Master thesis: Self-organizing and -healing mesh networks based on Wi-Fi

Background:

ACU6 and other Actia products contains Wi-Fi (in addition to cellular network) but generally not any dedicated mesh radio components. Wi-Fi is generally used mainly in infrastructure mode, which means that certain units are access points (coordinator) and others are stations (clients). ACU6 Pro OH can act as either access point coordinating and providing connectivity or station receiving connectivity.

In certain applications it would be beneficial to allow for multiple units to communicate directly with each other without pre-configuration of access points vs stations, and then a mesh network, meaning a network without any explicitly configured access points and stations, would be beneficial.

The Wi-Fi standard includes an ad-hoc mode, officially referred to as independent basic service set (IBSS) that allows Wi-Fi radios to communicate without the need for a central node, however this only covers low level radio access. It does not handle higher level protocols such as IP configuration, routing of traffic including how clients outside of direct radio range should exchange traffic.

Scope:

This thesis would be to investigate, develop, and test a way for multiple ACU6 units to act as a mesh network using the Wi-Fi radio, possibly supported by BLE for better reliability at close range.

The focus would be self-organization and reliability using the existing wireless technologies, but things such as throughput, security and interoperability are also interesting parameters.

We do envision this to result in a PoC running on a smaller fleet of ACU6 Pro OH units.

Challenges:

Wi-Fi ad-hoc mode has been around for a long time but the software support for it is still quite limited. This means that any development in the area will result in very low-level questions related to the interaction between the hardware and the software, and therefor requires good understanding of both software protocols and radio access standards.

Benefits of working with us:

• Engage in cutting-edge automotive technology development.
• Collaborate in a dynamic and innovative team environment.
• Contribute to significant advancements in automotive system reliability.

Ideal candidates should be enrolled in a university program, preferably Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Physics or similar.

The ideal candidate should also have experience from: RTOS and embedded software development

We are also looking for these personal traits: easy going, friendly, open minded, tech-entusiastic and with a meticulously mindset.