Projects / Programmes
Communication networks and services
January 1, 2015
- December 31, 2018
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 2.08.00 |
Engineering sciences and technologies |
Telecommunications |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| T180 |
Technological sciences |
Telecommunication engineering |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 2.02 |
Engineering and Technology |
Electrical engineering, Electronic engineering, Information engineering |
heterogeneous wireless network, communications, resource management and optimisation, signal and data processing, flexibility, efficiency, cognitive radio networking, self-organised, software-defined, services, propagation model, wireless optical communications, network planning and management
Researchers (12)
Organisations (1)
| no. |
Code |
Research organisation |
City |
Registration number |
No. of publicationsNo. of publications |
| 1. |
0106 |
Jožef Stefan Institute |
Ljubljana |
5051606000 |
90,742 |
Abstract
The proposed research programme is concerned with communication networks and services, more precisely with wireless communications that in the last decade penetrated all areas of life and society. Future heterogeneous wireless networks with the increasing number of new technologies and connected devices will play an increasingly important role in almost every economic and social field. However, the unprecedented growth of data traffic in the existing wireless and mobile networks revealed some limitations with respect to the management of diverse resources that are either scarce by nature, restricted by the design or physical phenomena, and/or limited by techno-economic considerations. Future communication networks require novel, more efficient approach to the management of resources. Thus, the main goal of the proposed programme is to jointly investigate management of radio, network, computation and energy resources, aiming at significant improvement of the spectral and energy efficency based on more flexible, configurable and dynamic network architecture.
As part of the programme we will develop new energy and computationally efficient methods and techniques for the management of radio and network resources in wireless communications. We will conduct short and long term measurements of radio signal in different propagation environments to estimate channel characteristics and develop appropriate channel models, which are required for the design of future heterogeneous wireless networks. Through the design of new and adaptation of existing advanced signal and data processing techniques we will come to new insights on efficient spectrum management, dynamic spectrum access and sharing, radio and optical signal propagation and new effective procedures for indoor radio localization. We will study the existing and propose new flexible and adaptive networking concepts based on software defined/configurable networks, virtualization of networking functions and cross-layer design. They will take into consideration distributed computational capabilities and limited energy resources, and will adapt in a timely and cost-effective way to traffic conditions and requirements of the applications, services and users.
The programme will make use of analytical and numerical investigations for the initial problem formulation. Extensive performance evaluation will be supported by computer modeling and carried out by intense simulations. Investigations in controlled laboratory environment will be complemented with field measurements and experimentally-driven research and validation of research prototypes in real-world testbeds.
As the outcome of research work we expect important contributions to the area of communication networks and services with the emphasis on efficient resource management. The proposed procedures will be directly applicable in future wireless access networks, and will contribute to the social, economic and cultural development of the entire society.
Significance for science
The proposed program includes a number of innovative elements that are important for the development of science and technologies, and we expect visible contributions to the area of communication networks and services with the emphasis on efficient resource management in wireless communications. The proposed procedures will be directly applicable in the next generation wireless access networks. The programme will also contribute to a broader recognition of the research methodology that includes research prototyping and experimentally-driven research also in the area of telecommunications. Through the design of new and the adaptation of existing advanced signal and data processing techniques we will come to new insights on efficient spectrum management, dynamic spectrum access and sharing, radio and optical signal coverage and new effective procedures for indoor radio localization. We will advance the knowledge in the field of flexible and adaptive networking concepts that will make use of distributed computational capabilities and limited energy resources, and will adapt to traffic conditions and requirements of the applications, services and users.
In the scope of the programme, we will design new methods, models, techniques, strategies and tools that will contribute to technical knowledge, understanding and progress in the field of wireless communications. We expect that those results will have a direct impact on the future research and development of energy and computationally efficient methods and techniques for the management of radio and network resources to be used in network elements, embedded systems and devices with restricted capabilities, and on the Internet of Things. The indirect impact will be on the provision of broadband access to larger part of the population, enabling advanced services, and on faster introduction of heterogeneous wireless networks, as well as on infrastructure solutions for smart cities/grids/buildings and similar application domains requiring monitoring and control of heterogeneous devices and processes. Thus, considering the worldwide recognized role of communication technologies as the basic infrastructure, the results of the programme will indirectly influence not only the economy but through other societal activities also a number of other scientific fields. This confirms also the new structure of the Horizon 2020 research framework programme, where the support of information and communication technologies is expected in most other areas called societal challenges.
Because of the integral approach we expect the original results to be published in a series of publications in renowned international journals and conference proceedings, including invited lectures. Several papers will be published in coauthorship with renowned foreign researchers involved in our joint European projects or collaborating through postdoctoral fellowships, which will increase the recognition of the research group and the chance of participating in new international projects.
The outcomes of this programme will be relevant for the development of science at large on a longer term since the analyst firm Gartner included some of the concepts to be investigated (cognitive radio, software-defined networks, Internet of Things, Smart Cities, etc.) only in 2011 and 2012, and it estimated they can only transit towards mainstream adoption in full functionality around or after 2020.
Significance for the country
The proposed research programme is focused on communication networks and services which constitute an instrumental part of the broad area of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). ICT is in the modern society recognized worldwide as one of the strongest industries on its own, but at the same time as one of the key facilitators and accellerators for the economic development and growth of most branches of the economy. Spurred by the growth of the mobile Internet, wireless communication technologies literally penetrated all areas of life and society. Following more than two decades of an enormous service area expansions and throughput growth through successive generations, wireless and mobile technologies appear to have reached some limitations for its own growth and expansion due to the existing management of diverse resources that are either scarce by nature, restricted by the design or physical phenomena, and/or limited by techno-economical considerations. Thus, communication networks and services require innovative, more efficient approch to resource management to avoid causing detrimental effects on the economy and welfare. The proposed research programme is dealing with more efficient resource management in communication networks and services and it expects to make visible contributions to the heterogeneous networks of the future.
In the future, heterogeneous wireless networks providing interconnection to people and machines will play an increasingly important role in almost every economic and social field from regular business, governance and servicing of citizens, to environmental protection, infrastructure protection and disaster notification, as well as to advanced deployments in industry, households, transport, agriculture, health, etc. Within the proposed research work we will improve the knowledge that will benefit both the national and European economies in the more efficient use of existing and the development of new innovative communication products, which will include modern concepts of resource management. For instance, the research programme can influence the energy sector directly via smart application solutions such as smart homes, smart cities and smart grids, and indirectly by the better management of energy resources in communication networks and services. Furthermore, it can indirectly influence the quality of life through the broader availability of high-speed internet access in urban and rural environments through the more efficient handling of radio and network resources. Through the more efficient management of higher number of smaller and more unbalanced traffic flows,which are characteristic of machine type communication and the Internet of Things domain, it will enable opportunities for the development of new types of services and applications, particularly attractive for start-ups as evident in the global market, hence having an indirect influence on boosting the business and economy sector.
The Slovenian industry that could directly benefit from the outcomes of the proposed research in the area of telecommunications includes Iskratel, Iskra Sistemi, Telekom Slovenije, Simobil, T2 and others. In the areas of innovative sensor technologies, networked embedded systems and smart applications, i.e. areas that are particularly well suited for smaller hi-tech companies and new start-ups, which are less geographically restricted to a given market, the number of potential industrial beneficiaries is at least by two orders of magnitide larger only in Slovenia.
On the mid- to long-term, the more efficient use of resources as the common denominator of the proposed research programme will indirectly, through the provision of more efficient communication networks and services, influence also traditional well established sectors. In fact, we recently noticed an increasing industrial interest in sensor technologies both on the national and international levels, with applications in diverse sector
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2015,
2016,
2017,
final report
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2015,
2016,
2017,
final report
