Project: IEEE P802.15 Working Group for Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs)

1. Project: IEEE P802.15 Working Group for Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs) Submission Title:[Wireless Ping for Network Management] Date Submitted: [8 September 2008] Source: [Ghulam Bhatti] Company [MERL] Address: [201 Broadway, Suite 8, Cambridge, MA 02139] Voice:[617-621-7513], E-Mail: [gbhatti@merl.com] Re: [IEEE 802.15.4e group] Abstract: We propose the use of single-hop wireless ping frame to help better manage network resources. A node can forward frames more intelligently if it knows, for example, buffering capacity, average transmission delay, drop rate, and battery level of its neighbor nodes. Currently, IEEE 802.15.4 MAC simply transmits data as request by its higher layer. Purpose: We’re presenting it as a proposal to be included in the specification to be defined by the task group 15.4e. Notice: This document has been prepared to assist the IEEE P802.15. It is offered as a basis for discussion and is not binding on the contributing individual(s) or organization(s). The material in this document is subject to change in form and content after further study. The contributor(s) reserve(s) the right to add, amend or withdraw material contained herein. Release: The contributor acknowledges and accepts that this contribution becomes the property of IEEE and may be made publicly available by P802.15. Bhatti, Mitsubishi Electric

2. Single-Hop Wireless Ping Command Ghulam Bhatti Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs Cambridge, MA 02139 USA 8 September 2008 Bhatti, Mitsubishi Electric

3. Problem Definition • A node’s MAC has little knowledge of the state of its neighbors • Currently it just transmits frames passed by its higher layers • State information of neighbor node may be useful for better network management • Example data: Uptime, battery power level, traffic load, average Tx wait, frame drop rate, buffering capacity, LQI • LQI can indicate asymmetric links • Load balancing based on battery level, buffering capacity, etc. • Better reliability by intelligent frame forwarding • Can be used to check the existence of a neighbor node • This information can be exchanged as or when needed or periodically. Bhatti, Mitsubishi Electric

4. Wireless Ping Frame • A wireless frame that is communicated between two neighbor nodes to get the state information • A local ping frame always travels a single hop • It is a unicast frame – always directed to a single neighbor node • MAC level ACK indicates successful transmission of a ping frame • Ping reply frame is optional • A flag in received ping frame indicates if a reply ping is requested • Small payload – max size of a ping frame may be less than 10 bytes Bhatti, Mitsubishi Electric

5. Ping Frame Structure HDR PAYLOAD 1/2 Variable Payload Structure Flags Bit Data Type b0 b1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 b7 Bitmap Size Reply Ping Req. FLAGS DATA LQI Up Time Battery Level Load Level Tx Wait Time Buffering Capacity Structure of Wireless Ping Frame • FLAGS consist of a bitmap. If a bit in bitmap is set, corresponding data byte is present in the payload • Each data value is one byte in size • b0 can be used to extend the bitmap (to 2 bytes) • Minimum payload size of a ping frame is zero • A regular ping frame can have a max payload of 8 bytes • An extended ping frame can have a max payload of 17 bytes (defined by a vendor) Bhatti, Mitsubishi Electric

6. Thank You Bhatti, Mitsubishi Electric