7,044 research outputs found
An Efficient Uplink Multi-Connectivity Scheme for 5G mmWave Control Plane Applications
The millimeter wave (mmWave) frequencies offer the potential of orders of
magnitude increases in capacity for next-generation cellular systems. However,
links in mmWave networks are susceptible to blockage and may suffer from rapid
variations in quality. Connectivity to multiple cells - at mmWave and/or
traditional frequencies - is considered essential for robust communication. One
of the challenges in supporting multi-connectivity in mmWaves is the
requirement for the network to track the direction of each link in addition to
its power and timing. To address this challenge, we implement a novel uplink
measurement system that, with the joint help of a local coordinator operating
in the legacy band, guarantees continuous monitoring of the channel propagation
conditions and allows for the design of efficient control plane applications,
including handover, beam tracking and initial access. We show that an
uplink-based multi-connectivity approach enables less consuming, better
performing, faster and more stable cell selection and scheduling decisions with
respect to a traditional downlink-based standalone scheme. Moreover, we argue
that the presented framework guarantees (i) efficient tracking of the user in
the presence of the channel dynamics expected at mmWaves, and (ii) fast
reaction to situations in which the primary propagation path is blocked or not
available.Comment: Submitted for publication in IEEE Transactions on Wireless
Communications (TWC
Stochastic Geometry Modeling of Cellular Networks: Analysis, Simulation and Experimental Validation
Due to the increasing heterogeneity and deployment density of emerging
cellular networks, new flexible and scalable approaches for their modeling,
simulation, analysis and optimization are needed. Recently, a new approach has
been proposed: it is based on the theory of point processes and it leverages
tools from stochastic geometry for tractable system-level modeling, performance
evaluation and optimization. In this paper, we investigate the accuracy of this
emerging abstraction for modeling cellular networks, by explicitly taking
realistic base station locations, building footprints, spatial blockages and
antenna radiation patterns into account. More specifically, the base station
locations and the building footprints are taken from two publicly available
databases from the United Kingdom. Our study confirms that the abstraction
model based on stochastic geometry is capable of accurately modeling the
communication performance of cellular networks in dense urban environments.Comment: submitted for publicatio
Massive MIMO for Internet of Things (IoT) Connectivity
Massive MIMO is considered to be one of the key technologies in the emerging
5G systems, but also a concept applicable to other wireless systems. Exploiting
the large number of degrees of freedom (DoFs) of massive MIMO essential for
achieving high spectral efficiency, high data rates and extreme spatial
multiplexing of densely distributed users. On the one hand, the benefits of
applying massive MIMO for broadband communication are well known and there has
been a large body of research on designing communication schemes to support
high rates. On the other hand, using massive MIMO for Internet-of-Things (IoT)
is still a developing topic, as IoT connectivity has requirements and
constraints that are significantly different from the broadband connections. In
this paper we investigate the applicability of massive MIMO to IoT
connectivity. Specifically, we treat the two generic types of IoT connections
envisioned in 5G: massive machine-type communication (mMTC) and ultra-reliable
low-latency communication (URLLC). This paper fills this important gap by
identifying the opportunities and challenges in exploiting massive MIMO for IoT
connectivity. We provide insights into the trade-offs that emerge when massive
MIMO is applied to mMTC or URLLC and present a number of suitable communication
schemes. The discussion continues to the questions of network slicing of the
wireless resources and the use of massive MIMO to simultaneously support IoT
connections with very heterogeneous requirements. The main conclusion is that
massive MIMO can bring benefits to the scenarios with IoT connectivity, but it
requires tight integration of the physical-layer techniques with the protocol
design.Comment: Submitted for publicatio
Ultra Reliable UAV Communication Using Altitude and Cooperation Diversity
The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that serve as aerial base stations
is expected to become predominant in the next decade. However, in order for
this technology to unfold its full potential it is necessary to develop a
fundamental understanding of the distinctive features of air-to-ground (A2G)
links. As a contribution in this direction, this paper proposes a generic
framework for the analysis and optimization of the A2G systems. In contrast to
the existing literature, this framework incorporates both height-dependent path
loss exponent and small-scale fading, and unifies a widely used
ground-to-ground channel model with that of A2G for analysis of large-scale
wireless networks. We derive analytical expressions for the optimal UAV height
that minimizes the outage probability of a given A2G link. Moreover, our
framework allows us to derive a height-dependent closed-form expression and a
tight lower bound for the outage probability of an \textit{A2G cooperative
communication} network. Our results suggest that the optimal location of the
UAVs with respect to the ground nodes does not change by the inclusion of
ground relays. This enables interesting insights in the deployment of future
A2G networks, as the system reliability could be adjusted dynamically by adding
relaying nodes without requiring changes in the position of the corresponding
UAVs
Hybrid Satellite-Terrestrial Communication Networks for the Maritime Internet of Things: Key Technologies, Opportunities, and Challenges
With the rapid development of marine activities, there has been an increasing
number of maritime mobile terminals, as well as a growing demand for high-speed
and ultra-reliable maritime communications to keep them connected.
Traditionally, the maritime Internet of Things (IoT) is enabled by maritime
satellites. However, satellites are seriously restricted by their high latency
and relatively low data rate. As an alternative, shore & island-based base
stations (BSs) can be built to extend the coverage of terrestrial networks
using fourth-generation (4G), fifth-generation (5G), and beyond 5G services.
Unmanned aerial vehicles can also be exploited to serve as aerial maritime BSs.
Despite of all these approaches, there are still open issues for an efficient
maritime communication network (MCN). For example, due to the complicated
electromagnetic propagation environment, the limited geometrically available BS
sites, and rigorous service demands from mission-critical applications,
conventional communication and networking theories and methods should be
tailored for maritime scenarios. Towards this end, we provide a survey on the
demand for maritime communications, the state-of-the-art MCNs, and key
technologies for enhancing transmission efficiency, extending network coverage,
and provisioning maritime-specific services. Future challenges in developing an
environment-aware, service-driven, and integrated satellite-air-ground MCN to
be smart enough to utilize external auxiliary information, e.g., sea state and
atmosphere conditions, are also discussed
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