Itron Networked Solutions, Inc.

Silver Spring Networks, Inc.

Paul Dietrich

Sterling Hughes

Cristina A Seibert

William E San Filippo, Iii

Kamal Poorrezaei

Christina Seibert

William E San Filippo Iii

A battery-powered node within a wireless mesh network performs energy-aware packet routing based on multiple factors. The battery powered node computes, for a given link to an adjacent node, the energy needed to transmit a packet to the adjacent node. The battery-powered node also determines the amount of battery energy remaining in the adjacent node. Based on these two factors, the battery powered node computes a link cost associated with the link to the adjacent node. The battery-powered node performs a similar computation for all adjacent nodes and then forwards packets via these adjacent nodes based on the associated link costs. The battery-powered node also maintains a table of routes through adjacent nodes, and reroutes packets through different adjacent nodes in response to link failures.

Energy aware routing for mesh networks

A method for optimizing communication modes between network nodes includes: storing, in a first node in a communication network, a data success rate for each of a plurality of communication modes; receiving, by the first node, mode data from a second node in the communication network including at least a mode identifier for at least two of the plurality of communication modes; determining, by the first node, a metric for each of the at least two communication modes based on at least a data success rate of transmissions using the respective communication mode; selecting, by the first node, a preferred communication mode of the at least two communication modes based on the determined metric for each of the at least two communication modes; and transmitting, by the first node, an initiation data message to the second node via the communication network indicating the selected preferred communication mode.

Mode control design

A node residing within a wireless mesh network is configured to transmit a state transition message to a downstream node also residing within the wireless mesh network. The state transition message indicates a new operating state for the downstream node. Upon receipt of the state transition message, the downstream node may transition to the new operating state and then transmit an acknowledgement message back to the node that sent the state transition message. Alternatively, the downstream node may transmit the acknowledgement message back to the node that sent the state transition message first, and then transition to the new operating state.

Technique for changing the operating state of a node within a network

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Princeton, NJ, United States of America

Paul Dietrich