Multi-hop telecommunications system and method

Relay point apparatus for use in a communications system comprising:

• a plurality of transceivers for outdoors, bi-directional, free-space, line-of-sight, electro-magnetic communication with locations remote from said apparatus, said transceivers being interconnected by communication links in cascade fashion;
• a mechanism configured to selectively reposition at least two spaced apart transceivers so as to establish a new communication link between said two transceivers;
• circuitry for detecting information received by each of said transceivers at a relay point and for causing at least one of said transceivers at that relay point to transmit at least some of that information;
• and
• user interface apparatus for selectively providing to a user at that relay point at least some of the information received by said transceivers and for selectively adding additional information produced by said user to the information transmitted by said transceivers.

A method of providing communication service comprising:

• using outdoors, bi-directional, free-space, line-of-sight, electro-magnetic communication to transmit information between transceivers at an area access point and a plurality of relay points spaced from one another and from said area access points and interconnected by communication links in cascade fashion;
• at each relay point, detecting information received via said electro-magnetic communication from said area access point or another of said relay points and retransmitting at least some of the detected information via said electro-magnetic communication to said area access point or yet another of said relay points;
• at a relay point, supplying at least some of the information detected in said detecting to a user at that relay point;
• at a relay point, adding information produced by a user at that relay point to information transmitted in said retransmitting;
• and
• repositioning transceivers at two of said points to establish a new communication link between said points.

A communications system comprising:

• an area access point, having a transceiver for bi-directional, free-space, line-of-sight, electro-magnetic communication;
• a plurality of relay points spaced from one another and from said area access point and interconnected by communication links in cascade fashion, each of said relay points having a plurality of transceivers for outdoors, bi-directional, free-space, line-of-sight electro-magnetic communication with the transceiver of said area access point or a transceiver of another of said relay points, each of said relay points also having circuitry for detecting information received by each of the transceivers of that relay point and for causing another transceiver of that relay point to transmit at least some of that information, a preponderance of said relay points including user interface apparatus for selectively providing to a user at that relay point at least some of the information received by the transceivers of that relay point and for selectively adding additional information produced by said user to the information transmitted by the transceivers of that relay point;
• and
• a mechanism located at at least two of said points configured to selectively reposition at least one of the transceivers at said points so as to establish a new communication link between said two points.

A method of providing communication service comprising:

• using outdoors, bi-directional, free-space, line-of-sight, electro-magnetic communication to transmit information between transceivers at an area access point and a plurality of relay points spaced from one another and from said area access point and interconnected by communication links in cascade fashion;
• at each relay point, detecting information received via said electro-magnetic communication from said area access point or another of said relay points and retransmitting at least some of the detected information via said electro-magnetic communication to said area access point or yet another of said relay points;
• at a preponderance of said relay points, supplying at least some of the information detected in said detecting to a user at that relay point and adding information produced by a user at that relay point to information transmitted in said retransmitting;
• and
• repositioning transceivers at two of said points to establish a new communication link between said points.

A method of providing communication service comprising:

• using outdoors bi-directional, free-space, line-of-sight, electro-magnetic communication to transmit information between transceivers at an area access point and a plurality of relay points spaced from one another and from said area access point and interconnected by communication links in cascade fashion;
• at each relay point, detecting information received at a first transceiver via said electro-magnetic communication from said area access point or another of said relay points and retransmitting from a second transceiver at least some of the detected information via said electro-magnetic communication to said area access point or yet another of said relay points;
• at a relay point, supplying at least some of the information detected in said detecting to a user at that relay point;
• at a relay point adding information produced by a user at that relay point to information transmitted in said retransmitting;
• and
• repositioning at least one transceiver under remote control to change a point with which that transceiver communicates.