Tactical Mobile Mesh Network System Design

Tactical mobile mesh systems are wireless communication networks characterized by: harsh propagation channels and interference, frequent and rapid changes in the network topology, the requirement for very robust, low latency multimedia information decimation, and no centralized network control. In this paper we describe a technology testbed designed to address these challenges. The testbed is based on advanced waveform technologies, modern digital likelihood receiver processing, and robust ad-hoc networking strategies. A technology testbed was assembled to evaluate the cumulative benefits of this integrated system design. Field tests are presented demonstrating low-latency voice and multimedia IP traffic over multiple hop, cooperative routes.