Deakin-Coventry Cotutelle - Bottom-up swarm computing for workload placement in edge-cloud continuum

This is a doctoral Cotutelle project between Deakin University (Australia) and Coventry University (United Kingdom). The successful PhD Student will be awarded a scholarship from Deakin University with the supervision team being drawn from Deakin University and Coventry University. The PhD Student will graduate with two testamurs, one from Deakin University and one from Coventry University, each of which recognises that the program was carried out as part of a jointly supervised doctoral program. The PhD Student is anticipated to spend a minimum 6 months and a maximum of 12 months (with approval) of the total period of the program at Deakin University, with the remainder of the program based at Coventry University.

The program is for a duration of 3.5 years and scheduled to commence in May 2025.

This project will conduct research on bottom-up swarm computing for workload placement in edge-cloud continuum.

Edge-cloud continuum computing is an essential enabler for numerous high-demand applications, such as smart grids, smart cities, intelligent transportation systems, and e-health. Current cloud web service-based solutions cannot adequately meet the frequent data queries and delay-sensitive responses due to the unpredictable latency of the inter-networking between the end application and cloud or data centres. Edge computing facilitates data processing close to the end application, deploying edge micro data centres (EMDCs) distributed resources complementing the services already provided by cloud computing. This technology also offers other advantages regarding scalability, resilience, and privacy. However, resource allocation and orchestration are more challenging as resources are distributed across various geographic EMDCs, necessitating a self-organised scheme. The heart of this emerging computing scheme is its scheduling algorithm, which assigns the incoming workloads to a proper node in the continuum, considering its required resources, e.g., CPU and RAM demand, its needed quality of service (QoS), e.g., response time, and the desired system objective, e.g., load balancing or reliability.  Recently, there has been an investment in developing swarm intelligence-based algorithms for intelligent bottom-up workload placement. Swarm Intelligence algorithms are nature-inspired algorithms that end up with desired collective behaviour by relying on distributed and simple local rules in decision-making for each involved agent in the systems.

Applications close 5pm, Wednesday 15 January 2025

Please be aware that screening for this advert will commence immediately and the scholarship may be awarded prior to the closing date.

This scholarship is supported by Coventry University, is available over 3.5 years and includes:

• Stipend of £18,622 per annum (2024 rate)
• A Tuition Fee Waiver
• Travel Support Package including one return economy airfare to Deakin University to support residency period in Australia
• Student visa and health insurance costs for period of residency at Deakin University in Australia

Deakin University will also provide a full tuition fee waiver for a duration of up to 4 years.

To be eligible you must:.

• be either a domestic or international candidate. Domestic includes candidates with Australian Citizenship, Australian Permanent Residency or New Zealand Citizenship.
• meet the PhD entry requirements of both Deakin University and Coventry university, including English language proficiency requirements
• be enrolling full time
• be able to physically locate to both Coventry University (UK) and Deakin University (Australia)

Please refer to the research degree entry pathways page and Coventry’s research entry criteria page for further information.