which corresponding packets are transmitted in a wireless network. The correlated packet records include media access control (MAC) layer data and network layer data for each corresponding packet. The MAC layer data and network layer data are processed to generate network topology data representative of the network topology, generate packet flow data representative of the flow of packets between devices at the MAC layer and across the network at the network layer, and measurement data relating to the packet flow data.