Patent ID: 6965568

Claim:
A communication network comprising a plurality of stations (A to O) each able to transmit and receive message data, each station comprising: transmitter means ( 12 , 14 , 18 , 20 ) for transmitting data to other stations; and receiver means ( 12 , 14 , 16 , 20 ) for receiving data from other stations; and characterized in that it further comprises: monitoring means for monitoring at least one characteristic of respective channels between an originating station (A) and other stations corresponding to the quality of the signal path via each of said channels; decision means for opportunistically selecting at least one other station as an intermediate station for transmission of message data from the originating station (A) to a destination station (O), at the time of transmission of the message data, according to predetermined criteria including (1) the monitored quality of the signal path between the transmitting station and potential intermediate stations, so that the transmission takes place during peaks of opportunity, and (2) the determined probability of the receiving station's ability to relay the message data to the destination station (O), wherein no dedicated routing information is passed across the network; and control means for adjusting at least one parameter of a transmission signal transmitted by the transmitter means according to the monitored at least one characteristic of the respective channel to increase the probability of the transmission signal being received successfully by the selected intermediate station.