Who are you?

Winnipeg MeshCore is an organization dedicated to expanding the MeshCore-based network across the city. Our goal is to both accomodate hobbyists by implementing a standard set of radio settings, and connect aid organizations so that they can communicate with each other in the event of internet or cellular network failure.

What is MeshCore?

It is a text-messaging system that doesn't require the internet or cellular signals to send and recieve messages. It relies on a wireless mesh network of low-cost LoRa radios to transfer messages from person to person. Your transmitter (called a "companion node") connects to a bunch of other devices in range, and some of those devices (called "repeater nodes") send the signal out further. You can do this multiple times to cover more distance, where other repeaters will pick up and rebroadcast the signal even further. Repeaters will also talk to each other in order to get around any objects or interference that block the signal.

What do these nodes look like?

Common commercially built Bluetooth companion nodes include the Elecrow Thinknode M1, the LILYGO T-Echo, the muzi works R1 Neo, the Seeed Studio Wio Tracker L1 Pro, and the RAKwireless WisMesh Pocket v2. You can also build your own companion node, following instructional videos such as The People's Repeater, or the Heltec v4, or countless other designs you can find on the internet. These nodes connect to your phone via Bluetooth, and you can send/recieve messages using the MeshCore app. You can also purchase standalone companion nodes that do not require a connected phone such as the LILYGO T-Deck Plus or Pro, or the Elecrow Thinknode M9. Repeater nodes are more commonly custom built such as The People's Companion, but there are retail models such as the Seeed P1-Pro or the Elecrow Thinknode M6 available for purchase.

Why not use Meshtastic?

Meshtastic is great if you have a small-to-medium sized mesh, but if you live in a major urban area with a lot of users, it's can cause problems. With Meshcore there are no companions or repeaters, just nodes. Every node that recieves a message will rebroadast it. That sounds great, but with enough users in a given area this starts to causes network congenstion. Meshtastic tries to combat this by having each message use a low hop count. Each time a message is rebroadcast, that hop count number goes down by one. Once it reaches zero, that message will no longer be rebroadcast. This does help with congestion, but it also means messages have somewhat of a limit on how far they can go. MeshCore's more rigid companion/repeater model (as well as some other features that limit radio usage) allow it to have a much higher hop count while still limiting congestion.

This website is still under construction. In the meantime, you can get in contact with us here.