Project Data

title:	Ambient Networks
period:	2004 Jan - 2005 Dec (Phase 1) 2006 Jan - 2007 Dec (Phase 2)
leader:	Róbert Szabó
budget:	20.000.000(?) € (EC contribution: 12.000.000(?) € ) (Phase 1) 20.556.000 € (EC contribution: 12.800.000 € ) (Phase 2)
homepage:	http://www.ambient-networks.org/

 

AN consortium

• Alcatel SEL AG, Germany
• British Telecommunications plc, UK
• Budapest University Of Technology And Economics, Hungary
• Concordia University, Canada
• Consorzio Ferrara Ricercha, Italy
• Critical Software S.A., Portugal
• DaimlerChrysler AG, Germany
• DoCoMo Communications Laboratories Europe GmbH, Germany
• Elisa Corporation, Finland
• Ericsson Eurolab Deutschland GmbH, Germany
• Ericsson Magyarorszag Kommunikacios Renszerek Kft., Hungary
• France Telecom SA, France
• Fraunhofer Gesellschaft Zur Foerderung Der Angewandten Forschung e. V., Germany
• Instituto De Engenharia De Sistemas E Computadores Do Porto, Portugal
• Kunglia Tekniska Hogskolan, Sweden
• Lucent Technologies Network Systems GmbH, Germany
• Lucent Technologies Network Systems UK LImited, UK
• Motorola Japan, Japan
• National ICT Australia (University Of New South Wales), Australia
• NEC Europe ltd, UK
• Nokia Corporation, Finland
• Oy LM Ericsson AB, Finland
• Panasonic European Laboratories GmbH, Germany
• Rheinisch-Westfaelische Technische Hochschule Aachen, Germany
• Siemens AG, Germany
• Siemens AG Oesterreich, Austria
• Siemens Mobile Communications SPA, Italy
• Swedish Institute Of Computer Science AB, Sweden
• Technical Research Centre Of Finland, Finland
• Technische Universitaet Berlin, Germany
• Telecom Italia SPA, Italy
• Telefonica Investigacion Y Desarrollo SA Unipersonal, Spain
• Telenor Communication AS, Norway
• TeliaSonera AB, Sweden
• TNO - Netherlands Organisation For Applied Scientific Research KPN/TNO, Netherlands
• University Of Surrey, UK
• Universidad De Cantabria, Spain
• University College London, UK
• University Of Ottawa, Canada
• Vodafone Group Services Limited

 

AN goals

To define and validate complete and coherent solutions for ambient networking, based on a range of different scenarios and business cases, including:

• an architecture, which enables the easy and dynamic composition of disparate networks amid an ever-increasing heterogeneity of technologies and provider structures,
• the definition of a set of adaptive and self-configuring mobile network components, which will reduce planning, deployment, configuration and network maintenance costs,
• a comprehensive, integrated security framework, preserving end-to-end network protection and robustness against attacks.

 
To ensure that the Ambient Networks solution sets new standards for future context-aware, multi-domain mobile networks by addressing the following key issues:

• new algorithms for efficient management of radio resources across different radio technologies and multiple domains to provide efficient and low-cost access, irrespective of administrative boundaries,
• design of an innovative link layer solution for easy adaptation and incorporation of existing and new radio interfaces,
• a protocol suite for network composition ensuring connectivity, resource management, security, manageability, conflict resolution, and content handling,
• support for dynamic agreements that provide any subscriber with access to any network in any place including an end-to-end QoS concept,
• advanced multi-domain mobility management for users and user groups over a multitude of heterogeneous, wireless access networks, including new forms of wireless access networks such as personal area networks or vehicular networks,
• efficient support for multimedia delivery by developing cross-domain media flow routing and transport functionalities, balancing QoS by considering different access technologies, networks, end-device capabilities, and the QoS requirements of different media flows
• context-aware networks to improve efficiency and enable new applications, common, scalable and secure interfaces between network domains,
• innovative self-management not only for new network nodes but also complete newly composed networks.

 
To ensure the commercial viability by identifying business roles and interfaces as well as deployment concepts and to consider business scenarios that allow different size and types of players to compete and cooperate and hence enable new business models based on established trust relationships.

To validate the various technical solutions developed by proof of concept activities in all workpackages.

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