Reliable Networked Sensing Systems Past Projects and Future Research Agenda

1. Reliable Networked Sensing SystemsPast Projects and Future Research Agenda Jan Beutel, ETH Zurich

2. Past Research Projects 2000 – 2007 BTnode ProjectCollaborators: F. Mattern, K. Römer (all ETH Zurich) and R. Schmid (Art of Technology, Zurich) 2001 – 2005 NCCR MICS – Communicating Embedded SystemsCollaborators: F. Mattern and R. Wattenhofer (all ETH Zurich) and A. Schiper (EPF Lausanne) 2000 – 2004 Miniaturized Wearable Computing: Technology and Applications Collaborators: G. Tröster, B. Schiele and L. van Gool (all ETH Zurich) 2001 NetsimCollaborators: E. Wandeler and A. Zollinger (all ETH Zurich) 1999 PicoRadioCollaborators: B. Brodersen, J. Rabaey and P. Wright (all UC Berkeley) 1998 – 1999 WinCE EngineCollaborators: T. Bösch (ETH Zurich) and A. Thiel (u-blox AG, Zurich) 1998 GPS-E1 Evaluation KitCollaborators: A. Thiel and J.P. Wyss (all u-blox AG, Zurich) 1997 – 1998 Palm Pilot KioskCollaborators: T. Bösch (ETH Zurich) 1997 Build Your WorldCollaborators: B. Plattner, M. Kreuzer (all ETH Zurich) and M. Manegold (Imagimation, Zug) 1995 – 1998 ThixoStructCollaborators: A. Wahlen (ETH Zurich) and Aluminum Martigny (Martigny, CH)

3. Current and Future Research Projects 2008 – 2012 nano-tera.ch – OpenSense, WaWa-NodeFunction: co-investigator, under review 2009 – 2012 NCCR MICS PermaSense-III, Observability by DesignFunction: principal investigator 2008 – 2010 The Swiss ExperimentFunction: principal investigatorFunding: CCES, SNSF, Microsoft Research; 570’000 CHF for the individual project (3 years) 2006 – 2008 Safety Critical Sensor Networks for Building ApplicationsFunction: principal investigatorFunding: CTI and Siemens Building Technologies, Zug, Switzerland; 699’000 CHF (3 years) 2005 – 2009 NCCR MICS PermaSense-II/EMSRFunction: principal investigatorFunding: SNSF, Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN); 580’000 CHF (3 years) Sensor Network Platform KitFunction: principal investigatorFunding: 670’000 CHF (3 years) Deployment of Sensor NetworksFunction: co-investigatorFunding: 900’000 CHF (4 years) Serious Building GamesFunction: co-investigatorFunding: joint funding with “Deployment of Sensor Networks”

4. Finances and Technical Staff • Instrumental in the acquisition of 3.419 MCHF third party funding • 1/3 principal investigator, 2/3 co-investigator with Lothar Thiele • Current technical staff (2FTE + HA) • Mustafa Yücel, Roman Lim – software engineer, Platform Kit – since 10/2006 • Josua Hunziker – student helper, PermaSense project – since 08/2008 • Past technical staff • Tobias Rein – project engineer, Platform Kit – 05/2007 to 08/2007 • Vinodh Venkatesan – student helper, DSN – 10/2006 to 07/2007 • Kevin Martin – software engineer, BTnode and DSN – 08/2005 to 01/2007 • Martin Hinz – software engineer, BTnode platform – 08/2003 to 09/2004

5. Supervision and Research Staff • Supervision of 44 students in variousmaster and term theses • PhD student collaborators • M. Keller – Complex Sensing and Actuation – since 10/2008 • F. Ferrari – Time Triggered Architectures – since 09/2008 • M. Wöhrle – Wireless Sensor Network Testing – since 01/2007 • M. Guo – Time Triggered Architectures – 11/2006 to 10/2008 • A. Meier – Low-power MAC Protocols – since 11/2005on leave at the National University of Singapore from 11/2007 to 04/2008 • C. Moser – Regenerative Energy Supplies – since 10/2004

6. Teaching • Design and implementation of the BTnode tutorial for graduate lab accompanying lectures in Embedded Systems and Wireless Sensor Networks • Additional transfer to conference tutorials (INSS, EWSN, ASCI) • Design and implementation of the MOSES tutorial for a graduate course in Discrete Event Systems • Lectures in Embedded Systems, Computer Engineering, Hardware- Software Codesign, Ad-hoc and Sensor Networks, Discrete Event Systems, Advanced Computer Architecture • Frequent invited speaker/lecturer at seminars, summer schools, workshops

7. Past Achievements – Systems • System concept and implementation of the Deployment-Support Network • Fundamentally new testbed concepts • Used in-house as well as by industrial partner for actual product development • The BTnode Platform for fast-prototyping sensor and ad-hoc network applications • Commercialized, worldwide dissemination, in use for teaching • >1000 units sold to customers from +17 countries • Commercial replicas resulting from open source policy • Pioneered work in Positioning Algorithms for Low-power Wireless Networks • Still an unsolved problem • Nurturing whole sessions/conferences on the topic

8. Past Achievements – Dissemination Publicly Available Hard- and Software Developments • The PermaSense Deployment • Continuous Integration for Wireless Sensor Networks • Sensor Network Platform Kit • The Sensor Network Museumtm • Deployment-Support Network • The BTnode Platform and BTnut • TinyOS-2.x-contrib • Build Your World – educational CDROM worldwide dissemination

9. Publications and Professional Activities • Book chapter and theses – 5 • Peer reviewed journals – 4 • Conference and workshop proceedings – 26 • Other – 17 • Frequent reviewer and regular member of OC/TPC of the most prominent conferences in the field • SenSys, IPSN/SPOTS, EWSN, DCOSS, EMNETS, INSS, SIGCOMM, DATE, … • Excellent contacts to the leading researchers in the field, academic and industrial, European, Asian and US • Regular media presence with research results

10. ETH Annual Report Features BTnodes

11. Research Accomplishments – The Bottom Line • Maybe not the most impressive publication list but predominantly at the premiere conferences. • An impressive worldwide network of people, contacts and consultancies. • A systems research agenda based on collaboration across disciplines and institutional borders. • Successful set of end-to-end systems implementations allowing sound reality checking. • Initiated and now leading a new research focus on wireless embedded systems research at ETHZ including solid funding.

12. Future Agenda

13. Internet Trends in Information and Communication CentralizedSystems NetworkedSystems Large-scaleDistributed Systems New Applications andSystem Paradigms

14. Beyond the proof-of-concept of 1st Generation Wireless Sensor Network Research • More an “art” than a coordinated effort yielding predictable results • First generation research provided the proof-of-concept • Performance is poor • Causes are not fully understood • We are often lacking the necessary (scientific) rigor [Phil Levis, Stanford]

15. Reliable Wireless Networked Systems? • The ability of a system or component to perform its required or designated functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time. • Key issues: complexity – resources – power – interaction • More so: The way we go about solving the problems encountered • Non-iterative design process for networked systems • Predictable results • Reduction/capping of efforts required • Increasing the quality of the design, e.g. “correct-by-construction” • Full end-to-end validation of all processes • Today cumbersome and error prone – if at all possible

16. A Vision of Future WSN Design Methodology... • (Live) back annotation into the design space • „Closed loop“ system design • Including live data from simulation, testbeds, deployments • Allowing to refine and validate architectural decisions, models, algorithms and implementations... Design Flow

17. A Facetted Yet Focused Systems Research Agenda • System architecture, software and models • TinyOS, BTnodes, BTnut • Low-power protocols • Design-space exploration, formal metrics,real-time • Test and validation methodology • DSN testbed, deployment tools • Multi-context tracing • Unit testing, formal models • Sensor network deployments • Design methodology, platform kit • Smart Buildings, PermaSense Architecture Testing Applications

18. My Research Should… • Be of value to and used by researchers and practitioners alike. • Meaningful results at the forefront of technology. • Enable sustainable solutions with impact and longevity. • Empower architects and designers with the right principles, abstractions and tools for achieving a specified functionality in deterministic time. • My work so far is stepping stones in this direction. We are starting to see the actual sweet spots. But there is more mileage ahead.

19. Educational Goals • Fundamentals & theory • Solid foundation in embedded & real-time systems, system architecture, design automation, algorithm design, signal processing, wireless and mobile systems • Hands-on experience • Labs, group projects (e.g. Lego Mindstorms based 1st year students) • Integration of students into real-life research efforts • Active discourse on current (hot) and emerging topics • Cross-disciplinary reading seminars on recent (local) work • Knowledge of peers • Fostering interaction and dialogue with experts from academia and industry • Scientific writing, presentation, researching and reviewing skills

20. Embedding My Work In Sweden • Existing interactions • SICS (Thiemo Voigt, Adam Dunkels) • UU (Per Gunningberg, Christian Rohner, Bengt Jonsson, Wang Yi) • Many interesting partners in Engineering Sciences and Information Technology – further application partners in other departments • WISENET VINN excellence center • Topics of interest: Node integration & energy, networking, wireless protocols, application projects • Interdisciplinary focus with integration of devices (MEMS, packaging), sensors and batteries is an asset to my own work/network • My contributions • 7+ years experience from involvement in NCCR MICS • Active international network