Student Theses

Type of thesis:

Master Thesis

Supervisor:

Dr.-Ing. Loui Al Sardy
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
E-Mail: loui.alsardy@fau.de

Description of the thesis:

This research focuses on developing an AI-powered fuzzing framework capable of generating dynamic and adaptive test inputs for communication protocols. Leveraging reinforcement learning, the system identifies vulnerabilities in both emerging and proprietary IoT protocols, significantly enhancing protocol security and robustness.

Type of thesis:

Master Thesis

Supervisor:

Dr.-Ing. Loui Al Sardy
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
E-Mail: loui.alsardy@fau.de

Description of the thesis:

This project centers on designing an advanced intrusion detection system (IDS) tailored for IoT environments. By utilizing Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks, the system can analyze sequential traffic patterns, adapt to dynamic network conditions, and address resource constraints. This approach enhances anomaly detection accuracy while reducing false positives in IoT networks.

Type of thesis:

Master Thesis

Supervisor:

Dr.-Ing. Loui Al Sardy
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
E-Mail: loui.alsardy@fau.de

Description of the thesis:

This research involves developing a modular and scalable simulation framework for cybersecurity analysis. The framework simulates real-world attack scenarios, enabling researchers to assess defense strategies and optimize response mechanisms. By providing a controlled environment for proactive threat analysis, this approach strengthens network security readiness.

Type of thesis:

Master Thesis

Supervisor:

Abdullah Alshra’a

Description of the thesis:

Software-defined networking (SDN) decouples the control plane (i.e. decision-making) from the data plane (the actual forwarding actions) and provides API between them (e.g. OpenFlow API). With SDN architecture, network engineers no longer have to learn proprietary CLI commands for different vendors. They can focus on developing logically centralized control programs to make network global decisions and send them down to network switches (data plane). Dumped network switches (data plane) receive controller rules/decisions and process network packets accordingly. But, if no decision is found they ask the controller. In smart grids, the use of SDN has enhanced the reliability of field device communication through fast migration of functionality from a failed device towards a redundant device and enabled a power system-dependent prioritization of SGS communication triggered by one SGS.

Problem Definition:

After Defining a huge communication network used for the energy system, the SDN controller should collect all network infrastructure information and form them as a graph (Node-link diagram). Then, a method should find all possible paths between the field devices and their servers (Machine learning algorithms are preferable). Eventually, implementation of network calculus to confirm the performance guarantees and send all related instructions to the forwarding nodes at once. The main goal is to compare the result to the classical SDN method and show the advantages of using network calculus calculations.

Lectures and knowledge required

Students with experience (work or courses) in Java & Python programmings-interest (and preferably first experiences) in computer networks-independent, structured and conscientious way of working.

Contact us:

Dr. -Ing. Abdullah Alshra’a abdullah.alshraa@fau.de https://www.cs7.tf.fau.de/persons/alshraa/

Keywords:

SDN, energy

Type of thesis:

Bachelor Thesis/Master Thesis/Project Thesis/Research Project

Supervisor:

Fellerer, Jonathan
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
Telefon +49 9131 85 27009, E-Mail: jonathan.fellerer@fau.de

Description of the thesis:

Since I try to tailor a thesis or project to a students skills and interests, please contact me with a short motivation and proposals for potential research directions you are interested in. I will check your proposals for suitability for your endeavour. Attach your CV and any certificate of grades or skills that will help me with assessing your skill set.

Keywords:

Energy storage systems, microgrids, smart grids, renewable energy, energy grid transformation

Type of the thesis:

Master Thesis

Supervisor:

Martino, Luigi
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
Telefon +49 9131 85 27914, Fax +49 9131 85 27409, E-Mail: luigi.martino@fau.de

Type of the thesis:

Master Thesis

Supervisor:

Dibaei, Mahdi
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
E-Mail: mahdi.dibaei@fau.de

Description of the thesis

The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) has developed IEC 61375 (also named IEEE 1473-T) as a standard of train communication network (TCN) and as the architecture of data communication systems in rail vehicles. TCN consists of two master-slave buses: the multifunction vehicle bus (MVB) for data communication inside train cars and the wire train bus (WTB) for data communication between them. The reliability of TCN is critical in the train.
Safety and reliability can be analyzed by fault tree which is a deductive and diagrammatic method,
extensively used in industry to find the potential causes of failure in the safety-critical functions of complex systems. The process starts from an undesired event called the top event and tries to find the cause or combination of causes leading to the occurrence of it. In this master thesis, reliability analysis with fault trees can be performed to verify the reliability of TCN.

Possible research directions

1- Quantitative analysis of the system with the Monte Carlo approach regarding failure rates of
different basic events to compute the reliability of the top event over time
2- Considering product line engineering which tries to utilize reusable common assets for
developing products and Integrating fault trees into product line engineering to perform
reliability analysis for a range of variants in the product line.
3- Computing minimal cut sets (the minimal combination of basic events that make the whole
system fail) in fault tree analysis and investigating new solutions for improving existing
methods such as MOCUS or BDD.

Lectures and knowledge required

Students with experience (work or courses) in Python or C++. Perhaps, working with
other related platforms like XFTA during experiments is also required.

Contact us

Mahdi Dibaei, mahdi.dibaei@fau.de https://www.cs7.tf.fau.eu/persons/dibaei/

Key words

Fault Tree Analysis, Safety, Reliability

Type of the thesis:

Bachelor Thesis | Master Thesis | Research Project

Supervisor:

Jahandar, Saeid
Lehrstuhl für Informatik 7 (Rechnernetze und Kommunikationssysteme)
Telefon +49 9131 85-27931, Fax +49 9131 85 27409, E-Mail: saeid.jahandar@fau.de

Description of the thesis:

To align your thesis or project with your skills and interests, please submit a brief motivation along with proposed research directions. Include your CV and any relevant transcripts or certificates for a thorough evaluation of your skill set. Your proposals will be assessed for relevance and feasibility.

Keywords:

QUIC transport protocol, Satellite communication, Emulated satellite links, Congestion control algorithms, Protocol efficiency