2023 EUCnC & 6G Summit 6G for a Green and Digital Transition
PREDICT-6G, together with DETERMINISTC-6G and DESIRE-6G, will present a joint workshop titled “Future deterministic programmable networks for 6G” in the context of the 2023 EUCnC & 6G Summit, which will take place the 6-9 of June in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The workshop will address the concepts being developed by the three projects, which will enable future 6G deterministic programmable networks, and will open a space for discussing the different approaches to determinism explored by each project. Experts on the field will be invited to provide their view on the different deterministic and programmable approaches for WLAN, IEEE 802.1TSN, DetNet, OPC, and 3GPP TSC.
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Introducing DESIRE6G, a sister project of PREDICT-6G
One of the main intentions of PREDICT-6G is to quickly harness the multiplier capacity of initiatives advocating for 6G in Europe. Creating synergies with other projects funded by Horizon Europe under the same topic is a unique opportunity to build a real impactful European 6G landscape. Let’s discover one of them: DESIRE6G!
Promoting the 6G vision, the DESIRE6G project will design and develop a novel zero touch control, management, and orchestration platform, with native integration of AI, to support verticals with extreme requirements (e.g., eXtreme URLLC services) over a performant, measurable and programmable data plane.
From zero power to extreme low latency or ultra-high reliability: the 6G system should not limit its future use cases, yet it should be simpler and more autonomous than the previous generation. The two key components that will allow DESIRE6G achieving these goals are the following:
- A lightweight centralised Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) layer, with distributed and coordinated intelligent control employing Multi-Agent Systems (MAS). This functional split promotes service assurance through enabling faster control loops, ensuring the scalability of the system as its self-operation relies mainly on the autonomous coordinated operation of the agents.
- An end-to-end programmable user plane supporting multitenancy, using a hardware abstraction layer to interact with the heterogeneous devices e.g., GPUs, TPUs, FPGAs, SOCs. This will facilitate increased flexibility in function placement and offloading while using simple and abstract control plane APIs. It will also allow simpler customization of end-to-end network behaviour without sacrificing performance and power efficiency.
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If “Higher Throughput and Lower Latency” Is the Answer, What Is the Question
By Dr Sebastian Robitzsch, InterDigital Europe Ltd
It is anticipated that 6G standardisation will start in 2025 and the industry is already sharpening their tools, noticeable in the various 6G-related themes at exhibitions, panels and conferences to kickstart the conversation what 6G is all about. In particular, the pre-standardisation work is already running at full steam in bodies such as ETSI and NGMN, focusing on technologies and requirements. With the first phase of 6GIA’s SNS projects kicked off earlier this year, such as PREDICT-6G, the European community is contributing to the global 6G technology and standardisation process.
Any conversation around the “next G” is rooted in its requirements and use cases, followed by Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to quantify any “next G” technology against the promises made. 6G is no different in that approach and 3GPP has already seen numerous technical reports which study services that can be categorised as 6G, when looking at the 2025 timeframe.
One of the dominant use cases in that regard is one or a mix of augmented, virtual, extended reality (AR/VR/XR) services, which demand the typical KPIs around throughput, latency, jitter, reliability, etc. to be further pushed to new limits. 3GPP is working on a feasibility study for these services [1] and Table 1 provides a summary assessment for KPIs. In addition to the work in 3GPP, the IETF MOPS WG [2] also provides additional values which have been folded into the KPIs in Table 1. As can be seen, three service types have been identified, i.e. video, audio and haptic, and a set of KPIs with detailed upper bound numbers for each of them.
Table 1: Key Performance Indicators for Remote Collaboration [1,2].
| KPI | Video | Audio | Haptics |
| Throughput [kbit/s] | 2500 – 200000 | 64 – 512 | 512 – 1024 |
| Jitter [ms] | ≤ 30 | ≤ 30 | ≤ 2 |
| Latency [ms] | ≤ 100 (lip sync limit)
≤ 150 (preferred) ≤ 400 (limit) |
≤ 150 | ≤ 50 |
| Packet Loss [%] | ≤ 1 | ≤ 1 | ≤ 10 |
| Update Rate [Hz] | ≥ 30 | ≥ 50 | ≥ 1000 |
| Packet Size [bytes] | ≤ MTU | 160 – 320 | 64 – 128 |
| Reliability [%] | 99.9 | 99.99999 | 99.999999 |
However, one can certainly argue that 5G is capable to deliver on these KPIs from a technology perspective, considering the option of private network deployments (aka Non-Public Networks), which enable fine-tuned network deployments towards service-specific packet deliveries [3]. That is why the added KPIs in [1], around inter-service-type delay numbers defining upper bound numbers of how much later a service type can arrive after another one, can be considered as impossible to request and deliver in 5G systems. Additionally, pre-standardisation bodies such as NGMN and 5G-PPP share a common understanding beyond a purely KPI-driven conversation on 6G requirements via added Key Value Indicators (KVIs)[4,5]. The rational here is to allow a value-driven conversation around innovations in 6G instead of a KPI one. And PREDICT-6G is not different in that regard by focusing on the three pillars of deterministic communications, i.e. predictability, reliability and time sensitivity; these three pillars are considered in a multi-domain scenario and in an end-to-end fashion.
When considering the KPIs provided in Table 1 and adding the ability to deterministically control the communication on the User Plane, the KVI conversation around the “added value” to 6G becomes the centre argument and a key differentiator to 5G. Thus, AR/VR/XR use cases provide an ideal narrative for the importance of deterministic communications in PREDICT-6G and the wider pre-standardisation community.
| [1] | 3GPP, “Technical Report 23.856: Feasibility Study on Localized Mobile Metaverse Services (Release 19)”, Nov 2022. |
| [2] | R. Krishna and A. Rahman, “Media Operations Use Case for an Extended Reality Application on Edge Computing Infrastructure”, Online: https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-ietf-mops-ar-use-case/ |
| [3] | 5G-PPP Technology Board, “Non-Public-Networks – State of the art and way forward”, Nov 2022. Online: https://5g-ppp.eu/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/WhitePaperNPN_MasterCopy_V1.pdf |
| [4] | NGMN, “6G Requirements and Design Considerations”, Feb 2023. Online: https://www.ngmn.org/wp-content/uploads/NGMN_6G_Requirements_and_Design_Considerations.pdf |
| [5] | 5G-PPP, “Beyond 5G/6G KPIs and Target Values”, Jun 2022. Online: https://5g-ppp.eu/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/white_paper_b5g-6g-kpis-camera-ready.pdf |
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PREDICT-6G supports Open Science
PREDICT-6G is committed to the Open Science practices defined by the European Commission to improve the “quality, efficiency and responsiveness of research”.
Early and open sharing of research
PREDICT-6G has pledged to ensure that data produced during the course of the project is FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Re-usable) and open, as well as being early available.
Research output management and measures to ensure reproducibility of research outputs
PREDICT-6G guarantees the reproducibility of project outputs by covering the reproduction, replication and reuse research processes. Any research output will be made available to the community in Open Access repositories.
Open access to research outputs and participation in open peer-review
Open Access contributes to the circulation of knowledge and their re-usability, which in turn has proved to drive innovation. PREDICT-6G fully embraces this vision. The project relies on all major international publishers that provide several models for Open Access, with two major options on what license to place on the published documents:
- 'Green' Open Access: The publisher's policy allows the authors to archive the final manuscript in an institutional or subject-based repository, before or after peer review. We use the Zenodo Community “PREDICT-6G PROJECT” as our ‘Green’ repository.
- 'Gold' Open Access: Authors can publish in open access journals, or in hybrid journals that both sell subscriptions and offer the option of making individual articles openly accessible. Articles published under this license will also be made available in the project’s Zenodo Community.
Go visit our Zenodo repository!
Other ways to use and contribute to the open science practices
PREDICT-6G will leverage the services provided by the Open Access Infrastructure for Research in Europe (OpenAIRE), which is an active service provider of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). This European initiative, which lists 37+ million publications and 9+ million research data, has the mission to promote open scholarship and improve the discoverability, accessibility, shareability, reusability, reproducibility and monitoring of data-driven research results, across scientific disciplines.
In addition, PREDICT-6G will rely on complementary open access channels including:
- The release of pre-publication versions through the website.
- The release of paper presentations in conferences through the website.
- The use of social media to provide links to publications and presentation files.
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PREDICT-6G at the SNS Lunchtime Webinar
On the 23th of February, PREDICT-6G was featured at the European Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS JU) Lunchtime webinar series, in which the SNS JU Phase 1 projects provided an overview of their activities and ambitions.
PREDICT-6G’s Coordinator, Prof. Antonio de la Oliva from the University Carlos III of Madrid, was in charge of introducing the project in the ¨Architecture & Secure Services and Security¨ webinar. During his intervention, de la Oliva highlighted PREDICT-6G´s mission, its definition of a deterministic network, and the use cases.
What is a deterministic network? A network that is reliable, time sensitive and predictable. Learn more here.
What is the project mission? PREDIT-6G aims to design, create and validate e2e 6G solutions providing deterministic services over multiple inter-connected domains and technologies (including wired and wireless). Learn more here.
PREDICT-6G use cases: Smart manufacturing, large-scale multi-domain deterministic network and critical communications. Learn more here.
Read the full presentation here!
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The European Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS JU) is a Public-Private Partnership that aims to facilitate and develop industrial leadership in Europe in 5G and 6G networks and services. The SNS JU funds projects that shape a solid research and innovation (R&I) roadmap and deployment agenda by engaging a critical mass of European stakeholders and facilitating international cooperation on various 6G initiatives. In January 2023, SNS JU launched the first phase of its 6G projects, which are critical in establishing a solid research and innovation (R&I) foundation for Europe, defining the next-generation networks.
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PREDICT-6G at the ETSI Research Conference 2023
At the beginning of February 2023, PREDICT-6G (PRogrammable AI-Enabled DeterminIstiC neTworking for 6G) had the opportunity to participate in the ETSI Research Conference “Maximizing the Impact of European 6G Research through Standardisation”.
Zoltán Vincze, partner of the consortium on behalf of Nokia Solutions and Networks KFT -technical manager of the project-introduced PREDICT-6G and its objectives, as well as the planned standardisation activities, we aim to develop at the project. Chaired by Rui L. Aguiar, Steering Board Chair in NetworldEurope, the session featured SNS JU projects in Stream B, Strand B1 and B4
The Conference also offered a unique occasion to learn about the future of 6G networks in Europe. “It was a great event, providing insight into the European 6G research landscape and the upcoming beyond 5G and 6G projects” .
This face-to-face event provided an exceptional opportunity for the research community to come together with industry representatives and standardisation experts to discuss future technology research and links to standardisation developments. “Based on that I can tell you, PREDICT-6G is well positioned in the 6G research agenda by providing end-to-end deterministic networking solutions for 6G”.
Read the full presentation here!
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The PREDICT-6G Coordinator, Antonio de la Oliva, welcomes you on board
By Antonio de la Oliva
Welcome to PREDICT-6G! Today, we will be discussing the PREDICT-6G project, which aims to create a secure, modular, interoperable, and extensible deterministic network and management framework that automates the definition, provisioning, monitoring, fulfillment, and life-cycle management of end-to-end (E2E) deterministic services over multiple network domains.
The PREDICT-6G project is part of the Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS JU), which is a public-private partnership between the European Commission and the European ICT industry. The SNS JU selected 35 research, innovation, and trial projects to enable the evolution of 5G ecosystems and promote 6G research in Europe.
The PREDICT-6G project aims to create a deterministic network. PREDICT-6G defines deterministic as predictable, reliable and time sensitive. Network predictability refers to the ability of a network to provide consistent and dependable service with a known level of performance. Network reliability refers to the ability of a network to transfer data without losses in a consistent way. In the context of deterministic networking, predictability and reliability are achieved through clock synchronization, service protection, redundancy, and other mechanisms that ensure guaranteed bandwidth, bounded latency, and other properties germane to the transport of data. Time sensitiveness provides guaranteed bandwidth, bounded latency, and other properties that are important for the transport of time-sensitive data. PREDICT-6G will extend current mechanisms defined in IEEE 802.1 and IETF DetNet/RAW SDOs to provide determinism to the general multi-domain, multi-technology upcoming 6G network.
Currently, the project is focused on determining the key use cases and deriving the KPIs/KVIs to be met by the solutions designed within the project. Use cases for deterministic networking include closed-cycle control loops, automotive and other transportation systems, industrial automation, audio and video streaming, and more. Deterministic networking can support a wide range of applications, each with different Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, and can operate in vastly different environments with different scaling. That is reliable, secure, and scalable. The use cases currently identified in the project focus on industrial environments, meta-verse and XR/VR applications.
In summary, the project will develop new technologies and protocols to enable end-to-end deterministic services over multiple network domains. The project will also develop a management framework that automates the provisioning, monitoring, and life-cycle management of these services. The PREDICT-6G project is an important step towards the development of 6G networks, which are expected to emerge in 2030.
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