Patent ID: 8611269

Claim:
In ad hoc mesh networking utilizing a data communication device for each of a plurality of network nodes, each data communication device including both, a two-way communications component comprising a first receiver and transmitter, and a second receiver, wherein the second receiver activates the two-way communications component from a dormant state upon receipt by the second receiver of a wake-up broadcast that includes a wake-up identifier of the data communication device, a method of activating and deactivating a mesh network for mesh network communications comprising: transmitting a wake-up broadcast that includes a wake-up identifier such that each second receiver of each data communication device identified by the wake-up identifier, upon receiving a wake-up broadcast which includes the wake-up identifier, will activate the two-way communications component of the data communication device, and thereafter the data communication device will engage in mesh networking communications, propagating, by each data communication device that receives a wake-up broadcast that includes the wake-up identifier, such wake-up broadcast, periodically retransmitting a wake-up broadcast that includes the wake-up identifier such that each second receiver of each data communication device identified by the wake-up identifier, upon receiving a wake-up broadcast which includes the wake-up identifier, will activate the two-way communications component of the data communication device, and thereafter the data communication device will engage in mesh networking communications, and transmitting a second broadcast that includes a second identifier such that the two-way communications component of each data communication device identified by the second identifier, upon receiving the second broadcast, will cease its mesh networking communications and will return to the dormant state, wherein each data communication device is configured such that, after receiving and propagating a wake-up broadcast, the data communication device will not propagate that wake-up broadcast again even if that wake-up broadcast is received again.