Beaconing techniques in frequency hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) wireless mesh networks
First Claim
1. A method of communicating in a network, comprising:
- sending, by a first node, a message to two or more neighbor nodes;
responding, by the two or more neighbor nodes, with a message to the first node, the response message including information comprising an indication of a beacon frequency, an indication of a beacon transmit time and information about a current hopping sequence;
periodically tuning a receiver, by the first node, to the beacon frequency of one of the two or more neighbor nodes at an associated beacon transmit time based on respective response messages of the two or more neighbor nodes, wherein the first node assigns a priority to each of the two or more neighbor nodes and tunes to a beacon frequency of one of the two or more neighbor nodes based on the priority assigned to and unknown to each of the two or more neighbor nodes, and wherein the message of the beacon frequency not tuned to is not received by the first node; and
using the information about the hopping sequence to receive information comprising routing information and timing updates from a beacon of the two or more neighbor nodes for hopping channel synchronization.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Methods include those by which nodes in a Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS) wireless network may be flexibly configured for beacon transmission and reception. The method may allow for any node to synchronize to any other node'"'"'s given frequency to receive one or more beacon (broadcast) packets from that node at the designated period. The method may include sending, by a first node, a message to one or more neighbor nodes and responding, by the one or more neighbor nodes, with a message to the first node, the response message including a beacon frequency, a beacon transmit time and information about the current hopping sequence. The first node periodically programs its receiver to the beacon frequency at the beacon transmit time and uses the hopping sequence to receive information including at least one of routing information and timing updates for hopping channel synchronization from the one or more neighbor nodes.
15 Citations
10 Claims
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1. A method of communicating in a network, comprising:
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sending, by a first node, a message to two or more neighbor nodes; responding, by the two or more neighbor nodes, with a message to the first node, the response message including information comprising an indication of a beacon frequency, an indication of a beacon transmit time and information about a current hopping sequence; periodically tuning a receiver, by the first node, to the beacon frequency of one of the two or more neighbor nodes at an associated beacon transmit time based on respective response messages of the two or more neighbor nodes, wherein the first node assigns a priority to each of the two or more neighbor nodes and tunes to a beacon frequency of one of the two or more neighbor nodes based on the priority assigned to and unknown to each of the two or more neighbor nodes, and wherein the message of the beacon frequency not tuned to is not received by the first node; and using the information about the hopping sequence to receive information comprising routing information and timing updates from a beacon of the two or more neighbor nodes for hopping channel synchronization. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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Specification