Function Centric Nano-Networking: Addressing nano machines in a medical application scenario

We discuss the combination of in-body nano communication with the Internet of Things (IoT) as the Internet of Nano Things (IoNT). This combination enables a wide range of new applications and opportunities – particularly in the biomedical domain – but it also entails a number of new challenges. One of many research challenges in functional and non-functional aspects is the addressing and naming of nodes in a nano network. Our study in this area not only includes traditional techniques driven from today's IoT, but also new unconventional ideas, originating from molecular level communication. We come up with a summary of either theoretical, simulated or realized ideas to draw conclusions about implementations and performance potential, with a focus on medical in-body communication scenarios, before we present our concept, Function Centric Nano-Networking (FCNN). FCNN allows us to address groups of interchangeable nano machines in a network by using location information and functional capabilities of the machines. This concept does not rely on the durability and uniqueness of individual nodes. We are comparing the novel concept of FCNN with similar ones and highlight elementary differences between them as well advantages and disadvantages.