关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： Intelligent vehicles, often parked for long periods, are ideally suited to serve as computational nodes to expand the Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) infrastructure, with containerization significantly enhancing the system's load balancing, self-healing, resource isolation, and security. However, fluctuations in task demand and frequent container image downloads during peak hours create high loads on containerized nodes, as multiple mobile devices offload tasks simultaneously, leading to significant processing delays. Many existing studies make the simplified assumption of predefined patterns of task arrivals, which overlooks this issue and makes suboptimal decisions. In this paper, we consider a Parked Vehicles (PVs)-extended MEC scenario, where multiple devices request services on PVs functioning as edge servers, all controlled by a central base station. Task arrivals follow observed patterns based on long-term trends, such as peak and off-peak periods, resembling realistic arrival patterns rather than predefined ones. To optimize task offloading by identifying these patterns, we propose the Sequence-Aware Task Scheduling (SATS) algorithm, which is a policy gradient-based deep reinforcement learning approach that integrates Transformer and LSTM architectures to capture patterns in time-series task arrivals and relationships between nodes in a collaborative and containerized environment, thereby enhancing the efficiency of online task scheduling. The primary objective of SATS is to optimize the task offloading policy and minimize delay and energy consumption for all devices and PVs. Extensive numerical comparisons against baselines demonstrate the effectiveness and advantages of our algorithm. © 1967-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： The rapid evolution of mobile communication technologies has propelled mobile edge computing (MEC) as a pivotal paradigm bringing cloud capabilities and storage resources to the network edges, thereby, enabling the execution of computation-intensive, latency-sensitive applications at the network edge, and addressing limited device resources. However, efficient operation in MEC-assisted systems necessitates proper task executions onto MEC servers. Meanwhile, deep reinforcement learning (DRL) can substantially enhance the performance of MEC-enhanced networks by incorporating decision-making capabilities into individual network entities and edge servers. This paper presents a comprehensive survey of the applications of DRL in MEC ecosystems. More specifically, it explores the applications of DRL in MEC-enabled terrestrial wireless networks (TWNs) including Internet-of-things (IoT) and vehicular networks (VNs). The article provides a comprehensive roadmap for researchers navigating the complexities of intelligent systems and MEC-enabled networks, offering a meticulous understanding of the continuously evolving landscape in this domain. Beginning with foundational DRL principles, the survey scrutinizes the integration of DRL in MEC-enabled TWNs, showcasing its efficacy in optimizing modern TWNs. In the context of MEC-empowered IoT, the paper highlights the role of DRL in enhancing resource allocation, data management, and scalability enhancements. Extending beyond, the paper discusses MEC-enabled VNs, where DRL transforms its role in traffic signal control, and route optimization, ultimately improving efficiency and safety. Additionally, we highlight significant challenges and outline future research directions in applying DRL in terrestrial networks (TWNs) empowered by the MEC paradigm. © 1998-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： Service caching in mobile edge computing (MEC) networks involves pre-storing computation programs on MEC servers to efficiently handle users’ computational tasks. By pre-loading these programs, service caching can significantly reduce both computation and transmission delays, addressing the diverse computational requirements of users. However, optimal caching placement is essential due to limited caching capacity, which directly impacts the efficiency of computation offloading. Proper cache placement ensures that relevant programs are readily available, thereby maximizing offloading performance and minimizing delays. This paper investigates a multi-tier MEC network consisting of caching-enabled edge servers, a cloud server, and multiple users. Users offload computational tasks to proximate edge servers, where locally cached programs facilitate immediate processing, thereby mitigating delays. When programs are absent from the cache, tasks are offloaded to the cloud, leading to additional latency. We formulate an optimization problem to minimize the overall communication and computation delay by jointly optimizing caching placement, transmission power, bandwidth allocation, and computation capacity. To tackle the complexity of this mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) problem, we propose two novel algorithms. The first is a Dinkelbach and big-M-based algorithm that reformulates the problem into a mixed-integer second-order cone programming (MI-SOCP) problem, approximating a near-optimal solution. Recognizing the computational demands of MI-SOCP, we also develop a low-complexity algorithm based on successive convex approximation (SCA) and alternating methods, which efficiently yields a high-quality sub-optimal solution. Simulation results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms in reducing network delays and emphasize the critical role of caching in improving network performance. © 1972-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： Mobile edge computing mitigates the shortcomings of cloud computing caused by unpredictable wide-area network latency and serves as a critical enabling technology for the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). Unlike cloud computing, mobile edge networks offer limited and distributed computing resources. As a result, collaborative edge computing emerges as a promising technology that enhances edge networks' service capabilities by integrating computational resources across edge nodes. This paper investigates the task scheduling problem in collaborative edge computing for IIoT, aiming to optimize task processing performance under long-term cost constraints. We propose an online task scheduling algorithm to cope with the spatiotemporal non-uniformity of user request distribution in distributed edge networks. For the spatial non-uniformity of user requests across different factories, we introduce a graph model to guide optimal task scheduling decisions. For the time-varying nature of user request distribution and long-term cost constraints, we apply Lyapunov optimization to decompose the long-term optimization problem into a series of real-time subproblems that do not require prior knowledge of future system states. Given the NP-hard nature of the subproblems, we design a heuristic-based hierarchical optimization approach incorporating enhanced discrete particle swarm and harmonic search algorithms. Finally, an imitation learning-based approach is devised to further accelerate the algorithm's operation, building upon the initial two algorithms. Comprehensive theoretical analysis and experimental evaluation demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed schemes. © 2002-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： Mobile edge computing is considered as a key technology for consumer Internet of Vehicles networks, which provides low-latency, high-reliability network services for end-users. Service migration need to address where to migrate and how to implement service migration procedure based on user mobility. The existing reactive migrating solutions lead to overlong service migration time and end to end latency. The proactive service migration method obtains the target server in advance through mobility prediction, and the service migration procedure starts before communication handover. Based on the above observation, a Mobility Aware Proactive edge Service Migration framework (MAPSM) is proposed in this paper. MAPSM includes the key aspects: 1) predicting the next location of an end user based on ensemble learning method combining recurrent neural networks and geographical embedding markov chain predictors;2) using the mobility prediction result to determine the target edge server of service migration, a proactive migration-handover coordinated method is proposed by performing container pre-migration, memory state migration and communication handover. The time planning scheme in the procedure is also designed. Experimental results demonstrate that MAPSM can greatly improve migration performance, effectively reduce end-to-end latency and significantly reduce service migration time. MAPSM outperforms other baseline service migration approaches. © 1975-2011 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： In Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) scenarios, computational tasks are popularly deployed using containerization to isolate the runtime environment. To complete the execution of the task, the edge server first pulls the image, then instantiates and runs the container. Since it takes a lot of time for the edge server to download the image from the cloud, image reuse reduces the pulling latency significantly. However, the limited storage capacity of edge servers hinders image reuse. Recent works have enhanced reuse efficiency by leveraging the hierarchical structure of images and caching high-value layers. However, their efficiency remains limited due to the lack of multi-container collaboration. This paper proposes a novel container scheduling strategy based on image layer reuse and sequence arrangement (ILR-SA) for MEC scenarios, which achieves efficient scheduling by collaborating multiple containers. First, containers are greedily deployed into the edge cluster. Then, the execution sequence of containers is modeled as an optimal Hamiltonian path problem, efficiently solved by our proposed decomposition algorithm. Finally, an efficient image layer update strategy is used to achieve layer reuse. We conduct rigorous experiments to demonstrate that our proposed container scheduling strategy reduces the computational task completion time by up to 91.3% compared to existing approaches. © 2002-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing   non orthogonal multiple access   capacity   mobile energy   massive multiple input multiple output   Mobile edge computing   non orthogonal multiple access   capacity   mobile energy   massive multiple input multiple output  

摘要： This work addresses the critical challenge of energy consumption in Mobile Edge Computing (MEC), a burgeoning field that extends cloud computing capabilities to the edge of cellular networks. Given the exponential growth of mobile devices and the resultant surge in energy demands, there is an urgent need for efficient energy management strategies to ensure sustainable development and operation of MEC infrastructures. This paper introduces a comprehensive framework for reducing energy consumption in MEC environments by leveraging advanced optimization techniques and energy-efficient resource allocation algorithms. We propose a novel approach that dynamically adjusts the computational resources based on the current network load and the type of services requested, thus minimizing unnecessary energy consumption. We derive and propose an optimized energy consumption for local processing. Then, we study the two network scenarios: Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) and Massive Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (mMIMO). We propose an optimized energy consumption algorithm in NOMA based on the derived processing resource requirements. Then, in mMIMO, we derive optimized power allocation algorithms. Simulations validate the effectiveness of our proposed framework, demonstrating significant energy savings.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： On-device large language models (LLMs), referring to running LLMs on edge devices, have raised considerable interest since they are more cost-effective, latency-efficient, and privacy-preserving compared with the cloud paradigm. Nonetheless, the performance of on-device LLMs is intrinsically constrained by resource limitations on edge devices. Sitting between cloud and on-device AI, mobile edge intelligence (MEI) presents a viable solution by provisioning AI capabilities at the edge of mobile networks. This article provides a contemporary survey on harnessing MEI for LLMs. We begin by illustrating several killer applications to demonstrate the urgent need for deploying LLMs at the network edge. Next, we present the preliminaries of LLMs and MEI, followed by resource-efficient LLM techniques. We then present an architectural overview of MEI for LLMs (MEI4LLM), outlining its core components and how it supports the deployment of LLMs. Subsequently, we delve into various aspects of MEI4LLM, extensively covering edge LLM caching and delivery, edge LLM training, and edge LLM inference. Finally, we identify future research opportunities. We hope this article inspires researchers in the field to leverage mobile edge computing to facilitate LLM deployment, thereby unleashing the potential of LLMs across various privacy-and delay-sensitive applications. © 1998-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： Due to the limited computing resources of both mobile devices (MDs) and the mobile edge computing (MEC) server, devising reasonable strategies for MD task offloading, MEC server resource pricing, and resource allocation is crucial. In this paper, a scenario is considered, comprising multiple MDs and a single MEC server. Each MD has a divisible task in each time slot, allowing for partial offloading and the option to discard parts of the task. The MEC server contains multiple computing units with the same computing power, and its computing resources can be dynamically adjusted through dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) according to the size of tasks offloaded by MDs. At any given time slice, a Stackelberg game is formulated based on the strategies of the MDs and the strategy of the MEC server. An iterative evolution algorithm is employed to explore the optimal strategies for MDs and the MEC server. Simulation results demonstrate that both parties can reach an equilibrium state through the game, and these experiments confirm that the algorithm effectively enhances system efficiency. © 2004-2012 IEEE.

关键词： Mobile edge computing  

摘要： The proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices and edge computing applications has heightened the demand for efficient resource allocation and pricing mechanisms. Effective pricing strategies play a crucial role in optimizing resource utilization, reducing latency, and ensuring fair resource distribution among users. Both auction theory and game theory have emerged as fundamental economic frameworks for designing pricing mechanisms in edge computing. This paper presents a comprehensive survey of pricing strategies that leverage both auction and game theory, systematically categorizing existing research based on auction mechanisms and game-theoretic models. Unlike previous surveys that focus solely on auction-based pricing, this work integrates game-theoretic perspectives, providing a holistic analysis of strategic interactions in edge computing resource allocation. Furthermore, we discuss key challenges, emerging trends, and future research directions aimed at enhancing efficiency, fairness, and privacy protection in cloud-edge collaborative computing environments. © 2014 IEEE.