CONNECTABILITY - A PERFORMANCE METRIC FOR RECONFIGURABLE TRANSPORT NETWORKS

This paper presents a metric for managing dynamically reconfigurable t ransport networks. In such networks, one physical set of transport lin ks can be configured into many different logical networks, in order to meet uncertain and volatile traffic demands. Connectability is a figu re of merit for capturing the composite routing efficiency and capacit y utilization of a transport network. Connectability is mathematically inspired by existing metrics for reliability. Reliability concepts ar e adapted to quantify notions of efficiency in reconfigurable networks . We define connectability mathematically, and set out a procedure for its' calculation in a distributed real-time setting. The centralized version of this calculation has O(n log n) time complexity. A series o f simulation studies are presented to illustrate the use of connectabi lity in characterizing strategies for transport network reconfiguratio n. One strategy based on the isolated calculation of connectability at each node is shown to yield lower blocking and more efficient use of transport network resources than the other strategies tested. Finally, a short study of applying connectability to restoration in a national network demonstrates that there is a continuum along which restoratio n can be temporarily traded off against transport network management.