Predictive Edge Computing with Hard Deadlines

TL;DR

This paper introduces PrComp, a predictive framework for edge computing that forecasts device resources and makes offloading decisions to meet hard deadlines, improving energy efficiency and delay.

Contribution

It presents a novel predictive algorithm for resource dynamics and task offloading in heterogeneous edge environments with hard deadlines.

Findings

Significantly reduces energy consumption.

Decreases task completion delay.

Effective in real Android-based testbed.

Abstract

Edge computing is a promising approach for localized data processing for many edge applications and systems including Internet of Things (IoT), where computationally intensive tasks in IoT devices could be divided into sub-tasks and offloaded to other IoT devices, mobile devices, and / or servers at the edge. However, existing solutions on edge computing do not address the full range of challenges, specifically heterogeneity; edge devices are highly heterogeneous and dynamic in nature. In this paper, we develop a predictive edge computing framework with hard deadlines. Our algorithm; PrComp (i) predicts the uncertain dynamics of resources of devices at the edge including energy, computing power, and mobility, and (ii) makes sub-task offloading decisions by taking into account the predicted available resources, as well as the hard deadline constraints of tasks. We evaluate PrComp on a testbed consisting of real Android-based smartphones, and show that it significantly improves energy consumption of edge devices and task completion delay as compared to baselines.