When you step foot into any music festival or large event, one of the first things to go is your cell phone service. It’s a tale as old as time (or at least, as old as cell phones).
Major venues (particularly outdoor venues in cool locations) are plagued with unreliable cell service because of extreme network congestion and the increased distance from cell phone towers. Phone towers can only support so many active phone users in an area at once, and large events quickly reach a tipping point where nearby towers simply can’t handle the congestion.
If you lose your friends in the crowd at one of these events, things can get intense really quickly. In addition to unreliable service, you can’t always depend on your friends to check their phones consistently. The last thing anyone wants to do at a music festival is have to constantly check their phone. It’s a universal headache felt by so many festival and event-goers around the world.
The Totem Compass is designed to give people freedom at music festivals and live events. Freedom to roam, freedom to dance. Freedom from fear and uncertainty.
The beauty of the Totem Compass is that it works without cell-service, Wi-Fi, or bluetooth. Once you bond the Totem Compass with your friends, the Totem uses GNSS, a peer-to-peer (P2P) connectionless communication protocol, and our Unity Mesh Network™ to keep you connected. These three technologies come together to allow you to find your friends no matter how thick the crowds get.
(Check out our blog post for a deep dive on how the Totem Compass works.)
One of the most important aspects of our revolutionary technology is the Unity Mesh Network™. The Unity Mesh Network extends the range of any Totem Compass at music festivals and brings all Totem users together in a virtuous circle of mutual aid. It allows you to locate and connect with your friends across very large distances at festivals—no cell service required.
This blog will cover the basics of mesh networks, what makes the Unity Mesh Network™ unique from other mesh networks, and will break down exactly how it helps people feel safe and free.
Quick Primer on Mesh Networks
A mesh network is a network where devices create connection points, also called nodes, that are linked together.
Mesh networks can use two processes to transfer information between nodes: data flooding and data routing. To understand how the Totem’s mesh network functions, we’ll focus on data routing. With data routing, information bounces from node to node before reaching its final destination.
The beauty of data routing is that it is dynamic and has the ability to self-heal. Each node can choose the path it takes based on efficiency, speed, and security, and can reconfigure the network in the event of a broken path or missed connection.
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Mesh networks are different from conventional networks
Many conventional networks operate with a star-like pattern of connections. This means that every device, or node, within the network is connected to a central hub. This central hub is the single source of truth, used to transmit information to every node in the network.
Mesh networks differ from other networks by forming a web-like pattern of connections between nodes. Mesh networks allow information to be shared without the need for a central hub or server—super useful for a music festival!
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The Mesh Network everyone knows
The first, and perhaps oldest, example of a mesh network is….drumroll….the Internet itself! Information passes through the Internet from router to router (or node) until it reaches its final destination.
Other recognizable examples of a mesh network include Amazon Sidewalk, a shared network that allows all Echo devices to communicate with each other and work faster within and outside your home. Google Nest Wi-Fi does something very similar.
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The Unity Mesh Network™
The Unity Mesh Network™ is meticulously designed with music festival and outdoor event settings in mind. It exists to overcome a very specific problem: connecting with your friends in large, congested crowds.
What makes the Unity Mesh Network special?
The Unity Mesh Network™ is a peer-to-peer network, meaning that it is designed specifically for peer-to-peer communication devices, such as Totem’s festival compass. Not all mesh networks are designed this way. Peer-to-peer mesh networks come with some awesome benefits:
- Offline communication: no cell service or internet required.
- Free data: the only cost is hardware. Information can travel across devices at no cost to you.
- Privacy: because data is stored locally, third-party infringement becomes less of an issue.
The Unity Mesh Network™ is designed by festival-goers, for festival-goers. So much energy goes into planning and coordinating with friends in the event of unreliable service at crowded festivals. With the Totem Compass, you can leave your phone at home. Wild, right?
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The Unity Mesh Network is clutch because it can give you boundless range at most festivals if there is a certain amount of users at your festival (1-2% or more of attendees).
Each Totem Compass acts as a potential node in the Unity Mesh Network™. The beauty of the mesh network is that information hops across Totems as you move through different areas of an outdoor venue, until the location information of a peer reaches your Totem Compass. This means that whenever there are three or more Totems at a festival, every additional Totem can act as a bridge between you and your friend, effectively extending your range.
The same thing applies with fluctuating crowds. Say, for example, you’re at a music festival and a set has just ended. The crowd disperses but you still need to find a friend. If just one or two people in that area have Totem Compasses, the Unity Mesh Network™ will use their Totems to pass information from your friend’s Totem until it arrives to you.
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A Tribe of Unity and Love
When you bond your Totem Compass with your friends, you have a way to stay connected with and support your “tribe” of friends.
The beauty of the Unity Mesh Network™ is that it connects to a larger Tribe of beautiful people around you. This applies especially at larger, more densely-packed festivals.
Every person with a Totem Compass, even if they aren’t bonded to you, helps pass information along to help you find your friends. With the Unity Mesh Network™, there’s always a larger Totem Tribe helping you stay connected with the people you love. You, in turn, also help those around you simply by being a member of the Totem Tribe.
The Unity Mesh Network™ unifies everyone into a larger group of love that helps the people within it—because we’re all in this together. At Totem, we believe in unity. Humanity shines brightest when we stand together. That’s why we named it the Unity Mesh Network™.
How the Unity Mesh Network™ works
The Unity Mesh Network™ is layered on top of a peer-to-peer connectionless communication protocol. This peer-to-peer protocol allows any two Totem Compasses to track each other at a range of around 700 meters.
Some people have interpreted this to mean that the range of the Totem Compass maxes out around 700 meters, but that is a misunderstanding of the technology. The true maximum range for most real-world use cases goes far beyond 700 meters.
It’s true that the peer-to-peer range maxes out around 700meters, but that is only relevant if you and your one friend are the only two people at the whole festival with Totems. Incredibly unlikely, as this is a global movement with members around the world.
Once there is a third person in the festival area with a Totem Compass, the Unity Mesh Network™ will kick in and start helping extend the range of the Totem Compasses well beyond 700 meters. In other words, the peer-to-peer maximum range of ~700 meters is not the true maximum range of a Totem Compass in most situations. The Unity Mesh Network has the power to extend the range of the Totem Compasses across the boundaries of the festival or live event venue.
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How does the Unity Mesh Network™ extend the range of the Totem Compass?
The Unity Mesh Network uses a data routing method to transfer information between Totem Compasses. If you are trying to find a peer and they are more than 1000 meters away from you, the location of your friend will hop across other Totem Compasses in the area between you and your peer until it reaches your Totem.
For example, say you’re at Burning Man. On average, 75,000 people attend Burning Man every year. If even 2% of Burners have Totem Compasses (1,500 people), the signal range of your Totem Compass can extend across the entire area depending on how those 1,500 people are distributed across the grounds.
One amazing thing about the Unity Mesh Network™ is that it is highly intelligent. The network can choose the easiest, fastest route to deliver a peer’s location to your Totem Compass. It also comes equipped with self-healing algorithms that will automatically reconfigure the network to fix signal dropoffs, dead zones, and blocked or broken paths.
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Will people be able to use the mesh network to follow me home?
The Totem Compass is designed to make it nearly impossible for anyone to follow you home after the event. Because the Unity Mesh Network™ relies on other Totems to communicate, when the festival disbands, the mesh network disappears. At that point, the max range reverts to the peer-to-peer range of around 700 meters.
Once you get in your car or rideshare vehicle at the end of the night, you will quickly get out of range of anyone else who bonded with your compass. This means that the only way someone could track you after the festival is if you keep your compass on, and if they stay within 700 meters of you during your entire trip.
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Unity Mesh Network™ in Action
It’s story time! Let’s put the Unity Mesh Network™ to use in a real-world situation.
Who’s ready for a trip to EDC???
An Epic Trip to EDC Orlando
A group of three friends arrive at EDC Orlando. One of the three (Dan), is a music festival veteran (aka Rave Dad). Dan = Dad. The other two friends, Carla and Joey, are new to the music festival scene (aka Rave Babies).
Dan, Carla and Joey walk through the gates and immediately start feeling the bass ripple through their bones from MainStage. The rave babies start getting excited (and a little overwhelmed) so Dan decides that now is a good time to bond their Totem Compasses.
After they bond, Dan suggests they see the first show together to kick off Day 1 as a unified Tribe. The trio heads to ISOxo at MainStage.
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The Opener: Peer-to-Peer Navigation
Halfway through the first set, all three friends are covered in sweat, dripping with unadulterated glee as they shuffle to the beats. Carla realizes she’s drained her hydro-pack, and Dan suddenly needs to use the restroom. Joey, meanwhile, is totally absorbed in the melodic synesthesia and wants to stay in the crowd.
Because the MainStage area has bathrooms and a water station nearby (less than 1000 meters away), Carla and Dan are able to easily find their way back to Joey without tapping into the mesh network around them. Joey is still so lost in the vibes that he barely notices they left.
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Early Evening: Inner Tribe Mesh Networking
Early evening rolls around, and the Tribe decides to split up. Dan wants to recharge before the late-night festivities and decides to relax at the VIP lounge (because he’s experienced—EDC is a marathon, not a sprint). Carla really wants to see Kygo, while Joey has been waiting all year to see Excision. Both sets start at the exact same time on different sides of the festival.
So they make a plan: Carla will meet-up with Joey at the tail-end of Excision, and then they will go reunite with Dan at the VIP lounge. Carla and Joey can track Dan easily, as the VIP lounge is located between the Kygo and Excision stages and well within the peer-to-peer range (~700 meters).
Carla and Joey head to their different stages. When they get there, they are over 700 meters away from each other, but their Totems can still track each other easily.
Because Dan is located between the two stages, his Totem Compass can pass along Joey’s heading to Carla so that she can find him at the end of Excision’s set. Dan helps Carla and Joey get accurate headings at all times—all while laying in a lounge chair, sipping water and delightedly fanning himself. The pair eventually meet up with Dave and make a plan for the headlining show.
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The Headliner: Unity Mesh Network™ in all its Glory
It’s now time for the headliners, and Joey really wants to see Chase & Status. Carla and Dan aren’t huge fans of drum & bass, so they decide to see John Summit instead.
At this point in the evening, EDC Orlando is bursting at the seams with festival-goers, and the two stages are about a half-mile apart—outside the Totem Compass peer-to-peer range. As they wade through the crowds of people, the trio notices that they aren’t the only ones at EDC Orlando with Totem Compasses. The Totem Vibe has spread to other tribes!
Both sets are absolute bangers. Carla and Dan are left reeling after John Summit, and Joey has just had the best side quest of his life (so far).
When the shows end, Carla and Dan use their Totem Compasses to easily find Joey in the crowd—thanks to everyone else at EDC Orlando with Totems. The complete expression of the Unity Mesh Network™ allows everyone to help each other in their time of need.
The group reunites, exchanging hugs and wild stories, before heading out to get a few hours of sleep before Day 2.
Thus, our little happy Rave Family got happily lost in the Vibes—but not in the crowds. 🙂
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Inspired by the Spirit of Community
The Unity Mesh Network™ is advanced technology that the Totem Compass uses to extend its range beyond the boundaries of a festival or event venue.
The mesh network allows you to find your friends wherever you (and they) are, all while efficiently preserving battery life and frequency bandwidth. It provides peace of mind amidst massive crowds, thumping bass notes, and ther wild energy that fills music festivals and massive live events.
More than anything, the Unity Mesh Network™ creates community. Every person with a Totem Compass within a festival or event space becomes part of a larger Tribe. Every person becomes completely capable of helping one another in their time of need. Every person becomes more loving, more unified—simply by bringing their Totem to a music festival.
The Totem Compass weaves the Unity Mesh Network™ into a synergy inspired by the music festival community. It was designed by festival-goers, for festival-goers. The Totem Compass is not only a testament to innovation, but also to the spirit of music festivals themselves – a tool designed to Bond, Find, and Vibe with your Tribe in a way that's never been done before.
