NSF Workshop on Distributed Processing over Cognitive Networks

University Of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

NSF Workshop on Distributed Processing over Cognitive Networks The emerging interest in cognitive networks, smart grids, and self-organizing networks is motivating heightened research on distributed and collaborative signal processing strategies that enable networks to adapt and respond to information in real-time. Cognitive networks consist of spatially distributed nodes that are linked together through a connection topology. The nodes are generally isotropic without any particular node taking a central control role. The nodes cooperate with each other and adapt their states in response to both local data collected at the nodes and data received from their immediate neighbors. Information arriving at any particular node creates a ripple effect that propagates throughout the network by means of a diffusive process. The diffusion of information results in a form of collective intelligence as evidenced by improved adaptation, learning, tracking, and convergence behavior relative to non-cooperative networks. The purpose of the workshop is to bring together research experts from various modalities to brainstorm on the challenges and opportunities of cognitive networks. The workshop recognizes the high potential for cross-fertilization of ideas among different fields involving signal processing, estimation and algorithms, adaptation, system theory, biological and social sciences, computer science, and economic and public policy. The meeting will provide a forum for researchers to discuss the theory, algorithms, and challenges involved in the development of reliable cognitive networks. The workshop will help define a research agenda for the design of adaptive networks for distributed processing and estimation, and will produce a report that can serve as a guide to the research community. Research considered by the workshop will motivate and support development of enabling technologies for various areas including environmental monitoring, distributed event detection, distributed resource monitoring, distributed estimation and target tracking, cooperation among cognitive radios searching for spectral resources, distributed processing and control over smart grids, contributions to swarm theory, animal flocking behavior theory, etc.