CSE 535 – Mobile Computing

Lecture 2: An Overview of Mobile

Computing: Part I – Motivation and
Challenges
Sandeep K. S. Gupta
School of Computing and
Informatics
Arizona State University
 Agenda
 Introduction to Mobile Computing
 Introduction to Wireless Sensor Networking
and Applications
 Mobile Computing
 The need for "information anywhere anytime" has been
a driving force for the increasing growth in Web and
Internet technology, wireless communication, and
portable computing devices.
 The field of mobile computing is the merger of these
advances in computing and communication with the
aim of providing seamless and ubiquitous computing
environment for mobile users.
 Mobile computing techniques are essential for enabling
distributed and net-centric applications which require
remote and ubiquitous information access.
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 Mobile Computing Challenges
 Mobile computing environments are characterized by
severe resource constraints and frequent changes in
operating conditions.
 This has led to many new and challenging problems
which span several areas of computer science such as
incorporation of support for mobility in network
protocols, development of efficient and adaptive
resource management techniques for wireless
bandwidth and battery power, predicting mobility
patterns, performance modeling and simulation of
mobile applications, and supporting mobile real-time
multimedia applications.
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 MC - Fundamentals
 Mobile Computing => Adaptive Computing and
Communication
 Cross-Layer approach is need for
 Adaptation
 Conserving resources such as energy
 Mobile computing is distinct from distributed
computing
 Mobile computing is an essential component of
Ubiquitous computing.
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 Mobility and Adaptability
1. Resource Poor
2. Less Secure
Mobile Systems ! ! Dynamic Adaptation
3. Poor Connectivity
4. Less Energy
Application
QoS
(re) negotitation
System
Fig: Dynamic Adaptation
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 Example Adaptive Approaches
 Approach 1: Combine solutions with different optimality
ranges/performance characteristics.
 Approach 2: Treat change in system state as a transient fault
and use the techniques of designing fault-tolerant protocols
 Approach 3: Dynamically monitor the system state and use the
solution which is suitable for the current system state.
 Many others - ….
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 Promises of Mobile Computing
 Global information services at any time from any
location
 Mobile users as integrated consumers and
producers of data and information
 Ubiquitous computing where mobile computers
become an integral part of daily activities
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 Mobile Applications
 Expected to create an entire new class of
Applications
 new massive markets in conjunction with the Web
 Mobile Information Appliances - combining personal
computing and consumer electronics
 Applications:
 Vertical: vehicle dispatching, tracking, point of sale,
information service (yellow pages), Law
enforcement
 Horizontal: mail enabled applications, filtered
information provision, collaborative computing…
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 Vertical Applications
 l Serve a narrow, niche application domain
 – Services dispatch (taxi, fire, police, trucking)
 – Sales tracking (point of sale, market trends)
 – Mail and package tracking (courier, postal)
 Relatively easy to implement due to
 restrictions and assumptions
 – homogeneous MUs
 – limited numbers of users
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 Horizontal Applications
 Broad, domain-independent applications serving a
mass-market
 – Electronic Mail and News
 – Yellow Pages Directory Services
 – Multimedia Merchant Catalogs
 – Digital Libraries
 – Location-based Information Filtering
 Driving force of mobile computing research
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 Medical Example
 911 Call
 Ambulance arrives/departs
 Closest hospital
 Access patient records
 Send vital signs
 Update patient records
 Page hospital personnel
 Order medical supplies
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 Party on Friday
 Update Smart Phone’s calendar with
guests names.
 Make a note to order food from Dinner-
on-Wheels.
 Update shopping list based on the
guests drinking preferences.
 Don’t forget to swipe that last can of
beer’s UPS label.
 The shopping list is always up-to-date.
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 Party on Friday
 AutoPC detects a near Supermarket that advertises
sales.
 It accesses the shopping list and your calendar on the
Smart Phone.
 It informs you the soda and beer are on sale, and
reminds you.
that your next appointment is in 1 hour.
 There is enough time based on the latest traffic report.
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 Party on Friday
 TGIF…
 Smart Phone reminds you that you need to order
food by noon.
 It downloads the Dinner-on-Wheels menu from
the Web on your PC with the guests’ preferences
marked.
 It sends the shopping list to your
CO-OP’s PC.
 Everything will be delivered by the time
you get home in the evening.
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 Wireless Networks
PDA
MOBILE HOST
WIRELESS LAN CELL
2Kbps - 15Mbps
BASE
STATION FIXED
BASE HOST
WIRELESS RADIO CELL
STATION
9Kbps - 14Kbps
FIXED NETWORK
BASE
STATION
Mbps to Gbps
BASE
STATION
PDA
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 Wireless Networks
 Cellular - GSM (Europe+), TDMA & CDMA (US)
 FM: 1.2-9.6 Kbps; Digital: 9.6-14.4 Kbps (ISDN-like services)
 Cellular Subscribers in the United States:
 90,000 in 1984; 4.4 million in 1990;
13 million in 1994; 120 million in 2000; 187.6 million by 2004
(Cahner In-State Group Report).
Handheld computer market will grow to $1.77 billion by 2002

 Public Packet Radio - Proprietary
 19.2 Kbps (raw), 9.6 Kbps (effective)
 Private and Share Mobile Radio
 Paging Networks – typically one-way communication
 low receiving power consumption
 Satellites – wide-area coverage (GEOS, MEOS, LEOS)
 LEOS: 2.4 Kbps (uplink), 4.8Kbps (downlink)
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 Wireless Networks (Cont.)
 Wireless Local Area Networks
 IEEE 802.11 Wireless LAN Standard based systems, e.g.,
Lucent WaveLan.
 Radio or Infrared frequencies: 1.2 Kbps-15 Mbps
 Packet Data Networks
 ARDIS
 RAM
 Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD)
 Private Networks
 Public safety, UPS.
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 Wireless Local Area Network
 Data services: IP packets
 Coverage Area: Offices, buildings, campuses
 Roaming: Within deployed systems
 Internet access: via LAN.
 Type of services: Data at near LAN speed.
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 Wireless Characteristics
 Variant Connectivity
 Low bandwidth and reliability
 Frequent disconnections
 predictable or sudden
 Asymmetric Communication
 Broadcast medium
 Monetarily expensive
 Charges per connection or per message/packet
 Connectivity may be weak, intermittent and expensive
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 Portable Information Devices
 PDAs, Personal Communicators
 Light, small and durable to be easily carried around
 dumb terminals [InfoPad, ParcTab projects],
palmtops, wristwatch PC/Phone, walkstations
 run on AA+ /Ni-Cd/Li-Ion batteries
 may be diskless
 I/O devices: Mouse is out, Pen is in
 wireless connection to information networks
 either infrared or cellular phone
 specialized HW (for compression/encryption)
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 Portability Characteristics
 Battery power restrictions
 transmit/receive, disk spinning, display, CPUs,
memory consume power
 Battery lifetime will see very small increase
 need energy efficient hardware (CPUs, memory) and
system software
 planned disconnections - doze mode
 Power consumption vs. resource utilization
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 Portability Characteristics
 Resource constraints
 Mobile computers are resource poor
 Reduce program size – interpret script languages (Mobile
Java?)
 Computation and communication load cannot be distributed
equally
 Small screen sizes
 Asymmetry between static and mobile computers
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 Mobility Characteristics
 Location changes
 location management - cost to locate is added to
communication
 Heterogeneity in services
 bandwidth restrictions and variability
 Dynamic replication of data
 data and services follow users
 Querying data - location-based responses
 Security and authentication
 System configuration is no longer static
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 What Needs to be Reexamined?
 Operating systems
 File systems
 Database systems
 Programming Languages
 Communication architecture and protocols
 Hardware and architecture
 Real-Time, multimedia, QoS
 Security
 Application requirements and design
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 Limitations of Wireless Sensors
 Wireless sensor nodes have many limitations:
 Modest processing power – 8 MHz
 Very little storage – a few hundred kilobits
 Short communication range – consumes a lot of
power
 Small form factor – several mm3
 Minimal energy – constrains protocols
 Batteries have a finite lifetime
 Passive devices provide little energy
 Some Sample Applications
 Industrial and Commercial Uses
 Inventory Tracking – RFID
 Automated Machinery Monitoring
 Smart Home or Smart Office
 Energy Conservation
 Automated Lighting
 Military Surveillance and Troop Support
 Chemical or Biological Weapons Detection
 Enemy Troop Tracking
 Traffic Management and Monitoring
Sensor-Based Visual Prostheses
Retinal Implant Cortical Implant
 Organization into Ad Hoc Networks
 Individual sensors are quite limited.
 Full potential is realized only by using a large
number of sensors.
 Sensors are then organized into an ad hoc
network.
 Need efficient protocols to route and manage
data in this network.
 Why Wireless Sensors Now?
 Moore’s Law is making sufficient CPU performance available with
low power requirements in a small size.
 Research in Materials Science has resulted in novel sensing
materials for many Chemical, Biological, and Physical sensing
tasks.
 Transceivers for wireless devices are becoming smaller, less
expensive, and less power hungry.
 Power source improvements in batteries, as well as passive
power sources such as solar or vibration energy, are expanding
application options.
 Typical Sensor Node Features
 A sensor node has:
 Sensing Material
 Physical – Magnetic, Light, Sound
 Chemical – CO, Chemical Weapons
 Biological – Bacteria, Viruses, Proteins
 Integrated Circuitry (VLSI)
 A-to-D converter from sensor to circuitry
 Packaging for environmental safety
 Power Supply
 Passive – Solar, Vibration
 Active– Battery power, RF Inductance
 Wireless Sensor Nodes: Examples
Consider Multiple Generations of Berkeley Motes
Model Rene 1 Rene 2 Mica Mica 2
Date 10/2000 6/2001 2/2002 7/2003
CPU 4 MHz 8 MHz 4 MHz 4 MHz
Flash
8 KB 16 KB 128 KB 128 KB
Memory
SRAM 32 KB 32 KB 512 KB 512 KB
Radio 10 Kbps 10 Kbps 40 Kbps 40 Kbps
 Historical Comparison
Consider a 40 Year Old Computer
Model Honeywell H-300 Mica 2
Date 6/1964 7/2003
CPU 2 MHz 4 MHz
Memory 32 KB 128 KB
SRAM ??? 512 KB
 A Rosy Future for Wireless Sensors?
 Is the effort on wireless sensor protocols a
waste of time??
 Can we just wait 10-15 years until we have
sensors that are very powerful??
 NO!! Will still face:
 Very limited storage
 Modest power supplies
 Traffic Management & Monitoring
 Future cars could use
wireless sensors to:
 Handle Accidents
 Handle Thefts
Sensors embedded
in the roads to:
–Monitor traffic flows
–Provide real-time
route updates
 Conclusions
 Fundamental to Mobile computing is various
techniques in hardware/software to adapt to
variation in resource availability – taking into
account contextual information including user
preferences.
 Wireless sensor networking is enabling
technology for pervasive/ubiquitous computing
 Next Class - Continue discussion on
Adaptation techniques
 Read Chapter 1