I think it would wind up being delicate peer-to-peer networking that the RIAA and the MPAA would never be able to stop. I'm not saying I approve or disapprove, but I think that people would swap MP3s within about 45 seconds of this technology becoming widespread.

I would agree that within seconds people would utilize this concept for this type of swapping but on the flip side...imagine being able to "legitimately" swap info with your friends, neighbors, countrymen, etc. A true P2P network that formed ad hoc would enable collaboration on a scale that "ubiquitous" computing really needs. Yes, 'some' would swap MP3s etc but that happens today. A truly ad hoc P2P network is a future to which we are heading and simply must prepare for.

Properly implemented, every node could also act as simply a pipe (or repeater), simply rebroadcasting all the signals it receives without regard to authentication and authorization except for the packets destined for this node/device.

Correct. Ideally each piece of hardware could/would have two 'radios'. One to simply route and one to talk. This configuration would allow for some incredible netowrks. I'm curious as to what the future would look like if all devices had this ability.

The issue is making sure that all those radios do not interfere. As such you would need to be using power adaptive radio implementations like CDMA. But yes, it could be VERY cool.

I have this idea before either. I thought WLAN would be enough for hardware. What matter is is application. For example, we can play game with stranger around.

An interesting problem revolving around mesh networking is how do you maintain global connectivity (since the shortest distance from A to B may NOT be a straight line) and yet limit the number of nodes that a packet travels. Without some form of throttle or limiter a packet would span the globe when all you want is to send it to your neighbor.

One way of doing this would be to limit the number of node hops a packet makes. I'm curious to see if anyone has other ideas.

There is more hype than reality around mesh networking. In the end, that can cause the bubble around mesh to bust - rapidly. Its time for a reality check on what mesh can and cannot do.

First, Mesh networks are not a new concept. In some ways, the internet is a mesh network. And it works, despite its size - because it does not suffer from the limitations of conventional wireless mesh networks:

1-Radio is a shared medium and forces everyone to stay silent while one person holds the stage. Wired networks, on the other hand, can and do hold multiple simultaneous conversations.

2-In a single radio ad hoc mesh network, the best you can do is (1/2)^^n at each hop. So in a multi hop mesh network, the Max available bandwidth available to you degrades at the rate of 1/2, 1/4, 1/8. By the time you are 4 hops away the max you can get is 1/16 of the total available bandwidth.

3-That does not sound too bad when you are putting together a wireless sensor network with limited bandwidth and latency considerations. It is DISASTROUS if you wish to provide the level of latency/throughput people are accustomed to with their wired networks. Consider the case of just 10 active clients at each node of a 4 hop mesh network. The clients at the last rung will receive -at best- 1/(16,0000) of the total bandwidth at the root.

4-Why has this not been noticed as yet? Because first there are not a lot of mesh networks around that cover more than 1 hops and second multihop mesh networks have not been tested under high usage situations. Browsing and email don’t count. Try video - where both latency and bandwidth matter - or VOIP where the bandwidth is a measly 64Kbps but where latency matters. Even in a simple 4 hop ad hoc mesh network with 10 clients, VOIP phones wont work well beyond the first or second hop – the latency and jitter caused by CSMA/CA contention windows (how wireless systems avoid collisions) will be unbearable.

Mesh networks are a great concept. But the challenge lies in managing the dynamics of mesh networks so users receive an acceptable level of performance in terms of both latency and throughput. Its time to focus on solving some real problems to make mesh networks scale and provide stable performance. In my next submission I shall delve into some challenges for high perfomance - enterprise class - wireless mesh networking for both voice and data. Regardless of how many hops you are away from the Ethernet link.

Francis daCosta
Founder and CTO
www.meshdynamics.com
fdacosta@meshdynamics.com

That was highly enlightening. I'm very interested to see your 'next submission'

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