On Optimization Issues In Supporting High Bandwidth Multimedia Applications

University Of Missouri-Kansas City, Columbia MO

Investigators

Abstract

Despite the success of the Internet, its bandwidth overprovisioning, redundancy in its connectivity, and increased understanding of operation, Internet users still experience congestion and service disruption. Furthermore, network applications are increasingly sophisticated requiring greater reliability and higher bandwidth. Particularly proliferation of high bandwidth one-to-many multimedia applications is imminent. Without effective network design schemes in place, users inevitably encounter occasional network service degradation or breakdowns. This research aims to design, implement, and evaluate network architecture for one-to-many high bandwidth applications through multiple layer perspectives toward achieving optimal resource usage, performance and reliability. The PI will develop scalable and efficient algorithms of design and reconfiguration of virtual topologies for multicast while supporting unicast in optical layer; investigate the trade-off among overhead, scalability, and reliability in IP over optical network models; explore efficient multimedia delivery schemes particularly over multi-provider networks; and analyze multi-layer interaction and necessary cooperation for multicast applications. The intellectual merit lies in taking a holistic multi-layer approach to large scale multicast support in the presence of unicast applications so as to address the optimization issues practically. The implicit or explicit cooperation of multiple layers provides new dimensions to network design for one-to-many high bandwidth applications. The developing of optimization algorithms and the quantifying the performance benefits of innovations are expected to have a wide applicability in computer science. The project will broadly impact the universities, industry and research community in a number of ways by reaching out to students from underrepresented groups for the research projects, enhancing the quality of education by integrating the latest research developments into instructional activities of undergraduate and graduate curriculum, and making project results available widely.