BBN Technologies Awarded Contract to Enhance Low-Energy Networking Communications

MILTECH

by Staff Writers
Cambridge MA (SPX) Jul 21, 2006
BBN Technologies, a leading advanced technology solutions firm, today announced it has been awarded $8.1 million under phase three of a wireless networking program funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The goal of the program, Connectionless Networks, is to drastically cut the amount of energy required for mesh networking communications that enable many people to communicate reliably in areas where there is no communications infrastructure.

In collaboration with the Army Research Lab, BBN will build and field test at least 30 ruggedized network nodes with superior protocols for enhanced adaptability to the environment and optimal performance.

Battlefield communications devices range from data-collecting sensor radios placed in remote areas to soldier radios. More efficient networking and communications technologies and protocols will permit these devices to transmit important information for longer durations, and allow users to carry fewer batteries and replace them less frequently during missions.

Reducing energy usage has many benefits, including increasing useful lifetime; reducing the amount of money spent on batteries; using the saved energy to increase transmit power; and supporting multiple channels with the same amount of energy heretofore used for single channel radios.

"We've been working on methods for networking systems that are efficient under all communication traffic loads and can adapt in any environment," said Jason Redi, principal investigator on the Connectionless program at BBN Technologies. "Now, these systems will actually be ready to go and fielded with enhanced protocols that immediately benefit the warfighters."

BBN's innovations in this phase of the Connectionless Networks program will cleverly address the inefficiency and power consumption problems normally associated with wireless networking systems by designing protocols that can adapt to different kinds of operational environments.

BBN will be working with the Army Research Lab (ARL) to build completely operational and fielded radio Connectionless nodes based on the next generation of the ARL's Blue Radio. These devices will operate in the military frequency band and last between 30 and 180 days depending on actual traffic loading.

MILTECH

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