Abstract:
A method and system for conserving power of battery-powered mesh points (MPs) in a mesh network are disclosed. In one embodiment, a centralized controller is provided in the mesh network. Each of the MPs signal information associated with conserving MP battery power and provide indications of battery power levels associated with the respective MPs to the centralized controller. The centralized controller optimizes the configuration of the mesh network based on the signaling information for conserving MP battery power and the battery power level indications. In an alternate embodiment, each of the MPs individually monitor traffic flowing through the respective MP and a level of battery power associated with the respective MP. Each of the MPs determine whether to activate a power saving function associated with the respective MP and signal information associated with conserving MP battery power to neighboring MPs in the mesh network.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/660,762 filed Mar. 11, 2005, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth. 
     
    
     FIELD OF INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention is related to a wireless mesh network which includes a plurality of battery-powered mesh points (MPs). More particularly, the present invention is related to a method and system for conserving the battery power of the (MPs) by implementing a power save function.  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0003]     Many schemes have been developed for saving battery power in cellular wireless communication system components. For example, a typical scheme for conserving battery power uses an idle mode to provide low duty-cycle background monitoring of paging channels. However, IEEE 802.11-based wireless local area network (WLAN) devices do not efficiently conserve battery power. This is due to the basic design principles of the radio multiple access scheme chosen for WLANs, especially with respect to the receive mode operation.  
         [0004]     Instantaneous power consumption is typically higher in a transmit mode than in a receive mode. However, the receive mode is the overall determining factor for long-term power-consumption in WLAN devices because distributed coordination function (DCF) or enhanced distributed channel access (EDCA)-based WLAN devices need to listen to all incoming packets, regardless of the destination of the incoming packets. During the receive mode operation, WLAN devices monitor signal presence on a channel. If a signal is detected, the WLAN devices try to decode a preamble and a header of a receiving data packet. If the destination address of the packet matches the address of the device, the devices decode the packet. Otherwise, the packet is discarded.  
         [0005]     In some situations, the WLAN must deploy battery-powered MPs and mesh access points (MAPs), such as for military and/or emergency situations. In such situations, it is desirable to provide a method and system for ensuring long battery-life and power-efficient operations for the battery-powered devices.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0006]     The present invention is a method and system for conserving power of battery-powered MPs in a mesh network. In one embodiment, a centralized controller is provided in the mesh network. Each of the MPs signal information associated with conserving MP battery power and provide indications of battery power levels associated with the respective MPs to the centralized controller. The centralized controller optimizes the configuration of the mesh network based on the signaling information for conserving MP battery power and the battery power level indications. In an alternate embodiment, each of the MPs individually monitor traffic flowing through the respective MP and a level of battery power associated with the respective MP. Each of the MPs determine whether to activate a power saving function associated with the respective MP and signal information associated with conserving MP battery power to neighboring MPs in the mesh network. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]     A more detailed understanding of the invention may be had from the following description, given by way of example and to be understood in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:  
         [0008]      FIG. 1  shows a wireless mesh network in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0009]      FIG. 2  is a flow diagram of a process for saving battery power of MPs using a centralized controller in the mesh network of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0010]      FIG. 3  is a flow diagram of an alternate process for saving battery power of MPs in the mesh network of  FIG. 1  without the use of a centralized controller;  
         [0011]      FIG. 4  is a block diagram of an exemplary centralized controller used in the wireless mesh network of  FIG. 1 ; and  
         [0012]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram of an exemplary MP used in the wireless mesh network of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0013]     Hereafter, the terminology “wireless transmit/receive unit” (WTRU) includes but is not limited to a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a pager, or any other type of device capable of operating in a wireless environment.  
         [0014]     The present invention is applicable to any type of wireless mesh network including, but not limited to, IEEE802.11x, IEEE802.15, Bluetooth™, HIPERLAN/2 or the like.  
         [0015]     The features of the present invention may be incorporated into an integrated circuit (IC) or be configured in a circuit comprising a multitude of interconnecting components.  
         [0016]      FIG. 1  shows a wireless mesh network  100  in accordance with the present invention. The mesh network  100  includes a plurality of MPs  102 , a plurality of mesh access points (APs)  104 , a mesh portal  106  and a plurality of WTRUs  108 . The MPs  102  perform as basic forwarding and relaying nodes in the mesh network  100 . The MPs  102  receive traffic on incoming links and forward it on outgoing links. The mesh APs  104  are also MPs with an interface to provide a radio access to the WTRUs  108  to provide WLAN services in a certain geographic area. The WTRUs  108  communicate with another WTRU in the mesh network or a backbone network  110 , (such as the Internet), via the mesh APs  104  and the mesh portal  106 .  
         [0017]     The WTRUs  108  are typically unaware of the presence of the mesh network  100 . The mesh APs  104  forward the traffic generated by the WTRUs  108  to another mesh AP  104  or the mesh portal  106  by relaying the traffic via intermittent MPs  102 . The mesh portal  106  provides connectivity to the backbone network  110  for the mesh network  100 . Thus, the mesh portal  106  acts as an MP with a special interface to the backbone network  110 .  
         [0018]     The MPs  102 , the mesh APs  104  and the mesh portal  106  are battery-powered devices. The present invention provides a method and system for saving the battery power of these battery-powered devices. Hereinafter, the terminology “mesh point” (MP) and a reference numeral  102  will be used to refer to the MPs  102 , the MAPs  104  and the mesh portal  106 , collectively.  
         [0019]      FIG. 2  is a flow diagram of a process  200  for saving battery power of MPs in a mesh network in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. In accordance with this embodiment, a centralized controller  120  is provided in the mesh network  100 . The centralized controller  120  may reside anywhere in the mesh network. For example, the centralized controller  120  may reside in the mesh portal  106 , as shown in  FIG. 1 . The centralized controller  120  controls and assigns all of the settings related to power saving, (e.g., routing paths, frequencies, or the like), for all of the MPs  102 . The MPs  102  are under the complete and exclusive control of the centralized controller  120 .  
         [0020]     In step  202 , at least one of a plurality of MPs  102  of the mesh network  100  signals information regarding a power save function to the centralized controller  120 . The information regarding the power save function includes at least one of a power source, a power save capability, a power save requirement, power saving features implemented by the MP  102  and intended power saving actions. In step  204 , the MPs  102  periodically, or when polled by the centralized controller  120 , provide battery power level indications to the centralized controller  120 . The information regarding the power save function and the battery power level indications are preferably sent by means of layer 2 (L2) or layer 3 (L3) signaling messages, such that the centralized controller  120  recognizes the requirements of the MPs  102  for battery power savings.  
         [0021]     The information is preferably included in a capability field in medium access control (MAC) layer messages, such as association, authentication or probe request messages. Alternatively, the information may be included in an information element (IE) of the L2 or L3 signaling messages that may be included in any data, control or management messages which are exchanged on-demand or periodically.  
         [0022]     Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 4 , the centralized controller  120  includes a monitoring unit  122  and a power save controller  124 . The monitoring unit  122  of the centralized controller  120  monitors at least one of radio environment, traffic flow in the mesh network  100  and a level of remaining battery power of the MPs  102  (step  206 ). The power save controller  124  of the centralized controller determines whether a predetermined threshold associated with a particular MP  102  is reached with respect to at least one of the radio environment, the traffic flow and the level of remaining battery power of the MPs  102  (step  208 ). If the predetermined threshold is reached, the power save controller  124  of the centralized controller  120  commands the particular MP  102  to go into a power save mode while configuring power save parameters for the remaining MPs  102  (step  210 ). The MPs  102  in the power save mode enter into a doze state and periodically wake up at certain configured wake-up times to listen to beacons to check if the centralized controller  120  has issued a page to deactivate the power save mode of the MPs  102 .  
         [0023]     The power save controller  124  of the centralized controller  120  assigns parameters affecting the power save state of the MPs  102 , and the actions of the MPs  102  during the power save mode are controlled by the parameters.  
         [0024]     The power save parameters may be configured to control the frequency channels on which the MPs operate. The MPs  102  may be able to operate with multiple radios. In such case, the MPs  102  are able to transmit and receive on more than one frequency channel at the same time. For example, the MP  102  may use a dual-radio with IEEE 802.11g radio and additional IEEE 802.11a radio for backhaul, or the MP  102  may use one IEEE 802.11g radio for a basic service set (BSS) and two additional IEEE 802.11a radios for backhaul.  
         [0025]     The power save function is implemented by selectively turning on and off at least one frequency channel during the power save mode. The MPs  102  may have separate modems for each frequency channel or some parts of the modems may be shared for multiple frequency channels. In either case, by turning off all or part of the modem, the battery power can be saved. In a non-power save mode, an MP  102  may transmit and receive on all channels, while in a power save mode, the MP  102  transmits and receives only on a subset of the frequency channels, (i.e., less than its radio frequency (RF) hardware actually permits). The centralized controller  120  may designate a specific frequency channel to be turned off.  
         [0026]     Alternatively, the power save function may be implemented by time coordination among the MPs  102 . The power save controller  124  of the centralized controller  120  sets up scheduled service period intervals when to receive and when to send data through the mesh network on particular links, (the centralized controller  120  sets up an active period and the doze period for the MPs  102 ). During the scheduled doze period, all of the MPs  102  power down and no data traffic is transmitted. The centralized controller  120  may adjust the ratio of the doze period to an active period in a flexible manner by considering a trade-off between capacity on the mesh network  100  and delay of the traffic.  
         [0027]     In a preferred embodiment, each of the MPs  102  is allocated an individual service time period. Thus, the centralized controller  120  allocates service periods to individual MPs  102  while coordinating the service periods amongst all power-saving MPs  102  in the mesh network  100 . For example, “coordination” of these individual service periods may be implemented by three (3) MPs  102  in a daisy chain where a first one of the MPs  102  can transmit only during 0-100 ms, and sleeps from 100 ms-1000 ms, a second one of the MPs  102  can only receive from 0-100 ms, transmit from 100 ms-200 ms, and sleep from 200-1000 ms, and finally, a third one of the MPs  102  receives from 100 ms-200 ms, and sleeps from 0-100 ms and 200 ms-1000 ms. This process is repeated each second, (i.e., 1000 ms).  
         [0028]     The centralized controller  120  may set the algorithms for deciding on routing paths and connectivity through the mesh network in accordance with power-saving needs of the MPs. The centralized controller  120  assigns a routing path and data packet forwarding patterns through the mesh network  100  in a way that the number of MPs in a power save mode involved in the routing path is minimized. The MPs not included in the routing path may go into a doze state during which the MPs wake up only to check for changes in the configured routing path. The centralized controller  120  may determine the routing path considering the battery power level indication from the MPs  102 .  
         [0029]     The centralized controller  120  may command the MPs  102  to aggregate data packets and transmit them at the same transmit opportunity during the power save mode. This scheme reduces the effective receive and transmit durations of incoming and outgoing data streams and as such to save battery power. The MPs  102  store the incoming data packets temporarily in a buffer instead of forwarding the data packets each and every time the MPs  102  receive them and burst them out at the same time to maximize the usage of a certain allocated transmit opportunity. This scheme minimizes the number of contention for medium access and keeps RF receive and transmit time low. The centralized controller  120  sets parameters considering delay and required memory. This scheme may be applied to both real time traffic and non-real time traffic.  
         [0030]     In an alternate embodiment, the present invention may be implemented in a distributed mode.  FIG. 3  is a flow diagram of a process  300  for saving battery power of the MPs  102  without using the centralized controller  120  in accordance with the present invention. The MPs  102  make decisions on all power save parameters, (such as, but not limited to, frequency channels to use, service period intervals, routing paths, and aggregation of data packets), on their own based on observation of the radio environment, perceived traffic flows, anticipated requirements, battery power level, or the like. The MPs  102  are completely autonomous and entering into the power save mode is under the decision of each individual MP  102 .  
         [0031]     Referring to  FIGS. 3 and 5 , an MP  102  includes a monitoring unit  502  and a power save controller  504 . The monitoring unit  502  of each MP  102  monitors at least one of radio environment, traffic flowing through the MP  102 , (i.e., the amount and/or nature, (e.g., real time vs. non-real time), of the traffic), and a level of remaining battery power of the MP  102 , keeps track of traffic history and anticipates near-term traffic flows (step  302 ).  
         [0032]     The power save controller  504  of the MP  102  controls actions of the MPs  102  during a power save mode. The power save controller  504  of the MP  102  determines whether a predetermined threshold associated with a particular MP  102  is reached with respect to at least one of the radio environment, the traffic and the level of remaining battery power (step  304 )  
         [0033]     If the predetermined threshold is reached, (e.g., traffic below a certain level or the battery power level reaching a certain level), the power save controller  504  of the particular MP  102  triggers a power save mode after informing neighboring MPs of the triggering of the power save mode (step  306 ) such as by broadcasting a null-data frame.  
         [0034]     During the power save mode, the MP  102  implements one or more schemes for power savings as stated hereinabove with respect to the first embodiment. The MP  102  may selectively turn on and off at least one frequency channel to save the battery power. The MP  102  may enter into a doze state in accordance with the service period interval agreed by the MPs  102 , which specifies timing to go into a doze state and to wake up. The MP  102  may determine the routing path in a way that the number of MPs in a power save mode included in the routing path is minimized. The MPs  102  may temporarily store incoming data packets in a buffer and send aggregated data packets at the same time to maximize usage of a given transmit opportunity.  
         [0035]     The MP  102  may negotiate with neighbor MPs for the operational changes, (such as operating frequency channel, scheduled service period interval, a routing path and aggregation of traffic data), or may simply announce the operational changes.  
         [0036]     It should be noted that although the present invention is described with reference to L2 and/or L3 signaling, it can be implemented with any ISO layer of signaling. For example, a protocol such as CAPWAP RFC would be signaled over UDP/IP, (i.e., at L5). Furthermore, signaling over SNMP or at the application layer using a proprietary management software or firmware may be implemented.  
         [0037]     Although the features and elements of the present invention are described in the preferred embodiments in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone without the other features and elements of the preferred embodiments or in various combinations with or without other features and elements of the present invention.