Andi Palo

A dynamic load balancing algorithm for Quality of Service and mobility management in next generation home networks

Heterogeneity of connection technologies and nodes mobility open new challenges in home networks control strategies. Moreover, user’s needs are changing towards applications requiring high transmission speeds such as 3D gaming, enhanced interactivity and high definition video. Each of those applications puts several constraints on the network capabilities to guarantee requirements on the Quality of Service. In this paper we introduce an innovative concept based on fast load balancing algorithm operating on top of a convergence layer, in order to rapidly react to network changes and contemporaneously to satisfy strict application demands. We formulated the load balancing problem as a Multi-Commodity Flow and resolved it with a column generation approach using Lagrangian Relaxation and Dijkstra algorithm. The load balancing problem computational complexity is decreased with respect to state of the art load balancing solutions based on linear programming techniques. Proof of concept simulation results are reported.

On the use of semantic technologies to model and control security, privacy and dependability in complex systems

In this paper a semantic approach is presented to model and control Security, Privacy and Dependability (SPD) in complex interconnected environment composed by heterogeneous Embedded Systems. Usually, only the individual properties are locally considered to obtain desired functionalities and this could result in sub-optimal solutions. With the use of modern semantic technologies (like OWL or reasoning engines) it is possible to model not only the individual parameters but also the relations between the different (and dynamically changing) parts of the systems, thus providing enriched knowledge and more useful information that could feed control algorithms. The model presented in this paper is based on the results obtained during the first phase of the pSHIELD1 project (conceived and lead by Finmeccanica) and it is focused on a concrete application coming from a critical scenario in railway environment: the monitoring of freight trains transporting hazardous material.

Quality of Experience Provision in the Future Internet

This work deals with the satisfaction of the quality of experience (QoE) requirements in the perspective of the emerging future Internet framework. The evolution of the Internet is pointing out its limitations, which are likely to hinder its potential. In this respect, this paper introduces an innovative approach to cope with some key limitations of the present communication networks. In particular, the need of efficiently utilizing the available network resources and of guaranteeing the user expectations in terms of QoE requires a full cognitive approach, which is realized by the introduction of a novel architecture design, the so-called future Internet core platform. The future Internet core platform aims at bringing together the applications world with the network world, hence introducing a further cognitive level while enabling a new generation of applications: network-aware applications. This paper is concerned with an important aspect of the intelligent connectivity between applications and network: the service class association, which, if performed with a cognitive approach, can yield some important improvements and advantages in the emerging information era. The key idea presented in this paper is a real-time dynamic control procedure for the selection of the optimal service class. The approach is based on theoretical considerations validated by a proof-of-concept simulation.

Energy-Aware Control of Home Networks

Home networks have become heterogeneous environment hosting a variety of wireless and wired telecommunication technologies. Currently there no exist any intelligent energy saving mechanism to control the home networks. In this paper we propose an energy-aware strategy that integrate Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) with a convergent digital home network. We aim to demonstrate that a WSN can act as a dependable control plane to manage the high speed home network. While the home network nodes can be deactivated, the WSN is always on and, due to the low data rate required to properly work, it consumes a very limited quantity of energy. This mutual interaction leads to a substantial reduction of the energy consumptions. Simulation results show that this strategy is effective in different scenarios and provides a tangible economic benefit.

A MDP Approach to Fault-Tolerant Routingg

This paper defines a theoretical framework based on Markov Decision Processes (MDP) to deal with fault-tolerant routing algorithms in heterogeneous home networks, which are realized through the integration of different wired and wireless telecommunication technologies. Such networks are characterized by fast dynamics of link availability, mainly due to the wide use of wireless technologies. The novelty of this paper is the MDP approach to the fault-tolerant routing problem, which is addressed by introducing a re-routing policy: when a path becomes unavailable, the flows transmitted over that path are re-routed on another available path; the new path is selected taking into consideration the probability that also the new path can become unavailable in the future, in order to minimize re-routing occurrences. Numerical simulations show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.