[IEEE ComSoc-SPS ISAC Webinar] Prof. Gerhard P. Fettweis, TU Dresden -5

Over the generations of cellular, services have gone from pure voice service delivery to today’s integrated wireless Internet. With 5G and it’s ultra-reliable low-latency (URLLC) mode, for the first time cellular based remote controlled real and virtual object shall become feasible: The Tactile Internet. However, focusing primarily on business applications. The vision of 6G is that personal mobile robotic helpers controlled by the infrastructure will become wide-spread. Robotic systems, even when connected to the infrastructure, require to know their ambience through sensing. As relying on cameras alone is not an option, and lidar has its limits as well, radio sensing will become increasingly important. This seemingly creates a competition for new spectrum between sensing and communications! Here we want to shed light on integrating both into one 6G radio access network by joint communication and sensing. Some theoretical as well as experimental results will be given. As a consequence, sensing can become another service delivered by a cellular communications system. Joining up the terminal and infrastructure based sensing plus acknowledging the power of networking will create new opportunities. This can include empowering a “level-2” car to be driven at “level-5” with the help of 6G, but will also open completely new opportunities for your home/fitness/gaming/assistance robotic helpers as well! Taking this idea one step further one can start thinking of developing a “GearboxPHY” approach for 6G. As we need to incorporate low and high rate data communications, sensing including positioning, as well as post-Shannon communications, would it not make sense to address this by an air interface that “switches gears” automatically to deliver the service needed at the minimal energy cost?