Relay Node Route Discovery in Mesh Networks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mesh communication networks, particularly in low-power wireless settings like Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), face inefficiencies in route discovery due to the need for flooding route requests across the entire network, which consumes resources and limits the ability of low-power nodes to predictively receive messages.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a method where relay nodes use unicast transmissions when a known route exists to the destination, avoiding network flooding and optimizing resource utilization by reusing existing routes, and allowing low-power nodes to delegate routing discovery to more powerful nodes, thereby reducing unnecessary message propagation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If flooding is used to discover routes in a mesh network, then route discovery can be achieved without routing information, but radio resources are consumed and network load increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having relay nodes pre-establish routing tables with known routes to destination nodes before actual message transmission. When a relay node needs to forward a message, it first checks its routing table for an existing route. If a route exists, it uses that pre-established path; if not, it performs flooding to discover and establish a new route. This preliminary preparation of routing information significantly reduces the need for continuous flooding operations, thereby conserving radio resources while maintaining route discovery capability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If flooding is used for route discovery, then no routing information is required, but unnecessary messages are propagated throughout the network
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-establishing routing tables at relay nodes with known routes to various destination nodes. Before forwarding messages, relay nodes check their routing tables to determine if a known route exists. This preliminary preparation enables selective message forwarding only along established routes, preventing unnecessary message propagation through the network while maintaining the flexibility to discover new routes through flooding when needed.
3Reliability
If low-power nodes poll friend relay periodically, then they can receive buffered messages, but they cannot predict when messages are supposed to come
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies feedback by implementing a message notification mechanism where relay nodes actively notify low-power nodes when messages arrive at the friend relay. Instead of relying solely on periodic polling, the relay node monitors for incoming messages and sends feedback notifications to wake up the low-power node when messages are available. This feedback-driven approach maintains reliable message reception while significantly reducing the time overhead associated with continuous or frequent polling, as low-power nodes can remain in sleep mode until notified.
Data Source
AI summary
A relay node is configured to discover a route between a route origination node and a route destination node in a mesh communication network. The relay node in this regard generates a route request message that requests a route from the route origination node through the mesh communication network to the route destination node. The relay node transmits the route request message via unicast or broadcast, depending respectively on whether a routing table at the relay node has or does not have an entry indicating a known route to the route destination node.