DECT NR+
Friday, 6 June 2025, 9:00 – 10:30, room EH.B
Session Chair:
- M. Dolores Pérez Guirao (Ostfalia Univ. of Applied Sciences, DE)
- Mikko Valkama (Tampere Univ., FI)
In the rapidly evolving landscape of wireless communication, the ETSI standardized DECT NR+ technology emerges as a paramount innovation. It marks its significance as a non-cellular European 5G technology, tailored to the 5G vertical needs, particularly in the ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC) and massive machine-type communications (mMTC) space. This session aims to delve into the intricacies of DECT NR+, its potential to revolutionize wireless communication, and its role in overcoming the challenges faced by traditional cellular topologies.
DECT NR+ offers a unique blend of high capacity, low latency, and robust security, making it an ideal solution for a variety of applications and use-cases. It is particularly well-suited for non-public/private 5G & Beyond networks and nomadic use-cases, such as those found in the professional media production industry and industrial sites. Here, DECT NR+ provides seamless connectivity without the need for a continuous cellular signal, ensuring a reliable and consistent user experience.
As sustainability gains prominence in wireless research and the IoT ecosystem drives an explosion of connected devices, traditional cellular topologies face increasing challenges. Connecting the vast number of devices envisioned for 6G networks directly to cellular base stations is often not feasible due to energy and scalability constraints. In this landscape, DECT NR+ emerges as a 6G-ready technology with an integrated mesh network architecture, enabling large-scale local networking by relaying data between devices and supporting direct device-to-device connectivity. This feature is particularly beneficial in environments where traditional cellular connectivity might be challenging, such as distributed and expanded IoT-Networks.
Security is another crucial aspect of DECT NR+. The technology incorporates advanced security measures to protect data transmission from potential threats, ensuring the privacy and integrity of the communication.This special session will focus on exploring innovative mesh networking solutions based on DECT NR+ technology. We will explore its applications for large-scale IoT deployments and URLLC scenarios, demonstrating how this technology meets the dual requirements of scalability and reliability. By bridging the gap between academic research and industry implementation, this session aims to highlight DECT NR+ as a transformative enabler for next-generation wireless communication systems.
The proposed session will provide a platform for researchers, academicians, and industry experts to share their insights, explore potential challenges, and discuss future directions in the development and application of DECT NR+. We aim to share and disseminate results from the research projects mentioned above, significantly contributing to the understanding and advancement of non-cellular 5G technology.
Programme
09:00 – 09:20: Keynote: Dr. Andreas Wikzeck, ETSI TC DECT Vice Chair
Title of the talk:
DECT NR+ – What’s Next?
09:20 – 09:40: Talk by Antonio Javier García Sánchez, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena (UPCT)
Title of the talk:
Introduction to the DECT NR+ Ecosystem
DECT NR+ is a radio access technology that has been designed and standardized by ETSI to address both ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC) and massive machine-type communications (mMTC) use cases. It departs from the conventional base station-centric model of cellular systems by implementing a decentralized, infrastructure-free protocol stack with self-organizing and self-healing features. Its inclusion in the ITU-R IMT-2020 framework affirms its compliance with international 5G performance and interoperability requirements. While current deployments focus on the license-exempt 1.9 GHz band, the technology is adaptable to other spectrum ranges, including future licensed or shared bands such as 3.8–4.2 GHz. This paper introduces the evolving DECT NR+ ecosystem, detailing the standardization landscape, industrial adoption, and ongoing academic and collaborative research activities supporting its growth across several use cases and applications.
Authors:
- Dolores Pérez Guirao; Ostfalia HAW
- Laura García García, Antonio Javier García Sánchez; Department of Information Technologies and Communications, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena (UPCT), Cartagena, Spain
09:40 – 10:00: Talk by Juho Pirskanen, Wirepas Oy
Title of the talk:
Design Principles of the DECT NR+
DECT-2020 NR, or shortly DECT NR+, is a recently standardized radio access technology (RAT) for massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC) and for Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC), and the technology was approved by ITU-R into IMT-2020, i.e., 5G, technology family. The design objectives of the technology were different compared to other IMT-2020 systems, which are mainly aimed at mobile cellular network deployments. In DECT NR+ the target was to design technology for self-deployed, local, and device-centric networks operating without specific network infrastructure for mMTC and URLLC services. The result was a combination of radio access techniques with modern radio capabilities, flexible system architecture, and support of mesh networking from the beginning. This paper discusses DECT NR+ basic design principles and radio access functionalities from the physical layer up to the application layers.
Authors:
- Juho Pirskanen, Jussi Numminen; Wirepas Oy, Tampere, Finland,
- Heikki Berg; Nordic Semiconductor, Tampere, Finland,
- Marco Zoli; Last-Mile semi (LMS), Dresden, Saxony, Germany
10:00 – 10:15: Talk by Jens Pilz, Sennheiser electronic SE & Co. KG
Title of the talk:
State of Play and Results of the MERCI Project
The MERCI project evaluates and advances DECT NR+, a non-cellular radio access technology ideally suited for non-public/private 5G networks. This technology is versatile, supporting applications in various environments, whether indoor or outdoor, nomadic, mobile, airborne, or fixed. DECT NR+ aims to empower small and medium-sized industries in Europe and globally, acknowledging the importance of enhancing existing industrial ecosystems and applications rather than disrupting them.
Authors:
- Jan Outters; Research and Innovation, CTO Office; Ateme S.A., Vélizy, France
- Alexander Poets, Mattes Waßmann; Institute of Communications Technology, Leibniz University Hanover, Hanover, Germany
- Gurjashan Singh Pannu; R3 Solutions GmbH; Berlin Germany
- Maxim Penner; RFmondial GmbH, Hannover, Germany
- Jens Pilz; Spectrum Policy and Standards, Sennheiser electronic SE \& Co. KG}, Wedemark, Germany
- Dolores Pérez Guirao; Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, Ostfalia HAW
- Antonio-Javier Garcia-Sanchez, Laura García García, Iván Tomas García; Department of Information Technologies and Communications, Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena (UPCT), Cartagena, Spain
10:15 – 10:30: Talk by Joonas Säe, Tampere University
Title of the talk:
State of Play and Results of the USWA Project
The Ultra Scalable Wireless Access (USWA) project focuses on using DECT-2020 NR technology to provide efficient, flexible, and cost-effective wireless connectivity solutions for industrial applications. This paper provides the results of the USWA project along with dissemination information and presents different target areas of the project: system architecture and applications, massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC) in mesh networks, Ultra-Reliable and Low-Latency Communications (URLLC), and Proof-of-Concepts (PoCs). The project aims to address the challenges of digitalizing industries by replacing traditional cables with advanced wireless technologies, enabling large-scale local networking, and supporting various industrial use cases. The results demonstrate the potential of DECT-2020 NR technology in improving industrial IoT and URLLC applications and providing new business opportunities.
Authors:
- Joonas Säe, Tampere University, Finland
- Rafael Pires, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Finland
- Mika Lasanen, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Finland
- Juho Pirskanen, Wirepas Oy, Finland
- Mirza Alam, Wirepas Oy, Finland
- Hassan Ahmad, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Germany
- Awais Bin Asif, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Germany
- Endika Llaguno, Fonlabs SL, Spain
- Ivan Pretel, Fonlabs SL, Spain
Mikko Valkama, Tampere University, Finland
