LAPRA: Location-aware Proactive Resource Allocation

Today’s indoor wireless networks employ reactive resource allocation methods to provide fair and efficient usage of the communication system. However, their reactive nature limits the quality of service (QoS) that can be offered to the user locations within the environment. In large crowded areas (airports, conferences), networks can get congested and users may suffer from poor QoS. To mitigate this, we propose and evaluate a location-aware user-centric proactive resource allocation approach (LAPRA), in which the users are proactive and seek good channel quality by moving to locations where the signal quality is good. As a result, the users and their locations are optimized to improve the overall QoS. We demonstrate that the proposed proactive approach enhances the user QoS and improves network throughput of the system

Learning-aided Stochastic Network Optimization with Imperfect State Prediction

We investigate the problem of stochastic network optimization in the presence of imperfect state prediction and non-stationarity. Based on a novel distribution-accuracy curve prediction model, we develop the predictive learning-aided control (PLC) algorithm, which jointly utilizes historic and predicted network state information for decision making. PLC is an online algorithm that requires zero a-prior system statistical information, and consists of three key components, namely sequential distribution estimation and change detection, dual learning, and online queue-based control. Specifically, we show that PLC simultaneously achieves good long-term performance, short-term queue size reduction, accurate change detection, and fast algorithm convergence. In particular, for stationary networks, PLC achieves a near-optimal $[O(\epsilon)$, $O(\log(1/\epsilon)^2)]$ utility-delay tradeoff. For non-stationary networks, \plc{} obtains an $[O(\epsilon), O(\log^2(1/\epsilon)$ $+ \min(\epsilon^{c/2-1}, e_w/\epsilon))]$ utility-backlog tradeoff for distributions that last $\Theta(\frac{\max(\epsilon^{-c}, e_w^{-2})}{\epsilon^{1+a}})$ time, where $e_w$ is the prediction accuracy and $a=\Theta(1)>0$ is a constant (the Backpressue algorithm \cite{neelynowbook} requires an $O(\epsilon^{-2})$ length for the same utility performance with a larger backlog). Moreover, PLC detects distribution change $O(w)$ slots faster with high probability ($w$ is the prediction size) and achieves an $O(\min(\epsilon^{-1+c/2}, e_w/\epsilon)+\log^2(1/\epsilon))$ convergence time. Our results demonstrate that state prediction (even imperfect) can help (i) achieve faster detection and convergence, and (ii) obtain better utility-delay tradeoffs

Channel Prediction with Location Uncertainty for Ad-Hoc Networks

Multi-agent systems (MAS) rely on positioning technologies to determine their physical location, and on wireless communication technologies to exchange information. Both positioning and communication are affected by uncertainties, which should be accounted for. This paper considers an agent placement problem to optimize end-to-end communication quality in a MAS, in the presence of uncertainties. Using Gaussian processes (GPs), operating on the input space of location distributions, we are able to model, learn, and predict the wireless channel. Predictions, in the form of distributions, are fed into the communication optimization problems. This approach inherently avoids regions of the workspace with high position uncertainty and leads to better average communication performance. We illustrate the benefits of our approach via extensive simulations, based on real wireless channel measurements. Finally, we demonstrate the improved channel learning and prediction performance, as well as the increased robustness in agent placement

Connecting Vehicles to the Internet - Strategic Data Transmission for Mobile Nodes using Heterogeneous Wireless Networks

With the advent of autonomous driving, the driving experience for users of connected vehicles changes, as they may enjoy their travel time with entertainment, or work productively. In our modern society, both require a stable Internet access. However, future mobile networks are not expected to be able to satisfy application Quality of Service (QoS) requirements as needed, e.g. during rush hours. To address this problem, this dissertation investigates data transmission strategies that exploit the potential of using a heterogeneous wireless network environment. To this end, we combine two so far distinct concepts, firstly, network selection and, secondly, transmission time selection, creating a joint time-network selection strategy. It allows a vehicle to plan delay-tolerant data transmissions ahead, favoring transmission opportunities with the best prospective flow-network matches. In this context, our first contribution is a novel rating model for perceived transmission quality, which assesses transmission opportunities with respect to application QoS requirement violations, traded off by monetary cost. To enable unified assessment of all data transmissions, it generalizes existing specialized rating models from network selection and transmission time selection and extends them with a novel throughput requirement model. Based on that, we develop a novel joint time-network selection strategy, Joint Transmission Planning (JTP), as our second contribution, planning optimized data transmissions within a defined time horizon. We compare its transmission quality to that of three predominant state-of-the-art transmission strategies, revealing that JTP outperforms the others significantly by up to 26%. Due to extensive scenario variation, we discover broad stability of JTP reaching 87-91% of the optimum. As JTP is a planning approach relying on prediction data, the transmission quality is strongly impaired when executing its plans under environmental changes. To mitigate this impact, we develop a transmission plan adaptation as our third contribution, modifying the planned current transmission online in order to comply with the changes. Even under strong changes of the vehicle movement and the network environment, it sustains 57%, respectively 36%, of the performance gain from planning. Finally, we present our protocol Mobility management for Vehicular Networking (MoVeNet), pooling available network resources of the environment to enable flexible packet dispatching without breaking connections. Its distributed architecture provides broad scalability and robustness against node failures. It complements control mechanisms that allow a demand-based and connection-specific trade-off between overhead and latency. Less than 9 ms additional round trip time in our tests, instant handover and 0 to 4 bytes per-packet overhead prove its efficiency. Employing the presented strategies and mechanisms jointly, users of connected vehicles and other mobile devices can significantly profit from the demonstrated improvements in application QoS satisfaction and reduced monetary cost

On Proactive Caching with Demand and Channel Uncertainties

Mobile data traffic has surpassed that of voiceto become the main component of the system load of today’swireless networks. Recent studies indicate that the data demandpatterns of mobile users are predictable. Moreover, thechannel quality of mobile users along their navigation pathsis predictable by exploiting their location information. Thiswork aims at fusing the statistically predictable demand andchannel patterns in devising proactive caching strategies thatalleviate network congestion. Specifically, we establish a fundamentalbound on the minimum possible cost achievable by anyproactive scheduler under time-invariant demand and channelstatistics as a function of their prediction uncertainties, and develop an asymptotically optimal proactive service policy that attains this bound as the prediction window grows. In addition, the established bound yields insights on how the demand and channel statistics affect proactive caching decisions. We reveal some of these insights through numerical investigations