Patent ID: 7788387

Claim:
A method for ad hoc participation, comprising: at one or more devices: providing at least one incentive to a user for allowing a device of the one or more devices to operate and relay communication in an ad hoc network by allocating credits to the device for forwarding packets in the ad hoc network, providing a clearing house service to the user for allowing users to trade and barter credits, and establishing routing within the ad hoc network based on credits; determining network resources associated with providing the at least one incentive; mandating the device in the ad hoc network to provide cooperative capabilities and services under urgent conditions; wherein the incentive to the user optimizes packet forwarding efficiency in the ad hoc network; and creating ad hoc communities that make collaborative decisions for incentive policies in the ad hoc communities including managing, configuring, and policing incentive policies, wherein the managing, configuring, and policing incentive policies further comprises: taxing the device for discouraging a user from joining the ad hoc community; collecting left-over credits and utilizing the left-over credits to attract other devices into the ad hoc network; and assessing all devices in the ad hoc network for redistributing credits to other devices into the ad hoc network.