Detection for 5G-NOMA: An Online Adaptive Machine Learning Approach

Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) has emerged as a promising radio access technique for enabling the performance enhancements promised by the fifth-generation (5G) networks in terms of connectivity, low latency, and high spectrum efficiency. In the NOMA uplink, successive interference cancellation (SIC) based detection with device clustering has been suggested. In the case of multiple receive antennas, SIC can be combined with the minimum mean-squared error (MMSE) beamforming. However, there exists a tradeoff between the NOMA cluster size and the incurred SIC error. Larger clusters lead to larger errors but they are desirable from the spectrum efficiency and connectivity point of view. We propose a novel online learning based detection for the NOMA uplink. In particular, we design an online adaptive filter in the sum space of linear and Gaussian reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces (RKHSs). Such a sum space design is robust against variations of a dynamic wireless network that can deteriorate the performance of a purely nonlinear adaptive filter. We demonstrate by simulations that the proposed method outperforms the MMSE-SIC based detection for large cluster sizes.Comment: Accepted at ICC 201

Cellular, Wide-Area, and Non-Terrestrial IoT: A Survey on 5G Advances and the Road Towards 6G

The next wave of wireless technologies is proliferating in connecting things among themselves as well as to humans. In the era of the Internet of things (IoT), billions of sensors, machines, vehicles, drones, and robots will be connected, making the world around us smarter. The IoT will encompass devices that must wirelessly communicate a diverse set of data gathered from the environment for myriad new applications. The ultimate goal is to extract insights from this data and develop solutions that improve quality of life and generate new revenue. Providing large-scale, long-lasting, reliable, and near real-time connectivity is the major challenge in enabling a smart connected world. This paper provides a comprehensive survey on existing and emerging communication solutions for serving IoT applications in the context of cellular, wide-area, as well as non-terrestrial networks. Specifically, wireless technology enhancements for providing IoT access in fifth-generation (5G) and beyond cellular networks, and communication networks over the unlicensed spectrum are presented. Aligned with the main key performance indicators of 5G and beyond 5G networks, we investigate solutions and standards that enable energy efficiency, reliability, low latency, and scalability (connection density) of current and future IoT networks. The solutions include grant-free access and channel coding for short-packet communications, non-orthogonal multiple access, and on-device intelligence. Further, a vision of new paradigm shifts in communication networks in the 2030s is provided, and the integration of the associated new technologies like artificial intelligence, non-terrestrial networks, and new spectra is elaborated. Finally, future research directions toward beyond 5G IoT networks are pointed out.Comment: Submitted for review to IEEE CS&

Compressive Sensing-Based Grant-Free Massive Access for 6G Massive Communication

The advent of the sixth-generation (6G) of wireless communications has given rise to the necessity to connect vast quantities of heterogeneous wireless devices, which requires advanced system capabilities far beyond existing network architectures. In particular, such massive communication has been recognized as a prime driver that can empower the 6G vision of future ubiquitous connectivity, supporting Internet of Human-Machine-Things for which massive access is critical. This paper surveys the most recent advances toward massive access in both academic and industry communities, focusing primarily on the promising compressive sensing-based grant-free massive access paradigm. We first specify the limitations of existing random access schemes and reveal that the practical implementation of massive communication relies on a dramatically different random access paradigm from the current ones mainly designed for human-centric communications. Then, a compressive sensing-based grant-free massive access roadmap is presented, where the evolutions from single-antenna to large-scale antenna array-based base stations, from single-station to cooperative massive multiple-input multiple-output systems, and from unsourced to sourced random access scenarios are detailed. Finally, we discuss the key challenges and open issues to shed light on the potential future research directions of grant-free massive access.Comment: Accepted by IEEE IoT Journa

Resource Allocation in Uplink NOMA-IoT Networks: A Reinforcement-Learning Approach

Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) exploits the potential of the power domain to enhance the connectivity for the Internet of Things (IoT). Due to time-varying communication channels, dynamic user clustering is a promising method to increase the throughput of NOMA-IoT networks. This paper develops an intelligent resource allocation scheme for uplink NOMA-IoT communications. To maximise the average performance of sum rates, this work designs an efficient optimization approach based on two reinforcement learning algorithms, namely deep reinforcement learning (DRL) and SARSA-learning. For light traffic, SARSA-learning is used to explore the safest resource allocation policy with low cost. For heavy traffic, DRL is used to handle traffic-introduced huge variables. With the aid of the considered approach, this work addresses two main problems of fair resource allocation in NOMA techniques: 1) allocating users dynamically and 2) balancing resource blocks and network traffic. We analytically demonstrate that the rate of convergence is inversely proportional to network sizes. Numerical results show that: 1) Compared with the optimal benchmark scheme, the proposed DRL and SARSA-learning algorithms have lower complexity with acceptable accuracy and 2) NOMA-enabled IoT networks outperform the conventional orthogonal multiple access based IoT networks in terms of system throughput

NOMA-Based UAV-Aided Networks for Emergency Communications

High spectrum efficiency (SE) requirement and massive connections are the main challenges for the fifth generation (5G) and beyond 5G (B5G) wireless networks, especially for the case when Internet of Things (IoT) devices are located in a disaster area. Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA)-based unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-aided network is emerging as a promising technique to overcome the above challenges. In this paper, an emergency communications framework of NOMA-based UAV-aided networks is established, where the disasters scenarios can be divided into three broad categories that have named emergency areas, wide areas and dense areas. First, a UAV-enabled uplink NOMA system is established to gather information from IoT devices in emergency areas. Then, a joint UAV deployment and resource allocation scheme for a multi-UAV enabled NOMA system is developed to extend the UAV coverage for IoT devices in wide areas. Furthermore, a UAV equipped with an antenna array has been considered to provide wireless service for multiple devices that are densely distributed in disaster areas. Simulation results are provided to validate the effectiveness of the above three schemes. Finally, potential research directions and challenges are also highlighted and discussed

Signal Processing and Learning for Next Generation Multiple Access in 6G

Wireless communication systems to date primarily rely on the orthogonality of resources to facilitate the design and implementation, from user access to data transmission. Emerging applications and scenarios in the sixth generation (6G) wireless systems will require massive connectivity and transmission of a deluge of data, which calls for more flexibility in the design concept that goes beyond orthogonality. Furthermore, recent advances in signal processing and learning have attracted considerable attention, as they provide promising approaches to various complex and previously intractable problems of signal processing in many fields. This article provides an overview of research efforts to date in the field of signal processing and learning for next-generation multiple access, with an emphasis on massive random access and non-orthogonal multiple access. The promising interplay with new technologies and the challenges in learning-based NGMA are discussed