One-Hop Neighbor Check for Wireless Mesh Path Discovery

Solution Overview

Problem

In dense wireless mesh networks, frame collisions during path discovery consume significant resources and interfere with multi-hop path establishment between one-hop neighbors, leading to inefficiencies in battery power and bandwidth usage.

Innovation Solution

A network interface for mesh points that determines whether a destination mesh point is one hop away before initiating mesh path discovery, allowing for direct one-hop path selection when possible, and resorting to multi-hop path discovery only when necessary, thereby reducing unnecessary resource consumption and collisions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If mesh path discovery protocol is performed to discover paths between mesh points, then path discovery reliability is improved, but resource consumption (battery power, bandwidth) increases significantly in dense mesh deployments

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepath discovery reliabilityVSAvoidbattery power consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing a one-hop neighbor check before initiating the full mesh path discovery protocol. The system determines in advance whether the destination is within one-hop range using a simple proximity check, and only performs resource-intensive path discovery when necessary (when no direct one-hop path exists). This prevents unnecessary path discovery transmissions in dense networks where most nodes are one-hop neighbors, thereby reducing battery power consumption while maintaining reliable path discovery when needed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If mesh path discovery protocol is broadcast to discover paths, then path discovery completeness is improved, but frame collision probability increases in dense mesh networks

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepath discovery completenessVSAvoidframe collision

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing a one-hop neighbor check before initiating the full mesh path discovery protocol. The system determines in advance whether the destination is within one-hop range using a simple proximity check, and only performs resource-intensive path discovery when necessary (when no direct one-hop path exists). This prevents unnecessary path discovery transmissions in dense networks where most nodes are one-hop neighbors, thereby reducing battery power consumption while maintaining reliable path discovery when needed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent extracts the essential function of path discovery by implementing a simplified one-hop neighbor check that separates the common case (direct one-hop communication) from the rare case (multi-hop communication). By extracting and handling the one-hop case separately through a simple proximity check, the system eliminates the need for full path discovery protocol in the majority of dense network scenarios, thereby reducing frame collisions while maintaining path discovery completeness for multi-hop scenarios.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Measurement precision

If mesh path discovery is performed for all mesh points, then routing accuracy is improved, but bandwidth consumption increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improverouting accuracyVSAvoidbandwidth consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing a one-hop neighbor check before initiating the full mesh path discovery protocol. The system determines in advance whether the destination is within one-hop range using a simple proximity check, and only performs resource-intensive path discovery when necessary (when no direct one-hop path exists). This prevents unnecessary path discovery transmissions in dense networks where most nodes are one-hop neighbors, thereby reducing battery power consumption while maintaining reliable path discovery when needed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies partial action by implementing a two-stage approach: first performing a minimal one-hop neighbor check, and only performing the complete path discovery protocol when the one-hop check fails. This partial action (one-hop check) is sufficient for the majority of dense network scenarios, eliminating the need for excessive bandwidth consumption associated with full path discovery in cases where it is not needed, while maintaining routing accuracy when multi-hop paths are required.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS8687521B1Avoiding mesh path discovery in wireless mesh networks

Publication Date: 2014.04.01 NXP USA INC

AI summary

A network interface of a first mesh point device, the network interface including a memory and a medium access controller. In response to the first mesh point device receiving a frame, the medium access controller determines whether a mesh path for routing the frame from the first mesh point device to a second mesh point device is stored in the memory. In response to a mesh path not being stored in the memory, and prior to performing a mesh path discovery protocol, the medium access controller (i) determines whether the second mesh point device is one hop from the first mesh point device, and if so selects a one hop path for routing the frame to the second mesh point device, otherwise (ii) uses the mesh path discovery protocol to determine a mesh path for routing the frame to the second mesh point device.