Network Architecture

The ULP system operates in a simple star topology, which has substantial advantages over mesh and other topologies if the star network provides sufficient coverage. The star topology simplifies the networking protocol, thereby enhancing capacity in the network as more bandwidth is made available for user application throughput. In mesh networks, a substantial amount of capacity is consumed by "housekeeping" the network configuration. The star topology also helps lower costs, as less networking infrastructure is needed (so long as the system provides sufficient coverage).

On-Ramp typically claims about a 25× range and capacity advantage, but in many deployment scenarios, the advantage is substantially larger. That is because the On-Ramp ULP network (due to its high capacity, multiple access scheme) can take advantage of favorable antenna locations – for example, an elevated Access Point antenna placement. This is not the case for CSMA based systems, such as 802.15.4, 802.11, and 900MHz Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum networks. CSMA assumes that Nodes in the network have a radio link between each other to detect contention. As coverage increases, the likelihood of that decreases, and the multiple access scheme collapses. Additionally, because of the short range of these systems, there typically aren’t enough favorable locations to place gateways, making this approach theoretical at best.