CAREER: Vision and Learning Augmented D-Band Networking and Imaging

该奖项的全部或部分资金来自《2021年美国救援计划法案》(公法117-2)。毫米波(毫米波)是在交通、娱乐、教育和远程医疗领域实现新应用的核心无线技术。具体地说，最近推出的100 GHz以上的廉价硬件使得向大众推出D波段(110-170 GHz)毫米波网络的时机已经成熟。然而，D波段毫米波网络在优化微微蜂窝的部署、具有前所未有的广泛频率选择的移动链路的协调和适配以及联网-成像的无中断融合方面带来了新的挑战。这项研究项目解决了这些关键挑战，并提高了移动D频段网络的性能、可靠性和可用性。该项目将设计机器学习增强的可扩展D波段系统和网络，并将它们集成到增强现实(AR)、无人机交付和自动驾驶汽车等应用中。研究成果将通过以下方式影响更广泛的人群：(1)为服务不足的用户带来无处不在的高质量带宽；(2)实现频谱的有效利用，以更好地利用这一全国重要的资源；以及(3)通过在网络设备上启用几个关键应用程序来提高网络设备的效用。拟议的研究将通过出版物、开放源码软件和数据集以及与业界伙伴的密切合作来传播。它将通过设计新的本科生和研究生跨学科无线课程以及参与更广泛的社区扩展活动来整合到教育中。该项目旨在通过解决部署、链路适配、协调和统一网络成像方面的基本挑战，使D-波段毫米波网络和应用得以实际采用。具体地说，该项目通过彻底了解D波段通道的物理属性、构建测量驱动的经验和学习模型以及设计实用的实时系统，探索了光学视觉和深度学习增强范例。这个项目的成功执行将使以下方面成为可能。(1)用于优化部署的框架和用于帮助优化室内和室外环境中D频段部署的成本和收益的假设分析工具。(2)链路适配和协调协议，可显著缩短延迟并最大化吞吐量和效率，以实现可扩展的D频段网络。(3)统一网络成像协议，可减少对吞吐量和延迟的干扰，并克服通道镜面效应带来的挑战，以实现高分辨率D波段图像。该项目将在D频段试验台上设计、建造和经验性验证建议的系统，试验台将扩展为一个教育平台，为不同级别的学生增强无线网络和传感知识。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。

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).Millimeter-wave (mmWave) is the core wireless technology to enable new applications in transportation, entertainment, education, and telemedicine. Specifically, the recent availability of inexpensive hardware above 100 GHz makes the time ripe for bringing D-band (110-170 GHz) mmWave networks to the masses. However, D-band mmWave networks bring new challenges in optimizing the deployment of picocells, coordination and adaptation of mobile links with unprecedentedly wide frequency options, and a disruption-free confluence of networking-imaging. This research project addresses these key challenges and improves the performance, reliability, and usability of mobile D-band networks. The project will design machine learning augmented scalable D-band systems and networks, and integrate them into applications, such as Augmented Reality (AR), drone delivery, and autonomous cars. The research outcomes will impact the broader population by: (1) bringing ubiquitous and high-quality bandwidth to underserved users; (2) enabling efficient use of spectrum to better utilize this nationally important resource; and (3) elevating the utility of networking devices by enabling several critical applications on them. The proposed research will be disseminated through publications, open-source software and datasets, and close collaboration with industry partners. It will be integrated into education by designing new undergraduate and graduate cross-disciplinary wireless curricula and involvement in broader community outreach activities.This project aims to enable the practical adoption of D-band mmWave networks and applications by solving the fundamental challenges in deployment, link adaptation, coordination, and unified networking-imaging. Specifically, the project explores an optical vision and deep learning augmented paradigm by thoroughly understanding the physical properties of the D-band channel, building measurement-driven empirical and learning models, and designing practical, real-time systems. Successful execution of this project would enable the following. (1) A framework for optimal deployment and a “what-if” analysis tool to help optimize the cost and benefits of D-band deployment in both indoor and outdoor environments. (2) Link adaptation and coordination protocols that significantly minimize latency and maximize throughput and efficiency for scalable D-band networking. (3) A unified networking-imaging protocol that reduces disruptions to the throughput and latency and overcomes challenges with the channel specularity to enable high-resolution D-band images. The project will design, build, and empirically validate the proposed systems in a D-band testbed, and the testbed will be extended into an educational platform that enhances the knowledge of wireless networking and sensing for students at different levels.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.