NeTS: Small: Optimized Mobile Data Off-loading Architectures and Mechanisms

移动的数据流量的空前增长预计将在2020年超过25艾字节/月，这对蜂窝运营商构成了重大的技术和经济挑战，并需要快速增加容量。基于技术升级和频谱收购的几种网络扩展方法是成本高昂且更长期的方法。存在对替代解决方案的需求，并且将移动的数据卸载到Wi-Fi网络似乎是最有前途的解决方案之一。尽管最近采取了一些举措，但研究界仍然缺乏一种系统的方法来实现Wi-Fi网络的无缝集成，并确保最大可能的卸载效益。该项目将通过提出、分析和验证一个技术经济框架来填补这一空白，该框架可以实现优化和高效的移动的数据卸载解决方案。首先，它将分析运营商如何部署Wi-Fi覆盖网络（大规模，长期优化），以及如何使用它以有效的方式卸载蜂窝流量（动态，实时优化）。然后，它将研究运营商如何通过租赁休眠用户拥有的网络资源（如住宅Wi-Fi接入点）以及与Wi-Fi共享社区或Wi-Fi运营商合作来外包卸载。这种方法不仅可以实现现场和按需卸载，而且还可以促进可持续的网络解决方案，并在这个新兴的移动的生态系统中为新的商业模式创造机会。具体而言，该项目包括以下两个重点：（I）Wi-Fi接入点部署，定价策略和流量卸载政策，以及（II）Wi-Fi备用容量市场和机制。Thrust I将研究在蜂窝网络中覆盖Wi-Fi辅助网络的网络策略。这些政策将与向卸载移动的数据的用户收费的定价方案共同设计。这种方法与目前免费卸载服务的做法有很大不同，预计将为移动的网络运营商（MNO）带来重大的经济利益。此外，该项目将研究动态（在线）政策，适应交通变化和优化，为一个给定的网络基础设施，卸载的好处，同时考虑到用户？要求.在这个推力的理论分析涉及具有挑战性的优化问题，这往往是NP难，并需要复杂和/或轻量级的解决方案算法。第二个推力将研究运营商如何有效地租用休眠的用户拥有的Wi-Fi网络用于卸载目的。这项研究是指分散的体系结构，因为网络基础设施是由不同的实体，并经常用户发起的卸载计划，其中的移动的用户决定何时卸载他们的流量。将根据租用网络是由独立的个人用户、Wi-Fi运营商还是Wi-Fi共享社区拥有来分析各种场景。每种情况都提出了独特的问题，因为所需的卸载机制和激励设计问题都是不同的。 更广泛的影响：该项目的动机是当前的挑战，电信行业，建立在真实的数据集，并支持广泛的试验台实验。该研究结合了通信系统设计、网络优化和网络经济学，将对科学、教育和通信市场产生广泛的影响。首先，它将通过优化的Wi-Fi网络和卸载机制大幅增加蜂窝容量。这将是适应激增的移动的数据流量的决定性一步。它还可以激发新的商业模式，以及蜂窝运营商、Wi-Fi运营商和Wi-Fi共享社区之间的协作计划。此外，该项目采用了将共享经济模式应用于无线网络的激进方法，预计将引领可持续的网络解决方案。此外，该项目将作为学术界和工业界之间的一个极好的渠道，积极参与顶级研究实验室，如阿尔卡特朗讯贝尔实验室。将采用一流的网络测试平台设施，以建立现实的模型和评估拟议的架构。这将创建可以被研究界重用的数据集，用于研究下一代异构无线网络的各个方面;这也将作为进一步传播研究成果的方法。将特别重视招募妇女和代表性不足的少数民族（URM）学生参加该项目，以及通过本科生研究经验（雷乌斯）招募本科生。将在外联活动中做出系统的努力，以识别，参与和培养STEM职业的杰出人才。

The unprecedented growth of mobile data traffic, that is expected to surpass 25 exabytes/month in 2020, poses major technical and economic challenges to the cellular operators, and necessitates rapid capacity increase. Several network expansion methods based on technology upgrades and spectrum acquisitions, are costly and more long-term approaches. There is a need for alternative solutions, and mobile data offloading to Wi-Fi networks appears as one of the most promising. Despite several recent initiatives, the research community still lacks a systematic approach for achieving a seamless integration of Wi-Fi networks and for ensuring the maximum possible offloading benefits. This project will fill this gap by proposing, analyzing, and validating a techno-economic framework that enables optimized and efficient mobile data offloading solutions. First, it will analyze how an operator can deploy a Wi-Fi overlay network (large-scale, long-term optimization), and how it can be used to offload cellular traffic in an efficient fashion (dynamic, real-time optimization). Then, it will study how operators can outsource offloading by leasing dormant user-owned network resources, such as residential Wi-Fi access points, and by cooperating with Wi-Fi sharing communities or Wi-Fi operators. Such approaches not only enable on-the-spot and on-demand offloading, but also promote sustainable networking solutions and create opportunities for novel business models in this emerging mobile ecosystem.The proposed plan lies at the nexus of network optimization and network economics, and employs convex, stochastic and discrete optimization in conjunction with game theory and auction theory tools. In particular, the project comprises the following two Thrusts: (I) Wi-Fi Access Point Deployment, Pricing Strategies, and Traffic Offloading Policies, and (II) Wi-Fi Spare Capacity Markets and Mechanisms. Thrust I will study network policies for overlaying Wi-Fi auxiliary networks in cellular networks. These policies will be jointly designed with pricing schemes for charging the users who offload mobile data. This approach departs significantly from the current practice of gratis offloading services, and is expected to bring significant economic benefits for the mobile network operators (MNOs). Moreover, the project will study dynamic (online) policies that adapt on traffic variations and optimize, for a given network infrastructure, the offloading benefits while taking into account the users? requirements. The theoretical analysis in this Thrust involves challenging optimization problems, which are often NP-hard, and require sophisticated and/or lightweight solution algorithms. The second Thrust will study how the operators can effectively lease dormant user-owned Wi-Fi networks for offloading purposes. This study refers to decentralized architectures as the network infrastructure is owned by different entities, and often to user-initiated offloading schemes where the mobile users decide when to offload their traffic. Various scenarios will be analyzed based on whether the leased networks are owned by independent individual users, by Wi-Fi operators, or Wi-Fi sharing communities. Each case raises unique issues as both the required offloading mechanisms, and the incentive design problems are different. Broader Impacts: This project is motivated by current challenges of the telecommunications industry, builds upon real data sets, and is supported by extensive testbed experimentation. The proposed research, incorporating communication system design, network optimization, and network economics, will have broad impact on science, education, and communication markets. First, it will increase substantially the cellular capacity by optimized Wi-Fi networks and offloading mechanisms. This will be a decisive step towards accommodating the surging mobile data traffic. It can also inspire new business models, and collaboration schemes among cellular operators, Wi-Fi operators, and Wi-Fi sharing communities. Besides, this project adopts a radical approach for employing sharing economy models to wireless networks, which is expected to lead in sustainable networking solutions. Moreover, the project will serve as an excellent conduit between academia and industry, involving actively top research labs such as the Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs. Top-notch network testbed facilities will be employed in order to build realistic models and evaluate the proposed architectures. This will create datasets that can be reused by the research community for studying various aspects of the next generation heterogeneous wireless networks; this will also serve as a method for further disseminating the research outcomes. Special emphasis will be given on recruiting women and under-represented minority (URM) students to the project, as well as undergraduate students via Research Experience for Undergraduates (REUs). A systematic effort will be made in outreach activities to identify, engage, and nurture exceptional talents for careers in STEM.