Wifi Revolution

Mesh technology has been a tremendous boon to municipalities and private networks by allowing WiFi mobility as users move between various access points. Now, manufacturers are taking the concept a step further by developing mesh networks for all manner of IP devices, including cameras, VoIP phones and data terminals.

Firetide Inc., a developer of wireless multiservice mesh technology based on Los Gatos, Calif., recently introduced the latest version of its HotView Controller, a software-based system that provides a complete mobile architecture for both IP and WiFi (News - Alert) devices.

“Firetide provides the wireless network infrastructure that allows you to extend your regular LAN without wires,” said Mike Downes, director of marketing communications at Firetide, during an interview with TMCnet. “If you need another in-point and you don’t want to run cable, put in a mesh node and get wireless connectivity for any device at any location.”

The system operates on any Linux-based PC or on the company’s own HotView Pro server. A single controller PC or server can service multiple mesh or access points, while additional controllers can be added elsewhere and instantly tap into the network.

“When dealing with high speeds and long distances, it’s a lot trickier to put intelligence at the mesh nodes when you have to keep track of all these different connections that are traveling at 90 milers per hour,” Downes said. “The controller software works a lot more efficiently because it is easier to add more intelligence as the number of connections increases. You can make sure that a device that is roaming is connected all the time.”

Mesh networks have gained in popularity in the past few years because they allow WiFi-enabled laptops to remain connected even as the user transitions from one access point to another. Expanding this concept to IP devices pushes the technology into a wider range of devices, such as video surveillance cameras, mobile PDAs and VoIP-enabled devices.

“With this technology, you maintain connectivity not only when crossing from one node to another on the network, but from network to network, or one IP domain to the next,” Downes said. “It allows you to have a fully mobile infrastructure in which the network itself is moving and reshaping itself continuously.”

The company envisions the technology to have applications across a range of public and private operations. Public uses include first-responder activities, such as fire and rescue, as well as investigative and law enforcement uses. In the private realm, the system would be useful for industrial operations and construction sites, as well as corporate campuses and large buildings.

Offering both WiFi and IP connectivity on the same network is in anticipation of a new breed of WiFi-enabled cell phones that allow users to smoothly transition from the cellular network, which charges by the minute, to an internal WiFi network, which usually offer unlimited access.

“Connectivity is the key issue here,” Downes said. “With the mobility controller, WiFi phones remain connected as long as there are access points to go to.”

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Arthur Cole is a freelance journalist specializing in the high-tech communications and information field. To see more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

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