confidential ORiNOCO Mesh

 Webster’s  A highly interconnected network of computers or networking hardware  An upcoming IEEE standard (802.11s) What is Mesh?

Mesh: Self-forming Network  Automatically connects access points at installation Wi-Fi Backhaul Possible Mesh Paths Actual Mesh Route

Mesh: Self-healing Network  Automatically heals the network if a Wi-Fi cell fails by rerouting the paths so all client traffic can continue to get through Wi-Fi  Backhaul Possible Mesh Paths Actual Mesh Route

Mesh: Intelligent Network Wi-Fi Backhaul Possible Mesh Paths Actual Mesh Route   Interference in a path may occur  Mesh should intelligently calculate path loss for alternate routes and redirect if needed to ensure highest possible throughput

ORiNOCO Mesh Creation Protocol  ORiNOCO Mesh Creation Protocol creates a high-capacity Mesh Network  Precious mesh backhaul bandwidth conserved  Clients served with one radio  Mesh backhaul traffic with the other radio  Optionally, both mesh backhaul and client traffic may be carried on the same radio  Interference is minimized and throughput is increased because the mesh backhaul is in a different band than the client coverage area  Meshing access points may be mobile  Connect Ethernet devices within a vehicle to the wireless mesh network for broadband connectivity using AP-to-AP vehicle roaming  AP-4000s already deployed in the field may be upgraded  An upgrade kit will be offered to enable OMCP in the field

Dual-Radio Mesh Advantage  Dedicated 5 GHz radio for mesh network  Dedicated 2.4 GHz radio for client traffic  Advantage 1: Clients don’t contend with mesh radio for limited spectrum and bandwidth  Advantage 2: Client cells are spaced using non-overlapping channels, TRIPLING the performance of single radio mesh systems  Advantage 3: Mesh network capacity is greater than single radio mesh systems b/g a With a dual radio system, client cells can be designed for non-overlapping coverage.

Topology/Terminology  Mesh Portal AP: AP with wireline connection  Mesh AP: AP with no wireline connection  Station: an client  Hop: term used to describe how far away from the wireline network a client is, defined by passing through a mesh AP.  ORiNOCO Mesh Protocol boundaries:  Maximum mesh depth is 4 hops  Recommended infrastructure depth is 2 hops  Maximum number of mesh links from a single AP is 6 links  Maximum number of nodes communicating through a single portal is 937 Station

How to order?  Timeline:  8/5/05: AP-4000/700 Software release available on the web  8/5/05: AP-4000 upgrade available.  8/30/05: AP-4900M and AP-4000M begin shipping  AP-4000, AP-4000M and AP-4900 all will use the same firmware image

Competitive Matrix