InterDigital (United Kingdom)

Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) is one of six usage scenarios defined in ITU-R IMT-2030 framework for 6G. To enable this scenario, standardization bodies such as ETSI, ATIS, and 3GPP have been actively developing the ISAC channel model. The existing approaches however have limitations in terms of accurately capturing all radio signal interactions with various components of the ISAC channel. In this paper, we present a novel electromagnetic (EM) based approach for modeling mutually-coupled radar cross-sections (RCSs) of multiple scattering points that can be representative of single or multiple targets. Our results demonstrate the accuracy of estimating multi-scattering point RCS, particularly relevant to sensing operation in higher frequency ranges.

To realize the objectives of Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) in 6G, there is a need to introduce new functionalities in 6G core (6GC) architecture that are dynamic and resource-efficient. In ISAC, sensing signals are used by a Sensing Receiver (SRx) to measure and report Sensing Data Points (SDPs) to the network. However, a direct approach involving the measurement of all SDPs for each ISAC use case is resource-intensive and incurs significant signaling overhead. Addressing this challenge requires a shift towards a more dynamic and resource-efficient approach that selectively configures SDPs based on the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) requirements of each use case. Building on recent research efforts and prestandardization activities, which envision a dedicated Sensing Coordination Function (SCF) to coordinate sensing tasks, this paper proposes enhancements to the SCF for the 6GC architecture. We introduce a method for the selective configuration of SRx with SDPs, based on the KPI requirements of the sensing task. The proposed approach ensures optimized resource utilization while maintaining the flexibility required for diverse ISAC use cases.

Deterministic systems fill the gap of providing end-to-end predictive networking capabilities across multiple domains and technologies for applications that have stringent Key Performance Indicator requirements, e.g. Industry 4.0 verticals. In this paper, a 6G solution is realised to enable deterministic networking for all IP traffic in a multi-domain and multi-technology environment. Special focus is given to a proposed data plane concept, called Data Unit Group, and the integration of a Data Unit Group-enabled DetNet router in an end-to-end Network Digital Twin-driven control plane, which manages the entire service provisioning ensuring deterministic Key Performance Indicators fulfilment. The proffered data plane solution and implementation has been validated in a lab testbed and shows that the realisation can operate at line speed without any networking performance impact.

Sensing will be a key technology in 6G networks, enabling a plethora of new sensing-enabled use cases. Some of the use cases relate to deployments over a wide physical area that needs to be sensed by multiple sensing sources at different locations. The efficient management of the sensing resources is pivotal for sustainable sensing-enabled mobile network designs. In this paper, we provide an example of such use case, and show the energy consumption due to sensing has potential to scale to prohibitive levels. We then propose architectural enhancements to solve this problem, and discuss energy saving and energy efficient strategies in sensing, that can only be properly quantified and applied with the proposed architectural enhancements.

Conventional MIMO precoding relying on a predefined codebook exhibits significantly poor performance in terms of bit error ratio (BER). This is because traditionally codebooks are designed relying on the simplifying assumption of having fixed channel probability distribution. However, owing to both hardware imperfections arising due to non-linear components and channel estimation imperfections, as well as channel aging, the fixed channel probability assumption is unrealizable in practical MIMO systems. Therefore, in this paper, we first propose a data-driven minimum BER (MBER) based precoder using deep reinforcement learning (DRL) without relying on channel model distribution. Then to facilitate the finite-rate MIMO feedback systems, we propose a data-driven user-specific codebook design for downlink users (UE), where UE populates MBER precoders and constructs the codebook by invoking an unsupervised clustering based quantizer. We demonstrate by simulations that our proposed precoder selection relying on data-driven codebook performs similarly to that of genie-aided channel state information (CSI), whilst our data-driven precoder design outperforms the conventional MIMO precoding by more than 5 dB for BER of 1$0^{-3}$ with CSI error variance of 0.02.

Reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) is a programmable structure that can be used to control the propagation of electromagnetic waves by changing the electric and magnetic properties of the surface. By placing these surfaces in an environment, the properties of radio channels can be controlled. This opens up new opportunities to improve the performance of wireless systems. In this paper, the basic operation of antenna array and metasurface based RIS is described. While the current long term (6G) research on RIS often prioritizes very high frequencies from tens to hundreds of GHz, this paper puts emphasis rather on operating frequencies below 10 GHz which promise a much faster to market track for RIS applications. For this purpose, review of the literature on the use of RIS in wireless communication applications operating below 10 GHz frequency band is provided.

Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) have the ability to steer the electromagnetic (EM) waves to a desired direction. This enables the improvement of the wireless link performance by allowing the illumination of receivers otherwise shadowed by buildings or hills. In this paper, a standards-compliant link-level simulator is developed to study the performance improvement offered by a RIS in 5G New Radio (NR) uplink operating at sub-6 GHz bands. At these frequencies the direct channel between the user and base station is rarely completely blocked, but given the stringent power restrictions of devices, the RIS is utilized for enhancing the coverage performance in the uplink direction. In the studied cases, the transmitter (TX) is close to the RIS and a line-of-sight (LoS) path between the TX and RIS is assumed. The channel between the TX and receiver (RX) is modeled as a non-line-of-sight (NLoS) channel with 5G NR clustered delay line A (CDL-A) profile. Both LoS and NLoS channels between the RIS and RX are considered. Under state-of-the-art system settings, the RIS is shown to increase the symbol error rate link performance by 6 dB. When the performance is measured with coded bit error rate, the performance gain in simulated cases is 1 dB. The coverage enhancement is measured with the throughput as a function of the distance between the TX and RX. The distance at which the maximum possible throughput can be achieved is increased about 5%. The coverage can be further extended if a lower than the maximum throughput is accepted.

Deploying alternative networks such as Information Centric Network (ICN) in a production/commercial network with real users is challenging due to the experimental nature of these novel proposals. To meet these challenges, we adopted an ICN-IP dual stack approach. However, this was at the cost of introducing unpredictable emergent behavior. This behavior can be dealt with by a set of requirements presented in this paper. These requirements specify a constraining discipline on the deployment and operational processes for the dual stack making such processes tractable. The requirements are extracted from our experience of a lab deployment followed by a field deployment with real users as part of the three-year long EU-funded architectuRe for an Internet For Every-body (RIFE) project. We summarize them in a form that can be used by other practitioners in their own ICN/alternative network stack deployments and by tool developers for such deployments. These presented requirements compliment the current discussions within the Centric Networking Research Group (ICNRG) of the Internet Research Task Force (IRTF).

Abstract 5G has brought about major changes to the radio interface, which are directly experienced by end‐users through increased speed and lower latency. But 5G also brings about dramatic changes to the underlying system and network architecture, aiming at the many promises for 5G, most notably flexibility in addressing the many vertical industries seen entering the 5G space and efficiency in accommodating those new use cases and industries at sustainable costs. In this article, we outline the main trends and concepts that drive those changes in 5G architecture and how we see them coming together to fulfill the expectations in 5G deployments foreseen in the next years.

Ongoing research on 5G is looking into software platforms to evaluate new developments on 5G networks. Some 5G hardware is now starting to be available, but it is scarce and very limited, which makes validation and performance evaluation of 5G quite challenging. Simulation is the tool of choice for most of the cases, but this requires creating large descriptor files representing a 5G network. This brings forward the need for tools that facilitate the generation of 5G networks’ topologies. In this paper we present 5GEN, a tool that automatically creates graphs representing 5G networks. With 5GEN, a researcher can simply define the number of resources, and 5GEN will generate the nodes and edges that interconnect them across the infrastructure. The tool has been successfully used to test several 5G network scenarios within the EU 5G-CORAL project.