Skip to main content
abstract blue background

Education & Training

Half Day Course Descriptions – For In-Person Or Online Training

Beyond the Hype: How 5G & 6G Empower the Immersive XR Revolution

Half Day Course (2 hours of instruction)

Summary: In the emerging area of Extended Reality (XR), which encompasses the spectrum of Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR), the technological landscape is rapidly evolving.  In this course, you will get a high-level understanding of XR technologies, exploring the evolution, market trends, and transformative potential fueled by 5G and the future 6G.  A brief look at the research and industry challenges facing this technology and potential solutions will be shared followed by an exciting glimpse of the future of immersive technologies.

The course begins with an introduction to XR, diving deep into its history, evolution, and the distinctive features that set AR, VR, and MR apart. As the narrative unfolds, participants will explore the pioneering use cases across sectors, from gaming and healthcare to retail and real estate. Coupled with an analytical overview of global XR adoption and sales figures, the course paints a vivid picture of the current market trends and the potential industries standing on the brink of an XR revolution. Integral to this discussion is the transformative role of 5G and the forthcoming 6G in enhancing and accelerating these XR experiences.

However, as with any emergent technology, XR faces a multitude of challenges. You will explore both the hardware and software hurdles, such as weight constraints, battery life, content immersion, and user experience nuances. The complexities extend to concerns surrounding latency, real-time processing demands, and the myriad health issues from prolonged XR interactions. Addressing these challenges, the curriculum advances into the communication solutions arena. Here, the profound impact of 5G, with its promise of low latency and high bandwidth, comes to the forefront. Simultaneously, an exciting glimpse into the potentials of 6G provides insight into the expected enhancements and benefits over its predecessor. The intricacies of XR communication are further discussed around necessary infrastructure modifications, as well as pivotal considerations around data privacy and security.

A deep dive into end-to-end architectures follows, from their core components to the seamless integration with communication networks. Whether it's the nuances of cloud and edge-based XR processing or the meticulous design of 5G & 6G infrastructure, participants will gain an in-depth understanding of the technological backbone supporting XR experiences. The course ends on future research challenges. Here, attendees will discuss the next milestones in communication for XR, and exploring the realms of advanced haptic feedback, multi-user XR environments, and the ethical implications of crafting immersive alternate realities. Through this course, learners will be equipped with the knowledge and insights to actively participate in and contribute to the ongoing technological renaissance.

Building the Road to 6G: From Full 5G & 5G-Advanced to Beyond-5G & 6G

Half Day Course (4.5 hours of instruction)

With the flurry of activities, initiatives, research and reports on the vision, definition, design, usage scenarios, and capabilities of future 5G-Advanced and 6G technologies, there is much curiosity and interest to understand the context, the path, and the building blocks in this journey. As we consider this, these questions may come to mind:

What research and innovation topics and ingredients are needed for the formulation and validation of mid to long-term systems and enablers of future use cases, needs, and plans? 

How to align with vision, drivers and design requirements?

How to understand the end-to-end context, attributes and roadmap?

How do we prepare for strategic decision-making in all aspects, from research to innovations, design of technologies and paradigms, management and policies, as well as academic programs?   

In this new course, the instructor will guide participants on a journey to understand the vision and new paradigms in 5G and beyond.  You’ll explore its potential impact on socio-economic transformation, the future of Internet of Things, the automated industries, the digital experience, and the environment, among others.  5G Advanced and its abilities to address the needs of future trends, and the motivations and drivers for new systems will be discussed.  The driving factors, use case and usage scenario requirements, enabling technologies, and ITU-R expected timeline for development of vision and requirements for IMT systems of 2030 and beyond are explored.

The discussion on potential extended and new use cases will include how the new technologies will enable immersive human communications, extended reality and digital experience, advancements in robotics, wearables, body & brain-machine interactions, intelligent autonomous vehicles, and smart industry (4.0+).   A key focus of the session will be on technologies, enablers and design requirements. This includes integration of AI/ML, sensing, imaging and localization, computing, digital twins, reconfigurable intelligent surfaces, energy harvesting, new architectures and topologies, etc.   An analysis of the implications of critical, massive and extreme requirements, as well as native integration of other technology paradigms will be provided, along with potential implementation scenarios.  Integrated security from design and forward-looking evolution of cloudification, softwarization, and cognitive automation, are outlined along with a clear focus on end-to-end energy efficiency and environmental sustainability.  The course will conclude with a discussion on and summary of research challenges and a look at the global status, timeline and way forward. Success factors will include enabling the trends and use cases while considering design imperatives and considerations, with respect to user needs and experience, performance, efficiencies, societal needs, and economic and environmental sustainability.

Empowering Industry 4.0 with Next Generation Optical Access Networks

Half Day Course (3 hours of instruction)

This course covers the interdisciplinary area of next generation industrial networks and high-speed optical access. It introduces network technology challenges of providing Industry 4.0. It reviews state of the art in optical access standards and system development while taking a look at the latest deployment cases by top operators on employing optical access for Industrial 4.0.

The instructor will begin by introducing Industry 4.0 and optical access networks and then provide a review of the multiple types of optical access solutions for Industry 4.0 by identifying the major features and benefits. Course participants will gain insights into the key enabling technologies and their advantages and limitations.

The latest status in this interdisciplinary area is investigated in two aspects. First, the related international standards and the key specifications are reviewed. The architecture, use cases, and systems are discussed one by one. Second, typical implementations by top operators are studied to explain the guidelines of Industry 4.0 network design and deployment. A case study will be shared to help the audience in selecting the suitable network technologies and systems for specific Industry 4.0 applications. Promising technologies for the future evolution are also discussed to provide R&D directions.

The instructor will offer insights into how individuals of a variety of backgrounds and education can fit into the large domain of broadband access and Industry 4.0. Network engineers and product designers will better understand the enabling network technologies and applications. Managers will have a comprehensive view on the key characteristics of various technologies. Researchers will gain insights into the challenges and promising solutions.

Introduction to MIMO

Half Day Course (3 hours of instruction)

MIMO is a key technology for achieving a vast increase of wireless communication capacity over a finite electromagnetic spectrum. It uses arrays of multiple antennas on one or both ends of a wireless communication link to enhance signal to noise ratio, combat fading, or create multiple communication paths in order to significantly boost channel capacity. This course will review the theoretical basis of MIMO and will show the necessary conditions and limitations that affect its use. It will also explain the application of MIMO in Wi-Fi and 4G cellular (LTE). In addition, the course will explain multi-user MIMO which accommodates greater throughputs on bands below 6 GHz, and massive MIMO, which will enable the expansion of the useful spectrum to microwave and millimeter wave bands within the framework of 5G cellular communication. Finally, there will be a discussion of antenna design relating to implementing MIMO in small portable devices.

Introduction to Quantum Communications

Half Day Course (3 hours of instruction)

The marriage of ever-more sophisticated signal processing and wireless communications has led to compelling 'tele-presence' solutions - at the touch of a dialing key.  However, the 'quantum' leaps both in digital signal processing theory and in its nano-scale based implementation is set to depart from classical physics obeying the well-understood laws revealed by science.  And so, we embark on a journey into the weird and wonderful world of quantum-physics, where the traveler has to obey the sometimes strange new rules of the quantum-world. Hence, we ask the judicious question: can the marriage of applied signal processing and communications extended beyond the classical world into the quantum world?

This course will describe a three-pronged approach with an emphasis on the following:

  • quantum coding for improving the performance of all quantum systems
  • existing and future quantum key distribution networks
  • employment of quantum search algorithms for solving large-scale search problems in wireless systems with a long-term view
Non-cellular Wireless Systems

Half Day Course (3 hours of instruction)

This course focuses on non-cellular wireless systems.  Wireless local area networks—most notably Wi-Fi—are studied along with their security features. Wireless personal area networks including Bluetooth (both legacy and low-energy), Ultra-Wideband (UWB) and RFID are also covered. Additionally, ad hoc networks, including mesh networks and wireless sensor networks, and Internet of Things (IoT) features are examined. The course concludes with a look at architecture and features of satellite communication, along with an overview of wireless positioning and location techniques.

Special note:  This is the fourth in a series of four courses addressing the overall technologies in wireless communications.  The four courses in the series include:

  1. Fundamentals of Wireless Communication
  2. Network and Service Architecture
  3. Cellular Networks
  4. Non-cellular Wireless Systems
Optical Communication Technologies in the 5G Era

Half Day Course (4 hours of instruction)

5G is regarded as the key technology for wireless communications in the decade of the 2020’s, and optical networks are being refined or redesigned to better support 5G networks.

In this newly updated half-day course, the instructor aims to provide an up-to-date overview of the emerging optical communication technologies for 5G and 5th-generation fixed networks (F5G).  It is intended to help attendees broaden their knowledge on the emerging applications of optical networks in future wireless networks.  This course will help to deepen your understanding of the state-of-the-art optical communication technologies, including recent technical advances ranging from core, metro to access optical networks, to address the critical demands of 5G.  You will also explore new R&D opportunities in the field of converged fixed-mobile networks.

Security of Emerging Satellite Mega-Constellations

Half Day Course (3 hours of instruction)

There is a rejuvenated interest in satellite communications and networking. Both the satellite and cellular (3GPP) industries aim at developing a seamlessly integrated single network with both terrestrial and satellite components. Networking is one of the main differences between the legacy satellite systems and the mega-constellations of the 6G era (next-generation). The next-generation of satellite networks are expected to have very high-speed inter-satellite links. For efficient operation, the network will have to be autonomous, intelligent, resilient, self-organizing & self-controlling as much as possible to reduce the cost and risk of human intervention in such a hostile operating environment. Hence the security of the satellite networks, which will be integrated to the terrestrial networks will be of utmost importance. However, these novel networks have been largely overlooked by the systems security community. In this one-of-a-kind course, the instructors will take participants on an exploration of the security of the networking aspects of integrated terrestrial networks, which is still under development by the research community. 

In this course, the instructors will begin with a discussion on the fundamental components of LEO mega-constellations. This will be followed by the 6G vision which targets the integration of satellite mega-constellations with terrestrial networks. The emerging threat landscape for this network evolution fueled by the presence of LEO mega-constellations will then be described. Next a vulnerability classification will be presented, along with some attack examples. Three main vulnerability classes will be considered, these are: payload and inter-satellite link vulnerabilities; ground station/terrestrial network interconnection vulnerabilities; and signal vulnerabilities. The leading countermeasures will be discussed as a remedy to the presented attack types. Two practical applications that focus on signal vulnerabilities will be detailed. The first attack type is eavesdropping, where physical layer countermeasures and suitable authentication solutions will be studied. The second practical application will focus on jamming attacks targeting both the satellite-to-ground and satellite-to-satellite links. The course will conclude with an overview and a short discussion on the open issues.

 

Wireless Evolution of the Overall Network Architecture

Half Day Course (3 hours of instruction)

Today’s smartphone can simultaneously operate on numerous wireless network architectures.  This course will define these architectures along with those legacy network elements which have come and gone.  We will describe the strategy behind architecture direction in the industry and provide a view of how today’s architectures may continue to evolve.  Please join us and arm yourself with the knowledge to understand wireless network architecture direction as the industry continues to pave a path toward a more enhanced connected world.

Takeaways from this course:

  • Understand basic network architecture functions including network elements, interfaces, signaling and control planes, protocol stacks, etc
  • Step through network architectures from the early days of wireless to today, including operator networks and personal area networks
  • Relate overall wireless network architecture function and evolution to the various systems deployed today; WiFi, 2G, 3G, 4G, and beyond
  • Understand the approach of standards bodies including IEEE, 3GPP, and 3GPP2
  • Align network function to the elements required in the architecture
  • Identify the necessary requirements to evolve the wireless network architecture in support of emerging network functionality
  • Understand the keys to optimal end-to-end network performance