SnT’s Raphaël Frank General Chair of 2021 IEEE/IFIP WONS Conference

In March SnT’s Prof Raphaël Frank will be serving as the General Chair of the 16th edition of the internationally renowned IEEE/IFIP WONS conference. 

The event is scheduled to take place 9 – 11 March 2021, and will serve as an opportunity for the research community to examine the increasing diversity and complexity of the wireless networks we rely on. These include technologies like 5G and beyond.

As WONS organizers write, these network technologies have “become the cornerstone of upcoming networking paradigms including IoT networks, cloud networks, vehicular networks, disruption tolerant and opportunistic networks, and in-body networks.” The conference is a natural extension of Prof Frank’s work as the head of SnT’s 360Lab, where he leads research in connected and automated vehicle technologies, which encompasses extensive and innovative research in wireless networking solutions.

The challenges of mixing multiple wireless networking technologies, as well as mixing permanent and on-demand networking opportunities, are a particular focus for the conference this year. The event will also include a special session titled “Smartphone Apps for Contact Tracing – Experiences with COVID-19 Tracing Apps” during which researchers will have the opportunity to discuss their work on the myriad of contact-tracing apps developed since the start of the crisis. Researchers from a wide range of backgrounds and application fields -- ranging from vehicular networks to underwater communications -- are warmly invited to bring their unique perspectives to the conference.

WONS, the Wireless On-demand Network Systems and Services conference, is a notable forum for the global wireless-networking research community. The conference strives to create a stimulating environment in which researchers can fruitfully exchange and explore the latest cutting-edge research in the wireless-networking field.  In light of the current global coronavirus crisis, the conference has been relocated from Switzerland to a fully virtual venue. Moreover, in solidarity with researchers and students during this extraordinary time, all fees for non-authors PhD students have been waived.

“It is an honour to be selected to Chair this coming WONS conference,” said Prof Frank. “Wireless networking is a crucial aspect of bringing autonomous transportation solutions to the market, my research area, and the WONS conference has always served to inspire me and motivate our research community to innovate further.”

More information about the conference can be found here: http://2021.wons-conference.org/