Proposal Number: 0412025/0412029 Principal Investigator(s): Schulzrinne, Henning/Frankl, Phyllis Gail Institution(s): Columbia University and Polytechnic University of New York Proposal Title: Collaborative Research: 7DS - A Mobile Broadband Dis-tributed System
In an ideal world, mobile users would be able to enjoy affordable broadband Internet access everywhere, including in public transportation vehicles (buses, trains and planes), in outdoor spaces not covered by Wi-Fi access points, and in disaster areas where the broadband wired infrastructure may be broken. Unfor-tunately, such Internet access Nirvana will not be available in the foreseeable future. Neither the broadband Internet nor the emerging 2.5-3G cellular data networks will provide Internet access that is at once broadband, affordable and ubiquitous.
This project prototypes and deploys 7DS, a distributed system which brings us-ers a significant step closer to Internet access Nirvana. Bridging the gap be-tween the broadband Internet and the cellular data networks, 7DS exploits the increasing density of roaming devices that are endowed with both gigabyte stor-age and short-range, broadband wireless communication capabilities. Using asynchronous communication, 7DS provides a means for roaming users to ob-tain content affordably and at high peak rates; it also provides a means for roaming users to send content into the Internet, again affordably and suitable for large objects. The expected results include (i) a comprehensive prototype for 7DS, demonstrating the feasibility of the 7DS system; (ii) new algorithms and protocols for 7DS, which will be disseminated in major conferences and jour-nals and implemented in the prototype; (iii) actual deployment of the 7DS sys-tem on university campuses, demonstrating how 7DS can bridge the gap be-tween localized broadband Wi-Fi access and ubiquitous narrowband cellular data access.
Dr. Brett D. Fleisch Program Director, CISE/CNS July 20, 2004 .
