Abstract
The talk will first present an overview of key new features of (recent) IEEE 802.11ax (WiFi6) and (emerging) 802.11be (WiFi7) standard, aligned with desired improvements to network efficiency in dense deployment scenarios (enterprise and residential) within the broader context of small-cell network access technologies. It will then highlight the multiple challenges of quantifying the impact of such new features in real-world scenarios (often leading to surprising negative outcomes) due to complex cross-layer inter-plays that are currently not well-understood. Subsequently, I will discuss ongoing implementation of such features and their use in performance evaluation studies using the open-source network simulator ns-3 (www.nsnam.org), managed @ UW Fundamentals of Networking Laboratory (https://wp.ece.uw.edu/funlab/). The talk will highlight challenges in network simulation due to topology scaling as well as inherent complexity of the underlying network stack – that naturally invites application of AI/ML approaches for effective WLAN control/management. We will highlight the potential of ns3-ai – a new framework for fast/flexible interfaces between ns-3 simulator and Python based open-source AI/ML algorithm suites for automating cross-layer network simulation.
Bio
Sumit Roy (Fellow IEEE) received the B. Tech. (EE) degree from the IIT Kanpur in 1983, and M. S. (1985) and Ph. D. (1988) degrees from the University of California (Santa Barbara) in Electrical & Comp. Engineering as well as an M. A. in Statistics and Applied Probability (1988). He has been a faculty member in Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Washington since 1998 where he was appointed to a Distinguished Term Professorship for Integrated Systems (2014-19) in recognition of his scholarly accomplishments. He continues to direct the Fundamentals of Networking Laboratory (FUNLaB) https://wp.ece.uw.edu/funlab/, the long-standing maintainer/manager of the Open Source network simulator ns-3 project (www.nsnam.org), recognized via the ACM SIGCOMM Networking Systems Award 2020 for “development of a networking system that has had a significant impact on the world of computer networking” (https://www.sigcomm.org/content/sigcomm-networking-systems-award). His expertise spans analysis/design and prototyping of future wireless communication systems/networks: next-Gen wireless LANs, 5G New Radio and beyond 5G/6G standards, with an emphasis on terrestrial and airborne (vehicular) applications, multi-standard inter-networking/coexistence and dynamic spectrum access solutions for spectrum sharing.
He spent 2001-03 on academic leave at Intel Wireless Technology Lab as a Senior Researcher/Standards Architect engaged in systems architecture and standards development for ultra-wideband systems (Wireless PANs) and next generation high-speed wireless LANs (802.11n). His 2014-15 sabbatical year involved stints at Microsoft Research, Bangalore, India, as Erskine Fellow at University of Canterbury, New Zealand and as Short Term Visiting Foreign Expert at Shanghai JiaoTung University. He was elevated to IEEE Fellow by ComSoc in 2007 for “contributions to multi-user communications theory and cross-layer design of wireless networking standards”. He recently served as Program Lead for Beyond 5G, the R&D component of OUSD R&E’s 5g-to-xG Initiative (2020-22), has been a frequent invited speaker @ various 5G forums such as IEEE 5G Summit and is currently Distinguished Lecturer for IEEE Future Networks Technical Community (https://futurenetworks.ieee.org/).
