Intelligent multi-bean medium access control in ku-band for mission-oriented mobile mesh networks

• US 10,264,407 B2
• Filed: 06/27/2016
• Issued: 04/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: San Diego State University (California State University System), Board of Trustees of The University of Alabama (University of Alabama System)
• Original Assignee: San Diego State University (California State University System), Board of Trustees of The University of Alabama (University of Alabama System)
• Inventors: Hu, Fei, Li, Xin, Kumar, Sunil
• Primary Examiner(s): Louis, Vinncelas
• Application Number:
  US15/193,617
• Publication Number:
  US 20160381596A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,023 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/00 Arrangements for program control, e.g. control units program control for peripheral devices G06F13/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/022 Site diversity; Macro-diversity using two or more spaced independent antennas H04B7/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0617 for beam forming
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/18504 Aircraft used as relay or high altitude atmospheric platform
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/2643 using time-division multiple access [TDMA] H04B7/2615, H04B7/2618 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 2203/36 including means for exchanging jamming data between transmitter and receiver, e.g. in forward or backward direction
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 3/224 with countermeasures at transmission and/or reception of the jammed signal, e.g. stopping operation of transmitter or receiver, nulling or enhancing transmitted power in direction of or at frequency of jammer
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 3/25 based on characteristics of target signal or of transmission as countermeasure against surveillance H04K3/827, e.g. using direct sequence spread spectrum or fast frequency hopping spread spectrum techniques H04B1/69
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/50 Queue scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0268 using specific QoS parameters for wireless networks, e.g. QoS class identifier [QCI] or guaranteed bit rate [GBR] negotiating SLA or negotiating QoS H04W28/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/40 for vehicles, e.g. vehicle-to-pedestrians [V2P]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/20 Control channels or signalling for resource management
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 74/0808 using carrier sensing, e.g. carrier sense multiple access [CSMA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/005 Moving wireless networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/06 Airborne or Satellite Networks space-based or airborne stations H04B7/185

Abstract

A MAC design for Ku-band mobile wireless mesh network with multi-beam smart antennas is disclosed. This MAC includes an overlay control that separates the collision domain. It also has lower layer CSMA-like scheme. The disclosed design includes an enhanced PCF and an enhanced DCF for two purposes: (1) exploiting multi-beam concurrent communication capability (2) supporting QoS and mission-based communications. An efficient time synchronization scheme is also disclosed to ensure all beams can concurrently send data to the star node. Finally, ARMA or HMM based prediction schemes are disclosed to predict future traffic profile in each beam. This helps the star node to better prepare the queue content and schedule information.

Claims

1. A method for control of a wireless mesh network comprising:

implementing a multi-layered media access control protocol for coordinated transmission among a plurality of nodes of the wireless mesh network, wherein the wireless mesh network comprises a moving airborne network operating in a Ku-band frequency range, at least one of the plurality of nodes comprises a mesh router (MR) and at least one other of the plurality of nodes comprises a mesh client (MC), and wherein at least the MR node comprises a multi-beam smart antenna (MBSA);

adapting parameters in the layers of the media access control protocol to schedule a Ku-band frequency data transmission among the plurality of nodes of the wireless mesh network, wherein all of the beams of the multi-beam smart antenna are concurrently either transmitting or receiving during the Ku-band frequency data transmission; and

predicting state transitions between the plurality of nodes of the wireless mesh network using a mathematical model, wherein said state transitions comprise a next interval Ku-band frequency communication between the MR and the MC and the prediction includes which beam of the MBSA will be used to communicate with the MC in the Ku-band frequency range, a traffic type of the next interval Ku-band frequency communication, and required airtime for the next interval Ku-band frequency communication and the prediction is based at least in part on mobility of the MR and/or the MC.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one of the plurality of nodes of wireless mesh network is mobile.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless mesh network comprises priority aware communication.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol uses time difference synchronization further enhanced by using reference broadcast time synchronization.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-layered media access layer uses a distributed coordination function.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the distributed coordination function comprises beam synchronized backoff.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol uses a point coordination function.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol comprises TDMA-like collision domain separation.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol comprises TDMA rate control in each beam of the multi-beam smart antennas.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless mesh network comprises neighborhood-synchronization in switched multi-beam smart antennas.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the mathematical model comprises a vector autoregressive moving average model (ARMA).

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the mathematical model comprises a hidden Markov model.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the predicted traffic type comprises one of a constant bit rate (CBR), a variable bit rate (VBR), or a best effort.

14. A system for control of a wireless mesh network comprising:

a wireless mesh network comprised of a plurality of nodes, wherein one or more of the plurality of nodes are comprised of a processor, a memory and a communications interface, said processor executing computer-readable instructions, stored in the memo, to;

implement a multi-layered media access control protocol for coordinated transmission among the plurality of nodes of the wireless mesh network, wherein the wireless mesh network comprises a moving airborne network operating in a Ku-band frequency range, at least one of the plurality of nodes comprises a mesh router (MR) and at least one other of the plurality of nodes comprises a mesh client (MC), and wherein at least the MR node comprises a multi-beam smart antenna (MBSA);

adapt parameters in the layers of the media access control protocol to schedule a Ku-band frequency data transmission among the nodes of the wireless mesh network, wherein all of the beams of the multi-beam smart antenna are concurrently either transmitting or receiving during the Ku-band frequency data transmission; and

predict state transitions between the nodes of the wireless mesh network using a mathematical model wherein said state transitions comprise a next interval Ku-band frequency communication between the MR and the MC and the prediction includes which beam of the MBSA will be used to communicate with the MC in the Ku-band frequency range, a traffic type of the next interval Ku-band frequency communication, and required airtime for the next interval Ku-band frequency communication and the prediction is based at least in part on mobility of the MR and/or the MC.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol comprises TDMA rate control in each beam of the multi-beam smart antennas.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the wireless mesh network comprises neighborhood-synchronization in switched multi-beam smart antennas.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol uses a distributed coordination function.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the distributed coordination function comprises beam synchronized backoff.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol uses a point coordination function.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the multi-layered media access control protocol comprises TDMA-like collision domain separation.

21. The system of claim 14, wherein the mathematical model comprises a vector autoregressive moving average model (ARMA).

22. The system of claim 14, wherein the mathematical model comprises a hidden Markov model.

23. The system of claim 14 further comprising an aircraft, wherein at least one of the plurality of nodes of the wireless mesh network is located on the aircraft.

24. The system of claim 14, wherein the predicted traffic type comprises one of a constant bit rate (CBR), a variable bit rate (VBR), or a best effort.