Cooperation and Coding Framework

Exploiting cooperation and coding techniques is a vivid area in current networking research. Unfortunately, implementing and deploying such techniques is often difficult due to their complexity and the required modifications deeply within the protocol stack. We present an architecture that aggregates functionality common to many different cooperation and coding techniques in a Cooperation and Coding Framework (CCFW). Functions which are specific to one single technique only are encapsulated within modules that can be dynamically activated by the framework in beneficial situations. This permits a quick and easy integration of new schemes into existing networks. Furthermore, as modules are automatically activated based on their abstract specifications, techniques which are today designed and implemented with a specific application scenario in mind, can lead to benefits in other scenarios, too.