Patent ID: 7123908

Claim:
A transmitting and receiving station for a telecommunication network in which a plurality of such stations are to be provided at randomly distributed locations and in which routing means are provided for routing of call setup information between stations in the network utilising other stations in the network acting as relay stations for relaying of such call setup information where necessary, which station incorporates call routing control means acting to select a relay station to which call setup information is to be transmitted for the purpose of relaying call setup information to a required destination station and comprising: (a) memory means for storing, for a plurality of possible destination stations and from network status signals received from further stations within the network, the cumulative cost associated with the notional use of possible relay stations for relaying call setup information to the destination stations; (b) compiling means for compiling in the memory means the cumulative cost associated with the notional use of possible relay stations for relaying call setup information to the destination stations, the compiling means being adapted to update the cumulative cost associated with the relay stations in the memory means in dependence on network status signals originating from the destination stations and relayed by relay stations to other stations in the network; (c) overhearing means for receiving a network status signal transmitted by a further station in the network within range, whether or not the station is the intended recipient of call setup information transmitted by said further station, said network status signal being indicative of the cost of routing information to a source station from which the call setup information originates, being the sum of the cost information received from the previous relay station (where said further station is not the source station) and some incremental cost, together with the identities of said further station and the source station; (d) transmission means for transmitting call setup information to at least one recipient station in the network within range and for additionally transmitting a network status signal; (e) reception means for receiving call setup information from the transmission means of at least one further station in the network within range; and (f) station selection means for selecting a relay station for relaying call setup information to a destination station on the basis of receipt of a signal providing acknowledgement of the acceptance of the request from a station judged by the memory means to be suitable for relaying call setup information to the destination station.