Development of the Wyld Research Mesh Network - an Off-Grid, near real-time, intelligent notification and messaging system for underground metro systems.

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Utilising Mesh Networking technology, we intend to develop an Off-Grid, near real-time,intelligent notification & messaging system for underground metro systems. This will enablethe secure, mass communication of information in environments where 2G/3G/4G/Wi-Fi arerestricted.In practice, this means an Off-Grid communication channel that can transmit relevant,location-specific travel & service status information through an entire underground systemwithin minutes to passenger smartphones, without the need for phone signal.Mesh Networking leverages smartphones ability to communicate directly with other nearbydevices via Bluetooth & Peer to Peer Wi-Fi, without the need for a grid connection. This isparticularly useful to environments where there is a high footfall but restricted connectivitysuch a underground networks. The rise of 4G & Wi-Fi availability however has meant thatMesh Networking technology has largely been unexplored since it was made more accessibleto developers for iPhone & Android devices in late 2013.Improving communication and user experience on the tube network is a key priority forunderground metro operators as passengers numbers continue to increase. This is particularlytrue for network over 50 years old - Marseille, Athens, Rotterdam, Rio de Janeiro, Vancouver,New York City & London - where aging infrastructure makes the installation of 3G/4Gconnectivity impractical and disruptive, and extremely costly (£100m+ in London: TfL 2011).If technical feasibility of our system can be proved then our technology will enable thedevelopment an innovative low-cost, high-impact communication channel for theseunderground networks and provide an alternative to costly, impractical communicationinfrastructure work.More widely, the technology will have applicability in Defence, the Mining industry and withthe Emergency Services as an Off-Grid failover option for unplanned outages or emergencies(AppA:1).