More About Tutorials
Abstract
Wireless backhaul/fronthaul links are proposed as an alternative for massive deployment of small cells because they are more flexible, easy to deploy, and cost effective as compared to the traditional optical fiber links. High frequency millimetre wave (mmWave) and terahertz (THz) links meet the capacity requirements of next generation communication networks. However, mmWave/THz links suffer from susceptibility to weather conditions and require a line-of-sight (LoS) connection, which is the main hurdle in urban regions. The utilization of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as a wireless fronthaul hub point between small cells and the core network is the promising solution. These UAV-hubs acting as networked flying platforms (NFPs) provide a possibility of wireless LoS fronthaul link and thus, enable the implementation of mmWave/THz in commercial systems at a fast pace, and is expected to boom in the next years.
In this tutorial we will start with a literature review on the chronological order for HetNets, UAVs, multihop technology, mmWave/THz communications and Intelligent reflecting surface (IRS), with the objective to introduce the different technologies that will merge to solve the challenges faced by UAVs for Small Cell HetNets. Along the whole tutorial, we will highlight the different technologies that enable the tackled scenario, together with the comparison to the different proposals from the literature/industry to deal with such scenario.
Tutorial 2 — Fundamentals and System Design of Radio Localization in Ground-Air-Space Networks
Abstract
The inherent limitations in scaling up ground infrastructure for future wireless networks, combined with decreasing operational costs of aerial and space networks, are driving considerable research interest in multisegment ground-air-space (GAS) networks. In GAS networks, where ground and aerial users share network resources, ubiquitous and accurate user localization becomes indispensable, not only as an end-user service but also as an enabler for location-aware communications. This breaks the convention of having localization as a byproduct in networks primarily designed for communications. To address these imperative localization needs, the design and utilization of ground, aerial, and space anchors require thorough investigation. This tutorial aims to provide attendees with an in-depth systemic analysis of the radio localization problem in GAS networks, covering key design aspects in the state-of-the-art of ground and aerial user localization. In particular, the main objectives are to 1) define the key characteristics of anchors and targets in GAS networks, 2) detail localization fundamentals in GAS networks, considering 3D positions and orientations, 3) analyze radio localization systems in GAS networks, detailing the system model, design aspects, and considerations for each of the three GAS anchors, and 4) identify the vital roles 6G enablers are expected to play in radio localization in GAS networks.
Tutorial 3 — Communications, Computing, and Security for the 6G Era and Beyond
Dr. Hesham ElSawy
Queen’s University, Canada
Abstract
In the 6G era, wireless connectivity is foreseen to be global, ubiquitous, and massive. In addition to transforming every object in our life to an intelligent and connected device, the proliferating 6G Internet of Everything (IoE) use cases (e.g., digital twins, ubiquitous monitoring, precision agriculture, smart cities, wearable devices, etc.) will bring massive numbers of additional wireless devices to the already congested spectrum. The types of devices are heterogenous and many of these devices have stringent operational and computational constraints. Furthermore, 6G devices will emerge in different sectors (e.g., smart cities, public safety, health-care, autonomous driving, etc.), having distinct spatial (e.g., wide-spread topology and massively many nodes), temporal (e.g., sporadic traffic patterns and battery level), and contextual (e.g., heterogeneous devices and diverse applications) features. Many of the devices will utilize servers at the network edge or at the cloud to carry out machine learning and computationally complex tasks. The majority of the devices will be deployed by consumers who are unaware of the underlying security risks. Such new features of the 6G call for novel and innovative techniques that jointly account for the communications, computing, and security aspects of the IoE.
This tutorial will discuss the communications, computation, and security challenges for the 6G era. It will then motivate a systematic and rigorous mathematical approach to address these challenges while accounting for the essence of 6G networks. In particular, the tutorial will introduce a joint framework that includes stochastic geometry, queueing theory, and percolation theory, as fundamental basis to model and analyze 6G networks and beyond. The theoretical foundations will then be used to address the communications, computing, and security challenges in 6G, where several state-of-the-art solutions will be presented and discussed. To this end, several research directions will be highlighted in the context of the IoE systems.
Tutorial 4 — Leveraging IoT Data in Tactile Internet operation
Dr. Sharief Oteafy
DePaul University, USA
Abstract
Recent developments in the Internet of Things (IoT) are ever more islandic, pushing the envelope in a myriad of silos. While the research community has produced significant milestones in improving the energy footprint, processing capacity, and overall resilience of IoT systems, today’s practitioner is faced with significant challenges in adopting an IoT platform/framework/standard. The development of IoT systems largely suffer from lack of interoperability and contradicting operational mandates. These challenges are magnified as each of these systems are often generating data with significant volume,
variety, veracity and most importantly uncalibrated value.
We present the ensuing challenge of Big Sensed Data (BSD), and the critical challenges facing IoT proliferation. We will focus on how BSD management can address these challenges, as we try to incorporate IoT data in the operation of Tactile Internet (TI). The development of a global Tactile Internet infrastructure is evidently based on the agility of the underlying infrastructure, and the contextualization of TI interactions in any environment. We will elaborate on how BSD management systems could feed into TI contextualization, and discuss the notion of IoT leveraged TI cognizance.