Can Highly Dynamic Mobile Ad Hoc Networks and Distributed MEMS Share Algorithmic Foundations?

The notion of distributed MEMS refers to the approach that consists in combining a large number of MEMS. The larger the number of MEMS, the more important the need for distributing the operations of the system (computation, control, etc.) over the individual MEMS. A similar problem is found in today's networks where a large number of communicating devices (most of the time with limited resources) are used to provide a service or to acquire and process measurement samples from the physical world. The goal of this paper is to compare these domains, because we believe that the techniques that are used for networks can be adapted/extended to distributed MEMS. By doing so, we hope to foster new research collaborations around topics of common interest between the supporting communities.