Communication terminal and communication network
First Claim
1. A communication terminal for use in a communication network, comprising:
- means for generating routing information for routing packets from a source terminal to a destination terminal on both a single-path route in the communication network and a multipath route in the communication network, the source terminal and the destination terminal being an arbitrary pair of the communication terminals in the communication network;
means for placing said routing information in packets and transmitting said packets to neighboring communication terminals in the communication network; and
means for analyzing the routing information in packets received from said neighboring terminals in the communication network;
means for determining a suspension time; and
means for suspending transmission of a received packet for said suspension time, abandoning the suspended packet if an identical packet is received during the suspension time, the identical packet also being abandoned, and transmitting the received packet at the end of the suspension time if no identical packet is received from another communication terminal in the communication network during the suspension time,wherein the single-path route is separated from the multipath route so that signals transmitted on the multipath route do not interfere with signals transmitted on the single-path route.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Each node or terminal in a communication network is capable of generating routing information for routing packets from an arbitrary source terminal to an arbitrary destination terminal on both a single-path route and a multipath route. The routing information is placed in packets transmitted to neighboring communication terminals, and analyzed in packets received from neighboring terminals. The single-path route is spatially or temporally separated from the multipath route so that the single-path route does not receive interference from the multipath route. Temporal separation may be effected by suspending the transmission of packets temporarily at each communication terminal on the multipath route. Spatial separation may be effected by using the routing information to designate different zones in the network, the single-path route being disposed in one zone, the multipath route in another zone.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. A communication terminal for use in a communication network, comprising:
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means for generating routing information for routing packets from a source terminal to a destination terminal on both a single-path route in the communication network and a multipath route in the communication network, the source terminal and the destination terminal being an arbitrary pair of the communication terminals in the communication network; means for placing said routing information in packets and transmitting said packets to neighboring communication terminals in the communication network; and means for analyzing the routing information in packets received from said neighboring terminals in the communication network; means for determining a suspension time; and means for suspending transmission of a received packet for said suspension time, abandoning the suspended packet if an identical packet is received during the suspension time, the identical packet also being abandoned, and transmitting the received packet at the end of the suspension time if no identical packet is received from another communication terminal in the communication network during the suspension time, wherein the single-path route is separated from the multipath route so that signals transmitted on the multipath route do not interfere with signals transmitted on the single-path route. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A particular communication terminal for use in a communication network that includes a plurality of communication terminals, each of the communication terminals having:
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means for generating routing information for routing packets from a source terminal to a destination terminal on both a single-path route in the communication network and a multipath route in the communication network, the source terminal and the destination terminal being an arbitrary pair of the communication terminals in the communication network; means for placing said routing information in packets and transmitting said packets to neighboring communication terminals in the communication network; and means for analyzing the routing information in packets received from said neighboring terminals in the communication network, wherein the single-path route is separated from the multipath route so that signals transmitted on the multipath route do not interfere with signals transmitted on the single-path route, wherein the multipath route is spatially separated from the single-path route by using the routing information to designate a first zone and a second zone in the communication network, the single-path route being disposed in the first zone, the multipath route being disposed in the second zone, and wherein the particular communication terminal further comprises means for selecting at least; a first operating mode in which the means for placing transmits a received packet addressed to the destination terminal only if the communication terminal is in the first zone; a second operating mode in which the means for placing transmits the received packet only if the communication terminal is in the second zone; and a third operating mode in which the means for placing transmits the received packet if the communication terminal is in either the first zone or the second zone.
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11. A communication networks, comprising a plurality of communication terminals, each of the communication terminals having:
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means for generating routing information for routing packets from a source terminal to a destination terminal on both a single-path route in the communication network and a multipath route in the communication network, the source terminal and the destination terminal being an arbitrary pair of the communication terminals in the communication network; means for placing said routing information in packets and transmitting said packets to neighboring communication terminals in the communication network; and means for analyzing the routing information in packets received from said neighboring terminals in the communication network, wherein the single-path route is separated from the multipath route so that signals transmitted on the multipath route do not interfere with signals transmitted on the single-path route, wherein the multipath route is spatially separated from the single-path route by using the routing information to designate a first zone and a second zone in the communication network, the single-path route being disposed in the first zone, the multipath route being disposed in the second zone, and wherein at least one communication terminal on the single-path route is designated as a median terminal, the first zone including all communication terminals within the communication network that are within a first number of hops of the median terminal, the second zone including all communication terminals in the communication network that are within a second number of hops from the median terminal and are outside the first zone, the second number being larger than the first number.
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12. A particular communication terminal for use in a communication network that includes a plurality of communication terminals, each of the communication terminals having:
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means for generating routing information for routing packets from a source terminal to a destination terminal on both a single-path route in the communication network and a multipath route in the communication network, the source terminal and the destination terminal being an arbitrary pair of the communication terminals in the communication network; means for placing said routing information in packets and transmitting said packets to neighboring communication terminals in the communication network; and means for analyzing the routing information in packets received from said neighboring terminals in the communication network, wherein the single-path route is separated from the multipath route so that signals transmitted on the multipath route do not interfere with signals transmitted on the single-path route, wherein the multipath route is spatially separated from the single-path route by using the routing information to designate a first zone and a second zone in the communication network, the single-path route being disposed in the first zone, the multipath route being disposed in the second zone, and wherein the particular communication terminal further comprises a first table and a second table, and wherein; when the communication terminal receives, from an arbitrary neighboring terminal in the communication network, a packet originating at an arbitrary distant terminal in the communication network, the means for analyzing obtains identifiers of the neighboring terminal and distant terminal from the packet and stores the identifiers of the neighboring terminal and the distant terminal in the first table, designating the neighboring terminal as the next terminal on a single-path route to the distant terminal if the neighboring terminal is the first terminal from which the communication terminal receives the packet; if the communication terminal is said source terminal, the means for generating generates hopcount information from the first number of hops and the second number of hops and generates a pair of endpoint terminal identifiers identifying the source terminal and the destination terminal, and the means for placing transmits the hopcount information and the pair of endpoint terminal identifiers in an assignment packet addressed to the median terminal; and if the communication terminal is the median terminal, the means for placing places the hopcount information, time-to-live information, and the pair of endpoint terminal identifiers in a zone control packet and transmits the zone control packet; if the communication terminal receives the zone control packet, the means for analyzing determines, from the hopcount information and the time-to-live information, whether the communication terminal is in the second zone, and stores the pair of endpoint terminal identifiers in the second table if the communication terminal is in the second zone, and if the time-to-live hopcount is not zero, the means for placing updates the time-to-live information and transmits the packet with the updated time-to-live information; if the communication terminal is said source terminal, when the communication terminal transmits a packet addressed to the destination terminal, the means for placing places identifiers of the source terminal and the destination terminal and the identifier of a nearest neighboring terminal, on the single-path route to the destination terminal, in the packet as said routing information; when the communication terminal receives a packet addressed from the source terminal to the destination terminal, the means for analyzing uses the first table and the second table to determine whether the communication terminal is the next terminal on the single-path route to the destination terminal or the communication terminal is in the second zone, and if the communication terminal is the next terminal on the single-path route to the destination terminal or is in the second zone, the means for placing updates the routing information in the packet and transmits the packet.
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13. A communication network, comprising a plurality of communication terminals, each of the communication terminals having:
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means for generating routing information for routing packets from a source terminal to a destination terminal on both a single-path route in the communication network and a multipath route in the communication network, the source terminal and the destination terminal being an arbitrary pair of the communication terminals in the communication network; means for placing said routing information in packets and transmitting said packets to neighboring communication terminals in the communication network; and means for analyzing the routing information in packets received from said neighboring terminals in the communication network, wherein the single-path route is separated from the multipath route so that signals transmitted on the multipath route do not interfere with signals transmitted on the single-path route, wherein the multipath route is spatially separated from the single-path route by using the routing information to designate a first zone and a second zone in the communication network, the single-path route being disposed in the first zone, the multipath route being disposed in the second zone, and wherein the second zone is subdivided into; an inner subzone in which received packets addressed to the destination terminal are transmitted immediately; and an outer subzone in which the received packets addressed to the destination terminal are suspended temporarily at each communication terminal on the multipath route. - View Dependent Claims (14)
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Specification