Dynamic Channel Allocation

In an automated highway system (AHS), like PATH, the vehicles need to be able to communicate with each other in order to coordinate maneuvers. Since there are multiple platoons of vehicles in close proximity each platoon needs to use a different channel so that they won't interfere. Since channels are a scare resource we can't give every platoon their own channel. The question that we are attempting to answer is how do we pass out the channels among the platoons so as to not violate the inter-cell interference? The problem is difficult because the platoons are continuously moving with respect to each other. Solving the three-color problem at each time step and redistributing the channels is not feasible.

This is a project that I've been working on with Farokh Eskafi over coffee at Nefeli.

Xdistribute

Xdistribute is a piece of software that allows users to distribute jobs to a set of machines. Xdistribute takes in 1) a file that is a list of jobs and 2) a file that is a list of machines to run them on. It then passes the jobs out one-by-one to the machines until it runs out of machines or it runs out of jobs. If it runs out of machines then it waits for a machine to finish a job before giving it another. Xdistribute gives the user a graphical display of the progress of the jobs and allows them to halt the distribution of jobs or to kill jobs on remote machines.

Xdistribute is extremely portable, requires no changes to any source code, leaves no residual dependencies on the local machine, and can be used by any user without modification to the operating system or installation of any network daemons. Xdistribute was written in Tcl/Tk, Expect, and Perl - all readily available pieces of software. We wrote this code as a quick way of harnessing the idle CPU power on our local area network of workstations.

PATH Quarterly Report System

The PQR system provides for the automatic generation, storage, and retrieval of the California PATH Quarterly Reports via the World Wide Web. The obvious benefit of this is that PATH researchers will be able to submit their quarterly reports from their desktop PC or workstation. Once submitted, the development engineer at PATH or Caltrans who is interested in the MOU can view the quarterly report right on the web or print a postscript version of the document. The entire process of submitting a quarterly report will take a principal investigator only a few minutes and won't require any paper at all.

PATH Homepages

The PATH Homepages are currently being maintained by me. Until PATH hires somebody that is interested in taking over the content of this site I will grudgingly be in charge.