Method and apparatus for providing a collaborative reply over an ad-hoc mesh network

• US 9,185,521 B2
• Filed: 08/06/2014
• Issued: 11/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Leppanen, Kari, Kasslin, Mika, Tirronen, Mikko, Turunen, Markku T., Virtanen, Sami
• Primary Examiner(s): Kizou, Hassan
• Assistant Examiner(s): FARAHMAND, ASHIL S
• Application Number:
  US14/453,308
• Publication Number:
  US 20140349684A1
• Time in Patent Office: 461 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0259 based on store location
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/043 using or handling presence information
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/216 Handling conversation history, e.g. grouping of messages in sessions or threads
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/30 Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/023 Limited or focused flooding to selected areas of a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/246 Connectivity information discovery
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

An approach is provided for providing a collaborative reply to a flooding message over an ad-hoc mesh network. A reply message to a flooding message is received by a wireless node within the ad-hoc network. The wireless node monitors for an acknowledgement of receipt of the reply message according to a routing table and initiates a scheduled transmission of the reply message based on the monitoring.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

exchanging via a processor an event identification code between two or more wireless nodes over an ad-hoc mesh network via an anonymous message while attending an event corresponding to the exchanged event identification code, wherein at least one of the two or more wireless nodes previously stores the event identification code prior to the exchanging based on an event invitation including the event identification code, and wherein the at least one of the two or more wireless nodes is a wireless device of a user; and

establishing via the processor whether the user is at the event corresponding to the stored event identification code by comparison of the exchanged event identification code received by the wireless device of the user with the stored event identification code.

2. A method of claim 1, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, the wireless device of the user to know that it is at a location of the event corresponding to the exchanged event identification code based on awareness information from other wireless nodes that are within a radio range of the wireless device of the user that receives the anonymous message therefrom via the ad-hoc mesh network,

wherein the awareness information is shared between wireless nodes via the anonymous message.

3. A method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing navigational services to the wireless device of the user via positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities,

wherein the positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities is provided to the wireless device of the user via awareness information provided by the anonymous message.

4. A method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing position information to the wireless device of the user via positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities, and

providing a reminder message regarding the event to the user based, at least in part, on the position information.

5. A method of claim 1, wherein the anonymous message includes a temporal limit corresponding to the event and is retransmitted only for a duration of the event.

6. A method of claim 5, wherein the wireless device of the user accesses a clock service to determine current time and does not retransmit the anonymous message regarding the event if the current time is subsequent to the temporal limit corresponding to the event.

7. A method of claim 1, wherein the anonymous message includes a context limit, the method further comprising:

rebroadcasting the anonymous message only if a context of a node receiving the anonymous message matches the context limit of the received anonymous message.

8. An apparatus comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program code for one or more programs,

the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform at least the following;

exchange an event identification code between two or more wireless nodes over an ad-hoc mesh network via an anonymous message while attending an event corresponding to the exchanged event identification code, wherein at least one of the two or more wireless nodes previously stores the event identification code prior to the exchanging based on an event invitation including the event identification code, and wherein the at least one of the two or more wireless nodes is a wireless device of a user; and

establish whether the user is at the event corresponding to the stored event identification code by comparison of the exchanged event identification code received by the wireless device of the user with the stored event identification code.

9. An apparatus of claim 8, wherein the apparatus is further caused, at least in part, to:

cause, at least in part, the wireless device of the user to know that it is at a location of the event corresponding to the exchanged event identification code based on awareness information from other wireless nodes that are within a radio range of the wireless device of the user that receives the anonymous message therefrom via the ad-hoc mesh network,

wherein the awareness information is shared between wireless nodes via the anonymous message.

10. An apparatus of claim 8, wherein the apparatus is further caused, at least in part, to:

provide navigational services to the wireless device of the user via positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities,

wherein the positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities is provided to the wireless device of the user via awareness information of the anonymous message.

11. An apparatus of claim 8, wherein the apparatus is further caused, at least in part, to:

provide position information to the wireless device of the user via positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities, and

provide a reminder message regarding the event to the user based, at least in part, on the position information.

12. An apparatus of claim 8, wherein the anonymous message includes a temporal limit corresponding to the event and is retransmitted only for a duration of the event.

13. An apparatus of claim 12, wherein the wireless device of the user accesses a clock service to determine current time and does not retransmit the anonymous message regarding the event if the current time is subsequent to the temporal limit corresponding to the event.

14. An apparatus of claim 8, wherein the anonymous message includes a context limit, and wherein the apparatus is further caused, at least in part, to:

rebroadcast the anonymous message only if a context of a node receiving the flooding message matches the context limit of the received anonymous message.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an apparatus to at least perform:

exchange an event identification code between two or more wireless nodes over an ad-hoc mesh network via an anonymous message while attending an event corresponding to the exchanged event identification code, wherein at least one of the two or more wireless nodes previously stores the event identification code prior to the exchanging based on an event invitation including the event identification code, and wherein the at least one of the two or more wireless nodes is a wireless device of a user; and

establish whether the user is at the event corresponding to the stored event identification code by comparison of the exchanged event identification code received by the wireless device of the user with the stored event identification code.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the apparatus is caused, at least in part, to further perform:

cause, at least in part, the wireless device of the user to know that it is at a location of the event corresponding to the exchanged event identification code based on awareness information from other wireless nodes that are within a radio range of the wireless device of the user that receives the anonymous message therefrom via the ad-hoc mesh network,

wherein the awareness information is shared between wireless nodes via the anonymous message.

17. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the apparatus is caused, at least in part, to further perform:

provide navigational services to the wireless device of the user via positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities,

wherein the positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities is provided to the wireless device of the user via awareness information of the anonymous message.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the apparatus is caused, at least in part, to further perform:

provide position information to the wireless device of the user via positioning information of neighboring wireless nodes having positioning capabilities, and

provide a reminder message regarding the event to the user based, at least in part, on the position information.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15,

wherein the anonymous message includes a temporal limit corresponding to the event, and

wherein the wireless device of the user accesses a clock service to determine current time and does not retransmit the anonymous message regarding the event if the current time is subsequent to the temporal limit corresponding to the event.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the anonymous message includes a context limit, and wherein the apparatus is caused, at least in part, to further perform:

rebroadcast the anonymous message only if a context of a node receiving the anonymous message matches the context limit of the received anonymous message.