Wireless sensor and actor networks (WSANs) are the confluence point where the traditional fields of wireless sensor networks (WSNs), robot networks and control theory meet. In WSAN, nodes collaborate to accomplish distributed sensing and actuation tasks. Leveraged by the control and mobility of actors, the networking process and applications embrace a whole new set of possibilities. Actors may deploy, repair and relocate sensors to improve coverage, build routes and fix network partition to ensure data communication, change network topology to shape routing patterns and balance energy consumption, and respond to reported events in a timely and effective manner. The benefits are limited only by imagination. As an emerging field, WSANs are in need of new networking techniques, by which they can fully exploit their particularities and potentials. WiSARN aims to bring together state-of-the-art contributions on the design, specification and implementation of architectures, algorithms and protocols for current and future applications of WSAN.

Original, unpublished contributions are solicited in ALL aspects of WSAN and traditional wireless sensor networks, robot networks, as well as robotics and automation. Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

• Autonomous sensor networks
• Emergent behavior in WSAN
• Modeling and simulation of WSAN
• WSAN architectural and operational models
• Optimal control of networked robots
• Robot advanced motion control by WSAN
• Modeling and control of flying robots
• Autonomic and self-organizing coordination and communication
• Sensor-robot and robot-robot coordination
• Energy-efficient and real-time communication protocols
• Bandwidth-efficient and delay-tolerant communication protocols
• Distributed control and management in WSAN
• Neighborhood discovery and mobility management
• Communication protocols for swarms of mobile robots
• Map exploration and pattern formation of mobile robots
• Robot task assignment
• Biologically inspired communication
• Ecological systems
• Architectures and topology control
• Localization in WSAN
• Probabilistic integration in WSAN
• Quality of service, security and robustness issues
• Applications and prototypes
• Hybrid networks and wireless Internet
• Data management, gathering, aggregation and query processing

Rafael Falcon, Larus Technologies, Canada

Dimitrios Zorbas, Inria Lille – Nord Europe, France