System and Method for Controlling Communications in an AD HOC Mobile Network

• US 20120002615A1
• Filed: 12/24/2010
• Published: 01/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thales SA
• Original Assignee: Thales SA
• Inventors: Rayrole, Martin, Soulie, Antoine
• Granted Patent: US 8,570,965 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/06 Testing, supervising or monitoring using simulated traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/18 Management of setup rejection or failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/34 Selective release of ongoing connections
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A method for controlling communications within an ad hoc mobile network includes a plurality of terminals having the slave function and/or the master function, said slave terminals also including a slave orchestration system, said master terminals also including a master orchestration system. The slave orchestration system includes at least one network test module, a module for controlling communications, and a database of communications to be set up and an administration module. The master orchestration system includes at least one network test module, a module for controlling communications, a database of communication requirements, a decision engine, a database of current communications, a rule database for prioritizing communications, and an administration module. The master orchestration system is suitable for defining which communications between the slave terminals are authorized according to said prioritization rules and for notifying the slave orchestration systems of the slave terminals of their authorization to set up a communication or of the need to interrupt a communication previously set up.

Claims

1. A system for controlling communications within an ad hoc mobile network including a plurality of terminals, comprising:

each of said terminals including at least one radio antenna, an ad hoc mobile communication system suitable for sending and receiving data, a network description database which contains at least the address of all the terminals of the network and the list of the communities of interest which group all the terminals likely to have to communicate with one another, said terminals additionally including a slave orchestration system;

at least one of said terminals also including the master function, said master terminals also including a master orchestration system;

said slave orchestration system including at least one network test module, a module for controlling communications, a database of communications to be set up and an administration module;

said master orchestration system including at least one network test module, a module for controlling communications, a database of communication requirements, a decision engine, a database of current communications, a rule database for prioritizing communications and an administration module; and

said master orchestration system being suitable for defining which communications between the slave terminals are authorized according to said prioritization rules and for notifying the slave orchestration systems of the slave terminals of their authorization to set up a communication or of the need to interrupt a communication previously set up, said prioritization rules being established according to at least one of the following criteria;

criticality of the communication, maximum duration D_max of the communication, maximum number of terminals that can send simultaneously, available bandwidth.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein said network test module is suitable for executing, at a given instant, a test step comprising at least:

breaking down said community of interest into a number of test groups that is at least equal to one, each of said test groups comprising at most a number of terminals equal to the maximum number of terminals authorized to communicate simultaneously, the intersection between all the test groups being not empty;

sending from the master terminal to all the slave terminals of said test group a test request message containing a sample of the service to be tested and a time delay value T_temp;

sending from each slave terminal, upon receipt of said test request message, said test sample to all the terminals of the community of interest;

sending from each slave terminal of said test group, upon receipt of a test sample, an acknowledgement message to the slave terminal sending said test sample; and

sending from each slave terminal of said test group to the master terminal, before the expiry of the time delay T_temp, a test report containing the list of the terminals receiving the test sample for which no acknowledgement has been received.

3. A method for controlling communications within an ad hoc mobile network including a plurality of terminals having the slave function, said terminals also including a slave orchestration system, at least one of said terminals also including the master function, said master terminal also including a master orchestration system, said method comprising:

a step for determining which communications between the slave terminals are authorized according to prioritization rules established according to at least one of the following criteria;

criticality of the communication, maximum duration D_max of the communication, maximum number of terminals that can send simultaneously, available bandwidth; and

a step for notifying the slave orchestration systems of the slave terminals of their authorization to set up a communication or of the need to interrupt a communication previously set up.

4. A method according to claim 3, further comprising a step for testing, at a given instant, communications for all the communities of interest which group all the terminals likely to have to communicate with one another, said test step comprising at least:

breaking down said community of interest into a number of test groups that is at least equal to one, each of said test groups comprising at most a number of terminals equal to the maximum number of terminals authorized to communicate simultaneously, the intersection between all the test groups being not empty;

sending from the master terminal to all the slave terminals of said test group a test request message containing a sample of the service to be tested and a time delay value T_temp;

sending from each slave terminal, upon receipt of said test request message, said test sample to all the terminals of the community of interest;

sending from each slave terminal of said test group, upon receipt of a test sample, an acknowledgement message to the slave terminal sending said test sample; and

sending from each slave terminal of said test group to the master terminal, before the expiry of the time delay T_temp, a test report containing the list of the terminals receiving the test sample for which no acknowledgement has been received.