# US 12,015,939 B2 · Mesh network connection quality

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- Number: US 12,015,939 B2
- Document ID: US12015939B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/142,763
- Filed: 2021-01-06
- Published: 2021-07-08
- Granted: 2024-06-18
- Earliest claimed: 2020-01-06
- Assignees: Alarm.com Incorporated
- Applicants: Alarm.com Incorporated
- Inventors: Austin Lucas; Gustaf Nicolaus Maxwell Lonaeus; Kyle Rankin Johnson; Adam Feinstein
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12015939B2

## CPC

- H04W 24/06: Testing, {supervising or monitoring} using simulated traffic
- H04W 24/08: Testing, {supervising or monitoring} using real traffic
- H04W 24/02: Arrangements for optimising operational condition
- H04W 24/04: Arrangements for maintaining operational condition
- H04W 84/18: Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
- H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72)

## Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer-storage media, for mesh network connection quality testing. In some implementations, a method for mesh network connection quality testing includes transmitting, by a control unit of a monitoring system that is configured to monitor a property, test data to a first connected component of the monitoring system; in response to transmitting the test data, receiving, by the control unit, response data from the first connected component of the monitoring system; based on the response data, determining, by the control unit, a link quality indicator that reflects a strength of a connection between the control unit and the first connected component; and based on the link quality indicator, adjusting, by the control unit, one or more settings of the connection between the control unit and the first connected component.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A computer-implemented method comprising:
transmitting, by a control unit of a monitoring system that is configured to monitor a property, test data to a first connected component of the monitoring system;
in response to transmitting the test data, receiving, by the control unit, response data from the first connected component of the monitoring system;
determining, by the control unit using the response data, a number of different unique routes a) used to transmit the test data to the first connected component and b) that each include two or more nodes, the combination of the two or more nodes for each of the unique routes being different than a combination of two or more nodes for any other of the unique routes;
generating, by the control unit and using a value indicating the number of unique routes, a link quality indicator that reflects a strength of a connection between the control unit and the first connected component; and
based on the link quality indicator, adjusting, by the control unit, one or more settings of the connection between the control unit and the first connected component.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
for each of two or more data packets of the test data:
obtaining, by the control unit, a first route comprising a first set of one or more nodes in a mesh network that were used to transfer a first data packet of the test data from the control unit to the first connected component;
obtaining, by the control unit, a second route comprising a second set of one or more nodes in the mesh network that were used to transfer a second data packet of the test data from the control unit to the first connected component;
determining, by the control unit, whether the first route and the second route are different;
in response to determining that the first route and the second route are different, incrementing, by the control unit, a value of a route counter by a determined value; and
in response to determining that the first route and the second route are not different, determining, by the control unit, not to increment the value of the route counter by the determined value.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the test data comprises:
obtaining, by the control unit, a time window comprising a starting time and an ending time; and
transmitting, by the control unit, the test data to the first connected component of the monitoring system from the starting time until the ending time.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The method of claim 3, further comprising:
determining, by the control unit, a first number of data packets of the test data that successfully reached the first connected component within the time window and a second number of data packets of the test data that did not successfully reach the first connected component within the time window based on the response data; and
generating, by the control unit, the link quality indicator based on the first number of data packets and the second number of data packets.

### Claim 5 (depends on 3)

The method of claim 3, further comprising:
generating, by the control unit, a successful transmission rate based on a number of data packets that successfully reach the first connected component within the time window; and
generating, by the control unit, the link quality indicator based on the successful transmission rate.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
generating, by the control unit and based on the link quality indicator, configured data that is configured to enable a display of a user device to represent the link quality indicator; and
sending, by the control unit, the configured data to the user device.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the test data comprises a plurality of data packets and the response data comprises a number of response data packets corresponding to one or more data packets of the plurality of data packets that successfully arrived at the first connected component.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the response data comprises at least two different routes of one or more nodes in a mesh network that were used to transfer at least part of the test data from the control unit to the first connected component.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein each of the at least two different routes include a list of one or more values representing one or more nodes, and wherein a value of the list of one or more values is generated by a second connected component that connects the control unit to the first connected component as a node within a route of the mesh network.

### Claim 10 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein the response data further comprises a first node link quality indicator of a first node of the one or more nodes in a route and the method further comprises:
determining, by the control unit, that the first node link quality indicator does not satisfy a determined link quality indicator threshold; and
in response to determining that the first node link quality indicator does not satisfy the determined link quality indicator threshold, performing, by the control unit, connection diagnostics.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the connection diagnostics comprise determining a power level of the first node and comparing the power level of the first node to a power level threshold.

### Claim 12 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8, wherein the response data further comprises a first node power level of a first node of the one or more nodes in a route and the method further comprises:
determining, by the control unit, that the first node power level does not satisfy a determined power level threshold; and
in response to determining that the first node power level does not satisfy the determined power level threshold, adjusting, by the control unit, a power level of the first node.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the response data comprises a plurality of analytic indicators, and wherein generating the link quality indicator comprises combining two or more analytic indicators of the plurality of analytic indicators to generate the link quality indicator.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of analytic indicators comprise a route counter value that represents a number of routes that were used to transfer the test data from the control unit to the first connected component through a mesh network, wherein each route of the number of routes corresponds to a set of one or more nodes in the mesh network.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting the one or more settings of the connection between the control unit and the first connected component comprise:
sending, by the control unit, a signal to a second connected component that connects the control unit and the first connected component, wherein the signal is configured to adjust a power level of the second connected component.

### Claim 16 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the test data to the first connected component of the monitoring system comprises:
determining, by the control unit, a first power level for a first data packet of the test data; and
transmitting, by the control unit, the first data packet of the test data using the first power level.

### Claim 17

A system comprising one or more computers and one or more storage devices on which are stored instructions that are operable, when executed by the one or more computers, to cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:
transmitting, by a control unit of a monitoring system that is configured to monitor a property, test data to a first connected component of the monitoring system;
in response to transmitting the test data, receiving, by the control unit, response data from the first connected component of the monitoring system;
determining, by the control unit using the response data, a number of different unique routes a) used to transmit the test data to the first connected component and b) that each include two or more nodes, the combination of the two or more nodes for each of the unique routes being different than a combination of two or more nodes for any other of the unique routes;
generating, by the control unit and using a value indicating the number of unique routes, a link quality indicator that reflects a strength of a connection between the control unit and the first connected component; and
based on the link quality indicator, adjusting, by the control unit, one or more settings of the connection between the control unit and the first connected component.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The system of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise:
for each of two or more data packets of the test data:
obtaining, by the control unit, a first route comprising a first set of one or more nodes in a mesh network that were used to transfer a first data packet of the test data from the control unit to the first connected component;
obtaining, by the control unit, a second route comprising a second set of one or more nodes in the mesh network that were used to transfer a second data packet of the test data from the control unit to the first connected component;
determining, by the control unit, whether the first route and the second route are different;
in response to determining that the first route and the second route are different, incrementing, by the control unit, a value of a route counter by a determined value; and
in response to determining that the first route and the second route are not different, determining, by the control unit, not to increment the value of the route counter by the determined value.

### Claim 19 (depends on 17)

The system of claim 17, wherein transmitting the test data comprises:
obtaining, by the control unit, a time window comprising a starting time and an ending time; and
transmitting, by the control unit, the test data to the first connected component of the monitoring system from the starting time until the ending time.

### Claim 20

A non-transitory computer storage medium encoded with instructions that, when executed by one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising:
transmitting, by a control unit of a monitoring system that is configured to monitor a property, test data to a first connected component of the monitoring system;
in response to transmitting the test data, receiving, by the control unit, response data from the first connected component of the monitoring system;
determining, by the control unit using the response data, a number of different unique routes a) used to transmit the test data to the first connected component and b) that each include two or more nodes, the combination of the two or more nodes for each of the unique routes being different than a combination of two or more nodes for any other of the unique routes;
generating, by the control unit and using a value indicating the number of unique routes, a link quality indicator that reflects a strength of a connection between the control unit and the first connected component; and
based on the link quality indicator, adjusting, by the control unit, one or more settings of the connection between the control unit and the first connected component.