Collaborative Research: Self-Sustainable Networking of Survivability-Heterogeneous Sensors

本研究的目的是研究网络问题的关键是建立自我可持续的户外传感器网络。提出的方法是将环境生存能力-异质性引入传感器网络，并利用它来整体有效地处理难以预测的危险环境条件。这种方法是由遗传现象驱动的，通过这种现象，来自大型基因库的后代可以在环境威胁的情况下提高其存活率。主要研究方向包括：设计环境生存性感知的可持续网络的占空比调度、路由、MAC和任务算法；设计利用环境鲁棒性节点提高网络容错能力的方案；建立表征环境条件和不同模式节点的模型，为网络规划提供指导。提出的方法将通过模拟、分析和原型实现的组合来验证。该项目将导致对传感器网络和物理世界的结合的广泛理解，在将环境生存能力的异质性纳入构建鲁棒传感器网络的新方法中，在网络规划，占空比调度和传感器网络容错方面的理论和实践进展，以及一套新的环境生存能力感知MAC，路由和任务算法。该项目预计将通过增强传感器网络在户外环境中的生存能力来促进传感器网络的采用和应用，从而为灾难救援任务、军事监视和智能交通系统提供更好的解决方案。该项目将提供一个极好的机会，扩大代表性不足群体的参与，提高网络教育的有效性，并吸引高中生、本科生和研究生。

The objective of this research is to study network issues critical for building self-sustainable outdoors sensor networks. The proposed approach is to introduce environmental survivability-heterogeneity to sensor networks, and to exploit it to holistically and efficiently deal with hazardous environmental conditions that are hard to predict. The approach is motivated by the genetic phenomenon, by which an offspring from a large gene pool can improve its survival in light of environmental threats. The main research thrusts include: designing environmental survivability-aware duty-cycle scheduling, routing, MAC and tasking algorithms to sustainable network, designing schemes to improve network fault tolerance by leveraging environmentally robust nodes, and establishing models to characterize environmental conditions and nodes of different modalities and to provide guidelines for network planning. The proposed methodology will be validated through a combination of simulation, analysis, and prototype implementation.The project will result in an extensive understanding of the conjoining of sensor networks and the physical world, in a new approach of incorporating the heterogeneity in environmental survivability to construct robust sensor networks, in theoretical and practical advances in network planning, duty-cycle scheduling, and fault-tolerance in sensor networks, and in a new set of environmental survivability-aware MAC, routing, and tasking algorithms. The project is expected to promote the adoption and application of sensor networks through enhancing their survivability in the outdoors environment and, thus, providing better solutions for disaster rescue missions, military surveillance, and intelligent transportation systems. The project will offer an excellent opportunity to broaden the participation of under-represented groups, to boost the effectiveness of networking education, and to engage high-school, undergraduate and graduate students.