Submission Deadline: 15 March 2025 View: 228 Submit to Special Issue
Prof. Wenbing Zhao, Cleveland State University, USA
Prof. Pan Wang, Nanjing University of Posts & Telecommunications, China
Future communications and networks would promise significant improvements in several key aspects of the global data communication infrastructure: (1) seamless coverage of the entire planet Earth; (2) super high reliability in communication and networking services; and (3) stronger security against cyberattacks. Future communications and networks would be powered by 6G networking technologies, and facilitated by software defined networking, blockchain technology, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.
The 6G networking technologies would provide seamless communication and networking coverage for the entire planet. This type of future networks is also referred to as space-air-ground integrated networks (SAGINs). The SAGIN would consist of three network segments, namely, space, aerial, and terrestrial. The space subnetwork offers wide coverage and can reach remote and sparsely populated regions, and is facilitated by geostationary earth orbiting satellites and low earth orbiting satellites. The aerial subnetwork can be set up to meet the increased demand of network traffic demand using communicating unmanned aerial vehicles, airships, and balloons. The terrestrial subnetwork is powered by existing wireless networking infrastructures such as cellular base stations and other wireless facilitates.
Software defined networking (SDN) uses software controllers to communicate with hardware infrastructure to direct network traffic by creating and operating a series of virtual overlay networks in conjunction with a physical underlay network. SDN not only reduces the cost of managing networks, but also minimizes human errors and opens the door for optimal automated decisions based on machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Blockchain technology offers a revolutionary decentralized scheme for reaching consensus and for enacting a barrier against authorized modification to the data maintained by the system. Decentralized computing is in fact a fundamental design principle in the development of the Internet, for example, Internet routing is a prime example of decentralized computing where a set of simple rules is followed by each router to derive the forwarding table used for forwarding Internet traffic. Blockchain technology may play an essential role in future communications and networks for boosting their reliability and security.
This special section welcomes original research and review articles on all aspects of computer modeling for future communications and networks. Topics of interest include, but not limited to, the following areas:
· Computer modeling for space-air-ground integrated networks
· Computer modeling for software defined networking
· Computer modeling for intelligent network traffic management
· Computer modeling for mitigating cyberattacks in future communications and networks
· Blockchain-facilitated future communications and networks
· Machine learning and artificial intelligence in future communications and networks
· Internet of things in future communications and networks
· Intelligent decision support in future communications and networks