A centralized framework for smart access point selection based on the Fittingness Factor

Abstract

Abstract-This paper focuses on addressing the Access Point (AP) selection problem by relying on a centralized controller that provides a global view of the network. This approach follows the Software-Defined Networking (SDN) concept, which has long been considered in the literature as an innovative method to control management functionalities for wired networks and that is also now becoming a hot topic in the context of Wi-Fi networks. The proposed AP selection approach is based on a novel algorithm which relies on the Fittingness Factor (FF) concept, to maximize a function that reflects the suitability of the available spectrum resources to the application requirements. Specifically, this paper describes the development of a framework that implements the FF-based algorithm for smart AP selection in a centralized controller. The simulated performance comparison of this algorithm against a strategy that maximizes the achievable data rate considered in many papers in the literature, illustrates the important achievements that have been obtained in terms of saved bandwidth and users' satisfaction.

State of the Art and Recent Research Advances in Software Defined Networking

“…Wi-Fi management framework including Odin [155], EmPOWER [156], and OpenSDWN [147] has contributed to efficient SSID selection and device association. Other work has focused on using novel contention management algorithms to optimize access point (AP) selection, identifying the suitability of available wireless resources which meet application requirements, in turn saving bandwidth and increasing user satisfaction [157]. The resulting performance of the proposed architectures significantly improves the Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) for the end users as well as the spectral efficiency at each AP in comparison with conventional approaches [154].…”

Fine-Grained Radio Resource Management to Control Interference in Dense Wi-Fi Networks

“…The project proposes an architecture [12] that acknowledges the heterogeneity of Wi-Fi networks operators and uses SDWN to provide a coordination platform among operators that could be used to implement cooperative spectrum management algorithms [14], [15], as illustrated in Fig. 1.…”

“…The choice of SDWN to build a cooperative Wi-Fi network management platform is justified by the centralised nature of this concept which offers the operators and any entity that manages a Wi-Fi AP, including households, an interface through which a cooperative spectrum utilisation policy could be agreed. Moreover, SDWN offers flexibility and cross-layer management, as the central controller is able to obtain monitoring information about the status of the network and execute the cooperative algorithms to react accordingly while respecting the requirements of the wireless users, such as the solution presented in [14]. It is worth mentioning that Wi-5 is currently developing a SDWN framework that extends the capabilities of OpenFlow to support the monitoring of Wi-Fi networks, the QoS requirements of wireless applications, and the configuration of Wi-APs [13].…”

QoS aware radio access technology selection framework in heterogeneous networks using SDN

“…2. In this architecture, management solutions are implemented as applications on the northbound API of the SDN controller and algorithms for AP selection [23], [24], chan- nel assignment [25], [26], and RRM [27] have been already proposed for implementation to address spectrum congestion in Wi-Fi networks. The Wi-5 architecture defines a Spectrum Plane which enhances the operational capabilities of IEEE 802.11 APs by defining new monitoring and configuration primitives, and making APs programmable, thereby enabling fine-grained spectrum allocation and management.…”