Aytac Azgin

5G-ICN: Delivering ICN Services over 5G Using Network Slicing

The challenging requirements of 5G, from both the applications and architecture perspectives, motivate the need to explore the feasibility of delivering services over new network architectures. As 5G proposes application-centric network slicing, which enables the use of new data planes realizable over a programmable compute, storage, and transport infrastructure, we consider information- centric networking as a candidate network architecture to realize 5G objectives. This can coexist with end-to-end IP services that are offered today. To this effect, we first propose a 5G-ICN architecture and compare its benefits (i.e., innovative services offered by leveraging ICN features) to current 3GPP-based mobile architectures. We then introduce a general application-driven framework that emphasizes the flexibility afforded by network functions virtualization and software defined networking over which 5G-ICN can be realized. We specifically focus on the issue of how mobility as a service (MaaS) can be realized as a 5G-ICN slice, and give an in-depth overview on resource provisioning and inter-dependencies and coordination among functional 5G-ICN slices to meet the MaaS objectives. The article tries to show the flexibility of delivering services over ICN where virtualization of control and data plane can be used by applications to meet complex service logic execution while creating value to its end users.

Scheduling in wireless cellular networks under probabilistic channel information

As wireless networks continue to grow, users will be demanding more service diversity and differential quality-of-service (QoS). At the packet level, differential QoS is met by means of scheduling for channel access. Several algorithms have been proposed for packet scheduling over the wireless link. The main consideration in the design of these algorithms is the characteristics of the wireless channel. Previous works used a two-state Markov model to characterize the channel and design the scheduling algorithm. This coarse approximation can lead to a considerable amount of inaccuracy in the expected user performance, i.e., when implemented under realistic channel conditions the algorithm may not perform as expected. In this paper, we propose a scheduling algorithm and an associated MAC scheme that enable operation under realistic channel conditions. We use an JV-state Markov model to characterize the channel, where N > 2. The channel characteristics are incorporated into the scheduler through the use of future channel estimates, making the scheduler more immune to channel variations. Our scheme allows for adaptive FEC, whereby the code rate varies according to the forecasted channel state. Comparisons between the proposed algorithm and wireless fair service (WFS) S. Lu et al., (1998) show that the proposed algorithm gives better results in terms of both throughput and delay, while preserving the fairness characteristics. It is also shown that the proposed algorithm is more stable under variations in mobility and network load. Furthermore, by being able to significantly reduce the number of retransmissions, the proposed algorithm makes better utilization of the channel bandwidth and reduces the energy consumed in delivering a packet.

Hash-Based Overlay Routing Architecture for Information Centric Networks

In this paper, we propose an overlay routing architecture for information centric networks that operates on hash-based groupings of content routers and namespaces. Proposed architecture creates hash-based clusters within each domain using globally shared hash functions, and distributes the global namespace to different clusters. In doing so, we achieve the following notable improvements in control and data plane operations: (i) reduced communication overhead in setting up and maintaining the routing tables (which is resulted by hierarchical communication framework and effective distribution of network resources), (ii) reduced storage overhead (to manage control/data plane operations), and (iii) improved utilization of system resources at the content routers (i.e., storage/computing), which are allocated to in-network caching and packet forwarding operations, due to use of hash-dependent caching and overlay-driven request forwarding.