Toward a Flexible and Reconfigurable Broadband Satellite Network: Resource Management Architecture and Strategies

Traditional satellite networks are generally locked down to a specific space mission, with isolated substrate infrastructure as well as network resources. This forbids dynamic resource sharing among different networks, and thus leads to resource under utilization, poor service provisioning and unacceptable expenditure. In this regard, it is crucial to embrace emerging technologies such as software-defined networking and network virtualization to construct a FRBSN. Both the resource management architecture and enabling strategies are explicitly investigated to realize FRBSN. Specifically, we propose a novel TERG to precisely describe the evolution of multi-dimensional resources in BSN, and reveal the continuity and correlation relationships among various resources. Based on TERG, we further propose an optimal resource allocation strategy to facilitate efficient cooperation among various resources. The achievable performance limits are demonstrated by simulations under a realistic BSN setting.