Distributed mobility management - framework & analysis

Mobile operators consider the distribution of mobility anchors to enable offloading some traffic from their core network. The Distributed Mobility Management (DMM) Working Group is investigating the impact of decentralized mobility management to existing protocol solutions, while taking into account well defined requirements, which are to be met by a future solution. This document discusses DMM using a functional framework. Functional Entities to support DMM as well as reference points between these Functional Entities are introduced and described. The described functional framework allows distribution and co-location of Functional Entities and build a DMM architecture that matches the architecture of available protocols. Such methodology eases the analysis of best current practices with regard to functional and protocol gaps

A Flexible and Modular Framework for Implementing Infrastructures for Global Computing

We present a Java software framework for building infrastructures to support the development of applications for systems where mobility and network awareness are key issues. The framework is particularly useful to develop run-time support for languages oriented towards global computing. It enables platform designers to customize communication protocols and network architectures and guarantees transparency of name management and code mobility in distributed environments. The key features are illustrated by means of a couple of simple case studies

"The Mobility Management framework context"

The European legislation on sustainable mobility was promulgated in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. It provides for the Member States to regulate urban transport, while the provisions at European Commission (EC) level are entrusted with the task of prescribing the improvement of the quality of fuels and emission standards for motor vehicles as well as the differentiation of energy sources for transport and the dissemination of good practices

Analysis of Barriers in the Transition toward Sustainable Mobility in the Netherlands

The transition toward a sustainable transportation system in the Netherlands takes place in the context of the Dutch “Transition management policy framework”. We study four tech¬nological routes that the “Platform Sustainable Mobility” has selected for this goal: (1) hybridization of vehicles, (2) liquid biofuels, (3) natural gas as a transportation fuel and (4) hydrogen as a transportation fuel. These technological routes all envision large-scale changes in vehicle propulsion technology and fuel infrastructure. Furthermore, they compete for the scarce resources available to invest in new (fuel) infrastructures, which implicates that these ‘transition paths’ are also interdependent at the level of the mobility system. The main outcome of the analysis is the identification of barriers that are currently blocking the transition toward sustainable mobility. Barriers are classified as being related to (1) technology and vehicle development, (2) the availability of (fuel) infrastructures, and (3) elements of the institutional infrastructure. The transition management framework currently misses guidelines for coping with (competing) technologies that each requires large infrastructural investments. We further argue that avoiding undesired lock-ins and creating a beneficial institutional context for sustainable mobility cannot be pursued at the transition path level. Therefore, we recommend that a more systemic approach should be taken to the tran¬si¬tion to sustainable mobility, in which the inter¬dependencies between the transition paths are critically assessed and in which the possibilities to legitimize sustainable mobility as a whole should be used.Innovation, Transition management, Sustainable Mobility, Barriers

Mobile Networking

We point out the different performance problems that need to be addressed when considering mobility in IP networks. We also define the reference architecture and present a framework to classify the different solutions for mobility management in IP networks. The performance of the major candidate micro-mobility solutions is evaluated for both real-time (UDP) and data (TCP) traffic through simulation and by means of an analytical model. Using these models we compare the performance of different mobility management schemes for different data and real-time services and the network resources that are needed for it. We point out the problems of TCP in wireless environments and review some proposed enhancements to TCP that aim at improving TCP performance. We make a detailed study of how some of micro-mobility protocols namely Cellular IP, Hawaii and Hierarchical Mobile IP affect the behavior of TCP and their interaction with the MAC layer. We investigate the impact of handoffs on TCP by means of simulation traces that show the evolution of segments and acknowledgments during handoffs.Publicad

Scalable QoS-aware Mobility for Future Mobile Operators

Telecom operators and Internet service providers are heading for a new shift in communications paradigms. The forthcoming convergence of cellular and wireless data networks is often manifested in an “all IP approach” in which all communications are based on an end-to-end IP protocol framework. The approach to network design becomes user and service-centered, so that continuous reachability of mobile users and sustained communication capabilities are default requirements for a prospective architecture. In this article, we describe a network architecture which is able to provide seamless communication mobility, triggered either by the user or by the network, across multiple technologies. The architecture allows for media independent handovers and supports optimized mobility and resource management functions. The main focus of the article is on major technical highlights of mobility and quality-of-service (QoS) management subsystems for converged networks.Publicad

Managing resources in erratic environments: an analysis of pastoralist systems in Ethiopia, Niger, and Burkina Faso

This study analyzes the links between risk and the kinds of property rights that have evolved to provide the mobility necessary to raise livestock in drought-prone countries in this case Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, and Niger. The study also evaluates the impact of cooperation on resource management in these environments. The express purpose of this research is to contribute to the current debate on resource management in highly variable environments, focusing on the impact of climate variability on and the role of cooperation in resource management. More specifically, a conceptual framework is developed to analyze the impact of climatic variability and cooperative capacity on land allocation patterns, stock densities, and patterns of herd mobility. Overall, the empirical results suggest that effective policies for sustainable land management and crisis-response plans may require the design and implementation of mechanisms to increase cooperative capacity.Range management Ethiopia, Range management Niger, Range management Burkina Faso, Pastoral systems,