Patent ID: 7874483

Claim:
A portable encoded information reading (EIR) terminal for incorporation in a data collection system having a plurality of peer EIR terminals, said plurality of peer EIR terminal collectively forming a wireless network, said wireless network being an Open Systems Interconnection (“OSI”) layer 2 network, said wireless network comprising zero or more wireless access points, said wireless network further comprising zero or more portals, each portal routing Media Access Control (“MAC”) frames between said wireless network and at least one OSI layer 2 network, said EIR terminal comprising: a terminal module including a central processing unit (CPU), a memory, and an encoded information reading (EIR) device selected from the group consisting of a bar code reading device, an RFID reading device, and a card reading device, said EIR device configured to perform one of: outputting raw message data containing an encoded message, outputting decoded message data corresponding to an encoded message; and a wireless interface module communicatively coupled to said terminal module via a wired interface, said wireless interface module including a microcontroller, a memory, and at least one wireless communication interface; wherein said wireless interface module establishes one or more wireless links with one or more EIR terminals of said plurality of peer EIR terminals, to join said wireless network; wherein said wireless interface module performs at least one of: receiving beacons, transmitting beacons, said beacons containing at least an identifier of a path selection protocol, said path selection protocol being used for unicast, multicast and broadcast frame transmission within said wireless network; wherein said wireless interface module, responsive to receiving one or more data packets from said terminal module, incorporates said one or more data packets into one or more MAC frames and forwards said one or more MAC frames, according to said path selection protocol, to one of: a peer EIR terminal, a wireless access point, one or more of said portals; and wherein said wireless interface module, responsive to receiving one or more MAC frames, said one or more MAC frames containing one or more data packet addressed to said terminal module, transmits said one or more data packets to said terminal module.