OPE1 – Evaluation of 5G, 6G Networks
Tuesday, 4 June 2024, 11:00-13:00, room Toucan 1
Session Chair: Christos Tranoris (University of Patras, GR)
Empowering 6G Industrial Indoor Networks: Hands-On Evaluation of IRS-Enabled Multi-User mmWave Connectivity
Marco Danger, Simon Häger, Karsten Heimann, Stefan Böcker and Christian Wietfeld (TU Dortmund University, Germany)
The use of higher frequency bands beyond 6 GHz is considered to be key for future 6G networks. Yet, although generally available for licensing in an increasing number of countries, the 5G FR2 band has not seen much deployment for private networks so far in Europe. The main challenge for these higher frequency bands is proper beam management which allows to react flexibly to the radio conditions. This paper presents a systematic experimental evaluation of a commercial Millimeter-Wave (mmWave) indoor multi-user deployment in various reproducible channel conditions, in particular depending on Line-of-Sight (LOS) availability. We show that the beam management of the analyzed deployment can cope well with multi-user scenarios. When obstructing the LOS, alternative propagation paths are discovered and leveraged to avoid performance degradation. Only in extreme situations, such as in the case of an industry-typical safety cage that provides strong electromagnetic shielding, a significant performance decrease of the mmWave link is noted. To resolve such situations, we demonstrate that our passive Intelligent Reflecting Surface (IRS) solution HELIOS artificially introduces a qualitative reflection path that is seamlessly employed by the network to realize high-capacity communication in challenging radio environments utilizing a Beyond Line-of-Sight (BLOS) link. All-in-all, the evaluation demonstrates the promising potential of mmWave for real-life indoor factory deployments.
ULTRA-FAB5G: Unleashing the Potential of 5G for Industrial Digitalization
André Perdigão (Instituto de Telecomunicações and Universidade de Aveiro, Portugal); David Santos (Instituto de Telecomunicações & Universidade de Aveiro, Portugal); João Pedro Fonseca (Instituto de Telecomunicações & Universidade de Aveiro & Iquadrat, Portugal); Rui Silva (Instituto de Telecomunicações & Universidade de Aveiro, Portugal); Marco Correia (Visabeira, Portugal); Fatma Marzouk (PROEF, Portugal); Paulo Soeiro (Visabeira, Portugal); Daniel Corujo (University of Aveiro & Instituto de Telecomunicações, Portugal); José Quevedo (Siemens, Portugal); Rui L Aguiar (University of Aveiro & Instituto de Telecomunicações, Portugal)
This article explores the viability of ULTRA-FAB5G, a paradigm-shifting 5G use case that aims to replace traditional wired infrastructure and dedicated devices with a wireless, private 5G edge in an industrial environment. Using the IMAGINE-B5G Portuguese experimental facility, an early proof-of-concept demonstrates the capabilities of the technology, highlighting positive results in latency, jitter, and bandwidth, as well as evaluating the inter-slice latency gap at the application level. The study will progress to integrating the proof-of-concept with real industrial equipment, paving the way for a forthcoming industrial deployment. With promising results, this research showcases the potential for improved industrial landscapes using 5G and beyond technologies and provides valuable information on the evolution roadmap of 5G technologies.
5G Goes Underground: A Proof-Of-Concept Using Digital Twin for Real-Time Control and Monitoring
Seppo Horsmanheimo and Lotta Tuomimäki (VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, Finland); Kimmo Ahola (VTT Technical Research Center of Finland, Finland); Sergio Lembo (VTT, Finland); Satu Hyle (Nokia, Finland); Martyna Szydlowska and Jussi Puura (Sandvik, Finland)
5G is considered as the first mobile technology developed for industrial use cases. It is designed to offer reliable, low latency, and high bandwidth connectivity for different industry sectors including mining [1]. The technology provides new opportunities to renew mining operational principles and approaches including automated operations, safety, remote control and monitoring, asset management, and proactive maintenance. The 5G networks are evolving from public 5G Non-standalone (NSA) networks towards private 5G standalone (SA) networks allowing more industry-tailored network configurations. This paper represents a Proof-of-Concept implementation that combines the potentials of a private 5G SA network and a digital twin to support the automation and virtualization of underground mines and discusses the identified challenges.
Gauging 5G Standalone Performance for Teleoperation Use Cases in 5G-Enhanced Port Environments
Xhulio Limani (University of Antwerp, Belgium & Imec, Belgium); Nina Slamnik-Krijestorac (University of Antwerp-IMEC, Belgium); Sander Maas (Sentors, Belgium); Dries Naudts (Ghent University & Imec, Belgium); Vasilis Maglogiannis (Ghent University – imec & IDLab Research Group, Belgium); Ingrid Moerman (Ghent University – IMEC, Belgium); Johann M. Marquez-Barja (University of Antwerpen & imec, Belgium)
The International Transport Forum (ITF) predicts a significant increase in demand for transportation in the coming years, despite the shortage of drivers. To tackle this challenge, the Transport and Logistics (T&L) industry is increasingly relying on emerging technologies. While connected and autonomous driving offer promises of greater safety, efficiency, and environmental benefits, connected and autonomous driving face operational hurdles in complex environments. However, the existing limitations of autonomous vehicles, particularly in dense urban settings, highlight the need for complementary technologies, such as teleoperation. The European Horizon 2020 5G-Blueprint project aims to design and validate the technical architecture and business models for cross-border teleoperated transport, utilizing 5G technology. This study delves into the implementation of a real 5G Standalone (5G SA) network within a port environment, utilizing network slicing for teleoperation and Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) to enable real-time video processing at the network edge. Specifically focusing on Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC) and enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) slices, we conduct a comprehensive evaluation of a real-world 5G SA network. Our assessment examines key performance parameters such as Round-Trip Time(RTT) latency, Packet Delivery Rate (PDR), Reference Signals Received Power (RSRP), and corrupted frame rates, emphasizing the crucial role of 5G network slicing and MEC in enhancing operational reliability and efficiency in teleoperated transport systems.
5G-Enhanced Teleoperation in Real-Life Port Environments: Lessons Learned from the 5G-Blueprint Project
Nina Slamnik-Krijestorac (University of Antwerp-IMEC, Belgium); Wim Vandenberghe (Ministerie van Infrastructuur en Waterstaat, The Netherlands); Xhulio Limani (University of Antwerp, Belgium & Imec, Belgium); Eric Oostendorp (KPN, The Netherlands); Eva De Groote (Telenet, Belgium); Vasilis Maglogiannis (Ghent University – imec & IDLab Research Group, Belgium); Dries Naudts (Ghent University & Imec, Belgium); Peter-Paul Schackmann (TNO, The Netherlands); Rakshith Kusumakar (V-TRON, The Netherlands); Karel Kural (HAN University of Applied Sciences, The Netherlands); Ghazaleh Kia (Seafar, Belgium); Maria Chiara Campodonico (Martel Innovate, Switzerland); Ingrid Moerman (Ghent University – IMEC, Belgium); Johann M. Marquez-Barja (University of Antwerpen & imec, Belgium)
The challenge of ensuring safety in autonomous driving or sailing involves predicting and replicating various potential scenarios on roads and waterways, posing difficulties and high costs. In response, the European project 5G-Blueprint addresses this by introducing a complementary technology, i.e., teleoperation, which leverages 5G connectivity to enable human interventions in complex situations beyond autonomous capabilities, thereby removing the physical link between the human operator and the remotely controlled vehicle/vessel. This operational mode brings stringent connectivity requirements, including high uplink bandwidth for transmitting video streams from onboard cameras to the teleoperation center, low latency, and an ultra-reliable connection for relaying commands from the teleoperator to the remote vehicle/vessel. Additionally, it emphasizes minimal interruption time when the teleoperated vehicle/vessel crosses international borders, ensuring seamless connectivity and uninterrupted remote operation. Therefore, this paper summarizes extensive evaluations of network and service performance, highlighting key results across pilot locations and providing conclusions and analysis of 5G-enhanced teleoperation in various use cases. Additionally, it outlines lessons learned from pilot activities.
On the Automated Scaling of User Plane Function for 5G: An Experimental Evaluation
Sokratis Christakis (University of Thessaly, Greece); Nikos Makris (University of Thessaly & CERTH, Greece); Thanasis Korakis (University of Thessaly, Greece); Serge Fdida (Sorbonne University, France)
The advent of emerging technologies like autonomous vehicles, AR/VR, IoT, smart cities, etc., have raised the bar in terms of dealing with enormous data transfer, high speeds, and low response times. 5G has been designed and is optimized unceasingly to try to meet these demands. The quick evolution of 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) technologies has ushered in a new era of connectivity and communication. This has caused the 5G Core Network to face significant problems, as on many occasions, the RAN’s ability to transmit data overwhelms the core network’s ability to handle it. As a result, network congestion occurs, leading to reduced network speeds, significant delays, and occasional disruptions, which have a profound effect on low-quality user experience. This issue has triggered the scientific community to investigate ways to enhance the performance of the 5G core network, to match with the evolving demands of RAN technologies. In this work, we present an innovative algorithm for dynamic management and optimization of 5G network resources within a Kubernetes cluster environment. The algorithm’s functionality revolves around monitoring metrics of User Plane Function (UPF) and making real-time decisions on deploying multiple UPFs within the cluster to ensure enhanced network performance and cost optimization.
Experimentation-As-A-Service for Validating 5G Use Cases in a Large-Scale 5G Platform
Min Xie (Telenor Research & Telenor Group, Norway); Jane Frances Pajo, Muhammad Faheem Awan, Abdelhakim Cherifi and Ali Esmaeily (Telenor Research and Innovation, Norway); Ole Grøndalen (Telenor, Norway); Stefan Dubbelman (Emblasoft EMEA, Sweden); Fabio Felici (IEEE Member, Spain); Nikolay Geordzhev (Oracle, Bulgaria); Atul Purohit (Nokia, United Kingdom (Great Britain))
The development of 5G and Beyond 5G (B5G) technologies relies on the availability of experimentation facilities that can evaluate and validate the performance of these technologies. It is of great interest and challenge to design, deploy and operate large-scale experimentation platforms to meet the high requirements of various vertical use cases for the 5G services. This paper describes an i-CORA platform that we build with multiple partners in Norway to support several EU-funded projects (5GMediaHUB, IMAGINE-B5G, FIDAL and COMMECT) and vertical use cases. The platform is cloud-native and consists of four parts: a multi-vendor end-to-end 5G network with three RAN sites serving general use cases, two mobile private networks (MPNs) and three Networks on Wheels (NOWs) serving dedicated verticals, and an open source platform composed of open source solutions. i-CORA offers both advanced standalone 5G services and value-added services (\emph{e.g.}, security and testing) to verticals in Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR), media, eHealth, Industry 4.0, etc. In this paper, we address the challenges and lessons learned during the implementation and operation of the i-CORA platform.
