580 California St., Suite 400
San Francisco, CA, 94104
Key research themes
1. How does mobile communication reshape social and political dimensions of contemporary society?
This research theme investigates the transformation in social structures, individual identity, political engagement, and cultural patterns as enabled and influenced by mobile communication technologies. It emphasizes the democratizing potential and the blurring boundaries between private and public spheres facilitated by mobile telephony, highlighting its role in addressing complexities of decentralized postmodern societies.
Key finding: This volume presents interdisciplinary essays demonstrating that ubiquitous mobile communication satisfies core human social needs while dissolving traditional boundaries of privacy, work, and public life. It underscores that... Read more
2. What novel business models emerge from the evolution of mobile communications technologies, specifically in the context of 5G and beyond networks?
This research theme focuses on the intersection of technological advancements like 5G, regulatory changes, and market dynamics in driving innovative business models within the mobile communications ecosystem. It delves into scalable, replicable, and sustainable commercial strategies that leverage virtualization, network slicing, platform economics, and multi-sided markets, analyzing their societal and environmental impacts.
Key finding: The paper identifies the transformative impact of 5G on business models in mobile communications, highlighting an ecosystemic approach involving operators, platform owners, and complementors. It shows a paradigm shift from... Read more
3. How can mobile wireless positioning and infrastructure innovations optimize transport and logistical networks?
This area examines how mobile positioning technologies (e.g., GPS, GSM, WiFi), intelligent transport systems (ITS), and autonomous vehicle integration enable enhanced management, optimization, and innovation in transport and forwarding sectors. Research investigates both technical implementations and strategic impacts, focusing on accuracy, efficiency, and overcoming challenges in the deployment of mobile infrastructure to improve supply chain and transport logistics.
Key finding: The chapter provides a comprehensive classification and evaluation of wireless positioning techniques used indoors and outdoors, aligning them with different accuracy requirements for mobile location-based services. It... Read more
Key finding: The article analyzes the deployment of mobile infrastructures such as GPS-based telematics and ITS in transport and forwarding industries, identifying the pivotal role of mobile communication systems and telematics in... Read more
Key finding: Through simulation, this paper shows that incorporating Device-to-Device (D2D) communication combined with Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) in 5G cellular architectures significantly reduces latency and improves reliability... Read more
4. What pedagogical frameworks and technological considerations define effective mobile learning (m-learning) implementations?
This theme explores how mobile wireless technologies redefine educational paradigms by enabling anytime-anywhere learning access and supporting various learning theories. Research emphasizes the development of pedagogical models suited to mobile devices, technological constraints and affordances, and strategic approaches for sustainable m-learning integration across educational environments from early learners to higher education.
Key finding: This chapter explicates the significance of wireless mobile technologies in education, presenting a detailed overview of device connectivity, infrastructure requirements, and technology access models. It evaluates the... Read more
Key finding: This study investigates strategic factors influencing mobile learning adoption in academic institutions, uncovering drivers, perceptions, and challenges of m-learning deployment. It emphasizes the necessity for administrative... Read more
5. How do wireless mobile devices influence computing behavior and spatial utilization in home environments?
This research focuses on the interaction between wireless laptop usage and the physical and social contexts of home life. It probes into mobility patterns within domestic spaces, revealing constraints and preferences that shape where and how mobile computing devices are used beyond their 'portable' technical capabilities. The investigations guide design considerations for technology that aligns with real-world user behaviors and spatial affordances.
Key finding: By conducting qualitative ethnographic studies across ten US households, the paper identifies that wireless laptops are predominantly used in a limited set of favored places within homes rather than being ubiquitously mobile.... Read more
6. What middleware architectures enable nomadic mobile services and service provisioning on mobile devices?
This theme addresses architectural and infrastructural support that allows mobile devices to host and provide services dynamically while roaming across networks. It explores the extension of service-oriented architectures (SOA) to mobile contexts through middleware platforms that manage service discovery, advertisement, and invocation amid nomadic scenarios, emphasizing adaptability, heterogeneity, and context-awareness.
Key finding: The paper proposes the Mobile Service Platform (MSP), a middleware infrastructure built on the Jini Surrogate Architecture, enabling mobile devices to host and provide services nomadically across heterogeneous wireless... Read more
7. How can machine learning optimize fronthaul compression in Cloud-RAN (C-RAN) environments to meet latency constraints?
This line of inquiry explores the application of model-free reinforcement learning techniques to dynamically optimize fronthaul compression parameters in cloudified radio access networks. The research addresses the trade-offs between fronthaul capacity usage, latency, and air interface performance, aiming to improve utilization and throughput in next-generation mobile networks through intelligent control of modulation, precoder granularity, and quantization schemes.
Key finding: Introducing DRL-FC, a model-free deep reinforcement learning framework, the paper demonstrates dynamic control over fronthaul compression parameters achieving a 68.7% average improvement in fronthaul utilization compared to... Read more
8. What are the optimal strategies for small cell deployment to maximize coverage, capacity, and minimize interference in next-generation cellular networks?
This research investigates mathematical modeling and optimization approaches to determine the number, placement, power allocation, and critical handoff points of small cells within cellular networks. The goals focus on achieving enhanced network coverage, resource allocation balance, interference mitigation, and cost efficiency, critical for scaling 5G and beyond systems.
Key finding: The paper formulates novel analytical expressions to calculate the optimal number of small cells (NSC) deployment that balances transmitted power, resource allocation, and interference mitigation. It also derives a... Read more