ICON'26
1st Workshop on IoT Applications and Cyber-Physical Systems in the Edge–Cloud Continuum (ICON)
The 1st Workshop on IoT Applications and Cyber-Physical Systems in the Edge–Cloud CONtinuum (ICON) is co-located with the 24th IEEE International Symposium on Network Computing and Applications (NCA 2026) that will take place in Ortigia–Syracuse, Sicily, Italy, November 10–13, 2026.
Call for Papers
The widespread adoption of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies is fundamentally reshaping the design, deployment, and operation of modern networked Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). Smart environments (including smart cities, intelligent transportation systems, industrial automation platforms, and healthcare infrastructures) increasingly operate as tightly integrated loops of sensing, computation, communication, and actuation. These systems require stringent guarantees in terms of latency, scalability, reliability, and adaptive behavior under dynamic and uncertain conditions. To satisfy these requirements, CPS needs to be engineered across a heterogeneous Edge–Cloud Continuum, spanning resource-constrained embedded devices, edge platforms, cloud data centers, and High-Performance Computing (HPC) systems.
Architectures and frameworks proposed over the years, such as hierarchical edge-fog-cloud models and middleware for distributed CPS, have demonstrated the feasibility of coordinated service deployment across heterogeneous layers. Fully exploiting the potential of the Edge–Cloud Continuum, however, requires advances in system design, runtime adaptation, resource and communication management, and evaluation methodologies. This workshop provides a timely opportunity to discuss novel strategies, methods, and solutions that bridge the gap between theoretical foundations and practical applications. It will focus on IoT and CPS, addressing architectural, networking, and computational aspects of continuum-enabled systems. Emphasis will be given to adaptive execution strategies, coordination models, enabling paradigms and technologies (like Digital Twins, Autonomic Computing, Opportunistic Networks, etc.), and runtime middleware solutions, which enhance effectiveness and efficiency of such a multi-layer system.
The topics of interest include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Architectures and platforms for CPS and IoT across the Edge–Cloud Continuum
- Resource management and orchestration across cloud, fog, and edge layers (task placement, migration, autoscaling, …)
- Networking support and integration for continuum-enabled systems, including B5G/6G, MEC, NFV, and SDN infrastructures
- Edge intelligence and distributed/federated learning across heterogeneous layers
- Security, privacy, and trust in IoT and CPS operating across the continuum
- Performance evaluation, modeling, simulation, and benchmarking of edge–cloud systems and applications
- Green and energy-efficient service placement and execution
- Lessons learned from real deployment testbeds and experiences
- Large-scale testbeds and applications
Important Dates
All times are in Anywhere on Earth (AoE) timezone.
Submission, review, participation, and publication details
- Originality. Submitted papers must be original, unpublished, and not concurrently submitted for publication elsewhere.
- Accepted submissions. The workshop welcomes original research contributions formatted using the two-column IEEE conference template. These must not exceed 6 pages (including figures, tables, and references; up to one additional page allowed at extra cost in accordance with NCA 2026 guidelines).
- Format. All paper submissions should follow the formatting indications of the main conference, i.e., IEEE 8.5” x 11” Two-Column Format (IEEE Manuscript Templates for Conference Proceedings).
- Reviews. Papers will be peer reviewed for originality, relevance to themes, significance, soundness, presentation, and overall quality. All papers will be reviewed by a TPC with a minimum of 3 reviews per paper. Reviews will be single-blind.
- Registration and presentation. At least one of the authors of every accepted paper must register and present the paper at the workshop. The conference will be in-person and no virtual or remote presentations will be permitted.
- Publication. All accepted and presented papers will be submitted for inclusion in IEEE Xplore Digital Library, as part of the NCA 2026 proceedings, subject to IEEE’s publication requirements.
Workshop Chairs
