Communications network having adaptive network link optimization using wireless terrain awareness and method for use therein

A wireless communications node for use in a communications network having a plurality of wireless communications nodes arranged within a first geographic region, at least some of said plurality of wireless communications nodes being mobile, said wireless communications node comprising:

• a wireless transceiver for communicating with at least one other of the plurality of wireless communications nodes;
• a geolocation device for determining a current location of said wireless communications node;
• a terrain awareness table for use in collecting terrain information for said first geographic region, said terrain information including at least elevation information for surface points within said first geographic region;
• a node location table for use in collecting current location information for nodes in said plurality of wireless communications nodes;
• and
• a communications corridor determination unit (CCDU) for use in establishing at least one communications corridor within said first geographic region based on said terrain information and said current location information, said at least one communications corridor including a subset of the plurality of wireless communications nodes and representing a preferred subpath through the network for use in providing a communications connection between nodes in the network.

In a communications network having a plurality of wireless communications nodes arranged within a first geographic region, at least some of said plurality of wireless communications nodes being mobile, a method for determining an optimal communications path between a first wireless communications node and a second wireless communications node in said plurality of wireless communications nodes, said method comprising the steps of:

• obtaining terrain information for said first geographic region, said terrain information including at least elevation information for surface points within said first geographic region;
• acquiring location information for each of said plurality of wireless communications nodes;
• calculating pathloss information for selected pairs of wireless communications nodes in said plurality of wireless communications nodes using said terrain information and said location information, said pathloss information relating to an expected attenuation for a signal propagating between first and second nodes in each selected pair;
• defining a plurality of communications corridors in said first geographic region based on said pathloss information, wherein each of said plurality of communications corridors includes a subset of said plurality of wireless communications nodes;
• and
• selecting at least one of said plurality of communications corridors to provide the optimal communications path between the first wireless communications node and the second wireless communications node.