Actuator Security 2015

Cyber physical system security requires the need to build secure sensors and actuators. The research works here address the hard problems of human behavior, resiliency, metrics, and composability for actuator security and were presented or published in 2015.

Unger, S.; Timmermann, D., “DPWSec: Devices Profile for Web Services Security,” in Intelligent Sensors, Sensor Networks and Information Processing (ISSNIP), 2015 IEEE Tenth International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 1–6, 7–9 April 2015. doi:10.1109/ISSNIP.2015.7106961

Abstract: As cyber-physical systems (CPS) build a foundation for visions such as the Internet of Things (IoT) or Ambient Assisted Living (AAL), their communication security is crucial so they cannot be abused for invading our privacy and endangering our safety. In the past years many communication technologies have been introduced for critically resource-constrained devices such as simple sensors and actuators as found in CPS. However, many do not consider security at all or in a way that is not suitable for CPS. Also, the proposed solutions are not interoperable although this is considered a key factor for market acceptance. Instead of proposing yet another security scheme, we looked for an existing, time-proven solution that is widely accepted in a closely related domain as an interoperable security framework for resource-constrained devices. The candidate of our choice is the Web Services Security specification suite. We analysed its core concepts and isolated the parts suitable and necessary for embedded systems. In this paper we describe the methodology we developed and applied to derive the Devices Profile for Web Services Security (DPWSec). We discuss our findings by presenting the resulting architecture for message level security, authentication and authorization and the profile we developed as a subset of the original specifications. We demonstrate the feasibility of our results by discussing the proof-of-concept implementation of the developed profile and the security architecture.

Keywords: Internet; Internet of Things; Web services; ambient intelligence; assisted living; security of data; AAL; CPS; DPWSec; IoT; ambient assisted living; communication security; cyber-physical system; devices profile for Web services security; interoperable security framework; message level security; resource-constrained devices; Authentication; Authorization; Cryptography; Interoperability; Applied Cryptography; Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS); DPWS; Intelligent Environments; Internet of Things (IoT); Usability (ID#: 15-7608)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7106961&isnumber=7106892

Kerlin, S.D.; Straub, J.; Huhn, J.; Lewis, A., “Small Satellite Communications Security and Student Learning in the Development of Ground Station Software,” in Aerospace Conference, 2015 IEEE, vol., no., pp. 1–11, 7–14 March 2015. doi:10.1109/AERO.2015.7119177

Abstract: Communications security is gaining importance as small spacecraft include actuator capabilities (i.e., propulsion), payloads which could be misappropriated (i.e., high resolution cameras), and research missions with high value/cost. However, security is limited by capability, interoperability and regulation. Additionally, as the small satellite community becomes more mainstream and diverse, the lack of cheap, limited-to-no configuration, pluggable security modules for small satellites also presents a limit for user adoption of security. This paper discusses a prospective approach for incorporating robust security into a student-developed ground station created at the University of North Dakota as part of a Computer Science Department senior design project. This paper includes: A discussion of hardware and software security standards applicable to small spacecraft (including those historically used in the space domain and standards and practices from nonspace activities that can be applied). Analysis directed at how those existing standards can be modified or implemented to best serve the emerging small satellite user-base. A discussion of the impact of Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations (for ammeter, experimental and commercial licensees) on the security approaches that can be utilized. This will include identification of key roadblocks and how they may be bridged by clever development. Consideration of the impact of export control on security standards and the ability to have distributed (beyond U.S. border) data collection and command transmission. This reflects the reality that an open and universal standard must be used, resulting in a related discussion of how that effects performance and complexity. A review of the student work on ground station development, including its pedagogical goals, results and an overview of what students learned in the process. A discussion of the broader impact of student generated research and the benefits to the research community at large is also included. An overview of the ground station design produced by the student team. This includes an analysis and explanation of the design choices as they relate to the aforementioned topics. A strategy for incorporating security best practices into this ground station design in a manner that is largely transparent to the user and can be enabled / disabled as needed, based on mission characteristics. The potential for pluggable modules and interfaces that can be utilized easily by non-technical users who are implementing small satellite mission is also discussed.

Keywords: aerospace engineering; computer aided instruction; open systems; satellite communication; security of data; space vehicles; student experiments; Computer Science Department; FCC; Federal Communications Commission; University of North Dakota; ground station software; interoperability; pluggable modules; regulation; small satellite communications security; spacecraft; student learning; Biographies; Cryptography; Databases; Robustness; Satellites; Standards (ID#: 15-7609)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7119177&isnumber=7118873

Reddy, Y.B., “Security and Design Challenges in Cyber-Physical Systems,” in Information Technology - New Generations (ITNG), 2015 12th International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 200–205, 13–15 April 2015. doi:10.1109/ITNG.2015.38

Abstract: Cyber-Physical Systems require the development of security models at cloud interacting with physical systems. The current research discusses the security requirements in the future engineering systems includes the state of security in cloud cyber-physical systems, and a security model in sensor networks in relation to cyber-physical systems. In addition, we develop a model to transfer the packets in a secure environment and provide the simulations to detect the malicious node in the network.

Keywords: cloud computing; security of data; cloud cyber-physical systems; design challenges; future engineering systems; malicious node detection; security model; security models; security requirements; sensor networks; Mathematical model; Medical services; Real-time systems; Reliability; Robot sensing systems; Security; Vehicles; Cyber-physical system; actuators; environment; neighbor node; sensors; trust-based systems (ID#: 15-7610)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7113473&isnumber=7113432

Hale, M.L.; Ellis, D.; Gamble, R.; Waler, C.; Lin, J., “Secu Wear: An Open Source, Multi-Component Hardware/Software Platform for Exploring Wearable Security,” in Mobile Services (MS), 2015 IEEE International Conference on, vol., no.,

pp. 97–104, June 27 2015–July 2 2015. doi:10.1109/MobServ.2015.23

Abstract: Wearables are the next big development in the mobile internet of things. Operating in a body area network around a smartphone user they serve a variety of commercial, medical, and personal uses. Whether used for fitness tracking, mobile health monitoring, or as remote controllers, wearable devices can include sensors that collect a variety of data and actuators that provide hap tic feedback and unique user interfaces for controlling software and hardware. Wearables are typically wireless and use Bluetooth LE (low energy) to transmit data to a waiting smartphone app. Frequently, apps forward this data onward to online web servers for tracking. Security and privacy concerns abound when wearables capture sensitive data or provide critical functionality. This paper develops a platform, called SecuWear, for conducting wearable security research, collecting data, and identifying vulnerabilities in hardware and software. SecuWear combines open source technologies to enable researchers to rapidly prototype security vulnerability test cases, evaluate them on actual hardware, and analyze the results to understand how best to mitigate problems. The paper includes two types of evaluation in the form of a comparative analysis and empirical study. The results reveal how several passive observation attacks present themselves in wearable applications and how the SecuWear platform can capture the necessary information needed to identify and combat such attacks.

Keywords: Bluetooth; Internet of Things; body area networks; mobile computing; security of data; Bluetooth LE; SecuWear platform; body area network; mobile Internet of Things; online Web servers; open source multicomponent hardware-software platform; security vulnerability test cases; smartphone user; wearable security; Biomedical monitoring; Bluetooth; Hardware; Mobile communication; Security; Sensors; Trade agreements; Bluetooth low energy; internet of things; man-in-the-middle; security; vulnerability discovery; wearables (ID#: 15-7611)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7226677&isnumber=7226653

Perešíni, Ondrej; Krajčovič, Tibor, “Internet Controlled Embedded System for Intelligent Sensors and Actuators Operation,” in Applied Electronics (AE), 2015 International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 185–188, 8–9 Sept. 2015. doi: (not provided)

Abstract: Devices compliant with Internet of Things concept are currently getting increased interest amongst users and numerous manufacturers. Our idea is to introduce intelligent household control system respecting this trend. Primary focus of this work is to propose a new solution of intelligent house actuators realization, which is less expensive, more robust and more secure against intrusion. The hearth of the system consists of the intelligent modules which are modular, autonomous, decentralized, cheap and easily extensible with support for encrypted network communication. The proposed solution is opened and therefore ready for the future improvements and application in the field of the Internet of Things.

Keywords: Actuators; Hardware; Protocols; Security; Sensors; Standards; User interfaces; Internet of Things; actuators; decentralized network; embedded hardware; intelligent household (ID#: 15-7612)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7301084&isnumber=7301036

Ariş, A.; Oktuğ, S.F.; Yalçin, S.B.Ö., “Internet-of-Things Security: Denial of Service Attacks,” in Signal Processing and Communications Applications Conference (SIU), 2015 23rd, vol., no., pp. 903–906, 16–19 May 2015. doi:10.1109/SIU.2015.7129976

Abstract: Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of sensors, actuators, mobile and wearable devices, simply things that have processing and communication modules and can connect to the Internet. In a few years time, billions of such things will start serving in many fields within the concept of IoT. Self-configuration, autonomous device addition, Internet connection and resource limitation features of IoT causes it to be highly prone to the attacks. Denial of Service (DoS) attacks which have been targeting the communication networks for years, will be the most dangerous threats to IoT networks. This study aims to analyze and classify the DoS attacks that may target the IoT environments. In addition to this, the systems that try to detect and mitigate the DoS attacks to IoT will be evaluated.

Keywords: Internet; Internet of Things; actuators; computer network security; mobile computing; sensors; wearable computers; DoS attacks; Internet connection; Internet-of-things security; IoT; actuator; autonomous device addition; communication modules; denial of service attack; mobile device; processing modules; resource limitation; self-configuration; sensor; wearable device; Ad hoc networks; Computer crime; IEEE 802.15 Standards; Internet of things; Wireless communication; Wireless sensor networks; DDoS; DoS; network security (ID#: 15-7613)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7129976&isnumber=7129794

Jacobsen, Rune Hylsberg; Mikkelsen, Soren Aagaard; Rasmussen, Niels Holm, “Towards the Use of Pairing-Based Cryptography for Resource-Constrained Home Area Networks,” in Digital System Design (DSD), 2015 Euromicro Conference on, vol., no., pp. 233–240, 26–28 Aug. 2015. doi:10.1109/DSD.2015.73

Abstract: In the prevailing smart grid, the Home Area Network (HAN) will become a critical infrastructure component at the consumer premises. The HAN provides the electricity infrastructure with a bi-directional communication infrastructure that allows monitoring and control of electrical appliances. HANs are typically equipped with wireless sensors and actuators, built from resource-constrained hardware devices, that communicate by using open standard protocols. This raises concerns on the security of these networked systems. Because of this, securing a HAN to a proper degree becomes an increasingly important task. In this paper, a security model, where an adversary may exploit the system both during HAN setup as well as during operations of the network, is considered. We propose a scheme for secure bootstrapping of wireless HAN devices based on Identity-Based Cryptography (IBC). The scheme minimizes the number of exchanged messages needed to establish a session key between HAN devices. The feasibility of the approach is demonstrated from a series of prototype experiments.

Keywords: Authentication; Elliptic curve cryptography; Logic gates; Prototypes; constrained devices; home area network; identity-based cryptography; network bootstrap; pairing-based cryptography; security (ID#: 15-7614)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7302275&isnumber=7302233

Rom, Werner; Priller, Peter; Koivusaari, Jani; Komi, Maarjana; Robles, Ramiro; Dominguez, Luis; Rivilla, Javier; Driel, Willem van, “DEWI -- Wirelessly into the Future,” in Digital System Design (DSD), 2015 Euromicro Conference on, vol., no., pp. 730–739,

26–28 Aug. 2015. doi:10.1109/DSD.2015.114

Abstract: The ARTEMIS 1 project DEWI (“Dependable Embedded Wireless Infrastructure”) focusses on the area of wireless sensor / actuator networks and wireless communication. With its four industrial domains (Aeronautics, Automotive, Rail, and Building) and 21 clearly industry-driven use cases / applications, DEWI will provide and demonstrate key solutions for wireless seamless connectivity and interoperability in smart cities and infrastructures, by considering everyday physical environments of citizens in buildings, cars, trains and airplanes. It will add clear cross-domain benefits in terms of re-usability of techno-logical building bricks and architecture, processes and methods. DEWI currently is one of the largest funded European R&D projects, comprising 58 renowned industrial and research partners from 11 European countries.

(For further details see www.dewiproject.eu)

Keywords: Automotive engineering; Buildings; Communication system security; Standards; Vehicles; Wireless communication; Wireless sensor networks; Actuator Network; Aeronautics; Automotive; Building; Certification; Communication; Communication Bubble; Cross-Domain; Demonstrator; Dependability; Interoperability; Rail; Safety; Security; Sensor Network; Standardization; Wireless (ID#: 15-7615)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7302350&isnumber=7302233

Srivastava, P.; Garg, N., “Secure and Optimized Data Storage for IoT Through Cloud Framework,” in Computing, Communication & Automation (ICCCA), 2015 International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 720–723, 15–16 May 2015. doi:10.1109/CCAA.2015.7148470

Abstract: Internet of Things (IoT) is the future. With increasing popularity of internet, soon internet in routine devices will be a common practice by people. Hence we are writing this paper to encourage IoT accomplishment using cloud computing features with it. Basic setback of IoT is management of the huge quantity of data. In this paper, we have suggested a framework with several data compression techniques to store this large amount of data on cloud acquiring lesser space and using AES encryption techniques we have also improved the security of this data. Framework also shows the interaction of data with reporting and analytic tools through cloud. At the end, we have concluded our paper with some of the future scopes and possible enhancements of our ideas.

Keywords: Internet of Things; cloud computing; cryptography; data compression; optimisation; storage management; AES encryption technique; IoT; cloud computing feature; data compression technique; data storage optimization; data storage security; Cloud computing; Encryption; Image coding; Internet of things; Sensors; AES; actuators; compression; encryption; sensors; trigger (ID#: 15-7616)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7148470&isnumber=7148334

Zhibo Pang; Yuxin Cheng; Johansson, Morgan E.; Bag, Gargi, “Work-in-Progress: Industry-Friendly and Native-IP Wireless Communications for Building Automation,” in Industrial Networks and Intelligent Systems (INISCom), 2015 1st International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 163–167, 2–4 March 2015. doi:10.4108/icst.iniscom.2015.258563

Abstract: Wireless communication technologies for building automation (BA) systems are evolving towards native IP connectivity. More Industry Friendly and Native-IP Wireless Building Automation (IF-NIP WiBA) is needed to address the concerns of the entire value chain of the BA industry including the security, reliability, latency, power consumption, engineering process, and independency. In this paper, a hybrid architecture which can seamless support both Cloud-Based Mode and Stand-Alone Mode is introduced based on the 6LoWPAN WSAN (wireless sensor and actuator networks) technology and verified by a prototyping minimal system. The preliminary experimental results suggest that, 1) both the WSAN and Cloud communications can meet the requirements of non-real-time application of BA systems, 2) the reliability and latency of the WSAN communications is not sufficient for soft real-time applications but it is not far away to meet such requirements by sufficient optimization in the near future, 3) the reliability of Cloud is pretty sufficient but the latency is quite far from the requirement of soft real-time applications. To optimize the latency and power consumption in WSAN, design industrial friendly engineering process, and investigate security mechanisms should be the main focus in the future.

Keywords: IP networks; building management systems; optimisation; telecommunication network reliability; wireless sensor networks; work in progress; 6LoWPAN WSAN; BA systems; IF-NIP WiBA; building automation; cloud-based mode; industry-friendly wireless communications; native IP connectivity; native-IP wireless communications; optimization; reliability; stand-alone mode; wireless sensor and actuator networks; work-in-progress; Actuators; Communication system security; Logic gates; Optimization; Reliability; Wireless communication; Wireless sensor networks; 6LoWPAN; Native IP Connectivity (NIP); Wireless Building Automation (WiBA); Wireless Sensor and Actuator Networks (WSAN) (ID#: 15-7617)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7157839&isnumber=7157808

Papadopoulos, G., “Challenges in the Design and Implementation of Wireless Sensor Networks: A Holistic Approach-Development and Planning Tools, Middleware, Power Efficiency, Interoperability,” in Embedded Computing (MECO), 2015 4th Mediterranean Conference on, pp.1–3, 14–18 June 2015. doi:10.1109/MECO.2015.7181857

Abstract: Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) constitute a networking area with promising impact in the environment, health, security, industrial applications and more. Each of these presents different requirements, regarding system performance and QoS, and involves a variety of mechanisms such as routing and MAC protocols, algorithms, scheduling policies, security, OS, all of which are residing over the HW, the sensors, actuators and the Radio Tx/Rx. Furthermore, they encompass special characteristics, such as constrained energy, CPU and memory resources, multi-hop communication, leading to a few steps higher the required special knowledge. Although the status of WSNs is nearing the stage of maturity and wide-spread use, the issue of their sustainability hinges upon the implementation of some features of paramount importance: Low power consumption to achieve long operational life-time for battery-powered unattended WSN nodes, joint optimization of connectivity and energy efficiency leading to best-effort utilization of constrained radios and minimum energy cost, self-calibration and self-healing to recover from failures and errors to which WSNs are prone, efficient data aggregation lessening the traffic load in constrained WSNs, programmable and reconfigurable stations allowing for long life-cycle development, system security enabling protection of data and system operation, short development time making more efficient the time-to-market process and simple installation and maintenance procedures for wider acceptance. Despite the considerable research and important advances in WSNs, large scale application of the technology is still hindered by technical, complexity and cost impediments. Ongoing R&D is addressing these shortcomings by focusing on energy harvesting, middleware, network intelligence, standardization, network reliability, adaptability and scalability. However, for efficient WSN development, deployment, testing, and maintenance, a holistic unified approach is necessary which will address the above WSN challenges by developing an integrated platform for smart environments with built-in user friendliness, practicality and efficiency. This platform will enable the user to evaluate his design by identifying critical features and application requirements, to verify by adopting design indicators and to ensure ease of development and long life cycle by incorporating flexibility, expandability and reusability. These design requirements can be accomplished to a significant extent via an integration tool that provides a multiple level framework of functionality composition and adaptation for a complex WSN environment consisting of heterogeneous platform technologies, establishing a software infrastructure which couples the different views and engineering disciplines involved in the development of such a complex system, by means of the accurate definition of all necessary rules and the design of the ‘glue-logic’ which will guarantee the correctness of composition of the various building blocks. Furthermore, to attain an enhanced efficiency, the design/development tool must facilitate consistency control as well as evaluate the selections made by the user and, based on specific criteria, provide feedback on errors concerning consistency and compatibility as well as warnings on potentially less optimal user selections. Finally, the WSN planning tool will provide answers to fundamental issues such as the number of nodes needed to meet overall system objectives, the deployment of these nodes to optimize network performance and the adjustment of network topology and sensor node placement in case of changes in data sources and network malfunctioning.

Keywords: computer network reliability; computer network security; data protection; energy conservation; energy harvesting; middleware; open systems; optimisation; quality of service; sensor placement; telecommunication network planning; telecommunication network topology; telecommunication power management; telecommunication traffic; time to market; wireless sensor networks; QoS; WSN reliability; constrained radio best-effort utilization; data aggregation; data security enabling protection; design-development tool; energy efficiency; failure recovery; heterogeneous platform technology; holistic unified approach; interoperability; network intelligence; network topology adjustment; power consumption; power efficiency; sensor node placement; time-to-market process; traffic load; wireless sensor network planning tools; Electrical engineering; Embedded computing; Europe; Security; Wireless sensor networks (ID#: 15-7618)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7181857&isnumber=7181853

Youngchoon Park, “Connected Smart Buildings, a New Way to Interact with Buildings,” in Cloud Engineering (IC2E), 2015 IEEE International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 5–5, 9–13 March 2015. doi:10.1109/IC2E.2015.57

Abstract: Summary form only given. Devices, people, information and software applications rarely live in isolation in modern building management. For example, networked sensors that monitor the performance of a chiller are common and collected data are delivered to building automation systems to optimize energy use. Detected possible failures are also handed to facility management staffs for repairs. Physical and cyber security services have to be incorporated to prevent improper access of not only HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning) equipment but also control devices. Harmonizing these connected sensors, control devices, equipment and people is a key to provide more comfortable, safe and sustainable buildings. Nowadays, devices with embedded intelligences and communication capabilities can interact with people directly. Traditionally, few selected people (e.g., facility managers in building industry) have access and program the device with fixed operating schedule while a device has a very limited connectivity to an operating environment and context. Modern connected devices will learn and interact with users and other connected things. This would be a fundamental shift in ways in communication from unidirectional to bi-directional. A manufacturer will learn how their products and features are being accessed and utilized. An end user or a device on behalf of a user can interact and communicate with a service provider or a manufacturer without go though a distributer, almost real time basis. This will requires different business strategies and product development behaviors to serve connected customers’ demands. Connected things produce enormous amount of data that result many questions and technical challenges in data management, analysis and associated services. In this talk, we will brief some of challenges that we have encountered In developing connected building solutions and services. More specifically, (1) semantic interoperability requirements among smart sensors, actuators, lighting, security and control and business applications, (2) engineering challenges in managing massively large time sensitive multi-media data in a cloud at global scale, and (3) security and privacy concerns are presented.

Keywords: HVAC; building management systems; intelligent sensors; actuators; building automation systems; building management; business strategy; chiller performance; connected smart buildings; control devices; cyber security services; data management; facility management staffs; heating-ventilation-air conditioning equipment; lighting; networked sensors; product development behaviors; service provider; smart sensors; time sensitive multimedia data; Building automation; Business; Conferences; Intelligent sensors; Security; Building Management; Cloud; Internet of Things (ID#: 15-7619)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7092892&isnumber=7092808

Chen Wen-lin; Cao Rui-min; Hao Li-na; Wang Qing, “Researches on Robot System Architecture in CPS,” in Cyber Technology in Automation, Control, and Intelligent Systems (CYBER), 2015 IEEE International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 603–607, 8–12 June 2015. doi:10.1109/CYBER.2015.7288009

Abstract: In the premise of introducing existing seven kinds of commonly used robot architectures at home and abroad and analyzing their strengths, weaknesses as well as applications, this paper shows the CPS-R architecture which is applied in the internal of robots to solve the problem in unknown dynamic environment and deeply compliant operation in detail where the current robot architecture cannot meet. Through describing the function and data flow of each component in CPS-R such as external environment in real-world, sensors, actuators, device interfaces in the physical layer, message generation and task allocation, network security authentication and prioritization, information collection, analysis, decision-making and sharing in the information layer. This paper analyzes the challenges of CPS-R architecture such as feasibility, real-time, security, reliability, intelligence, hardware/software standardization of information sharing in the end.

Keywords: control engineering computing; reliability; robots; security of data; CPS-R architecture; actuators; component data flow; cyber-physical system; decision-making; deeply compliant operation; device interfaces; hardware-software standardization; information collection; information layer; intelligence; message generation; network security authentication; physical layer; prioritization; reliability; robot system architecture; sensors; task allocation; unknown dynamic environment; Actuators; Computer architecture; Robot kinematics; Robot sensing systems; Service robots; CPS-R; challenge; robot; system architecture (ID#: 15-7620)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7288009&isnumber=7287893

Januário, F.; Santos, A.; Palma, L.; Cardoso, A.; Gil, P., “A Distributed Multi-Agent Approach for Resilient Supervision over a Ipv6 WSAN Infrastructure,” in Industrial Technology (ICIT), 2015 IEEE International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 1802–1807,

17–19 March 2015. doi:10.1109/ICIT.2015.7125358

Abstract: Wireless Sensor and Actuator Networks has become an important area of research. They can provide flexibility, low operational and maintenance costs and they are inherently scalable. In the realm of Internet of Things the majority of devices is able to communicate with one another, and in some cases they can be deployed with an IP address. This feature is undoubtedly very beneficial in wireless sensor and actuator networks applications, such as monitoring and control systems. However, this kind of communication infrastructure is rather challenging as it can compromise the overall system performance due to several factors, namely outliers, intermittent communication breakdown or security issues. In order to improve the overall resilience of the system, this work proposes a distributed hierarchical multi-agent architecture implemented over a IPv6 communication infrastructure. The Contiki Operating System and RPL routing protocol were used together to provide a IPv6 based communication between nodes and an external network. Experimental results collected from a laboratory IPv6 based WSAN test-bed, show the relevance and benefits of the proposed methodology to cope with communication loss between nodes and the server.

Keywords: Internet of Things multi-agent systems; routing protocols; wireless sensor networks; Contiki operating system; IP address; IPv6 WSAN infrastructure; IPv6 communication infrastructure; Internet of Things; RPL routing protocol; distributed hierarchical multiagent architecture; distributed multiagent approach; external network; intermittent communication; resilient supervision; wireless sensor and actuator networks; Actuators; Electric breakdown; Monitoring; Peer-to-peer computing; Routing protocols; Security (ID#: 15-7621)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7125358&isnumber=7125066

Moga, D.; Stroia, N.; Petreus, D.; Moga, R.; Munteanu, R.A., “Embedded Platform for Web-Based Monitoring and Control of

a Smart Home,” in Environment and Electrical Engineering (EEEIC), 2015 IEEE 15th International Conference on, vol., no.,

pp. 1256–1261, 10–13 June 2015. doi:10.1109/EEEIC.2015.7165349

Abstract: This paper presents the architecture of a low cost embedded platform for Web-based monitoring and control of a smart home. The platform consists of a distributed sensing and control network, devices for access control and a residential gateway with touch-screen display offering an easy to use interface to the user as well as providing remote, Web based access. The key issues related to the design of the proposed platform were addressed: the problem of security, the robustness of the distributed control network to faults and a low cost hardware implementation.

Keywords: Internet; authorisation; computerised monitoring; embedded systems; home automation; touch sensitive screens; user interfaces; Web based access; Web-based monitoring; distributed control network; distributed sensing; embedded platform; residential gateway; smart home; touch-screen display; user interface; Actuators; Logic gates; Monitoring; Protocols; Sensors; Wireless communication; Wireless sensor networks; fault tolerance; smart homes (ID#: 15-7622)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7165349&isnumber=7165173

Yumei Li; Voos, Holger; Pan, Lin; Darouach, Mohammed; Changchun Hua, “Stochastic Cyber-Attacks Estimation for Nonlinear Control Systems Based on Robust H∞ Filtering Technique,” in Control and Decision Conference (CCDC), 2015 27th Chinese, vol., no., pp. 5590–5595, 23–25 May 2015. doi:10.1109/CCDC.2015.7161795

Abstract: Based on robust H∞ filtering technique, this paper presents the cyber-attacks estimation problem for nonlinear control systems under stochastic cyber-attacks and disturbances. A nonlinear H∞ filter that maximize the sensitivity of the cyber-attacks and minimize the effect of the disturbances is designed. The nonlinear filter is required to be robust to the disturbances and the residual need to remain the sensitivity of the attacks as much as possible. Applying linear matrix inequality (LMI), the sufficient conditions guaranteeing the H∞ filtering performance are obtained. Simulation results demonstrate that the designed nonlinear filter efficiently solve the robust estimation problem of the stochastic cyber-attacks.

Keywords: H∞ filters; estimation theory; linear matrix inequalities; nonlinear control systems; nonlinear filters; robust control; security of data; stochastic processes; LMI; linear matrix inequality; nonlinear control system; nonlinear filter design; robust H∞ filtering technique; stochastic cyber-attack estimation; Actuators; Estimation; Noise; Robustness; Sensitivity; Stochastic processes; H∞ filter; stochastic cyber-attacks; stochastic nonlinear system (ID#: 15-7623)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7161795&isnumber=7161655

Yan Zhang; Larsson, Mats; Pal, Bikash; Thornhill, Nina F., “Simulation Approach to Reliability Analysis of WAMPAC System,” in Innovative Smart Grid Technologies Conference (ISGT), 2015 IEEE Power & Energy Society, pp. 1–5, 18–20 Feb. 2015. doi:10.1109/ISGT.2015.7131814

Abstract: Wide area monitoring, protection and control (WAMPAC) plays a critical role in smart grid development. Since WAMPAC frequently has the tasks of executing control and protection actions necessary for secure operation of power systems, its reliability is essential. This paper proposes a novel approach to the reliability analysis of WAMPAC systems. WAMPAC system functions are first divided into four subsystems: the measured inputs, the communication, the actuator and the analytic execution subsystems. The reliability indices of the subsystems are computed then using Monte Carlo approach. A sensitivity analysis is also described to illustrate the influence of different components on the system reliability.

Keywords: Monte Carlo methods; power system control; power system measurement; power system protection; power system reliability; power system security; smart power grids; Monte Carlo approach; WAMPAC system; actuator; analytic execution subsystem; reliability analysis; sensitivity analysis; smart grid development; wide area monitoring protection and control; Actuators; Phasor measurement units; Power system reliability; Reliability; State estimation; Substations; Monte Carlo methods; wide area measurements; wide area networks (ID#: 15-7624)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7131814&isnumber=7131775

Maia, M.E.F.; Andrade, R.M.d.C., “System Support for Self-Adaptive Cyber-Physical Systems,” in Distributed Computing in Sensor Systems (DCOSS), 2015 International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 214–215, 10–12 June 2015. doi:10.1109/DCOSS.2015.33

Abstract: As the number of interacting devices and the complexity of cyber-physical systems increases, self-adaptation is a natural solution to address challenges faced by software developers. To provide a systematic and unified solution to support the development and execution of cyber-physical systems, this doctoral thesis proposes the creation of an environment that offers mechanisms to facilitate the technology-independent communication and uncoupled interoperable coordination between interacting entities of the system, as well as the flexible and adaptable execution of the functionalities specified for each application. The outcome is a set of modules to help developers to face the challenges of cyber-physical systems.

Keywords: security of data; adaptable execution; doctoral thesis; flexible execution; interacting devices; self-adaptive cyber-physical systems; software developers; system support; technology-independent communication; uncoupled interoperable coordination; Actuators; Computer architecture; Context; Medical services; Middleware; Cyber-Physical Systems; Self-Adaptation (ID#: 15-7625)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7165045&isnumber=7164869

Kiss, István; Genge, Bela; Haller, Piroska; Sebestyen, Gheorghe, “A Framework for Testing Stealthy Attacks in Energy Grids,” in Intelligent Computer Communication and Processing (ICCP), 2015 IEEE International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 553–560,

3–5 Sept. 2015. doi:10.1109/ICCP.2015.7312718

Abstract: The progressive integration of traditional Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) hardware and software into the supervisory control of modern Power Grids (PG) has given birth to a unique technological ecosystem. Modern ICT handles a wide variety of advantageous services in PG, but in turn exposes PG to significant cyber threats. To ensure security, PG use various anomaly detection modules to detect the malicious effects of cyber attacks. In many reported cases the newly appeared targeted cyber-physical attacks can remain stealthy even in presence of anomaly detection systems. In this paper we present a framework for elaborating stealthy attacks against the critical infrastructure of power grids. Using the proposed framework, experts can verify the effectiveness of the applied anomaly detection systems (ADS) either in real or simulated environments. The novelty of the technique relies in the fact that the developed “smart” power grid cyber attack (SPGCA) first reveals the devices which can be compromised causing only a limited effect observed by ADS and PG operators. Compromising low impact devices first conducts the PG to a more sensitive and near unstable state, which leads to high damages when the attacker at last compromises high impact devices, e.g. breaking high demand power lines to cause blackout. The presented technique should be used to strengthen the deployment of ADS and to define various security zones to defend PG against such intelligent cyber attacks. Experimental results based on the IEEE 14-bus electricity grid model demonstrate the effectiveness of the framework.

Keywords: Actuators; Phasor measurement units; Power grids; Process control; Sensors; Voltage measurement; Yttrium; Anomaly Detection; Control Variable; Cyber Attack; Impact Assessment; Observed Variable; Power Grid (ID#: 15-7626)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7312718&isnumber=7312586

Ozvural, G.; Kurt, G.K., “Advanced Approaches for Wireless Sensor Network Applications and Cloud Analytics,” in Intelligent Sensors, Sensor Networks and Information Processing (ISSNIP), 2015 IEEE Tenth International Conference on, vol., no., pp. 1–5, 7–9 April 2015. doi:10.1109/ISSNIP.2015.7106979

Abstract: Although wireless sensor network applications are still at early stages of development in the industry, it is obvious that it will pervasively come true and billions of embedded microcomputers will become online for the purpose of remote sensing, actuation and sharing information. According to the estimations, there will be 50 billion connected sensors or things by the year 2020. As we are developing first to market wireless sensor-actuator network devices, we have chance to identify design parameters, define technical infrastructure and make an effort to meet scalable system requirements. In this manner, required research and development activities must involve several research directions such as massive scaling, creating information and big data, robustness, security, privacy and human-in-the-loop. In this study, wireless sensor networks and Internet of things concepts are not only investigated theoretically but also the proposed system is designed and implemented end-to-end. Low rate wireless personal area network sensor nodes with random network coding capability are used for remote sensing and actuation. Low throughput embedded IP gateway node is developed utilizing both random network coding at low rate wireless personal area network side and low overhead websocket protocol for cloud communications side. Service-oriented design pattern is proposed for wireless sensor network cloud data analytics.

Keywords: IP networks; Internet of Things; cloud computing; data analysis; microcomputers; network coding; personal area networks; protocols; random codes; remote sensing; service-oriented architecture; wireless sensor networks; Internet of things concept; actuation; cloud communications side; cloud data analytics; design parameter identification; embedded microcomputer; information sharing; low throughput embedded IP gateway; overhead websocket protocol; random network coding capability; service-oriented design pattern; wireless personal area network sensor node; wireless sensor-actuator network device; IP networks; Logic gates; Network coding; Protocols; Relays; Wireless sensor networks; Zigbee (ID#: 15-7627)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7106979&isnumber=7106892

Pöhls, H.C., “JSON Sensor Signatures (JSS): End-to-End Integrity Protection from Constrained Device to IoT Application,” in Innovative Mobile and Internet Services in Ubiquitous Computing (IMIS), 2015 9th International Conference on, vol., no.,

pp. 306–312, 8–10 July 2015. doi:10.1109/IMIS.2015.48

Abstract: Integrity of sensor readings or actuator commands is of paramount importance for a secure operation in the Internet-of-Things (IoT). Data from sensors might be stored, forwarded and processed by many different intermediate systems. In this paper we apply digital signatures to achieve end-to-end message level integrity for data in JSON. JSON has become very popular to represent data in the upper layers of the IoT domain. By signing JSON on the constrained device we extend the end-to-end integrity protection starting from the constrained device to any entity in the IoT data-processing chain. Just the JSON message’s contents including the enveloped signature and the data must be preserved. We reached our design goal to keep the original data accessible by legacy parsers. Hence, signing does not break parsing. We implemented an elliptic curve based signature algorithm on a class 1 (following RFC 7228) constrained device (Zolertia Z1:16-bit, MSP 430). Furthermore, we describe the challenges of end-to-end integrity when crossing from IoT to the Web and applications.

Keywords: Internet of Things; Java; data integrity; digital signatures; public key cryptography; IoT data-processing chain; JSON sensor signatures; actuator commands; elliptic curve based signature algorithm; end-to-end integrity protection; end-to-end message level integrity; enveloped signature; legacy parsers; sensor readings integrity; Data structures; Digital signatures; Elliptic curve cryptography; NIST; Payloads; XML; ECDSA; IoT; JSON; integrity (ID#: 15-7628)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7284966&isnumber=7284886

Bhattacharyya, S.; Asada, H.H.; Triantafyllou, M.S., “Design Analysis of a Self Stabilizing Underwater Sub-Surface Inspection Robot Using Hydrodynamic Ground Effect,” in OCEANS 2015 - Genova, vol., no., pp. 1–7, 18–21 May 2015. doi:10.1109/OCEANS-Genova.2015.7271752

Abstract: In this paper we discuss a micro submersible robot which can move across an underwater target surface at proximity (~1mm) using the stabilizing effects of the boundary layer interaction with the external surface. Underwater surface and subsurface inspection is of immense value whether in infrastructure maintenance like oil pipelines, ship bottoms or in security and defense, for recognizing and identifying target threats. For subsurface inspection using ultrasound testing (UT), reliable contact is generally needed; but the same can be achieved by positioning the UT transceiver at an odd multiple of quarter wavelength distance away from the target. However, depending on the frequency of the UT, this could be in the order of mm, which is a challenging distance to stabilize the inspection robot by sole use of actuators. In this paper, we present the concept of a self stabilizing underwater robot by exploring ground effects, and analyze how the variation of the underbody design affect this stability. We make simple transitions from an ellipsoidal base to rectangular one and extend further with inclusion of protrusions on the base. The simple design translation explicitly demonstrate how flow dynamics and stability changes with minimal design variations and what parameters are of importance for achieving desired behaviors. The results on this paper are based mostly on simulations with the goal of using the same to decide on the correct experiments required to validate the observed phenomena.

Keywords: autonomous underwater vehicles; design engineering; hydrodynamics; inspection; microrobots; robot dynamics; stability; ultrasonic applications; UT; UT transceiver; actuators; boundary layer interaction; flow dynamics; ground effects; hydrodynamic ground effect; infrastructure maintenance; microsubmersible robot; oil pipelines; quarter wavelength distance; reliable contact; self stabilizing underwater sub-surface inspection robot design analysis; ship bottoms; stabilizing effects; subsurface inspection; ultrasound testing; underbody design variation; underwater target surface; Inspection; Nose; Optical surface waves; Robot sensing systems; Sea surface; Torque (ID#: 15-7629)

URL: http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7271752&isnumber=7271237

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