Research

Computer Sciences and Information Technology

Title :

Architectures and Protocols for Integrated 6G-Satellite Networks

Area of research :

Computer Sciences and Information Technology

Focus area :

Exponential Technologies

Principal Investigator :

Prof. Manoj B.S., Indian Institute Of Space Science & Technology, Kerala

Timeline Start Year :

2023

Timeline End Year :

2026

Contact info :

Equipments :

Details

Executive Summary :

India's PURA, or Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas, is a crucial need for poverty removal. Despite significant progress in 4G and 5G deployments, about 45.8% of the Indian population still lacks digital connectivity. Ultra-high-density satellite networks, such as OneWeb and Starlink, provide higher bandwidth in most human-inhabited regions, but they won't solve India's rural and semi-urban population's partial cellular and satellite connectivity. The proposal proposes research to develop architectures and protocols for integrating terrestrial 6G networks with emerging ultra-high-density satellite networks, Low-tier High Altitude Platforms (HAPs), High-tier HAPs, traditional Wireless LANs, and Wireless Mesh Networks. The project faces significant technical challenges due to the diversity of networks involved and the stringent performance requirements of 6G networks. The focus will be on architectures for integrating 6G terrestrial networks and ultra-high density satellite networks, protocols for integrating ultra-dense satellite networks with 6G terrestrial networks, artificial intelligence-driven resource management for integrated 6G-satellite networks, and Software-Defined Networking and Network Function Virtualization for integrated 6G-satellite networks. A future network testbed will be developed for experiments to achieve the project's goals.

Total Budget (INR):

39,32,660

Organizations involved