Dr. Phil Lundrigan, PhD student Bryson Schiel, and undergraduate Joshua Montierth recently returned from the ACM International Conference on Underwater Networks & Systems (WUWNet) in Croatia. There, they presented their recent paper, Using Orthogonal Chirps Underwater for In-Band, Full-Duplex Communication with Minimal Self-Interference Cancellation. Dr. Tracianne Neilsen, Physics Professor, and BYU students Eli Blattner and Corey Dobbs are also part of the research team and coauthors on the paper.
For undergraduate Joshua Montierth, attending this international conference was a new adventure. “It was my first time going to a research conference, and I didn’t know too much what to expect,” he shared. Despite being one of the few Americans at the event, Joshua was struck by the international nature of the conference. “Almost every major European and Asian country was represented. With varying levels of English proficiency, it was amazing that we could still connect and relate over our shared interest and passions for engineering and our research in underwater communications and networking.”
The team’s research focused on enabling full-duplex communication underwater, a significant challenge given that radio and other electromagnetic waves do not propagate well underwater. Instead, the researchers used acoustics to create a network for underwater autonomous vehicles. “Our research was on enabling full duplex (2-way) communication where devices can talk and listen simultaneously underwater,” Joshua explained.
Joshua’s portion of the research involved used orthogonal frequency sweeps (or chirps) to demodulate two separate channels simultaneously allowing for full duplex communication. He also developed for a self-interference cancellation filter which allowed for this communication at larger signal to self-interference ratios and ran the experiments performed in the paper. Consequently, he wrote the math portion and experimental setup portions of the paper.
This innovative approach impressed many seasoned conference attendees. “This was the first time anyone from BYU went to this conference, so we were definitely the ‘new guys.’ However, it was amazing to see how impressed many of the long-time conference goers were with our research. These were people who have studied underwater networking for their whole careers, and we have for less than a year which was gratifying. The conference organizer called our paper ‘brilliant.’” The team also earned the Best Poster award at the conference.
Working with Dr. Lundrigan and entering the world of research has been an exciting experience for Joshua, one he hopes to continue in graduate school and eventually in industry, focusing on research and development. “I have a passion for research and developing novel solutions to real-world problems. I know that it is in engineering research that we will find solutions to shrink borders, reduce poverty, and provide for the needs of the world,” he said.