Spatial programming using smart messages: design and implementation

Spatial programming (SP) is a space-aware programming model for outdoor distributed embedded systems. Central to SP are the concepts of space and spatial reference, which provide applications with a virtual resource naming in networks of embedded systems. A network resource is referenced using its expected physical location and properties. Together with other SP features, such as reference consistency and access timeout, they help programmers cope with highly dynamic network configurations in a network-transparent fashion. We present the SP design and its implementation using smart messages, a lightweight software architecture similar to mobile agents, that we developed for networks of embedded systems. We also describe the implementation and evaluation of a simple SP application over a testbed consisting of HP iPAQs running Linux and equipped with 802.11 cards for wireless communication. The experimental results indicate that SP is a viable programming model for outdoor distributed computing.