Abstract:
Ubiquitous computing is an emerging research area, posing significant challenges in both theoretical
and technological aspects of middleware systems. Up to today, middleware platforms have
successfully been used for delivering solutions for deployment and management of distributed
applications. However, whilst middleware systems have been deployed within computing
environments interconnected with Local Area or Wide Area Networks, the new ideas the ubiquitous
computing “world” has introduced: a) devices with small size, even invisible, either mobile or
embedded in almost any type of object someone can imagine (cars, appliances, clothes, etc.), and; b)
devices communicating with increasingly interconnected mobile ad-hoc networks, pose new
challenges and requirements for the design and deployment of middleware systems targeting at a
network embedded system. New solutions yet remain to be devised in order to deploy middleware for
heterogeneous, large-scale and continuously changing embedded environments, consisting of devices
with different capabilities and limitations.
The document defines what networked embedded systems are and proposes two taxonomy models for
organising and reviewing existing networked embedded systems. A number of existing middlewares
for networked embedded systems is presented and evaluated, using the dimensions of the two
proposed taxonomy models. The document concludes with a summary of the main achievements of
the presented middlewares and with a discussion of goals that remain unattended.
