mesh network

Image showing computing based mesh network layout

Image showing mesh network layout

Mesh networking is a way to route data, voice and instructions between nodes. It allows for continuous connections and reconfiguration around broken or blocked paths by “hopping” from node to node until the destination is reached. A mesh network whose nodes are all connected to each other is a fully connected network. Mesh networks differ from other networks in that the component parts can all connect to each other via multiple hops, and they generally are not mobile. Mesh networks can be seen as one type of ad hoc network. Mobile ad-hoc networking (MANet), and mesh networking are therefore closely related, but mobile ad hoc networks also have to deal with the problems introduced by the mobility of the nodes.

Mesh networks are self-healing: the network can still operate even when a node breaks down or a connection goes bad. As a result, a very reliable network is formed. This concept is applicable to wireless networks, wired networks, and software interaction.

Examples

Earlier this year (2007), the US-based firm Meraki[1] launched a mini wireless mesh router. This is an example of a wireless mesh network (on a claimed speed of up to 50 megabits per second). The 802.11 radio within the Meraki Mini has been optimized for long-distance communication, providing coverage over 250 meters. This however is an example of a mesh network being used more locally as opposed to a mesh network like SkyPilot [2].

A Massachusetts Institute of Technology project is developing the XO-1 laptop or "Children's Machine" which is intended for under-privileged schools in developing nations and plans to use mesh networking to create a robust and inexpensive infrastructure. The instantaneous connections made by the laptops are claimed by the project to reduce the need for an external infrastructure such as the internet to reach all areas, because a connected node could share the connection with nodes nearby. A similar concept has also been implemented by Greenpacket by its application called SONbuddy.

In Cambridge, UK, on the 3rd June 2006, mesh networking was used at the “Strawberry Fair” to run mobile live television, radio and internet services to an estimated 80,000 people[3].

The Champaign-Urbana Community Wireless Network (CUWiN) project is developing mesh networking software based on open source implementations of the Hazy-Sighted Link State Routing Protocol and Expected Transmission Count metric.

SMesh is an 802.11 multi-hop wireless mesh network developed by the Distributed System and Networks Lab at Johns Hopkins University. A fast handoff scheme allows mobile clients to roam in the network without interruption in connectivity, a feature suitable for real-time applications, such as VoIP.

See also

Mesh network applications

• BioWeb
• Mobile ad-hoc network
• Vehicular ad-hoc network
  • Intelligent Vehicular AdHoc Network refer Google Groups-INADVENC
• Wireless ad-hoc network
• Wireless community network
• Wireless mesh network

Mesh network devices

• MeshBox

Technical challenges

• Wizzy Digital Courier
• Delay Tolerant Networking

External links

• Wifi Mesh Networking Softwares My Experiments with Wifi Mesh Networks.
• What is Third Generation Mesh? Review of three generation of mesh networking architectures.
• Is Multi-radio mesh worthwhile? Cost considerations of multi-radio mesh.
• MIT Roofnet A research project at MIT that forms the basis of roofnet / Meraki mesh networks
• Ugly Truths About Mesh Networks Performance issues of First and Second Generation Mesh products.

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