The combination of Software-Defined Networking (SDN) and Wireless Mesh Network (WMN) is challenging due to the different natures of both concepts. SDN describes networks with homogeneous, static and centralized controlled topologies. In contrast, a WMN is characterized by a dynamic and distributed network control, and adds new challenges with respect to time-critical operation. However, SDN and WMN are both associated with decreasing the operational costs for communication networks which is especially beneficial for internet provisioning in rural areas. This work surveys the current status for Software-Defined Wireless Mesh Networking. Besides a general overview in the domain of wireless SDN, this work focuses especially on different identified aspects: representing and controlling wireless interfaces, control-plane connection and topology discovery, modulation and coding, routing and load-balancing and client handling. A complete overview of surveyed solutions, open issues and new research directions is provided with regard to each aspect.

In this paper, we introduce a cognitive approach for object tracking from a mobile platform. The approach is based on a biologically motivated attention system which is able to detect regions of interest in images based on concepts of the human visual system. A top-down guided visual search module of the system enables to especially favor features which fit to a previously learned target object. Here, the appearance of an object is learned online within the first image in which it is detected. In subsequent images, the attention system searches for the target features and builds a top-down, target-related saliency map. This enables to focus on the most relevant features of especially this object in especially this scene without knowing anything about a particular object model or scene in advance. The system is able to operate in real-time and to cope with the requirements of real-world tasks such as illumination variations and other moving objects.