Optimal Resource Allocation in Random Networks with Transportation Bandwidths

We apply statistical physics to study the task of resource allocation in random sparse networks with limited bandwidths for the transportation of resources along the links. Useful algorithms are obtained from recursive relations. Bottlenecks emerge when the bandwidths are small, causing an increase in the fraction of idle links. For a given total bandwidth per node, the efficiency of allocation increases with the network connectivity. In the high connectivity limit, we find a phase transition at a critical bandwidth, above which clusters of balanced nodes appear, characterised by a profile of homogenized resource allocation similar to the Maxwell's construction.Comment: 28 pages, 11 figure

Self-Sustaining Caching Stations: Towards Cost-Effective 5G-Enabled Vehicular Networks

In this article, we investigate the cost-effective 5G-enabled vehicular networks to support emerging vehicular applications, such as autonomous driving, in-car infotainment and location-based road services. To this end, self-sustaining caching stations (SCSs) are introduced to liberate on-road base stations from the constraints of power lines and wired backhauls. Specifically, the cache-enabled SCSs are powered by renewable energy and connected to core networks through wireless backhauls, which can realize "drop-and-play" deployment, green operation, and low-latency services. With SCSs integrated, a 5G-enabled heterogeneous vehicular networking architecture is further proposed, where SCSs are deployed along roadside for traffic offloading while conventional macro base stations (MBSs) provide ubiquitous coverage to vehicles. In addition, a hierarchical network management framework is designed to deal with high dynamics in vehicular traffic and renewable energy, where content caching, energy management and traffic steering are jointly investigated to optimize the service capability of SCSs with balanced power demand and supply in different time scales. Case studies are provided to illustrate SCS deployment and operation designs, and some open research issues are also discussed.Comment: IEEE Communications Magazine, to appea

Secure Clustering in DSN with Key Predistribution and WCDS

This paper proposes an efficient approach of secure clustering in distributed sensor networks. The clusters or groups in the network are formed based on offline rank assignment and predistribution of secret keys. Our approach uses the concept of weakly connected dominating set (WCDS) to reduce the number of cluster-heads in the network. The formation of clusters in the network is secured as the secret keys are distributed and used in an efficient way to resist the inclusion of any hostile entity in the clusters. Along with the description of our approach, we present an analysis and comparison of our approach with other schemes. We also mention the limitations of our approach considering the practical implementation of the sensor networks.Comment: 6 page