Mobile Clouds: Exploiting Distributed Resources in Wireless, Mobile and Social Networks

This book discusses and explores the concept of mobile cloud, creating an inspiring research space for developing commercially profitable ideas based on exploiting opportunistic resource sharing.   A Mobile Cloud is a cooperative arrangement of dynamically connected nodes sharing opportunistic resources. In this book, authors provide a comprehensive and motivating overview of this rapidly emerging technology. The book explores how distributed resources can be shared by mobile users in very different ways and for various purposes. The book provides many stimulating examples of resource–sharing applications. Enabling technologies for mobile clouds are also discussed, highlighting the key role of network coding. Mobile clouds enhance communications performance, improve utilization of resources and create flexible platforms to share resources in a very novel manner. Energy–efficient aspects of mobile clouds are discussed in detail, showing how being cooperative can bring mobile users significant energy saving. The book presents and discusses multiple examples of mobile clouds applications, based on both existing commercial initiatives as well as proof–of–concept test–beds. Visions and prospects are also discussed, paving the way  for further development. As mobile networks and social networks become more and more reliant on each other, the concept of resource sharing takes a wider and deeper meaning, creating the foundations for a global real–time multidimensional resource pool, the underlying infrastructure for shareconomy. Above all, this is an inspiring book for anyone who is concerned about the future of wireless and mobile communications networks and their relationship with social networks. Key Features:  Provides the basic ideas and concepts of exploiting opportunistically cooperation and cognition in wireless and mobile networks Gives clear definitions of mobile clouds from different perspectives Associates mobile and wireless networks with social networks, creating a vast fertile ground for novel developments in both research and practical applications. Considers research directions, emerging trends and visions This book is an excellent resource for wireless/networking researchers in industry and academia, students and mobile phone programmers. Managers interested in new technology developments, service providers, network operators, and those working in the gaming industry will also find the book insightful.

Professor Frank Fitzek, University of Aalborg, Denmark Frank H. P. Fitzek is an Associate Professor in the department of Electronic Systems, University of Aalborg, Denmark heading the Mobile Device group. He received his diploma (Dipl.–Ing.) degree in electrical engineering from the University of Technology – Rheinisch–Westfälische Technische Hochschule (RWTH) – Aachen, Germany, in 1997 and his Ph.D. (Dr.–Ing.) in Electrical Engineering from the Technical University Berlin, Germany in 2002 and became Adjunct Professor at the University of Ferrara, Italy. Dr. Marcos Katz, University of Oulu, Finland Marcos Katz received the B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Argentina in 1987, and the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from University of Oulu, Finland, in 1995 and 2002, respectively. He worked as a Research Engineer at Nokia Telecommunications from 1987 to 1995, designing analog circuits for high–speed PDH/SDH line interfaces. From 1995 to 2001 he was a Senior Research Engineer at Nokia Networks, Finland