5G-LEAP – Flexible Open RAN Platform for 5G and beyond networks

5G and beyond mobile networks are expected to support a variety of emerging use-cases, such as holographic telepresence, immersive extended-reality, cloud gaming, and autonomous driving. Such a diverse set of services imposes strict requirements on the mobile network along several dimensions, such as throughput, latency, and reliability. Network slicing has been envisaged as a key enabler to satisfy these diverse requirements, by creating multiple isolated end-to-end virtual networks dedicated to different services, on top of a common physical infrastructure. However, the implementation of network slicing is not without its challenges. This project addresses some of these fundamental challenges that are impeding the realization of end-to-end slicing in mobile networks most notably in the Radio Access Network (RAN). The flexible and reconfigurable nature of end-to-end network slices, building on Open RAN technologies, will allow for the realization of new use cases with stringent performance requirements that cannot be guaranteed by legacy mobile networks. This research will benefit Rogers by facilitating the integration of hardware and software from diverse vendors and by enabling new services and business verticals.

Faculty Supervisor:

Raouf Boutaba;Nashid Shahriar;Ali Mashtizadeh;Raouf Boutaba

Student:

Partner:

Rogers Communications Inc.;University of Waterloo

Discipline:

Computer science

Sector:

Information and cultural industries

University:

University of Regina; University of Waterloo

Program: