RAISE: AraOptical 2.0: MISO Free-Space Optical Communications for Long-Distance, High-Capacity X-Haul Networking

农村城镇之间通常相距数十里甚至更远，许多农村城镇和农业农场距离最近的互联网骨干连接点很远。因此，大容量、长距离的无线x-远程网络是连接农村城镇和农业农场以及与互联网主干连接的重要中程解决方案。然而，现有的做法大多局限于微波频段，而这些微波x-远程系统往往具有有限的通信容量。自由空间光通信(FSOC)已经被探索用于大容量无线x-远程网络。然而，现有的长距离FSOC的做法仅限于卫星间的数据传输，而地面FSOC仅限于附近建筑物之间的短距离通信。为了实现基于FSOC的远距离、高容量地面x-远程网络，该项目将开发坚固耐用的多输入单输出(MISO)FSOC原型，这些原型有望成为农村宽带解决方案的基本组件。农业自动化和基于XR的农村教育等启用的实时数据密集型农村应用程序预计将对农村行业和社区产生变革性影响。提出的MISO FSOC原型将利用空间、偏振和波长分集来缓解远距离地面FSOC中光束漂移和闪烁的影响，并将使用不同的孔径大小、空间距离和偏振态对其传输距离从1公里到10公里甚至更远进行测试。该项目还将开发AraOptics 2.0可编程网络系统，该系统的控制器管理MISO FSOC系统的控制、监控和数据平面，以优化其运行并将其集成到整体x-远程架构中。ARA PAWR(美国国家科学基金会的先进无线试验台之一)将部署AraOptic 2.0链路，该项目将利用爱荷华州中部的四季天气，开展广泛的测量活动，以调查MISO FSOC链路以及共址的毫米波和微波链路的行为，并将为MISO FSOC系统和一般的长距离、大容量x-远程网络开发机器学习模型和最佳控制。该项目将在不同天气条件和实验剖面下生成第一个真实世界测量数据和远程FSOC系统模型，它们将成为更广泛的研究和教育界的重要工具。这个项目将为扩大对计算的参与创造令人兴奋的机会，它将有助于丰富本科生和研究生的研究和教育以及K-12外展。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Rural towns are usually tens of miles or even farther away from one another, and many rural towns and agriculture farms are far away from their nearest Internet backbone connection points. Thus high-capacity, long-distance wireless x-haul networks serve as important middle-mile solutions for connecting rural towns and agriculture farms with one another and with the Internet backbone. However, the existing practice has been mostly limited to microwave bands, and these microwave x-haul systems tends to have limited communication capacity. Free-space optical communications (FSOC) have been explored for high-capacity wireless x-haul networks. However, the existing practice in long-distance FSOC has been limited to inter-satellite data transfers, and terrestrial FSOC has been limited to short-distance communications between close-by buildings. To enable FSOC-based long-distance, high-capacity terrestrial x-haul networking, this project will develop robust Multi Input Single Output (MISO) FSOC prototypes that are expected to become foundational components of rural broadband solutions. The enabled real-time data-intensive rural applications, such as agriculture automation and XR-based rural education, are expected to have transformative impact on rural industries and communities. The proposed MISO FSOC prototype will leverage spatial, polarization, and wavelength diversity to mitigate the impact of beam wandering and scintillation in long-distance terrestrial FSOC, and it will be tested for transmission distances from 1km to 10km and beyond by using different aperture sizes, spatial distances, and polarization states. This project will also develop the AraOptical 2.0 programmable networking system whose controller manages the control, monitoring, and data planes of the MISO FSOC system to optimize its operation and to integrate it into a holistic x-haul architecture. An AraOptical 2.0 link will be deployed in ARA PAWR (one of NSF’s advanced wireless testbeds), and, leveraging the four-season weather in Central Iowa, this project will conduct extensive measurement campaigns to investigate the behavior of MISO FSOC links together with co-located mmWave and microwave links, and it will develop machine learning models and optimal controls for MISO FSOC systems and long-distance, high-capacity x-haul networks in general. This project will generate first-of-its-kind real-world measurement data and models of long-distance FSOC systems under different weather conditions and experiment profiles, and they will serve as important tools for the broader research and education community. This project will create exciting opportunities for broadening participation in computing, and it will help enrich undergraduate and graduate research and education as well as K-12 outreach.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.