State of the art in Wireless Mesh Networks - delivrable L3.01 - RNRT project "Airnet"

This delivrable presents a state of the art on management related issues in Wireless Mesh Networks. We describe existant work focusing on the five functional domains of the management plane: fault management, configuration management, accounting, performance and security

Mobility support across hybrid IP-based wireless environment : review of concepts, solutions and related issues.

The 4G or Beyond 3G wireless networks is consist of IP-based heterogeneous access networks from 3G cellular, WiFi, WiMAX to other emerging access technologies such as mesh networks. The key objective of designing the next generation wireless networks is to support of mobile subscribers. To support the mobile host in the hybrid wireless access technologies, many solutions based on network protocol stack have been proposed in the literature. In this article, after review of mobility concepts, a special attention is given to some of the mobility management methods as well as handover techniques across various wireless access networks. We have also compared the major mobility protocols in each layer for their features. Finally, some of the open issues that needed to be addressed in mobility management protocol in the next generation wireless networks are outlined

Semantic reasoning in cognitive networks for heterogeneous wireless mesh systems

The next generation of wireless networks is expected to provide not only higher bandwidths anywhere and at any time but also ubiquitous communication using different network types. However, several important issues including routing, self-configuration, device management, and context awareness have to be considered before this vision becomes reality. This paper proposes a novel cognitive network framework for heterogeneous wireless mesh systems to abstract the network control system from the infrastructure by introducing a layer that separates the management of different radio access networks from the data transmission. This approach simplifies the process of managing and optimizing the networks by using extendable smart middleware that automatically manages, configures, and optimizes the network performance. The proposed cognitive network framework, called FuzzOnto, is based on a novel approach that employs ontologies and fuzzy reasoning to facilitate the dynamic addition of new network types to the heterogeneous network. The novelty is in using semantic reasoning with cross-layer parameters from heterogeneous network architectures to manage and optimize the performance of the networks. The concept is demonstrated through the use of three network architectures: 1) wireless mesh network; 2) long-term evolution (LTE) cellular network; and 3) vehicular ad hoc network (VANET). These networks utilize nonoverlapped frequency bands and can operate simultaneously with no interference. The proposed heterogeneous network was evaluated using ns-3 network simulation software. The simulation results were compared with those produced by other networks that utilize multiple transmission devices. The results showed that the heterogeneous network outperformed the benchmark networks in both urban and VANET scenarios by up to 70% of the network throughput, even when the LTE network utilized a high bandwidth

Security and Privacy Issues in Wireless Mesh Networks: A Survey

This book chapter identifies various security threats in wireless mesh network (WMN). Keeping in mind the critical requirement of security and user privacy in WMNs, this chapter provides a comprehensive overview of various possible attacks on different layers of the communication protocol stack for WMNs and their corresponding defense mechanisms. First, it identifies the security vulnerabilities in the physical, link, network, transport, application layers. Furthermore, various possible attacks on the key management protocols, user authentication and access control protocols, and user privacy preservation protocols are presented. After enumerating various possible attacks, the chapter provides a detailed discussion on various existing security mechanisms and protocols to defend against and wherever possible prevent the possible attacks. Comparative analyses are also presented on the security schemes with regards to the cryptographic schemes used, key management strategies deployed, use of any trusted third party, computation and communication overhead involved etc. The chapter then presents a brief discussion on various trust management approaches for WMNs since trust and reputation-based schemes are increasingly becoming popular for enforcing security in wireless networks. A number of open problems in security and privacy issues for WMNs are subsequently discussed before the chapter is finally concluded.Comment: 62 pages, 12 figures, 6 tables. This chapter is an extension of the author's previous submission in arXiv submission: arXiv:1102.1226. There are some text overlaps with the previous submissio

Wireless Telecommunications Issues: Cell Phone TV, Wireless Networks in Disaster Management, Ubiquitous Computing, and Adoption of Future Wireless Applications

This paper is a summary of a 2007 Association for Information Systems Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS) panel discussion regarding current mobile wireless issues and technologies. The invited panelists are four faculty members specializing in information systems from the United States. The covered topics included cell phone TV and misconceptions surrounding it, wireless networks in disaster management, ubiquitous computing including anatomy of a mote and sensors, and the adoption of future wireless applications. First, we present wireless cell phone TV as a functioning multipurpose computer, or a Swiss army knife, of media devices. The misconceptions are stated, influenced by preconceived notions by the media critics as well as users. Next we discuss a range of wireless technologies including wearable computing, ad hoc and mesh wireless networks as a means of providing communications for first respondents during a natural or man-made disaster. Then we examine the anatomy of motes and RFIDs, including sensors, in an era of ubiquitous computing and a world of (inter-)connected objects. Finally, we discuss the socio-cultural constructs impacting users\u27 intentions to adopt future wireless applications

A Survey on Communication Networks for Electric System Automation

Published in Computer Networks 50 (2006) 877–897, an Elsevier journal. The definitive version of this publication is available from Science Direct. Digital Object Identifier:10.1016/j.comnet.2006.01.005In today’s competitive electric utility marketplace, reliable and real-time information become the key factor for reliable delivery of power to the end-users, profitability of the electric utility and customer satisfaction. The operational and commercial demands of electric utilities require a high-performance data communication network that supports both existing functionalities and future operational requirements. In this respect, since such a communication network constitutes the core of the electric system automation applications, the design of a cost-effective and reliable network architecture is crucial. In this paper, the opportunities and challenges of a hybrid network architecture are discussed for electric system automation. More specifically, Internet based Virtual Private Networks, power line communications, satellite communications and wireless communications (wireless sensor networks, WiMAX and wireless mesh networks) are described in detail. The motivation of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the hybrid network architecture that can provide heterogeneous electric system automation application requirements. In this regard, our aim is to present a structured framework for electric utilities who plan to utilize new communication technologies for automation and hence, to make the decision making process more effective and direct.This work was supported by NEETRAC under Project #04-157

Deploying rural community wireless mesh networks

Inadequate Internet access is widening the digital divide between town and countryside, degrading both social communication and business advancements in rural areas. Wireless mesh networking can provide an excellent framework for delivering broadband services to such areas. With this in mind, Lancaster University deployed a WMN in the rural village of Wray over a three-year period, providing the community with Internet service that exceeds many urban offerings. The project gave researchers a real-world testbed for exploring the technical and social issues entailed in deploying WMNs in the heart of a small community