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Module pricing

ant_node::payment

Module pricing 

Source
Expand description

Local fullness-based pricing algorithm for ant-node.

Mirrors the logarithmic pricing curve from autonomi’s MerklePaymentVault contract:

  • Empty node → price ≈ MIN_PRICE (floor)
  • Filling up → price increases logarithmically
  • Nearly full → price spikes (ln(x) as x→0)
  • At capacity → returns u64::MAX (effectively refuses new data)

§Design Rationale: Capacity-Based Pricing

Pricing is based on node fullness (percentage of storage capacity used), not on a fixed cost-per-byte. This design mirrors the autonomi MerklePaymentVault on-chain contract and creates natural load balancing:

  • Empty nodes charge the minimum floor price, attracting new data
  • Nearly full nodes charge exponentially more via the logarithmic curve
  • This pushes clients toward emptier nodes, distributing data across the network

A flat cost-per-byte model would not incentivize distribution — all nodes would charge the same regardless of remaining capacity. The logarithmic curve ensures the network self-balances as nodes fill up.

Functions§

calculate_price
Calculate a local price estimate from node quoting metrics.