Secure Cloud Controlled UAS Operations

Integrating a small unmanned aircraft system (sUAS) with cloud capabilities for military or enterprise use has not usually been feasible due to cybersecurity concerns. With recent advancements in blockchain networks the possibility of large cloud connected UAS networks has emerged. Our team investigates how to integrate data collected from a sUAS with a cloud-based service for data collection, storage, and processing implemented to ensure data privacy and data integrity. Our proposed network architecture implements a blockchain network to maintain decentralized security for the network. The research’s objectives include running security tests against a blockchain network & host/client networks and then comparing their performance and abilities to support the cloud based UAS. Specifically, we are using an open-source project called AirSim to support a virtual UAS that is connected to the UAS flight controller, the Pixhawk, to test a hardware-in the loop solution. This test is a preliminary proof of concept, and after it proves successful we are moving to a test involving a physical UAS. Data is transmitted from the UAS to a client server in Amazon Web Services (AWS) where it is placed into a blockchain and sent to the host server for processing. Overall, we believe a cloud supported communication network with a blockchain to secure data is an efficient and wise method of UAS control with information processing

Decentralized Resource Allocation for Video Transcoding and Delivery in Blockchain-Based System with Mobile Edge Computing

The blockchain-based video systems are designed to build a decentralized and flexible video ecosystem by enabling a direct interaction among users, video providers (VPs), and service providers. In blockchain-based video systems, the heterogeneous qualities and formats of the video streams usually require massive computational resources to transcode them into different versions and formats to meet distinct requirements of users. However, current blockchains cannot handle massive and heterogeneous video streaming due to limited computing capacity and long transaction times. To deal with this issue, in this paper, leveraging mobile edge computing (MEC) technology, we propose a blockchain-based MEC architecture, where small base stations (SBSs) allocate their computation as well as communication resources for providing video streaming in a distributed and secure manner. Moreover, to improve the operation efficiency, we use a series of smart contracts to enable a self-organized v