METHOD OF ESTABLISHING A WIRELESS MULTI-HOP NETWORK

• US 20110063999A1
• Filed: 05/27/2009
• Published: 03/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Signify Holding B.V. (Signify N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Lelkens, Armand Michel Marie, Erdmann, Bozena
• Granted Patent: US 8,441,959 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/20 Selecting an access point
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

The invention describes a method of establishing a wireless multi-hop network (NW), in particular a ZigBee-type network, comprising a plurality of devices (0, 1, 2, . . . , 96) of a device arrangement (D), in which method devices (1, 2, 3, . . . , 96) establish a physical wireless connection to at least another device (0, 1, 11, 16, 17, 29, 30, 39, 48, 52, 53, 55, 64, 71, 73, 79, 88) of the network (NW) in a self-organizing process. In the self-organizing process a seeking device, intending to join the network, listens for beacon signals emitted by candidate parent devices already in the network comprising a network identifier and a device identifier of the emitting devices. Then, in a parent selection process, the seeking device selects a parent device from among the candidate parent devices, according to given selectionrules, based on the network identifiers (EPID), acceptance capabilities of the candidate parent devices, and link quality parameter values relating the device and the candidate parent devices. In this parent selection process application-level connection data (L, BI) of the seeking device and/or the candidate parent devices are applied. At least, the seeking device connects physically, and preferably also logically, via the selected parent device (0, 1, 11, 16, 17, 29, 30, 39, 48, 52, 53, 55, 64, 71, 73, 79, 88) to the network (NW). The invention further describes a device comprising a network inter-face for connecting a wireless multi-hop network (NW) according to this method.

Claims

1. A method of establishing a wireless multi-hop network (NW), in particular a ZigBee-type network, comprising a plurality of devices (0, 1, 2, . . . , 96) of a device arrangement (D), in which method devices (1, 2, 3, . . . , 96) establish a physical wireless connection to at least another device (0, 1, 11, 16, 17, 29, 30, 39, 48, 52, 53, 55, 64, 71, 73, 79, 88) of the network (NW) in a self-organizing process in which self-organizing process

a seeking device, intending to join the network, listens for beacon signals emitted by candidate parent devices already in the network comprising a network identifier and a device identifier of the emitting devices,

in a parent selection process, the seeking device selects a parent device from among the candidate parent devices, according to given selection rules, based on the network identifiers (EPID), acceptance capabilities of the candidate parent devices, and link quality parameter values relating the seeking device and the candidate parent devices,

in which parent selection process application-level connection data (L, BI) of the seeking device and/or the candidate parent devices are applied,

and the seeking device connects physically via the selected parent device (0, 1, 11, 16, 17, 29, 30, 39, 48, 52, 53, 55, 64, 71, 73, 79, 88) to the network (NW).

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein a seeking device sends a request signal to devices already in the network (NW) and a number of candidate parent devices that receive the request signal each emit a beacon signal.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the beacon signals comprise an acceptance capability of the respective candidate parent device.

4. A method according to claim 1, wherein the beacon signal comprises tree depth information of the emitting candidate parent device, which tree depth information is applied in the parent device selection process.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the application-level connection data (L, BI) comprise a collection (L) of device identifiers of other devices to which the device should be connected on an application level.

6. A method according to claim 1, wherein a seeking device selects as parent device a device that, on an application-level, acts as a controller for that seeking device or that is, on an application-level, controlled by that seeking device.

7. A method according to claim 1 wherein the devices (0, 1, 2, . . . , 96) of the device arrangement (D) are grouped into functional groups (R1, R2, . . . , R10, F) and the application-level connection data (L, BI) comprises group membership data.

8. A method according to claim 1 wherein the application-level connection data are configured during commissioning of the device arrangement.

9. A method according to claim 1, wherein application-level connection data comprise binding data (L) in an Application Support Sublayer (APS) and/or application-level connection data (BI) are associated to application objects (AO 1, . . . , AO 240) of the devices.

10. A method according to claim 2, wherein a seeking device sends a new request signal if, subsequent to the first request signal, it does not receive a response signal from a candidate parent device to which the requesting device should be connected to on an application level, according to the application-level connection data.

11. A method according to claim 1, wherein a seeking device waits for a given delay time after an initial start-up before seeking a parent device.

12. A method according to claim 1, wherein a seeking device with network router device capability connects physically as a network end device to another router device having no further acceptance capability for a network router device, if that network router device is the most suitable candidate parent device, according to the application-level connection data.

13. A method according to claim 1, wherein the application-level connection data comprise, regarding to a given application-level connection between the seeking device and a device which is bound to the seeking device on an application level, a quality of service indicator and/or priority data and/or data regarding an estimated application-level message frequency between the seeking device and the respective bound device.

14. A method according to claim 1, wherein a device already joined in the network may change its parent device if it receives application-level connection data.

15. A device comprising a network interface for connecting a wireless multi-hop network (NW), which network comprises a plurality of devices (0, 1, 2, 96) of a device arrangement (D) and in which network devices (1, 2, 3, . . . , 96) establish a physical wireless connection to at least one other device (0, 1, 11, 16, 17, 29, 30, 39, 48, 52, 53, 55, 64, 71, 73, 79, 88) of the network (NW) in a self-organizing process, which network interface comprises

a listening unit which listens, if the device is intending to join the network, for beacon signals emitted by candidate parent devices already in the network comprising a network identifier and a device identifier of the candidate parent devices,

a parent selection unit for selecting a parent device from among the candidate parent devices, according to given selection rules, based on the network identifiers (EPID), acceptance capabilities of the candidate parent devices, and link quality parameter values relating the device and the candidate parent devices,

which parent selection unit is realised such that it applies application-level connection data of the device and/or the candidate parent devices in a parent device selection process,

and a connection unit for establishing a physical connection in the network between the device and the selected parent device (0, 1, 11, 16, 17, 29, 30, 39, 48, 52, 53, 55, 64, 71, 73, 79, 88).