ETRI, developing core technologies to secure a leading position in 6G communication

Researchers of South Korea have recently begun to develop a large-capacity, ultra-precision technology that can be used for the implementation of next-gen mobile communication.

Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) announced that they will develop new key technologies for wireless access and wireless backhauling to realize large-capacity and ultra-precision services in ultra-high frequency bands. These two technologies are considered as important foundations for realizing ultra-connectivity, ultra-low latency, and ultra-high-speed convergence services, which are considered as core elements in the next-generation 6G communication

Wireless access technology is a technology that provides and maintains stable absolute time synchronization even in varying wireless environments, and is also considered a technology that can ensure stable, high-speed data transmission regardless of the communication environment, while solving issues such as the increased delay/latency caused by data transmission and re-transmission.

Mobile wireless backhaul technology is a technology that provides large-capacity traffic by wirelessly connecting central networks and local base stations or access points.

In order to meet the ultra-precision performance conditions required by next-gen 6G communication services, an innovative wireless technology is essential. Absolute time synchronization is a technology that allows all devices to have the same time reference or clock, serving as a gateway to increase the accuracy and efficiency of the communication networks. This enables a faster and more reliable transmission of data in inter-vehicle communication (V2X), smart factories, digital twin, etc., which require a higher standard of reliability compared to other applications.

In the past era of mobile communication, especially up to 4G, absolute time synchronization was not a very important factor. However, ever since we’ve entered the 5G era and now waiting for the dawn of 6G communication, services that require simultaneous/real-time processing and cooperation between multiple devices, such as centimeter positioning, collaborative robots, sensor fusion, etc., have been introduced to the mainstream, highlighting the importance of absolute time synchronization.

In addition, while it is true that the current wired-based synchronization methods provide sub-nanosecond (less than a billionth of a second) accuracy, wireless-based methods often fail to meet the basic requirement of sub-microseconds (millionth of a second) due to issues such as channel uncertainty, etc. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to develop a precise and stable wireless access technology.

Furthermore, with various media services and technologies such as HD video streaming services, extended reality (XR), and virtual reality (VR) entering the scene, experts believe that data transmission will increase up to 5~10 Gbps for each terminal on the mobile network within the next decade.

To support this, many view that a base station capacity of 100 Gbps or higher will be required. This is why it is necessary to secure wireless backhaul technology to provide a larger amount of traffic. So far, as an alternative for stations with increased capacities, technologies such as sub-terrahertz-based ultra-wideband wireless transmission with broadband support is garnering a lot of attention from the industry.

The research team of ETRI is now slowly pushing away from the previous ‘Best Efforts-Based’ data transmission technology, which was often pursued in the previous era of mobile communication, and is focusing on the development of a ‘High-Capacity Ultra-Precision Wireless Access Technology’ and ‘High-Capacity Mobile Wireless Backhaul Technology’ for a guaranteed ultra-precision service.

‘High-Capacity Ultra-Precision Wireless Access Technology’ refers to the core source component technologies in fields such as Absolute Time Synchronization, Diversity, New Waveform, and Multiple Antenna, which are considered as key domains in order to realize the highest level of ultra-precision services while supporting large-capacity data transmission.

ETRI has successfully established a platform shared between such component technologies to verify the efficient Proof-of-Concept (PoC) of wireless access component technologies developed so far, and is now carrying out standardization activities to incorporate these technologies into the 3GPP mobile communication standards.

‘High-Capacity Mobile Wireless Backhaul Technology’ refers to a wireless backhaul-based network with a broadband frequency transmission technology for backhaul links that can expand the coverage of large-capacity services in mobile environments.

The researchers of ETRI have successfully developed an ultra-wideband, ultra-high frequency-based outdoor long-distance wireless backhaul testing device to verify the mobile wireless backhaul technology, also seeking to evaluate the performance of the technology when mounted on a vehicle.

The synchronization technology for absolute time synchronization developed in this study has been published in ‘IEEE IoT-J’, a well-renowned top 2% SCIE journal.

Ko Young-Jo, a director at 6G Wireless Technology Research Section, ETRI, said, “Our goal is to lead the development of ultra-precision, large-capacity key enabling technologies that are needed for the implementation of 6G mobile communication services. With the technologies developed through this project, we will contribute to enhancing the competitiveness of Korea’s future mobile communication industry by dramatically improving communication quality, while also laying a solid foundation and providing a series of high-quality infrastructure for future technologies.”

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This study has been carried out as part of the ‘ETRI R&D Support Project,’ supported by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Institute for Information & Communication Technology Planning & Evaluation (IITP).

About Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI)

ETRI is a non-profit government-funded research institute. Since its foundation in 1976, ETRI, a global ICT research institute, has been making its immense effort to provide Korea a remarkable growth in the field of ICT industry. ETRI delivers Korea as one of the top ICT nations in the World, by unceasingly developing world’s first and best technologies.