Fixed-Mobile Convergence in the 5G era: From Hybrid Access to Converged Core

The availability of different paths to communicate to a user or device introduces several benefits, from boosting enduser performance to improving network utilization. Hybrid access is a first step in enabling convergence of mobile and fixed networks, however, despite traffic optimization, this approach is limited as fixed and mobile are still two separate core networks inter-connected through an aggregation point. On the road to 5G networks, the design trend is moving towards an aggregated network, where different access technologies share a common anchor point in the core. This enables further network optimization in addition to hybrid access, examples are userspecific policies for aggregation and improved traffic balancing across different accesses according to user, network, and service context. This paper aims to discuss the ongoing work around hybrid access and network convergence by Broadband Forum and 3GPP. We present some testbed results on hybrid access and analyze some primary performance indicators such as achievable data rates, link utilization for aggregated traffic and session setup latency. We finally discuss the future directions for network convergence to enable future scenarios with enhanced configuration capabilities for fixed and mobile convergence.Comment: to appear in IEEE Networ

Reliable and Secure Drone-assisted MillimeterWave Communications

The next generation of mobile networks and wireless communication, including the fifth-generation (5G) and beyond, will provide a high data rate as one of its fundamental requirements. Providing high data rates can be accomplished through communication over high-frequency bands such as the Millimeter-Wave(mmWave) one. However, mmWave communication experiences short-range communication, which impacts the overall network connectivity. Improving network connectivity can be accomplished through deploying Unmanned Ariel Vehicles(UAVs), commonly known as drones, which serve as aerial small-cell base stations. Moreover, drone deployment is of special interest in recovering network connectivity in the aftermath of disasters. Despite the potential advantages, drone-assisted networks can be more vulnerable to security attacks, given their limited capabilities. This security vulnerability is especially true in the aftermath of a disaster where security measures could be at their lowest. This thesis focuses on drone-assisted mmWave communication networks with their potential to provide reliable communication in terms of higher network connectivity measures, higher total network data rate, and lower end-to-end delay. Equally important, this thesis focuses on proposing and developing security measures needed for drone-assisted networks’ secure operation. More specifically, we aim to employ a swarm of drones to have more connection, reliability, and secure communication over the mmWave band. Finally, we target both the cellular 5Gnetwork and Ad hoc IEEE802.11ad/ay in typical network deployments as well as in post-disaster circumstances

Modellierung und Evaluierung der “Required Communication Performance” von Luft-Boden Datenverbindungen mit “Erasure Codes”.

In this work, a model to calculate the air-ground data link performance using the “Required Communication Performance” metric used in aviation is proposed. This model is applied to evaluate the performance of data links and to estimate the minimum link performance required to meet the safety requirements. The results show that it is highly unlikely that air-ground data links achieve the minimum performance. “Erasure codes” and a multiple link concept are proposed and evaluated to improve the performance of the links.Diese Arbeit beschreibt ein Modell, mit welcher die Leistung von Luft-Boden Datenverbindungen unter Verwendung der in der Luftfahrt verwendeten Metrik „Required Communication Performance“, berechnet werden. Dieses Modell wird angewendet, um die Leistung von Datenverbindungen zu bewerten und die minimale Verbindungsleistung abzuschätzen, die erforderlich ist, um die Sicherheitsanforderungen zu erfüllen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass es sehr unwahrscheinlich ist, dass Luft-Boden Datenverbindungen die Mindestleistung erreichen. Zur Verbesserung der Leistung der Links werden Konzepte basierend auf “Erasure Codes" und mehreren Links vorgeschlagen und evaluiert

Airborne Wireless Communication Modeling and Analysis with MATLAB

Over the past decade, there has been a dramatic increase in the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for military, commercial, and private applications. Critical to maintaining control and a use for these systems is the development of wireless networking systems [1]. Computer simulation has increasingly become a key player in airborne networking developments though the accuracy and credibility of network simulations has become a topic of increasing scrutiny [2-5]. Much of the inaccuracies seen in simulation are due to inaccurate modeling of the physical layer of the communication system. This research develops a physical layer model that combines antenna modeling using computational electromagnetics and the two-ray propagation model to predict the received signal strength. The antenna is modeled with triangular patches and analyzed by extending the antenna modeling algorithm by Sergey Makarov, which employs Rao-Wilton-Glisson basis functions. The two-ray model consists of a line-of-sight ray and a reflected ray that is modeled as a lossless ground reflection. Comparison with a UAV data collection shows that the developed physical layer model improves over a simpler model that was only dependent on distance. The resulting two-ray model provides a more accurate networking model framework for future wireless network simulations