12th FUSECO Forum 2024

Anastasius Gavras
Eurescom GmbH

The FUSECO Forum is a highlight industry event around telecommunications and its applications, taking place every November in Berlin. This year the event took place for the 12th time and was under the overarching theme of “Forward to 6G”, despite the fact that the industry is still in the process of deploying 5G capabilities beyond plain enhanced mobile broadband service. Activities, in which Eurescom GmbH is actively involved and partly leading have supported the event.

Introduction

As we delve into the evolution of 5G, driven by advancements in Open Campus Networks, 6G RAN, Core Network Evolution, Non-terrestrial Networks, and Data-/AI-based Networking, the FUSECO Forum provided an excellent opportunity for listening to expert opinions and network with interested parties from the industry. The event reflected the lessons learned from global 5G network deployments and research. It also highlighted the growing interest in private industrial campus networks as industries gear up for the 6G era as well as the very fast emerging role of Non-Terrestrial Networks.


Anastasius Gavras, Eurescom GmbH, presenting INPACE project sustainability goals

Sustainability

In his presentation, Anastasius Gavras from Eurescom GmbH discussed directions towards developing a sustainability framework for 6G technology, addressing environmental, societal, and economic aspects, including its applicability to key vertical sectors. The intersections between sustainability needs, challenges faced by 6G and verticals, as well as the actions required to address these challenges were discussed. Since the relevant sustainability aspects (environmental, societal, economic) cannot be fully addressed in isolation, innovative concepts and solutions are required, which consolidate a holistic view on gaps and trade-offs in technology, processes, and methodologies. Ultimately the industry needs guidelines, best practices, and roadmaps, which are validated through prototypes and proof-of-concepts. In this context.

INPACE workshop

Adam Kapovits from Eurescom GmbH, organised and chaired the workshop on the Digital Partnerships between the EU and the Republic of Korea, Japan, and Singapore, which was part of the INPACE Support Action[i] activities. Mr. Kapovits gave an overview of the INPACE activities in this context, which were followed by examples of collaboration between stakeholders from the aforementioned regions. Among others the collaboration between EU and Japan actors in the context of the SATis5 project funded by the European Space Agency was discussed. Dr. Kentaro Ishizu from NICT, Japan gave an overview of ­Beyond 5G/6G R&D activities at NICT especially focusing on a vision of Society 5.0 and cyber physical system (CPS). Prof. François Baccelli from INRIA Télécom / ENS (Département d’Informatique), Paris, presented the joint work with South Korean colleagues on Stochastic Geometry as a means to master complexity that results from the high number of new radio access technologies and used frequencies.


Adam Kapovits, Eurescom GmbH, at the INPACE workshop

3rd Euro NTN Workshop

The workshop was co-organised by Adam Kapovits, together with Markus Breitbach from DT and Marius Corici from Fraunhofer FOKUS, and chaired by Adam Kapovits and Anastasius Gavras, and covered a wide variety of topics related to the integration of terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks (TN and NTN).

The unified 3D mobile network architecture aims to seamlessly integrate terrestrial, aerial, and satellite layers, focusing on IoT, handheld access, and safety-critical operations. Emphasizing the need for native NTN support in 6G, the talks reviewed 3GPP standardization efforts to eliminate mobile network coverage gaps. Ongoing and shortly upcoming experiments with 5G NTN gNodeB in space were presented and discussed, highlighting the seamless integration of terrestrial and space networks. The evolution of NTN within 5G and the need for a jointly optimized infrastructure in 6G for continuous connectivity were also highlighted.

Additionally, the challenges and optimization methods for TN-NTN spectrum sharing to avoid interference and maintain coverage were discussed. The presentation of a 6G satellite lab for real-time testing of technical challenges and new features, including satellite base stations and advanced 6G waveforms, showcased the innovative strides being made. The vision for integrating TN and NTN for 5G-Advanced, focusing on network disaggregation, multi-connectivity, and space edge computing, was also presented. Resource management challenges in integrated 5G/6G networks to maximize capacity and meet user needs, creating a dynamic 3D access network, were discussed. Lastly, approaches to modelling NTN using stochastic geometry, focusing on Low Earth Orbit satellite constellations and spectral efficiency, were presented.

6G-SANDBOX

At the exhibition space, project 6G-SANDBOX presented and demonstrated the latest project results. Michael Dieudonne, R&D manager at Keysight Technologies Belgium and the project manager of 6G-SANDBOX staffed the booth and gave valuable insights to the visitors.

The project supports technology and research validation processes essential for the development of 6G. It introduces the concept of Trial Networks, which are fully configurable, manageable, and controlled end-to-end networks composed of both digital and physical nodes. The project focuses on defining and releasing its architecture and processes for an experimentation facility, integrating 6G technologies into a physical connectivity infrastructure, and developing a resource management framework to efficiently deploy trial networks. The goal is to create a platform for 6G technology validation and KPI measurements. Eurescom GmbH is a partner in the 6G SANDBOX project.


Michael Dieudonne, Keysight Technologies, presenting 6G-SANDBOX latest project results

Conclusion

The FUSECO Forum event held in Berlin on November 7-8, 2024, was a comprehensive and forward-looking gathering that delved into the evolution of 5G and the future of 6G. This event brought together experts from around the world to discuss the latest innovations and lessons learned from global public and private 5G network deployments, as well as 5G evolution research and standardization. Overall, the FUSECO Forum provided valuable insights into the future of telecommunications, emphasizing the importance of collaboration, innovation, and sustainability in shaping the next generation of connectivity.

Further information