SBIR Phase I: Microcast: Cooperative Video Delivery to Mobile Devices

这项小型企业创新研究计划（SBIR）第一阶段项目将开发一种新颖的合作网络技术，用于向彼此接近的一组移动设备传输视频。由于移动视频的增长速度快于无线接入带宽，移动运营商目前无法满足对移动视频的需求。当一个单元中的大量用户几乎同时访问相同的内容时，这个问题尤其具有挑战性，因为在实时流行事件期间就是这种情况。所提出的解决方案允许一组移动设备利用设备对设备的连接，并以协作的方式使用组中的所有蜂窝连接，从而有效地利用资源并适应无线变化。每个设备可以同时使用两个网络接口：蜂窝网络连接到远程服务器并下载部分内容，另一个（WiFi或蓝牙）连接到组的其他设备并交换这些部分。其技术新颖之处在于协作网络体系结构的设计以及各构件的算法。因此，从源到每个用户的公共速率可以增加一个因子，直至组大小。这个项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力源于它给所有参与移动视频传输的参与者带来的价值主张。拟议中的技术使移动用户能够在彼此接近的情况下更快地下载视频，并消耗更少的蜂窝带宽。最终的结果不仅是更好的用户体验（更快的下载，更低的数据成本，以及同步查看和更容易的共享），而且还节省了访问带宽，这对整个生态系统都有直接的好处，包括蜂窝运营商，内容提供商，设备制造商和应用程序开发人员。此外，该解决方案不需要更改基础设施，并且可以作为移动应用程序实现，因此可以很容易地采用。随着移动设备和服务的空前增长，该项目有可能产生重大的社会和经济影响。客户细分的例子包括：想要分享视频的年轻人，为体育场馆的球迷提供内容的大学体育部门，想要提高用户数量的移动运营商？体验的同时节省接入带宽，以及无线连接较差的偏远地区的在线教育。

This Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) Phase I project will develop a novel cooperative networking technology for delivering video to a group of mobile devices within proximity of each other. Cellular providers cannot currently meet the demand for mobile video, which grows faster than wireless access bandwidth. The problem is particularly challenging when a large number of users in a cell access the same content at roughly the same time, as it is the case during real-time popular events. The proposed solution allows a group of mobile devices to leverage device-to-device connections and to use all cellular connections in the group in a cooperative manner, so as to efficiently utilize resources and adapt to wireless variations. Each device can use simultaneously two network interfaces: cellular to connect to a remote server and download parts of the content, and another (WiFi or Bluetooth) to connect to the rest of the group and exchange those parts. The technical novelty lies in the design of the cooperative network architecture as well as in the algorithms in each building block. As a result, the common rate from the source to each user can increase by a factor up to the group size. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project stems from the value proposition it brings to all players involved in mobile video delivery. The proposed technology enables mobile users, within proximity of each other, to download a video faster and consume less cellular bandwidth. The end result is not only a better user experience (faster download, reduced cost of data, as well as synchronous viewing and easy sharing) but also access bandwidth savings with direct benefits to the entire ecosystem including cellular carriers, content providers, device manufacturers, and application developers. Furthermore, the solution does not require changes in the infrastructure and can be implemented as a mobile application, thus can be readily adopted. With the unprecedented growth in mobile devices and services, this project has potential for significant social and economic impact. Example customer segments include the following: young people who want to share video, college athletic departments that provide content to fans in the stadiums, cellular providers who want to improve subscribers? experience while saving access bandwidth, and online education in remote areas with poor wireless connectivity.