Deliverable D2.2 - Intermediate design of Platforms and Networks solutions

The TrialsNet project aims at deploying full large-scale trials, combining a heterogenous and comprehensive set of innovative Sixth Generation of mobile communications (6G) applications based on various technologies such as robots, metaverse, massive twinning, Internet of Senses, and covering three relevant domains of the urban ecosystems in Europe identified by (i) Infrastructure, Transportation, Security & Safety, (ii) eHealth & Emergency, and (iii) Culture, Tourism & Entertainment. Through the results collected from the large-scale trials both in terms of quantitative and qualitative perspective, the project will support the transition from the current Fifth Generation of mobile communications (5G) to the next generation by means of definition of new requirements as well as the identification of the added values that each use case will bring to the community.

In particular, Work Package 2 (WP2) focuses on the development of the platforms and network solutions within those large-scale trials, while other technical WPs, such as WP3, WP4, and WP5, are implementing the Use Cases (UCs) and validating their performance. In collaboration with those WPs, WP2 is designing and deploying the overall network infrastructures with advanced network and platform functionalities to suit the needs (i.e., performance requirements) of each use case falling into the three abovementioned domains. While the deliverable D2.1 focused on the preliminary design of both the platform and network solutions in the different trial sites, i.e., clusters located in Italy, Spain, Romania, and Greece, this deliverable provides insights into the latest progress on both Baseline 5G Technology (Bs5G) and Advanced 5G Technology (A5G) design and preliminary deployment in each of the aforementioned sites.

Within the Italian cluster, two different trial sites are deployed, i.e., Turin site and Pisa site. The Turin site is a multi-location trialing setup that relies on the commercial 5G network deployment as a baseline, whereas the advanced capabilities are being deployed on the service level, i.e., Virtualized Network Function (VNF) orchestration for improved service performance. The Pisa site is also a multi-location one, stretching from the CNR campus in Pisa as the primary trial site with advanced End-to-End (E2E) orchestration functionalities, over the Fondazione Monasterio hospital in Massa, and the Ericsson's 5G laboratory in Genoa that is used as setup for testing before trialing use cases in full-scale setup in Pisa, which is being deployed from scratch.

The Spanish cluster is centered around the 5Tonic, an open laboratory for research and innovation that focus on 5G technologies. This site is currently undergoing updates towards Release 17 to support A5G deployment and improve uplink throughput capabilities that are necessary for UC testing and implementation in the final trial sites. The current 5Tonic infrastructure has been so far used for performing preliminary tests for some of the TrialsNet use cases, such as UC1, UC6, and UC10.

The Romanian cluster consists of the three sites: (i) main outdoor site located in Iasi, which is based on the commercial Orange Non Standalone Architecture (NSA) deployment, (ii) indoor 5G Standalone Architecture (SA) based on Release 16, which now includes also edge computing capabilities with User Plane Function (UPF) deployed at the edge as part of the A5G, and (iii) experimental facilities based on Release 16 and A5G such as Zero-touch Service Management (ZSM) and orchestration located in Antwerp, which are used for testing advanced orchestration properties before deployment and validation take place in Iasi. The experimental facilities in Antwerp have been also provided by the project as an independent trial site for the third parties in the context of the Open Call.

In the scope of the Greek cluster, several locations including the Athens airport and public venues in the city of Athens are combined, all covered by public 5G network. In addition to these sites, a private network of the WINGS testbed is used for E2E 5G and Beyond 5G (B5G) testing based on Release 15 network deployment, accompanied by distributed cloud and edge computing capabilities (A5G), which are used for testing and validation of use case prior to their deployment at public locations.

Additionally, building on top of the preliminary design of the main TrialsNet innovations (horizontal and vertical) related to network and platform described in D2.1, this deliverable provides the latest insights into the design updates and implementation progress, with more specific reference to their validation strategies related to specific UCs. These innovations are focused on network features that go beyond the Bs5G and create a set of advanced capabilities for enhanced performance and sustainability of all UCs (which are considered as part of A5G functionalities of network and service infrastructure). In addition to the innovations presented in D2.1, a new vertical innovation is here introduced, i.e., the advanced methodology for traffic and crowd monitoring based on cellular information. This methodology uses signalling data from the network to monitor traffic and crowds and aims to improve performance and accuracy, as an alternative to solutions based on video surveillance cameras, currently deployed in UC1 and UC4.

Finally, network and service sustainability perspectives are studied and presented in this deliverable, focusing on understanding the sustainability aspects for TrialsNet network technologies, large scale impact, and economic and societal benefits. This study is performed in alignment with the common framework of Key Value Indicators (KVIs) defined in WP6. Various sustainability solutions such as self-sustainable energy harvesting, energy utilization at edge vs. cloud, and energy-aware application design, are explored and presented in this deliverable. In addition, all innovations from WP2 are studied from a sustainability perspective, providing prospects on different sustainability angles that are aimed to be improved with their implementation.