MANET is one of the protocols I was involved in implementing for a certain network protocol suite back around 2012. Mesh routing protocols only work for the most limited of use cases. They don't know about the capacity of the underlying wireless network and basically fall apart when things are congested or there are radios with poor reception. QoS is implemented far better in modern cell phone networks, and if the routing protocol doesn't take QoS into account, it's gonna suck.
It's worth commenting to me that MeshCore performs much better than Meshtastic at scale and as an emplaced deployment. We have a very active network of about 60 nodes in the Boston area which feels similar to iMessage in deliverability and speed.
But yes, it can't realistically be compared to something like a "real" MANET system with $10k radios that can do something like 100mbps data rates. It is dramatically more accessible and deployable though.
Real MANET systems are not defined by their bit rates, but by their ability to take advantages of whatever opportunities for radio communication exist in a given situation.
LoRa has tiny bandwidth. Enough for text messaging if not too many people use it.
HaLow has lots more bandwidth, 433Mbps max, which allows for proper networking. It can bridge to other networks. But the practical range is only 1km. Also, the radios are expensive while LoRa is cheap.
I feel like a HAM license is something of an inevitability of my future, although I don’t have any practical need for one. Catching satellite signals in my backyard is a lot of fun.
I felt the same way a few years ago, and got my license in 2023. I still don't know why, but I don't regret it either. There is a ton to play with in that space, if you're a tinkerer I absolutely encourage you to start studying the license materials. You never know where it'll take you.
I think most hams (myself included) are the type of people whose favorite hobby is collecting more hobbies. Plus, ham radio pairs nicely with tons of other hobbies like electronics, kit building, hiking, solar power, space weather, and (as you say) satellites. I highly recommend it.
> This technology is especially useful in the civilian space for search and rescue, disaster response, airsoft events, and any disconnected communications scenario.
Last time I played with Moremicro they didn't work with real 802.11s and had some hokey proprietary hierarchal tree topology that required a main basestation gateway. ad-hoc, peer-to-peer was broken. They finally fixed their driver?
MANET is one of the protocols I was involved in implementing for a certain network protocol suite back around 2012. Mesh routing protocols only work for the most limited of use cases. They don't know about the capacity of the underlying wireless network and basically fall apart when things are congested or there are radios with poor reception. QoS is implemented far better in modern cell phone networks, and if the routing protocol doesn't take QoS into account, it's gonna suck.
In case anybody is like me and didn't know what Wi-Fi HaLow is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IEEE_802.11ah
This guy has been promoting and hacking hardware around this project heavily the last few months: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=550fh2n5rUs
That guy is not contributing to the open source project.
Which is why OP says ”around” the project? Never claimed he is a contributor to the code.
MANETs: back from the dead!? The problem is not the hardware, but the software; apparently, nobody can think of a killer application.
The killer application in this case is ATAK.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Android_Team_Awareness_Kit
Is ATAK even useful to civilians? Is it trustworthy?
Yes and yes, we've used it for civilian Search & Rescue in tandem with CalTopo.
I use it for hiking, its great.
How do you use it for that?
Meshtastic has been popular, but relies upon a terrible implementation of a mesh -- and it's vastly oversold on its capabilities.
I understand some hams run a meshtastic repeater primarily to convince meshtastic users to become hams.
It's worth commenting to me that MeshCore performs much better than Meshtastic at scale and as an emplaced deployment. We have a very active network of about 60 nodes in the Boston area which feels similar to iMessage in deliverability and speed.
But yes, it can't realistically be compared to something like a "real" MANET system with $10k radios that can do something like 100mbps data rates. It is dramatically more accessible and deployable though.
Real MANET systems are not defined by their bit rates, but by their ability to take advantages of whatever opportunities for radio communication exist in a given situation.
LoRa has tiny bandwidth. Enough for text messaging if not too many people use it.
HaLow has lots more bandwidth, 433Mbps max, which allows for proper networking. It can bridge to other networks. But the practical range is only 1km. Also, the radios are expensive while LoRa is cheap.
I feel like a HAM license is something of an inevitability of my future, although I don’t have any practical need for one. Catching satellite signals in my backyard is a lot of fun.
I felt the same way a few years ago, and got my license in 2023. I still don't know why, but I don't regret it either. There is a ton to play with in that space, if you're a tinkerer I absolutely encourage you to start studying the license materials. You never know where it'll take you.
I think most hams (myself included) are the type of people whose favorite hobby is collecting more hobbies. Plus, ham radio pairs nicely with tons of other hobbies like electronics, kit building, hiking, solar power, space weather, and (as you say) satellites. I highly recommend it.
> This technology is especially useful in the civilian space for search and rescue, disaster response, airsoft events, and any disconnected communications scenario.
Airsoft?! Huh?
Radio communication is a critical advantage in actual infantry fights, so it makes sense that it would be useful for cosplay infantry fights.
I use MorseMicro in 802.11s mode successfully, just openwrt stuff, any reason to try this project ?
Last time I played with Moremicro they didn't work with real 802.11s and had some hokey proprietary hierarchal tree topology that required a main basestation gateway. ad-hoc, peer-to-peer was broken. They finally fixed their driver?
I believe yes, give them other try, my scenarios with one connected station and mesh on drone platforms works out of the box