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1.  

   Limitations of Conventional Mesh Networks

   

   Francis daCosta, Jan 22nd, 2003 @ 8:44am

   
   

   There is more hype than reality around mesh networking. In the end, that can cause the bubble around mesh to bust - rapidly. Its time for a reality check on what mesh can and cannot do. First, Mesh networks are not a new concept. In some ways, the internet is a mesh network. And it works, despite its size - because it does not suffer from the limitations of conventional wireless mesh networks: 1-Radio is a shared medium and forces everyone to stay silent while one person holds the stage. Wired networks, on the other hand, can and do hold multiple simultaneous conversations. 2-In a single radio ad hoc mesh network, the best you can do is (1/2)^^n at each hop. So in a multi hop mesh network, the Max available bandwidth available to you degrades at the rate of 1/2, 1/4, 1/8. By the time you are 4 hops away the max you can get is 1/16 of the total available bandwidth. 3-That does not sound too bad when you are putting together a wireless sensor network with limited bandwidth and latency considerations. It is DISASTROUS if you wish to provide the level of latency/throughput people are accustomed to with their wired networks. Consider the case of just 10 client stations at each node of a 4 hop mesh network. The clients at the last rung will receive -at best- 1/(16,0000) of the total bandwidth at the root. 4-Why has this not been noticed as yet? Because first there are not a lot of mesh networks around and second, they have not been tested under high usage situations. Browsing and email don’t count. Try video - where both latency and bandwidth matter - or VOIP where the bandwidth is a measly 64Kbps but where latency matters. Even in a simple 4 hop ad hoc mesh network with 10 clients, VOIP phones wont work well beyond the first or second hop – the latency and jitter caused by CSMA/CA contention windows (how wireless systems avoid collisions) will be unbearable. Mesh networks are a great concept. But the challenge lies in managing the dynamics of mesh networks so users receive an acceptable level of performance in terms of both latency and throughput. Its time to focus on solving some real problems to make mesh networks scale and provide stable performance. Francis daCosta Founder and CTO www.meshdynamics.com

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2.  

   You are right...

   

   Anonymous Coward, Jan 23rd, 2003 @ 12:48am

   
   

   What's the incentive to create the outer edge of a mesh network? There is none other than altruism. It is much better to bet that an overlapping WiFi network will emerge, simply because, as you say, there is a direct benefit to the network owner.

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3.  

   Re: You are right...

   

   nobroadman, Jan 23rd, 2003 @ 1:53am

   
   

   How about this for a reason other than altruism :
   
   I have no broadband to my house, and it seems unlikely that it will come soon. There is broadband availabe realtively near however, so by building a mesh I can get access where I had none before and so can others, and we can share the cost of the installation and the broadband connection. Communal ownership works you see.

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