Optimized route for time-critical traffic in mesh network

A node of a network, comprising:

• a processor configured to execute computer-readable instructions;
• and
• a memory configured to store the computer-readable instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:
• transmitting regular data to a root node of the network through a primary route associated with a primary parent node of the node, wherein the node has a plurality of parent nodes in the network comprising the primary parent node and one or more backup parent nodes, each of the plurality of parent nodes associated with a route between the node and the root node of the network;
• determining that there is a time-critical message to be transmitted to the root node, wherein the time-critical message is to be delivered to the root node faster than the regular data;
• selecting a subset of parent nodes of said plurality of parent nodes according to a route reliability criteria;
• estimating a round trip time (RTT) for each route between the node to the root node that is associated with one parent node of the selected subset of plurality of parent nodes, wherein the RTTs are estimated based on messages transmitted between the node and each parent node of the selected subset of plurality of parent nodes;
• selecting, among the selected subset of plurality of parent nodes, a parent node whose associated route has the lowest RTT and is different from the primary route associated with the primary parent node;
• transmitting the time-critical message to the root node through the selected parent node;
• and
• switching back to the primary route to transmit additional regular data to the root node.

A method for transmitting time-critical messages in a mesh network, the method comprising:

• transmitting, by a node in the mesh network, regular data to a root node of the mesh network through a primary route associated with a primary parent node of the node, wherein the node has a plurality of parent nodes in the mesh network comprising the primary parent node and one or more backup parent nodes, each of the plurality of parent nodes associated with a route between the node and the root node of the mesh network;
• determining, by the node, that there is a time-critical message to be transmitted to the root node, wherein the time-critical message is to be delivered to the root node faster than the regular data;
• selecting a plurality of parent nodes of said plurality of parent nodes according to a route reliability criteria;
• estimating, by the node, a round trip time (RTT) for each route between the node to the root node that is associated with one parent node of the selected subset of plurality of parent nodes, wherein the RTTs are estimated based on messages transmitted between the node and each parent node of the selected subset of plurality of parent nodes;
• selecting, by the node and among the selected subset of plurality of parent nodes, a parent node whose associated route has the lowest RTT and is different from the primary route associated with the primary parent node;
• transmitting, by the node, the time-critical message to the root node through the selected parent node;
• and
• switching, by the node, back to the primary route to transmit additional regular data to the root node.