Patent ID: 8717932

Claim:
A method for computer networking performed by one or more processors, the method comprising: generating a first timestamp when a voltage detected on a path between a first network node and a second network node exceeds a predetermined reference voltage; and computing a distance between the first network node and the second network node based on the first timestamp and a second timestamp generated by the second network node contained within one or more packets that traverse the path, and based on a first propagation speed of a first portion of the path and a second propagation speed of a second portion of the path, the first propagation speed being different from the second propagation speed, including: computing an intermediary node latency internal to an intermediary node located in the path; computing a propagation time between the first network node and the second network node by subtracting the computed intermediary node latency from a total path travel time calculated based on the first timestamp and the second timestamp; and multiplying a first portion of the propagation time by the first propagation speed and multiplying a second portion of the propagation time by the second propagation speed to compute the distance.