National Consortium

• Through the generations, mobile communication systems have evolved from being a communications infrastructure to a life infrastructure. 
• 5G enables faster and better Internet access, faster network response and significantly greater connectivity of a large number of devices. Latency is the new speed?!
• The 5G mobile network includes list of diverse requirements, standardized specifications, and range of implementation choices. 

5G.rs White book:  Research⇒Market[Oct.2020]⇒5G+AI[Oct.2022]⇒5G++[Oct.2024]⇒6G Book [Oct.2028]

5G.fr Regulation: 

Issues&Challenges [Mar.2020]

5G.kr National-wise project:

5G Key challenges and 5G Nationwide implementation plan 

Road to 5G: Introduction and migration  [Apr.2018]

6G.fi Research project: 

6G Flagship [2018-2026]   Broadband connectivity [Mar.2019-Apr.2020]   6G Wave [2020]   EU Vision for the 6G network ecosystem [2021]  Verticals towards 2030 [2021]

5G White paper: 

NGMN [2015-2020]   6G Drivers and vision [2021] 

5G Progress and challenges [Jun.2019]  2020 Deployment [Apr.2016]  Evolution to 6G [Jan.2020]

Beyond 5G White Paper:

Message to the 2030s [March 2022]

6G White paper: 

Mobile communications towards 2030  [2021] 

The first systematic 6G architecture design [2022]

6G.br National-wise project: 

Framework definition - Conception for scenario - PoC  [May.2020]

Bringing 5G into rural and low-income areas: Is it feasible?  [2017]

ATIS National 6G Roadmap

6G.cn Communications Standards Association: 

5G+ Visions for future communication  [Jan.2020]   6G mobile network beyond 2030  [Sep.2020]

Towards 6G wireless communication networks  [Jan.2021] 

Communications in the 6G era  [Jan.2021]   6G World 2021

Next Hyper-Connected Experience  [Sept.2021] 

Deepfield  Report: 

Networks in 2020 [Nov.2020]

ITU Report: 

IMT2030 [June2021]    NET2030 [Jan.2020]    ETSI   ATIS    Next G Alliance   

IEEE Future directions: 

Let’s start talking about 6G! [Jan.2018]

The network is omnipresent, the computing power is ubiquitous, and the intelligence is everywhere.

6G joint research and pre-standardization process:

B5G/6G vision  [Jan.2021-2023]

5G++

6G Book: The first [Sep.2020]

6G Special issue: 6G Wireless systems - THz Wireless communications [Dec.2020-Apr.2021]

6Green: A survey on Green 6G network  [Dec.2019] 

5Green: An evolution of Green networks [Invited speech May.2020 - PoV Jun.2020] 

5G MMC: ML open research challenges  [Dec.2019] Analytics and AI services [Aug.2020]

5G+ Book (Eds): PHY Layer Perspective [Jul.2020]

5G+ Workshop: Decentralized AI with ZeroTouch (automatic configuration) [Sep.2020]

White paper: 5G evolution – on the path to 6G [2020]

How 5G Change the Society [2021]

5G+ Ecosystem [2020]

Innovation Lab

XG Multimedia communications [classroom code qu0604g] [Sep.2019] 

The Essential 5G reference [Mar.2020] Fundamental guide [May2020] 

Wireless propagation channel [Datasets] Wireless network emulator  Massive MIMO is a reality—What is next? 

Example driven book [Jun.2020] 5G Terms and acronyms [Jun.2020] 

Experimentally-driven 5G research  5G Innovative centre   5GoIL

New IP   7nm and Beyond   Quantum programming

Learning partner

XG Course qu0604g progress tracking, eLearning,  

5G Virtual school, International school [5ECTS/6days]

XG PROGRAM initial training & skills support, Hands-on training, Workshop, Bootcamp, Inhouse presentation, Invited speech

Focus groups

Smart City, Smart Grid and MultiEnergy Systems, Industry IoT, ITS traffic, UAV, mHealth, digital media production

Partners      

R&S, Bosch, Siemens, HT, NIS, PKS, M.com

5G Webinar

Limitless? What can we really expect from 5G?  [Mar.2020]

What 5G has been?   [Q&A]

What should 6G be?  [Jan.2020]

5G Startup

 Network of startups

5G Talks

NTN Roadmap:  NTN Architecture and deployment scenarios [TR 38.811   TR 38.821]   

6G Roadmap: 

5G will be followed by 6G. The final look of what will be called 5G is decided by the standardization process and it will not necessarily match the original ambitious vision of 5G. Due to this, as well as the extended time that will be required to deploy 5G ubiquitously, there are already initiatives to carry out research on 6G wireless networks.

The sixth generation of mobile communications promises even higher data rates, shorter latency, and strongly increased densities of terminal devices, while exploiting Artificial Intelligence (AI) to control devices or autonomous vehicles in the Internet-of-Things era.

Lifestyle and societal changes beyond 2020 driving the need for next generation networks. Towards the year of 2030 and beyond, many novel applications are expected to emerge as other applications mature. The new applications usually trigger new services and introduce challenging requirements that demand continuous evolution of networking technologies. To help identify core network requirements and shape the future networks' design paradigm, we summarize some representative use cases: 

• holographic type communications (HTC); tactile Internet for remote operations (TIRO); intelligent operation network (ION); network and computing convergence (NCC); digital twin (DT); space-terrestrial integrated network (STIN); industrial IoT (IIoT) with cloudification

• huge scientific data applications, application-aware data burst forwarding, emergency and disaster rescue, socialized Internet of Things, and connectivity and sharing of pervasively distributed AI data, models and knowledge.

The key requirements for 6G systems may be summarized as:

• peak data rate 1 Tbps at least 50 larger than that of 5G systems

• user experience data rate at least be 10 that of the corresponding value of 5G

• user plane latency is application dependent, yet its minimum should be a factor 40 better than in 5G

• mobility is expected that 6G systems will support upto 1000 km/h 

• connection density per-km2 could be 10M that of 5G.

The technical requirements needed to enable 6G applications may be summarized as:

• current progress and future directions of modulation, waveforms and coding techniques essential for the next generation air interface design

• multiple antenna techniques spanning ultra massive MIMO systems, distributed antenna systems, intelligent surface-assisted communications and oribtal angular momentum (OAM)-based systems

• state-of-the-art in multiple access techniques complementing the multiple antenna techniques

• realistic possibilities in freespace optical communications at THz frequencies

• PHY applications requiring AI and ML.

5G Infrastructure and verticals

Three consecutive phases:

1. Specification

2. Development (prototyped, validated, trialed and piloted 5G in specific Vertical Sectors)

3. Experimentation / Pilots

Two major URLLC-based verticals:

1.  Automotive (assited and autonomous driving or cooperative vehicles)  5GAA Forum

2.  Industry 4.0 (connected industries and automation)  5G-ACIA Forum

Some Key Performance Indicators for verticals:

Milestones:

Communications industry is based on technology standards:

• ensuring system interoperability while enabling product differentiation and spurring transparent industry competitiontransparent industry competitiontransparent industry competition transparent industry competition 

• meeting regulatory requirements test and certification procedures are developed to aid in meeting obligations 

• reducing market risk especially in areas especially in areas large investments of large investments (e.g., 5G infra)

• creating new markets and and expanding addressable markets of existing products and technology 

• lowering cost through economies of scale and multi-vendor sourcing vendor 

• improving technology multiple companies participate, collaborate, compete — best 

Standards in mobile devices:

• complex systems that require global interoperability 

• also broadly applicable across device categories and industries 

Global technology standards

Global technology standards play a critical role in the world of technology. For the wireless communications industry, they are the foundation of a transparent competitive ecosystem open for everyone and provide a continuous technology evolution roadmap. Standardization is a key step in bringing new interoperable technologies to the mass commercial market, creating significant value across the entire technology ecosystem. Technology standards:

• Ensure system interoperability while enabling product differentiation.

• Create new markets and expand addressable markets of existing products and technology.

• Allow for better cost efficiency through economies of scale and multivendor sourcing.

• Reduce market risk, especially in areas that require large investments (e.g., cellular infrastructure, silicon chip designs).

• Improve reliability and become a vehicle to address regulatory requirements.

• Continue to enhance the technology by motivating participation, collaboration and competition from a diverse set of companies, creating the best solution possible.

But why would any company strive to be the leader in standards? We see three distinct advantages for standards leadership:

• First, it allows us to deliver better products while reducing timeto-market. For instance, communications standards are very complex in nature; thus, leadership in designing technology standards goes hand in hand with leadership in product development.

• Second, it gives us the opportunity to create and license valuable intellectual property (IP). When inventions are contributed to standards, they become accessible to everyone in the ecosystem. A solid IP framework can make sure that inventors are adequately incentivized to invest in R&D that generates valuable inventions.

• Third, it enables us to drive the technology forward with new functionalities and efficiencies, fostering healthy growth for the overall market that benefits the broader ecosystem.

To foster future innovations, we have been and continue to be at the forefront of driving a broad set of technology standards and ensuring their success in the global marketplace. Our contributions can be distilled into three key areas:

• Technology leadership: we are driving cuttingedge R&D and taking bold bets to address fundamental challenges and deliver industry-changing breakthroughs.

• Standards leadership: we are taking leadership positions in standards and industry organizations to set guiding directions and do what’s right to move the industry forward.

• Ecosystem support: we are supporting ecosystem development through higher membership levels and close collaboration with 80+ leading universities on future research.

3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) is the standards body that drives most of the evolution of cellular technology., 3GPP has an open collaborative process, which allows any company to participate. Participating companies submit their technological proposals which are then discussed, adopted, rejected, and modified by 3GPP participants through a consensus-based process. Through this competitive process, involving some of the best minds in the communications industry, and which to the casual observer must seem chaotic, comes out the best technical solutions which form the base technology for the trillion-dollar cellular industry.

MPEG and VCEG.  Video technology revolutionized how we create and consume media. It is a stark contrast to look at the low-resolution black-and-white TV video of the past versus today’s high-resolution high-dynamic-range video streaming technologies. Video coding technology advancements continue the march of enhanced video quality using fewer bits, which has led to broad video adoption across a wide range of interoperable devices and services. In fact, it’s expected that 82% of Internet traffic will be video by 2022. Global video standards are developed by MPEG (Motion Picture Expert Group) , and its partner organization VCEG (Video Coding Experts Group). Similar to other standard organizations, expert working groups focus on technology discussions, make decisions on what to include in the standards, and provide tools to ensure product interoperability. The regular cadence of technical advancement in video codec standards has resulted in a massive reduction in file size — roughly a factor of two for every generation of video codec. Qualcomm Technologies has been a major contributor to multiple video codec standards, beginning with the HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding), known as H.265 that was completed in 2013, through the two most recent video standards, VVC (Versatile Video Coding), which reached FDIS (Final Draft International Standard) status in July 2020 and EVC (Essential Video Coding) , which reached the same status in April 2020.

Four areas of standardization:

Standardization are critical to the development of 5G communication systems and corresponding ecosystems. 

• Spectrum and technical regulations.  The timely availability of globally or regionally harmonized radio spectrum is a key requirement for the successful deployment of radio systems, including terrestrial mobile networks. Decisions are made by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), regional regulatory bodies, or local bodies on a per country basis – all of whom place technical requirements on equipment to avoid inter-system interference. Additional technical regulations, including physical restrictions on the deployment of equipment, electromagnetic field matters (EMF), and cyber and physical security aspects must also be in place to ensure the successful rollout and use of mobile networks.

• Connectivity networks.  Here, the rules dictating how to interact in the ecosystem of connectivity networks are set. These encompass, for example, the multivendor interfaces and application program interfaces (APIs) that ensures global connectivity across networks and enable the unprecedented scaling of products.

• Ecosystem expansion.  Ecosystem expansion standardization ensures that markets using mobile technologies – especially those new to the industry – fully understand and have the ability to properly utilize connectivity networks. Activities within this area also include harmonizing the requirements of such markets within the standardization of connectivity networks.

• Implementation components.  The standardization of implementation components ensures the availability of the components and technologies needed to implement connectivity network products and services worldwide.

Release 15  was completed in three steps. The early drop in December 2017 which included E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity and EN-DC, the focus on standalone NR in June 2018, and the late drop in March 2019 which introduced other architecture options.

• 3GPP Release 15 had great importance as it introduced New Radio (NR) technical specifications for the very first time, including the introduction and standardization of 5G Core (5GC). 

• Release 15 focused on mobile broadband use cases with very high bitrate and low latency and, in addition, some features for ultra-reliable and low latency communication (URLLC) were standardized.

3GPP completed 5G NR Release 16 in June 2020 - the second 5G standard that will greatly expand the reach of 5G to new services, spectrum, and deployments. This is a major milestone for the entire mobile and broader vertical ecosystem, as this new set of 5G specifications unlocks many new 5G opportunities beyond the traditional mobile broadband services. Release 16 not only continues to enhance the solid Release 15 technology foundation to bring better 5G system performance and efficiency, it also delivers key technologies for transforming new industries. 

Release 16 brings a plethora of enhancements to the foundational aspects of the 5G system, in terms of coverage, capacity, latency, power, mobility, reliability, ease of deployment, and more:

• massive MIMO enhancements (multi-user MIMO to support higher ranks, supporting multiple transmission and reception points and better multi-beam management to improve link reliability and improving reference signals to reduce peak-to-average power)

• enhanced URLLC (coordinated multi-point utilizes multi-TRP to introduce redundant communication paths with spatial diversity, so even when a path is temporarily blocked, the communication is uninterrupted by using the remaining paths)

• new power-saving features (reduce device power consumption, so battery-powered devices can have extended battery life, a new wakeup signal can let the device know if a transmission is pending or allowing it to stay in low-power mode, skipping the next low-power (discontinuous reception) monitoring period, optimized low-power settings, overhead reduction, more efficient power control mechanisms)

• integrated access and backhaul (allows a base station to provide both wireless access for devices and wireless backhaul connectivity, thereby eliminating the need for a wired backhaul)

• new system capabilities (2-step RACH, data collection, VoNR circuit-switch fallback)

• unlicensed spectrum (5G NR-U defines two operation modes, anchored NR-U requiring an anchor in licensed or shared spectrum and standalone NR-U that utilizes only unlicensed spectrum, i.e., does not require any licensed spectrum. It Is the first time that 3GPP defines a cellular technology for standalone usage in unlicensed spectrum. Release 16 not only supports the existing global 5 GHz unlicensed band widely used by Wi-Fi and LTE LAA today, but it can also open doors to the greenfield 6 GHz band.)

• non-public network NPN (private operators / micro operators / local 5G) utilize dedicated resources (small cell base stations) that are independently managed, provide security and privacy that allow sensitive data to stay on-premise, and delivers optimizations for local applications (low latency). A NPN enables deployment of 5G System for private use. An NPN may be deployed as: a Stand-alone Non-Public Network (SNPN) - operated by an NPN operator and not relying on network functions provided by a PLMN, or a Public network integrated NPN (PNI-NPN) - a non-public network deployed with the support of a PLMN (Public Land Mobile Network). 

• time sensitive networking (TSN integration that can ensure time-deterministic delivery of data in support new Industry 4.0 use cases (e.g., factory automation). The project includes system components such as synchronizing with precise time using generalized precision timing protocol (gPTP), mapping of TSN configuration into 5G quality-of-service (QoS) framework for deterministic messaging and traffic shaping, and providing efficient transport of Ethernet frames via header compression.)

• cellular-vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X utilizing 5G to enhance automotive safety. While Release 14 introduced sidelink (V2V, V2I, V2P) to support basic safety use cases, Release 16 builds on Release 14/15 by introducing a NR-based sidelink that will enable new advanced safety use cases while also paving the path for autonomous driving. Release 16 supports reliable and efficient multicast communication based on HARQ feedback and uses distance as a new dimension at the physical layer, which enables on-the-fly multicast groups based on distance and applications.)

• high-precision device positioning (established the baseline for 5G-based positioning, designed to meet the initial requirements of 3 meters indoor and 10 meters outdoor accuracy. Release 16 defined an array of both single- and multi-cell positioning techniques, comprised of roundtrip time (RTT), angle of arrival/departure (AoA/AoD), and time difference of arrival (TDOA). In addition, to support use cases in industrial IoT environments, it also defined new evaluation scenarios that support new indoor channel models.)

• massive IoT (both eMTC and NB-IoT can now be deployed in-band with 5G NR services, and they are supported by the new 5G core network)

• terrestrial TV delivery using high power high tower broadcast (enTV (initially defined in Release 14) is further improved in Release 16 to support higher mobility and better coverage)

3GPP Release 16 served to broaden the use cases where NR can be applied as well as improve capacity and performance of the system. These features and use cases included:

• serving highly demanding critical industrial use cases as well as support of Time-Sensitive Communications (TSC) as part of a focus on URLLC and Industrial IoT e.g. by providing accurate timing information from the network to the device.

• providing more capacity for traditional and new operators to meet customer needs by utilizing the larger bandwidths at 5 and 6 GHz in unlicensed spectrum. In addition, the work regarding the introduction of non-public network (NPN) in standalone or as a part of public networks served to enhance the support of vertical and LAN services.

• NR V2X solutions to complement existing LTE V2X solutions for advanced automotive industry services. For this purpose, NR sidelink was introduced to allow vehicle-to-vehicle communication and vehicle communication to roadside units.

• MIMO features such as joint transmission from multiple TRPs and enhanced feedback from the terminals to allow more extensive usage of advanced multi-antenna schemes.

• integrated access and backhaul (IAB), referring to the solution where the backhaul link of a node uses NR link. Such a relay node is called a IAB node. This sort of solution is useful for operation in high frequencies with larger spectrum availability but poorer coverage.

Release 16, considered a second phase of the 5G system, consists of many work items on different topics, including

• enhancement of the common API framework for the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Northbound APIs

• enhancements for ultra-reliable and low-latency communication (URLLC)

• the Industrial Internet of Things (IoT)

• New Radio (NR)-based access to license-exempt (i.e., unlicensed) spectrum

• positioning, extended sensors, automated driving, and remote driving related to vehicle-toeverything applications

• topics for efficiency (such as interference mitigation, location and positioning, power consumption, enhanced dual connectivity, device capabilities exchange, and mobility enhancements) 

• further work on the Future Railway Mobile Communication System.

As of late December 2019, the radio access network 1 (RAN1) specification is approved. For the specifications being developed in RAN2, RAN3, and RAN4, approvals are delayed due to COVID-19. It is expected that the Release 16, Stage 3 freeze is postponed by three months to June 2020, whereas the schedule of the Release 16 Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) and OpenAPI specification freeze remains unchanged (June 2020). 

Release 17, which focuses mainly on 5G system enhancements, kicked off in December 2019. There are about nine study items, 14 work items, and eight potential work items covering a variety of topics. 

Study items include: 

• coverage enhancement for NR, 

• an extended reality model and its evaluation, 

• enhancement of NR positioning and RAN slicing, 

• IoT over nonterrestrial networks (NTN), 

• NR with operation above 52.6 GHz, 

• NR quality of experience, 

• NR with reduced capabilities, and sidelink relay. 

Work items include:

• enhanced support for the Industrial IoT and URLLC

• enhancement for dynamic spectrum sharing between NR and long-term evolution (LTE), MultiRadio Dual Connectivity, Narrowband-IoT and LTE-Machine Type

Communication, NR integrated access and backhaul, NR sidelink, and NR user equipment power savings

• self-organizing network minimization of drive test

• NR broadcast and multicast services

• NR multiple-input, multiple-output

• NR low data transmissions in an inactive state

Work items also include solutions for NR to support NTN, support for Multi-Subscriber Identity Module devices, and architecture and solutions for the LTE control plane/user plane split. Potential additional work items include the conversion of the abovementioned study items to work items, the extension of current NR operations to 71 GHz, and enhancement for a nonpublic networks. 

The timeline of this new release is also affected by COVID-19, which results in 1) a three-month shift of schedule on the Release 17 Stage 3 freeze and 2) shifting the Release 17 ASN.1 and OpenAPI specification freeze to September 2021 and December 2021, respectively. 

The contents of 3GPP Release 17 have already been agreed by 3GPP stakeholders throughout 2019. By June 2021, the Release 17 standards are expected to be finalized and published. 3GPP Release 17 will bring more use cases where mobile communication can be utilized. From the feature dimension point of view, the features introduced in Release 16 can provide fundamental support for a given use case and that can be further evolved as long as enhancements are commercially justified.

• NR Machine Type Communication.  In 3GPP, 5G Low Power Wide Area (LPWA) IoT communication is based on the LTE massive MTC (mMTC) technologies: LTE-M and NB-IoT. These technologies cover wide range of use cases and requirements in order to handle high volumes of IoT devices in a number use cases, such as smart metering, parking, building management and controlling smart city lights. On other hand, 3GPP has worked on Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC) mainly as an NR technology so as to meet the stringent reliability and latency requirements of critical MTC (cMTC) use cases, such as robotics and manufacturing. In between, these offerings could be complemented by introducing a new NR device type (NR Light) especially tailored to support industrial wireless sensor networks. NR Light communication is based on NR building blocks, such as numerology and SSB bandwidth, but complemented with enhancements to meet the new requirements such as reduced complexity and lower UE power consumption. 

• MIMO.  3GPP has worked on advanced Multiple-Input and Multiple-Output (MIMO) antenna technology over multiple releases. As we move into Release 17, we will drive an agenda which focuses on fixing the issues learned from real-life deployments, instead of standardizing incremental enhancements or enhancements that are not practically implementable.

• NR operation on high frequencies (NR > 52.6 GHz).  Operating NR in higher than 52.6 GHz provides great capacity for the operators in specific use cases such as mobile broadband services in indoor and dense urban scenarios.  It is important to leverage current NR standards as much as possible also in high frequencies to ensure synergies. Lots of spectrum in higher frequencies is unlicensed. Thus, we are committed to exploring (minimum) changes to support unlicensed operation in those frequencies.  With respect to NR-U operation in lower bands, Release 16 already provides the necessary key components.

• Broadcast/Multicast.  For broadcast solutions, it is important to look at more advanced use cases compared to the traditional TV broadcast. An example can be found in the public safety scenario where broadcast in terms of group call and video would certainly benefit. Furthermore, intelligent transportation systems (ITS) could utilize this technology e.g. for the distribution of road conditions and traffic sign/lights. Therefore, we believe in developing a common framework to enable single and multi-cell (SFN) broadcast.

With 5G deployed around the world, 3GPP Release 17 would deal with post 5G features. As 5G enters a stable phase in terms of system architecture, 3GPP Release 17 starts to investigate advanced features that would shape the evolution toward 6G. 

5G and 6G technology milestones for the upcoming years:

• 3.  Worldwide 5G network deployment continues. 5G services available in large cities. - Vertical solutions exploiting 5G evolution, AI/ML and cybersecurity (e.g., manufacturing, transport and logistics, connected cars, media, health and wellbeing). - 6G community starts collecting feedback from 5G community.

• 5. Common understanding on 6G frequency bands to be used. - Architecture and core technologies for smart networks developed. - Increased share of satellite communications. - Operational national research networks allowing flexible sharing of 5G spectrum and network infrastructure with commercial operators. - 5G business and vertical segments well developed. - 5G/6G community discussions: 6G community exploits knowledge from 5G (successful and unsuccessful experiences, technology issues, unreached goals, etc.). - Core technologies for 6G selected and tested (RF, mm-wave, THz, optical). - Extensive 6G algorithms, signal processing and applied AI/ML evaluated and compared. - Well underway testing and evaluations of component networks of 6G.  Integration work towards experimental 6G testbed starts.

• 10. Technology leadership in smart networks and 6G. - Advanced technologies for smart networks: Architecture, unifying control framework, radio and network technologies, distributed computing AI/ML, cybersecurity. - Exploitation of AI/ML and cybersecurity in SN and 6G verticals. - Advanced radio technologies and DSP: Concepts, methods and implementation technologies (antennas, WR, SW/HW). - Integration of land and satellite networks. - Companies and business size in the field increased significantly.

Beyond 5G (5G+) would need to lower latency and enhance reliability for services that stretch beyond edge cloud or private environments, which is currently challenging due to lack of the corresponding transport network technology and automation. B5G may also encourage a tighter integration among heterogeneous network segments including edge fabric and facilitate network exposure enabling an easier configuration and control of new applications and services.

B5G will enable bandwidth in excess of 100s of Mb/s with latency of less than 1 ms, in addition to providing connectivity to billions of devices. The verticals of 5G and beyond are not limited to smart transportation, industrial IoT, eHealth, smart cities, and entertainment services; transforming the way humanity lives, works, and engages with its environmen. 

As the commercial deployment of the 5G cellular networks is well underway, academia as well as industrial research organizations turn their attention to what comes next. As it typically takes ten years to develop a new cellular communication standard, it is now the perfect time to identify promising topics and research directions for the next decade, which will lay the foundations for a possible 6G system. Moving from 4G to 5G, no disruptive changes to the physical layer were made. The main novelty was to simultaneously support a set of diverse applications with different throughput, latency, and reliability requirements, thanks to: 

• flexible OFDM numerology (Non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) is expected to achieve two core requirements of future radio networks: massive connectivity, improved spectral efficiency and low-latency) 

• concept of network slicing 

• spectral efficiency could be dramatically increased by supporting larger bandwidths and antenna arrays at the base station, i.e., massive MIMO. 

• although machine learning is currently one of the hottest topics in the field of communications, it did not play any role in the design of 5G and will mainly be used to implement, optimize, and operate such systems efficiently. 

5G Verticals:

The first wave of 5G users will be mostly users that are upgrading their services to eMBB. However, one must look vertical services in order to expand the 5G footprint. By 2025 it is anticipated that the revenue from the vertical services would surpass that of eMBB. This would be just as transformative a milestone in the history of the commercial wireless industry as the first time that the revenue from data exceeded that from voice. 5G has the capability for such a transformation because it offers more to the vertical industry than just connectivity.

From service providers’ point of view, the road to 5G is clear; they have to begin to restructure their businesses around the vertical industry opportunities that 5G provides. However, mobile carriers are not the only ones that can see this new opportunity. The concept of hyper‐customization, selling less to more, has a profound impact on the requirement of the cellular systems. The main characteristics of these systems are rapidly becoming open ecosystems built on top of common infrastructure. In essence, they are becoming holistic environments for technical and business innovation that integrates network, computer and storage resources into one unified software programmable infrastructure.

The service requirements of 5G also cause significant changes in the concept of a cellular system. For example, the concept of a cell is no longer relevant. It has evolved, in 5G, to a concept known as multi‐connectivity. In principle, multi‐connectivity refers to a device sharing resource of more than one base station. This concept is not really new and it has its roots in Release 12 dual connectivity. For 5G FDD/TDD dual connectivity, this allows for the transmission of multiple streams to a single UE that is semi‐statically configured. The higher layer parallel transmission here is the key. 

Smart City vertical covers data collection and processing to more efficiently monitor and control city resources, and to provide services to city residents. Domains include road traffic, electric and water systems, waste management, public safety, schools, and other services. EU Smart City model is based on the city performance in six key fields of urban development: smart economy, smartmobility, smart environment, smart people, smart living, and smart governance. It is important to note that currently there are no global standards to qualify a city to be smart. 

• The Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) industry is the main driver behind professional equipment for the culture and creative industry (CCI). The PMSE industry comprises all kind of production, event and conference technologies. It can be categorised into audio (microphones, in-ear monitor), video (cameras, displays and projectors) and stage control systems. From a PMSE point of view, the complete on-site 5G system may be seen as part of a local high quality PMSE network , processing audio and video data streams with a guaranteed quality of service regarding latency, audio/video quality, number of wireless links per site and reliability, as well as control data for remote control of wireless devices. Such local, high-quality wireless networks for audio and video are relevant for all kind of live production sites, such as concerts, TV shows, sports events, theatres and musicals, press conferences, and electronic news gathering. The live event scenario, based on a local high-quality wireless network, offers the possibility to establish new kinds of audience services, e.g., individualised audio mixes or different camera angles, both of which provide new means of user experience. The respective content can be received with future standard consumer hardware (smartphones). These services also might help people with impaired vision or hearing to follow live events.

• Smart living is one of the verticals that is focused on transforming healthcare through mobile health delivery, personalised medicine, and social media e-health applications. Medical data is very sensitive and private and requires a high degree of reliability in transporting the data. There is already a lot of work done in this area, but 5G mobile will play a significant part in advancing this area of study. Some of the information transferred is low data readings and if they are consistent then they can be transferred with low priority until there is exceptional data that will generate an alarm to be raised. The use case described here can be likened to any other use cases for monitoring data. The uniqueness here is the sensitivity and privacy that is required.

• Smart Grid is emerging electric-power distribution grid. The energy sector is currently subject to a fundamental change, which is caused by the evolution towards renewable energy, i.e. a very large number of power plants based on solar and wind power. These changes lead to bi-directional electricity flows and increasing dynamics of the power system. New sensors and actuators are being deployed in the power system to efficiently monitor and control the volatile conditions of the grid, requiring real-time information exchange. The smartness enhances insight into both the grid as a power network and the grid as a system of systems. Enhanced insight improves controllability and predict-ability, both of which drive improved operation and economic performance and both of which are prerequisites for the sustainable and scalable integration of renewables into the grid and the potential transition to new grid architectures. Smart Grid benefits spread across a broad spectrum but generally include improvements in: power reliability and quali-ty, grid resiliency, power usage optimisation, operational insights, renewable integration, insight into energy usage, safe-ty and security.

• Factory of the future. The manufacturing industry is currently subject to a fundamental change, which is often referred to as the Industry 4.0. The main goals of Industry 4.0 are ―among others― the improvement of flexibility, versatility, resource efficiency, cost efficiency, worker support, and quality of industrial production and logistics. These improvements are important for addressing the needs of increasingly volatile and globalised markets. A major enabler for all this are cyber-physical production systems based on a ubiquitous and powerful connectivity and computing infrastructure, which interconnects people, machines, products, and all kinds of other devices in a flexible, secure and consistent manner. Instead of static sequential production systems, future smart factories will be characterised by flexible, modular production systems. This includes more mobile and versatile production assets, which require powerful and efficient wireless communication and localisation services.

XR delivery in 5G system:

eXtended Reality (XR) is an umbrella term for different types of realities [TR26.918-928]:

• Virtual reality (VR) is a rendered version of a delivered visual and audio scene. The rendering is designed to mimic the visual and audio sensory stimuli of the real world as naturally as possible to an observer or user as they move within the limits defined by the application. Virtual reality usually, but not necessarily, requires a user to wear a head mounted display (HMD), to completely replace the user's field of view with a simulated visual component, and to wear headphones, to provide the user with the accompanying audio. Some form of head and motion tracking of the user in VR is usually also necessary to allow the simulated visual and audio components to be updated in order to ensure that, from the user's perspective, items and sound sources remain consistent with the user's movements. Additional means to interact with the virtual reality simulation may be provided but are not strictly necessary.

• Augmented reality (AR) is when a user is provided with additional information or artificially generated items or content overlaid upon their current environment. Such additional information or content will usually be visual and/or audible and their observation of their current environment may be direct, with no intermediate sensing, processing and rendering, or indirect, where their perception of their environment is relayed via sensors and may be enhanced or processed.

• Mixed reality (MR) is an advanced form of AR where some virtual elements are inserted into the physical scene with the intent to provide the illusion that these elements are part of the real scene. 

• Extended reality (XR) refers to all real-and-virtual combined environments and human-machine interactions generated by computer technology and wearables. It includes representative forms such as AR, MR and VR and the areas interpolated among them. The levels of virtuality range from partially sensory inputs to fully immersive VR. A key aspect of XR is the extension of human experiences especially relating to the senses of existence (represented by VR) and the acquisition of cognition (represented by AR).

Other terms used in the context of XR are Immersion as the sense of being surrounded by the virtual environment as well as Presence providing the feeling of being physically and spatially located in the virtual environment. The sense of presence provides significant minimum performance requirements for different technologies such as tracking, latency, persistency, resolution and optics

User want to act in and interact with extended realities. Actions and interactions involve movements, gestures, body reactions. Thereby, the Degrees of Freedom (DoF) describes the number of independent parameters used to define movement of a viewport in the 3D space. Any consistent interaction for an XR application with XR hardware is assumed to be restricted to an XR session. Once a XR session has been successfully established, it can be used to poll the viewer pose, query information about the user’s environment, and present imagery to the user.

In XR applications, an essential element is the use of spatial tracking. Based on the tracking and the derived XR Viewer Pose, content is rendered to simulate a view of virtual content.

Spatial mapping, creating a map of the surrounding area, and localization, establishing the position of users and objects within that space, are some of the key areas of XR and in particular AR. Multiple sensor inputs are combined to get better localization accuracy, e.g., monocular/stereo/depth cameras, radio beacons, GPS, inertial sensors, etc. 

 5G RAN

 5G Core (5GC):

The 5G core is an evolution of the 4G EPC that can be thought of as two sequential steps:

1. Separate the control- and user-plane functions of EPC nodes, 2. Reorganize the EPC functions into 5G services

Security and privacy in 5G networks:

The security and privacy issues in 5G networks can perhaps best be divided by network architecture and, more specifically, into three tiers of the architecture: the access networks, the backhaul networks, and the core network.