NeTS-NBD: Collaborative Research Coding and Transmission Schemes for Content Download

传统商业供应商和业余爱好者提供的内容下载量都有显著增加。用户拥有各种各样的计算机设备，从手持设备到台式机，下载的项目从简单的股票报价到新闻故事再到完整的电影。这种高度异构的环境将在不久的将来的网络中占主导地位。用于内容下载的当前方案在解决所提到的异质性方面是低效的。该项目的目标是获得新的和改进的方案，这将导致更好地访问内容的用户，同时提高网络利用率。研究将集中在三种编码技术来解决这个问题：在应用层的无比率编码，在网络层的网络编码，在物理层的协作编码。定量和定性的网络和无比率编码在异构环境中的限制将进行研究，以开发新的实用的编码方案，在这种情况下适当的。另一个研究方向是研究和分析使用物理层协作传输方案使网络更加统一的机制。评估将如何影响这一过程的性能的较高层编码方案。更广泛的影响：研究如果成功，将提高网络中数据的效率和可用性。这有可能直接和间接地使广大民众受益。此外，这项合作研究有可能在编码和信息理论以及组合优化的界面上获得基本的新见解。一些博士生将在跨学科领域获得支持和培训，他们还将获得宝贵的工业经验。

There has been a remarkable increase in download of content provided by both traditional commercial suppliers as well those by amateurs. Users have very diverse computer equipment ranging from handheld devices to desktops, and downloaded items range from simple stock quotes to news stories to full movies. Such highly heterogeneous circumstances will be predominant in the networks of the near future. Current schemes for content download are inefficient at addressing the mentioned heterogeneity. The goal of this project is to obtain new and improved schemes that would result in better access to content for the users while improving the network utilization. The research will focus on three coding techniques to attack the problem: rateless coding at the application layer, network coding at the network layer, and collaborative coding at the physical layer. Quantitative and qualitative limitations of network and rateless coding in heterogeneous environments will be studied to develop new practical coding schemes appropriate in such circumstances. Another research direction is to investigate and analyze mechanism to make networks more uniform using physical layer collaborative transmission schemes. An assessment will be made on how this process affects the performance of the higher layer coding schemes. Broader Impact: The research, if successful, will improve the efficiency and availability of data in networks. This has the potential to benefit directly and indirectly the population at large. In addition, this collaborative research has the potential to obtain fundamental new insights at the interface of coding and information theory and combinatorial optimization. Several PhD students will be supported and trained in interdisciplinary areas and they would also obtain valuable industrial experience.