NeTS:Medium: Throughput Optimization of Cooperative Relaying in Wireless Networks

空间分集在提高无线网络容量和可靠性方面已被证明是非常有效的。然而，为无线节点配备多个天线并不总是可行的。该项目探索协作通信(CC)，其中每个节点只配备一根天线，而空间分集是通过利用网络中其他节点上的天线来实现的。虽然近年来物理层的CC已经得到了深入的研究，但对adhoc网络中的CC的基础了解仍然有限。该项目的目标是通过在物理层利用协作中继来优化网络级别的吞吐量。本项目致力于设计基于分析模型的网络级协作中继算法，使网络级吞吐量最大化。具体地说，本项目有三个相互依赖的研究方向：(1)网络编码在协作中继网络中的优化使用；(2)最大化吞吐量的中继节点选择；(3)多跳中继网络中协作的性能限制。这项研究通过开发新的数学工具来研究一些开放和重要的问题领域，从而服务于推进协作中继网络研究的迫切需要。该项目的成功为建立其理论基础向前迈进了一大步。吞吐量优化的研究还导致了新的算法和优化工具的发展，这些算法和优化工具超出了传统的凸优化领域。该项目的一个重要教育目标是为无线网络开发新的跨学科课程材料。

Spatial diversity has proved to be very effective in increasing wireless network capacity and reliability. However, equipping a wireless node with multiple antennas may not always be practical. This project explores Cooperative Communications (CC), where each node is only equipped with a single antenna and spatial diversity is achieved by exploiting the antennas on other nodes in the network. Although CC at the physical layer has been under intensive research in recent years, fundamental understanding of CC in ad hoc networks remains limited. The goal of this project is to optimize network level throughput by exploiting cooperative relaying at the physical layer. This project focuses on designing network level algorithms based on analytical models for cooperative relaying such that network level throughput can be maximized. Specifically, there are three inter-dependent research thrusts in this project: (1) optimal use of network coding in cooperative relay networks; (2) relay node selection for throughput maximization; and (3) performance limits of cooperation in multi-hop relay networks. This research serves a critical need in advancing cooperative relay network research by developing new mathematical tools to study some open and important problem areas. The success of this project offers a major step forward in establishing its theoretical foundation. The research on throughput optimization also leads to the development of new algorithmic and optimization tools that are beyond the traditional domain of convex optimization. An important educational objective of this project is to develop new cross-disciplinary course materials for wireless networking.