Patent ID: 8885631
Filing Date: 2014-11-11
Classification: H04B,H04L,H04W

Abstract:
1. A method of providing medium access control (MAC) for a wireless mobile ad hoc network, comprising: defining a network timing frame having a number of zones; allocating a first or data (DATA) zone in the timing frame during which application data is transmitted and received among the nodes; allocating a second or negative acknowledgment (NACK) zone in the timing frame during which certain nodes of the network transmit requests for retransmission of data packets destined to but not successfully received by the nodes; structuring at least one time slot in the DATA zone to support multiuser detection (MUD) to decode multiple users from concurrent data transmissions received in a same time slot; allocating a third or broadcast (BC) zone in the timing frame during which network management messages concerning node topology, message routing or network maintenance are provided to the nodes; defining a primary master (PM) or root node and operating the PM node as a source of network time for all nodes of the network; and allocating a fourth or control (CTRL) zone in the timing frame during which a given node of the network synchronizes its time in a distributed manner to the time of the PM node by exchanging control messages with the PM node or with other nodes that are one or more hops away from the PM node.