Apparatus and method for delivery of packets in multi-hop wireless networks

摘要

A system and method are disclosed for reducing data loss in wireless networks resulting from corruption of one or more wireless links or resulting from failure of an intermediate connecting node. The wireless network, which includes at least one intermediate node (15) having an internal buffer (71) for continually buffering data passing from source node (11) to destination node (21), establishes an alternate path bypassing the failed node. Lost data packets are locally retransmitted in response to receipt of an error message indicating node failure, or in response to a retransmit request resulting from data corruption over a wireless link. Intermediate nodes lacking such internal buffering serve to relay requests and messages upstream to nodes with internal buffering.