Collaborative Research: ITR/NGS: Fast Wireless Network Simulation Using Spatio-Temporal Dilations

University Of Texas At Austin, Austin TX

Investigators

Abstract

The design and development of future wireless networks and services will require sophisticated simulation and emulation tools that captures the scale, complexity, and abstraction of both the protocols that constitute the multi-layered network stack, as well as the heterogeneous nature of the wireless and wired Internet - tools that currently do not exist. Future simulation strategies must capture the heterogeneity of evolving protocols while simultaneously supporting high-fidelity wireless modeling environment. This proposal will build a comprehensive Integrated Protocol Development Environment (IPDE) to support design and development of wireless network protocols. This work will enable researchers to design and develop end-to-end network applications in a unified public-domain simulation and emulation environment. Two key innovations in this proposal that will empower real time test and emulation of future wireless applications include (i) the notion of relativistic time, that integrates the controllability of virtual-time with the natural selfsynchronizing property of real-time, and (ii) spatial scaling, where various components of the system will operate at different spatial scales - ranging from continuous fluid flow models for the Internet backbone, to discrete packet data flows in actual routers - with overall spatial coordination occuring in a decentralized manner. Validation of such an IPDE framework will be in the form of the design and deployment of multiparametric adaptive algorithms for wireless network scheduling and control. By providing an integrated framework for simulation, hardware emulation, and direct code execution of network protocols, the IPDE will enable researchers to setup large scale virtual test-beds, validate their modeling, and design middleware algorithms.