Mobile ad hoc network with dynamic TDMA slot assignments and related methods

• US 8,942,197 B2
• Filed: 10/24/2011
• Issued: 01/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Stingray IP Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Harris Corporation (L3Harris Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Rudnick, William Michael, Pun, Ngan-cheung, Clark, David, Datz, Charles Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): O CONNOR, BRIAN T
• Application Number:
  US13/279,651
• Publication Number:
  US 20130100942A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,191 Days
• Field of Search: 370/320, 370/337, 370/347, 370/348, 370/350
• US Class Current: 370/329
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/2656 for structure of frame, burst
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/121 for groups of terminals or users
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A mobile ad hoc network (MANET) may include mobile nodes, each having a wireless transceiver and a controller cooperating with wireless transceiver. The controller may be configured to operate in a geographic area using a time division multiple access (TDMA) protocol and based upon a TDMA epoch including TDMA time slots. The controller may also be configured to dynamically divide into first type mobile nodes and second type mobile nodes based upon a current topologic density in the topologic area relative to a topological density threshold so that each first type mobile node has a periodic TDMA time slot allocated in the TDMA epoch and so that each second type mobile node contends for contention interval TDMA time slots in the TDMA epoch.

Claims

1. A mobile ad hoc network (MANET) comprising:

a plurality of mobile nodes each comprising a wireless transceiver and a controller cooperating therewith and configured to

operate in a geographic area using a time division multiple access (TDMA) protocol and based upon a TDMA epoch including TDMA time slots, and

dynamically divide into a plurality of first type mobile nodes and a plurality of second type mobile nodes based upon a current topologic density in the topologic area relative to a topological density threshold

so that each first type mobile node has a periodic TDMA time slot allocated in the TDMA epoch, and

so that each second type mobile node contends for contention interval TDMA time slots in the TDMA epoch,

periodically detects when the contention interval TDMA time slots are being used, and

selectively changes a rate of detecting based upon a number of adjacent second type mobile nodes.

2. The MANET according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide so that each second type mobile node has at least one first type mobile node within one hop.

3. The MANET according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide based upon at least one traffic characteristic.

4. The MANET according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide based upon a minimum first type mobile node coverage threshold.

5. The MANET according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide to reserve at least one spare TDMA time slot in the TDMA epoch.

6. The MANET according to claim 1 wherein said plurality of first type mobile nodes is configured to exchange isochronous communication.

7. A mobile ad hoc network (MANET) comprising:

a plurality of mobile nodes each comprising a wireless transceiver and a controller cooperating therewith and configured to

operate in a geographic area using a time division multiple access (TDMA) protocol and based upon a TDMA epoch including TDMA time slots, and

dynamically divide into a plurality of first type mobile nodes exchanging isochronous communication, and a plurality of second type mobile nodes based upon a current topologic density in the topologic area relative to a topological density threshold

so that each first type mobile node has a periodic TDMA time slot allocated in the TDMA epoch, and

so that each second type mobile node contends for contention interval TDMA time slots in the TDMA epoch,

has at least one first type mobile node within one hop,

periodically detects when the contention interval TDMA time slots are being used, and

selectively changes a rate of detecting based upon a number of adjacent second type mobile nodes.

8. The MANET according to claim 7 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide based upon at least one traffic characteristic.

9. The MANET according to claim 7 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide based upon a minimum first type mobile node coverage threshold.

10. The MANET according to claim 7 wherein said plurality of mobile nodes is configured to dynamically divide to reserve at least one spare TDMA time slot in the TDMA epoch.

11. A method of communicating in a mobile ad hoc network (MANET) having a plurality of mobile nodes and being in a geographic area, the MANET using a time division multiple access (TDMA) protocol based upon a TDMA epoch including TDMA time slots, the method comprising:

dynamically dividing into a plurality of first type mobile nodes and a plurality of second type mobile nodes based upon a current topologic density in the topologic area relative to a topological density threshold so that each first type mobile node has a periodic TDMA time slot allocated in the TDMA epoch and so that each second type mobile node contends for contention interval TDMA time slots in the TDMA epoch; and

operating each second type mobile node to periodically detect when the contention interval TDMA time slots are being used, and selectively change a rate of detecting based upon a number of adjacent second type mobile nodes.

12. The method according to claim 11 further comprising dynamically dividing so that each second type mobile node has at least one first type mobile node within one hop.

13. The method according to claim 11 further comprising dynamically dividing based upon at least one traffic characteristic.

14. The method according to claim 11 further comprising dynamically dividing based upon a minimum first type mobile node coverage threshold.

15. The method according to claim 11 further comprising dynamically dividing to reserve at least one spare TDMA time slot in the TDMA epoch.