Access and routing protocol for ad hoc network using synchronous collision resolution and node state dissemination

A method of operating a node on an ad hoc network, comprising:

• synchronizing a clock of the node with other nodes of the ad hoc network to a common time;
• synchronizing channel access attempts of the node with other nodes;
• using a plurality of signaling phases on the channel at the beginning of a transmission slot to resolve access attempts with other contending nodes;
• receiving node states of other nodes;
• broadcasting node states known to the node to other nodes on a wireless channel of the ad hoc wireless network;
• inferring connectivity links between nodes based on a pathloss model whose parameters are included in the node states;
• building a routing table based on route metrics of the connectivity links;
• and
• routing packets from the node based on the routing table.

A method of operating an ad hoc wireless network comprising:

• disseminating node state information among the nodes, wherein disseminating node state information among the nodes comprises;
• applying a set of rules for selecting node states to be included in a node state packet;
• and
• transmitting the selected node states in the node state packet;
• inferring connectivity links between the nodes based on the node state information;
• assigning route metrics to the connectivity links using the node state information;
• and
• building routing tables based on the route metrics.

A method of operating an ad hoc wireless network, comprising:

• synchronizing nodes on a wireless channel of the ad hoc wireless network to a common time;
• dividing a wireless channel into transmission slots;
• establishing a plurality of signaling phases on the wireless channel at the beginning of a transmission slot, wherein each of the plurality of signaling phases is associated with a signaling process selected from the group consisting of a first to assert signaling process and a last to assert signaling process, and wherein each of the plurality of signaling phases comprises one or more signaling slots;
• synchronizing transmission of access signals of contending nodes relative to the signaling phases, wherein each of the contending nodes comprises a packet to send and wherein each of the contending nodes contends simultaneously for access to the wireless channel;
• determining surviving nodes of a signaling phase among the contending nodes by applying the signaling process associated with the signaling phase to the access signals transmitted by the contending nodes;
• determining ultimate survivors of a channel access attempt among the surviving nodes by identifying the surviving nodes of each of the plurality of signaling phases among the contending nodes;
• and
• authorizing the ultimate survivors of the access attempt to transmit packets.