Network Control Architecture Research Articles

Development of terabit‐class super‐networking technologies

AbstractWe propose terabit‐class super‐networking technologies, designed to improve the scalability, reliability and performance of optical Internet protocol networks. Our technologies comprise both intra‐ and interlayer traffic engineering technologies. The intralayer technologies include an optical path protection scheme, an electrical load‐balancing scheme and a distributed content‐caching scheme. These provide an effective and economical way of improving performance and reliability. The interlayer technologies include both traffic‐driven and application‐driven optical cut‐through control schemes and a policy control scheme. These provide an effective and economical way of improving scalability and performance. The feasibility of our technologies has been verified by means of experiments using prototype systems. The results showed that the different techniques can be combined to form a single network architecture for dynamic optical path control. Copyright © 2007 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Access control protocols with two-layer architecture for wireless networks

In this paper we study two access control protocols which have similar two-layer access control architectures for wireless networks in public places. The first protocol, called the Lancaster protocol, employs user password for authentication and enforces access control at the IP layer; while the second protocol, referred to as the Stanford protocol, uses public key cryptosystems (PKC) for authentication and performs access control at the link layer. Although both protocols are intended to restrict access to wireless networks only to authorized users, our analysis shows that both protocols have serious security flaws which make them vulnerable to attacks. Then we propose a password-based protocol and a PKC-based protocol for the Lancaster architecture and the Stanford architecture, respectively. Both of our protocols provide mutual authentication, perfect forward secrecy and access control for wireless networks. Moreover, they also provide DoS resistance and identity confidentiality for the client. We present detailed security and performance analysis for our protocols, and show that both of our protocols are secure and efficient for access control in wireless networks.

Highly-Reliable and Fast M:N End-to-End Restoration Scheme for Photonic IP Networks

The concept of an optical path layer has become increasingly attractive with the growth of traffic in the backbone network. The recent advances in optical switching technology support the deployment of optical cross-connect (OXC) nodes and the construction of large-scale optical path networks. This paper proposes a highly-reliable and fast preassigned restoration scheme for optical path networks. To achieve the preassigned restoration scheme, this paper investigates the extension of the Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) protocol functionality considering the interoperability with GMPLS capable IP routers in the future. This paper also proposes a new network control architecture called the partition model through discussion of network architecture. We clarify that the M:N end-to-end restoration scheme achieves efficient resource usage and management of the network especially in the partitioned model network. With the finite design of the GMPLS protocol extension based on the M:N end-to-end restoration scheme, we successfully achieve an intelligent protocol that guarantees 100% recovery against single link failure and is capable of protection grade fast restoration of the optical path less than 50 msec. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of GMPLS-controlled protection grade fast optical path restoration.

MaxNet: a congestion control architecture for scalable networks

MaxNet is a distributed congestion control architecture. This paper analyzes the stability properties of MaxNet. We show that MaxNet is stable for networks with arbitrary delays, numbers of sources, capacities, and topologies. Unlike existing proposals, MaxNet does not need to estimate the number of bottleneck links on the end-to-end path to achieve these scaling properties.

Asynchronous transmission WDM networks with performance efficiency improvement

A network control architecture and a network interface unit for each station is introduced which restricts data channel collision and reduces the headers electronic processing bottleneck at each station for wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) star-coupled photonic networks. Also we develop an analytic model for receiver collision analysis for performance measures evaluation.

Learning soft computing control strategies in a modular neural network architecture

Modelling and control of nonlinear dynamical systems is a challenging problem since the dynamics of such systems change over their parameter space. Conventional methodologies for designing nonlinear control laws, such as gain scheduling, are effective because the designer partitions the overall complex control into a number of simpler sub-tasks. This paper describes a new genetic algorithm based method for the design of a modular neural network (MNN) control architecture that learns such partitions of an overall complex control task. Here a chromosome represents both the structure and parameters of an individual neural network in the MNN controller and a hierarchical fuzzy approach is used to select the chromosomes required to accomplish a given control task. This new strategy is applied to the end-point tracking of a single-link flexible manipulator modelled from experimental data. Results show that the MNN controller is simple to design and produces superior performance compared to a single neural network (SNN) controller which is theoretically capable of achieving the desired trajectory.

A WDM network architecture with multiple receivers and a synchronous transmission protocol with constraint of data channel collision

AbstractA network control architecture for WDM passive star topology is introduced with a suitable network interface unit that reduces the headers' electronic processing bottleneck at each station. Also, a queueing model with receiver collision analysis for a synchronous transmission protocol which restricts data channel collision improving the system performance, is developed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 38: 104–108, 2003; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.10985

A control network architecture based on EIA-709.1 protocol for power line data communications

This paper presents an EIA-709.1 protocol architecture that can alleviate the burden of data communications in the Neuron chip. The proposed protocol is implemented with partly hardware and partly software. The physical layer and the MAC layer of the EIA-709.1 protocol are implemented with hardware. The upper link layer of the EIA-709.1 protocol is implemented with software. We verified the commercial feasibility of the proposed system through the power line tests with the existing LonWorks network. As a result, it is concluded that the proposed architecture provides flexibility and cost benefit for the system implementations.

A mobile agent-based active network architecture for intelligent network control

The innovation and evolution of network technologies and services to enhance network functionality have traditionally encountered the problems of backward-compatibility and standardization. To resolve the related issues, active networks have been introduced to enable specific customization of network functionality without the lengthy standard-mediated committee processes. In this paper, we exploit the capability of mobile agent technology to construct an active network architecture. We argue that the mobile agent can be a building block for specific network customizations, and introduction of new network functionality. Both integrated and discrete operational models of network customizations can be supported in our prototype implementation. For the service development and deployment, an abstract service structure and a service loading mechanism are presented. Furthermore, we provide an agent management/control mechanism and devise a service management/control mechanism, which is either not available or incomplete in the other related work. The proposed architecture allows new service introduction, and as a result, achieves improved network functionality.

A NOVEL TECHNIQUE FOR CLASSIFICATION OF MYOELECTRIC SIGNALS FOR PROSTHESIS

This paper presents an investigation into classifying myoelectric signals using a new fuzzy clustering neural network architecture for control of multifunction prostheses. Moreover, a comparative study of the classification accuracy of myoelectric signals using multi-layer perceptron with back-propagation algorithm, and the new fuzzy clustering neural network (FCNN) is presented. The myoelectric signals considered are used to classify four upper-limb movements, which are elbow flexion, elbow extension, wrist pronation and wrist supination, grasp, and resting. The results suggest that FCNN can generalise better than the multi-layer perceptron without requiring extra computational effort. The proposed neural network algorithm allows the user to learn better and faster.

Distributed control of wireless ATM networks using CORBA

This paper reports the design, implementation, and performance evaluation of a CORBA based distributed control architecture for signalling and mobility management in the Wireless ATM Research project (WARP). The distributed control architecture makes use of open signalling to manipulate the various network resources to realise network services such as call control, multicast, and mobility management. Open signalling provides the flexibility and ease in creating new network services as opposed to standard signalling approaches such as the ATM Forum signalling. The network control architecture provides inter-working with the ATM Forum UNI signalling. The open signalling is found to be more flexible compared to the UNI-PNNI based signalling and yields comparable delay performance.

Metabolic engineering from a cybernetic perspective. 2. Qualitative investigation of nodal architechtures and their response to genetic perturbation

A cybernetic representation of the branch point development of Stephanopoulos and Vallino is formulated. The model systems are employed to translate the qualitative properties of the nodal control architectures characterized by Stephanopoulos and Vallino into a mathematical context. It is shown that a cybernetic model in which the objective is the independent maximization of the levels of branch point products is consistent with the characterization of a flexible node. In contrast, the rigid control architecture is shown to be equivalent to the maximization of the mathematical product of the branch point products. It has been demonstrated subsequently that cybernetic metabolic network models are capable of predicting the system response to enzymatic amplification. However, given the complicated nature of the subsequent models, a clear illustration of the basic mechanism by which such predictions are manifested is not forthwith. Thus, a second objective of the present work is the examination of the response of the flexible and rigid control architectures to genetic perturbation, specifically enzymatic overexpression, with the expressed aim of elucidating the mechanism by which a cybernetic model predicts metabolic network responsiveness. It is shown that the ramifications of genetic perturbation are transmitted through the cybernetic representation of a metabolic network via the resource allocation structure which acts as the conduit by which regulatory signals are transmitted to seemingly unconnected portions of the network. It is postulated that enzymatic overexpression under an artificial promoter represents, from the perspective of the microorganism, an uncontrollable resource drain that forces the metabolic network control architecture to reevaluate the standing resource allocation policy as implemented via the cybernetic control variables. In biological terms, the reevaluation of allocation policy implies a shift in the level and activity of network enzymes yielding, in some cases, qualitatively different network function. It is our position that, conceptually, this is equivalent to the conventional wisdom that genetic manipulation of a metabolic network is the impetus for shifts in the network functionality, i.e., enzyme levels as well as activity. Thus, this development provides a necessary intellectual precursor for the formulation and analysis of the model systems that follow.

ATM-based TH-SSMA network for multimedia PCS

Personal communications services (PCS) promise to provide a variety of information exchanges among users with any type of mobility, at any time, in any place, through any available device. To achieve this ambitious goal, two of the major challenges in the system design are: (i) to provide a high-speed wireless subsystem with large capacity and acceptable quality-of-service (QoS) and (ii) to design a network architecture capable of supporting multimedia traffic and various kinds of user mobility. A time-hopping spread-spectrum wireless communication system called ultra-wide bandwidth (UWB) radio is used to provide communications that are low power, high data rate, fade resistant, and relatively shadow free in a dense multipath environment. Receiver-signal processing of UWB radio is described, and performance of such communications systems, in terms of multiple-access capability, is estimated under ideal multiple-access channel conditions. A UWB-signal propagation experiment is performed using the bandwidth in excess of 1 GHz in a typical modern office building in order to characterize the UWB-signal propagation channel. The experimental results demonstrate the feasibility of the UWB radio and its robustness in a dense multipath environment. A ATM network is used as the backbone network due to its high bandwidth, fast switching capability, flexibility, and well-developed infrastructure. To minimize the impact caused by user mobility on the system performance, a hierarchical network-control architecture is postulated. A wireless virtual circuit (WVC) concept is proposed to improve the transmission efficiency and simplify the network control in the wireless subsystem. The key advantage of this network architecture and WVC concept is that the handoff can be done locally most of the time, due to the localized behavior of PCS users.

Open Signaling for ATM, INTERNET and Mobile Networks (OPENSIG'98)

The ability to rapidly create and deploy new transport, control and management architectures in response to new service demands is a key factor driving the programmable networking community. Competition between service providers may hinge on the speed at which one provider can respond to new market demands over another. The notion of open programmable networks is having broad impact on service providers and vendors across a range of telecommunication sectors calling for major advances in open network control architecture, network programmability and distributed systems technology. In this paper we discuss the origins of the Open Signalling Working Group (OPENSIG) and present a summary of the fifth Workshop on Open Signaling for ATM, Internet and Mobile Networks (OPENSIG'98), which was held at the University of Toronto, Ontario, October, 1998. We also discuss a number of new initiatives in the area of open programmable networks that have recently emerged.

Innovations in a technology museum

The rapid progress of technology presents challenges to museums, science centers, and the entertainment industry. Keeping up with technical advances, coupled with the increasing sophistication and expectation of visitors, often strains limited resources. The rise of the Internet is rapidly driving innovation and competition. What will the museum of the future look like! What role will technology play! What are the technical, commercial, and ethical challenges in implementing some or all of this vision! What is the feasibility? While all the answers are not yet known, many industries throughout the world are developing elements of this vision. One place in particular, The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose, California, actively pursues research in making much of this vision possible. A team of over 30 engineers, technicians, and students in the Engineering Department is working to overcome the challenges and explore the limits. This vision of future museums describes a high-tech facility that is striving to push the boundaries of traditional museums. Innovations include the application of control systems, network architecture, and microcomputer technology.

Open signaling for ATM, internet and mobile networks (OPENSIG'98)

The ability to rapidly create and deploy new transport, control and management architectures in response to new service demands is a key factor driving the programmable networking community. Competition between service providers may hinge on the speed at which one provider can respond to new market demands over another. The notion of open programmable networks is having broad impact on service providers and vendors across a range of telecommunication sectors calling for major advances in open network control architecture, network programmability and distributed systems technology. In this paper we discuss the origins of the Open Signalling Working Group (OPENSIG) and present a summary of the fifth Workshop on Open Signaling for ATM, Internet and Mobile Networks (OPENSIG'98), which was held at the University of Toronto, Ontario, October, 1998. We also discuss a number of new initiatives in the area of open programmable networks that have recently emerged.

A service of home security system on intelligent network

The authors developed service of home security system on intelligent network (HSSIN), which is a home security and diversified service control network architecture. It is based on the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) standard communication protocol. The network also contains intelligent network components, and was established under the aim of creating safer, faster, more effective and more economical services that can meet customized services requirements. The HSSIN was developed for the requirements of the intelligent home security system, as the network complies with the standard communication protocol, it is adaptable to the multi-vendor environments of composite components, as well as being capable of providing intelligent network services.

A recommended error control architecture for ATM networks with wireless links

This paper provides performance results through analysis and simulation for key error control problems encountered in using wireless links to transport asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) cells. Problems considered include the forward-error correction (FEC) and interleaving at the physical layer, the impact of wireless links on the ATM cell header-error control (HEC) sand cell delineation (CD) functions, the application of data link automatic repeat-request (ARQ) for traffic requiring reliable transport, and the impact of the choice of end-to-end ARQ protocol for reliable service. We conclude that it is very important to make the physical layer as SONET-like as possible through the use of powerful FEC, interleaving, and ARQ. These additional error control measures are especially necessary for disturbed channels because of the degrading effects of the channel on higher-layer functions. A recommended error control architecture is given with tradeoffs.

A biologically motivated neural network architecture for visuomotor control

In this paper, a new version of an earlier computational model of the primate saccadic system is described which has been investigated for its effectiveness in robot visuomotor control. The model consists of a recurrent neural network representing the superior colliculus, which supplies control signals to a lumped model of the burst generator. A genetic algorithm is proposed to train the lateral connective weights of the recurrent neural network, and the network is trained so that it produces dynamic activity that is very close to the observed collicular neural discharge patterns in primates. By means of a supervised training algorithm, the feedforward and feedback weights of this new model are trained, so that the model produces a wide range of saccades that are very similar to real eye movements. It has been shown mathematically that this algorithm is a close approximation of the gradient descent method of optimization. An earlier set of simulations with single and double target locations, as well as some new simulations pertaining to the robustness of the model, are then carried out. The reliability of the biological visuomotor system is demonstrated through these simulations, and theoretical issues pertaining to the reliability of this system are addressed. Finally, a novel strategy for robot visuomotor control, based on the model, is suggested.

A Parallel Architecture for Network Control and Mobility Tracking in Wireless Systems

In a wireless system the network logically rearranges itself rapidly whenever terminals move from cell to cell. This ability to adapt itself to changing locations of its terminals adds a new layer of complexity to wireless control software. With ever increasing demand for more capacity and the addition of new service features, many limitations and bottlenecks in the underlying network infrastructure are uncovered. While distributed architectures provide a method for increasing processing capacity, they also introduce concerns regarding reliability, communication latency and cost. In this paper we have attempted to combine the significant characteristics of both fixed and distributed architectures in a single system. Specifically, we present the design of a wireless hub processor, based on a communications oriented active memory technology, and illustrate how the procedures for mobility management, resource management and call processing map on to such a parallel architecture. A key attribute of the architecture is that it scales in processing capacity and size, while maintaining a common locus of control for administration, maintenance and reliability. Finally, we present an example of a navigation application to validate the architecture. This example shows how a roving computer or PDA connected to a global positioning system and having a wireless communication link can deal with a low bandwidth link to a server. The server provides user-tailored map data. An active memory architecture not only provides the server with a scalable architecture but also aids the client.