Collaborative Research: Extreme Densification of Wireless Networks

网络致密化——大量基站和接入点重叠的无线足迹和不同的功能遍布物理领域——是满足移动数据巨大需求的前进方向。该项目的主要目标是重新评估设计无线网络和管理频谱使用的方式，以便利用密集的接入基础设施。该项目预计将在三个领域做出贡献：1)通信和网络协议的设计、分析和原型设计，通过利用新兴的敏捷访问技术，在不需要高协调开销的情况下，对共享频谱上的传输进行前所未有的细粒度控制；2)设计和分析新颖、简单和稀疏状态的算法，利用这种系统的大灵活性来实现近乎最优的资源分配；3)对极度密集的无线网络进行建模和分析，以评估这种制度下供应商之间资源共享的绩效，以及评估部署一系列合同结构的经济和政策激励。拟议的研究活动在很大程度上依赖于对极其密集的网络的健全理论和分析的发展、算法的发展、对大型系统的模拟以及最后对小规模制度进行原型设计。这项研究将成为改变传统无线网络模式的催化剂，从基础设施点连接到许多移动设备，到移动设备连接到大量基础设施节点。这项研究将广泛传播给研究人员、从业人员和政策制定者，特别是利用一个强大的以行业为重点的研究中心，并努力接触公立高中的学生、家长和教师。

Network densification - where a multitude of base-stations and access points with overlapping wireless footprints and disparate capabilities pervade the physical domain - is the way forward towards meeting the tremendous demand for mobile data. The main objective of this project is to reevaluate the manner in which wireless networks are engineered and spectrum usage is managed so as to exploit dense access infrastructure. The project is expected to make contributions in three areas: 1) Design, analysis and prototyping of communications and network protocols to enable unprecedented fine grain control over transmissions over shared spectrum without requiring high coordination overheads, by leveraging emerging agile access techniques; 2) Design and analysis of novel, simple and sparse-state algorithms that leverage the large flexibility in such systems to achieve near-optimal resource allocations; 3) Modeling and analysis of extreme dense wireless networks to both evaluate the performance of resource sharing between providers in this regime, as well as evaluate economic and policy incentives to deploy a range of contractual structures.The proposed research activity relies heavily on the development of sound theory and analysis of extremely dense networks, algorithmic development, simulation for large-scale systems and finally prototyping small-scale regimes. The research will serve as a catalyst towards changing traditional wireless networking paradigm, from one where infrastructure points connect to many mobiles, to one where a mobile connects to a large number of infrastructure nodes. The research will be disseminated broadly to researchers, practitioners and policy makers, leveraging in particular, a strong industry focused research center, as well as in efforts reaching out to public high school students, parents and teachers.