FEATURE: RESEARCH DIRECTIONS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY:
RESEARCHDIRECTIONS GreenTouch Consortium aims to reduce energy consumption by 90% and still support predicted traffic and bandwidth growth. The Consortium of mobile companies is investigating small cell deployment, infrastructure sharing, discontinuous transmission (during periods without traffic). In the core network the focus has been on dynamic allocation of resources according to traffic fluctuations, and there has also been work on power models for hardware and network equipment.
90%
reduction in energy consumption
EU PROJECT METIS
Mobile and wireless communications Enablers for the Twenty-twenty Information Society. METIS, a consortium of five vendors, five operators, one car manufacturer and 13 academic institutions is dedicated to working out the requirements of “5G” networks. It is focussing on developing and evaluating the key technology components of 5G systems - network topologies, radio links, multi-node, and spectrum usage techniques. Early deliverables have included a Requirement analysis and design approaches for 5G air interface and an Intermediate description of the spectrum needs and usage principles in METIS.
COGNITIVE RADIO - SPECTRUM HARVESTING - SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT: (Fraunhofer Institute for Embedded Systems and Communication Technologies ES) An ongoing area of research that refers to an autonomous, fully reconfigurable network node capable of monitoring its environment, recognising changes and reacting accordingly when required. This method, which is still in the basic research phase, has the potential to overcome disadvantages such as the inefficient utilisation of wireless channels. With cognitive processes, researchers assume each network node will exhibit intelligent behavior in response to the users requirements, the available radio spectrum and the environment. This behaviour will be supported through learning and decision processes. In a cognitive network, overall optimisation should be achieved through the collective behaviour of the individual nodes.
The four major functions of a cognitive network are: • Spectrum sensing: detection of unused frequency ranges • Spectrum management: selection of the unused frequency range that best fulfills the requirements • Spectrum mobility: possibility to switch frequencies without data loss and additional delay (e.g. by detecting a band with less interference)
CONNECTED HOME:
Bio-acoustic Data Transfer (Bell LAbs) Data exchange through shaking hands, control of locks and doors simply through touch. Bio-acoustic Data Transfer is demonstrated by key transmission through bone conduction. This is done by attaching a piezo-electric transducer to a mobile device, watch or other devices. When the user approaches the door, a unique digital key will be transferred to the lock. If the key matches, the deadbolt will unlock. This is made possible by a person’s unique skeletal structure and bone density, so if the key is stolen it will not work for the intruder. Additional research into Bio-acoustic Data Transfer is underway to ensure the accuracy of unlocking a deadbolt, as well as data transfer of short messages, like contact information. In the future, AT&T Labs researchers foresee multiple advancements in this technology, including:
Handshake Data Transfer. While shaking someone’s hand for the first time your contact information or any other data that you wish to share, could be sent from one body to the other.
A Safer Home. If an intruder tried to enter your home, alerts could be sent through your mobile device to let you know. Transferring data between devices.
• Spectrum sharing: intelligent, multiple access to a spectrum within a network
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