System and method to provide differentiated routing in multi-hop multi-radio wireless networks

• US 8,811,234 B2
• Filed: 02/27/2012
• Issued: 08/19/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ARRIS Enterprises LLC (CommScope Holding Company, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Motorola Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: Guntur, Ravindra, Chakeres, Ian D., Gossain, Hrishikesh, Joshi, Avinash
• Primary Examiner(s): JAIN, RAJ K
• Application Number:
  US13/406,298
• Publication Number:
  US 20120147780A1
• Time in Patent Office: 904 Days
• Field of Search: 370/218, 370/235, 370/237, 370/238, 370/252, 370/253, 370/254, 370/337, 370/338, 370/395.21, 370/401, 370/353, 370/256, 370/328
• US Class Current: 370/256
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/124 using a combination of metrics
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 45/302 Route determination based on requested QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/02 Communication route or path selection, e.g. power-based or shortest path routing

Abstract

A method provides for differentiating usage permissions between different categories of communication traffic within a given network. The method includes ensuring one or more categories of traffic never transits communication radios, link, and/or spectrums dedicated to a different category of traffic. A combined routing metric is calculated using a scaling factor for discouraging usage of restricted communication links and encouraging usage of non-restricted communication links.

Claims

1. A method of differentiated routing in a multi-hop multi-radio wireless network, the method comprising:

for each of a plurality of communication links, identifying a link type of the communication link as one of a restricted link and an ANY link;

broadcasting a route request from a source node, wherein the route request includes a category of traffic, wherein the route request is broadcast on the restricted links and the ANY links when the category of traffic comprises a particular category of traffic, and further wherein the route request is broadcast only on the ANY links when the category of traffic is not the particular category of traffic.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the particular category of traffic comprises public safety traffic.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the category of traffic is included in a tag within the route request.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the route request further comprises a source address and a destination address, the method further comprising at each node receiving the route request:

identifying the category of traffic using the source address and the destination address.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

forwarding a route reply along a route from a node to the source node, wherein the route reply includes the category of traffic from the route request, wherein the forwarding of the route reply comprises at each of a plurality of nodes along the route;

selecting a best available route toward the source node by;

calculating a combined route metric for each of a plurality of routes between the node and the source node, wherein the combined route metric calculation includes a scaling factor for increasing a route metric of each of the restricted links; and

selecting the route with the lowest combined route metric.