Software and Systems researches the communication protocols and applications for mobile, ad hoc and sensor networks.

The research also includes the formal analysis and verification of concurrent and distributed systems, empirical software engineering and computer science education.

Current projects

• Sensor networks for viticulture
• Salinity Impact Sensor Networks
• Soil Water Monitoring Sensor Networks
• Formal Models for Wireless Sensor Network Protocols
• Trust and Security in Ad Hoc Networks
• Energy and Cost Efficient Protocols for efficient data collection
• Combining modal logics for dynamic and multi-agent systems
• Design and formal verification of control and data acquisition protocols
• Modelling theory for sensor networks within dynamic landscapes
• Design Methods for a Bushfire Sensor System.

Research groups

Ad Hoc Networks

The Ad Hoc Networking group conducts research on wireless and mobile networking in the School of CSSE at UWA. Our interests include network simulation, ad-hoc networking, wireless sensor networks, power-aware routing, motes, and modelling complex systems.

Software Engineering

Software Engineering research in the school has three strands. Empirical software engineering includes analysis of software process and project estimation. There is also work on the measurement and modelling of computer usage behaviour, including longitudinal studies. Automated reasoning and formal models are used for analysis and verification of concurrent and distributed systems.

Temporal Logic

Our research concentrates on automata-centric modelling of complex systems, and the analysis of systems via automated checking techniques. The group makes use of several different modelling formalisms; principally the CIRCAL process algebra and Timed Automata. The group is also engaged in the development of new formalisms based on ideas from cellular automata and mobile agent systems to enable the modelling of new classes of spatial concurrent systems.

Computer Science Education

Our group is undertaking research into the use of Computer Science and Software Engineering techniques to teach best Computer Science and Software Engineering itself. We are undertaking studies into how students learn fundamental programming and software development practices, and have developed several software tools, testbeds, and simulators that are employed in our School's teaching.