The ICSSC Colloquium entitled Satellite Constellations and 5G will be held prior to the Joint Conference
on Monday, September 27, 2021.
The Colloquium is organized by the Co-Chairs:
5G is a revolutionary force in telecommunications; defining new sets of services in support of diverse use cases for connecting humans and machines, and deploying a network of networks. Significant investments have also been made in launching High Throughput satellites (HTS) and NGSO constellations. Instead of satellites being the choice of last resort, the technological and regulatory environment is now ripe for a truly integrated system of systems where satellites can complement terrestrial networks to provide ubiquitous coverage and capacity. Besides offering important societal and economic benefits, this unification can also be leveraged for enhancing emergency/disaster management and national security.
Mega satellite constellations being designed today comprise hundreds or even thousands of LEO satellites. With limited deployment today, HAPS can also join this hybrid architecture framework that extends the 3GPP 5G baseline to include non-terrestrial network nodes. With global coverage across all oceans and continents being a primary differentiator, the LEO mega-constellations will eventually be indispensable for global connectivity.
The colloquium will look across a broad range of topics that address how space, high altitude, and terrestrial 5G systems will interoperate with key enabling technologies such as software defined networks, artificial intelligence, and cost effective electronically steered antennas. Besides leveraging the confluence of advanced technologies, an innovative regulatory approach will also be essential to address the burgeoning spectrum requirements and more dynamic allocation for space and terrestrial applications.
Panelists from the Satellite and Cellular industry, GEO and NGSO SAT-COM designers and operators, and governments will discuss their visions, strategies and plans to integrated 5G architectures and services in interactive sessions.
09:00 - 09:15 (Room TBD) Colloquium Opening
The Co-Chairs Dr. Rajeev Gopal (Hughes) and Ms. Maria Guta (ESA) will welcome attendees and open the Colloquium.
09:15 - 10:45 (Room TBD) Session 1: Satellites & 5G
S1-1 - Keynote - 5G Challenges and Opportunities - 20 minutes
Keynote Speaker S1-1 will provide a review diverse use cases for connecting humans and machines with 5G enabled by terrestrial and space platforms and discuss unique challenges and opportunities including HTS and LEO satellite constellations that extend the 3GPP 5G baseline to include non-terrestrial network nodes. With global coverage across all oceans and continents being a primary differentiator, the space segment will eventually be indispensable for global connectivity with quality of service.
S1-2 - Panel - 5G Use Case Augmentation with Space - 70 minutes
Leaders representing MNOs, satellite service providers, and equipment manufacturers will discuss how satellites, instead being the choice of last resort, can now complement terrestrial networks to provide ubiquitous coverage, capacity, and broadcast efficiencies. Besides offering important societal and economic benefits, this unification will also benefit enhancing emergency/disaster management and national security.
10:45 - 11:00 (TBD Foyer) Coffee Break
11:00 - 12:15 (Room TBD) Session 2: 5G Services - Business and Strategy
Session 2 will be an interactive panel among 5G cellular and satellite industry players including network providers and manufacturers. 5G requires new equipment, including Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC) and technology to accommodate the user requirements and multiple use cases. Panelist will debate their technology road maps in delivering network and user equipment fulfilling the demanding 5G needs in terms of size, flexibility and Capex while covering larger areas. They will address various funding and deployment strategies and share insights with respect to their unique business case priorities.
12:15 - 12:30 - Morning Q&A
The morning will conclude with a general Q&A open to all.
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch
14:00 - 15:45 (Room TBD) Session 3: Technical insights with Cross Plane/Layer Designs and Future Advances
Session 3 will comprise a series of technical presentations from experts involved in 3GPP standardization, 6G advances, terrestrial equipment design, and satellite system development. This includes how space (GEO/LEO) and terrestrial 5G systems will interoperate with key enabling technologies such as smart and open RAN, MEC, mobility/roaming, security, software defined networks, artificial intelligence, cost effective electronically steered antennas, smart routing and traffic engineering, and dynamic spectrum allocation. For example, integration could include promising satellite use cases such as for eMBB and mMTC and 5G network rollout efficiencies for unserved and underserved areas.
15:45 - 16:00 (TBD Foyer) Coffee Break
16:00 - 16:45 (Room TBD) Session 4: Regulatory and Governance Challenges
Session 5 will address challenges and opportunities related to driving governance topics (such as standardization, C band reallocation, mmWave sharing, satellites as cellular base stations, etc.) with a distinguished panel having government and industry experience. Besides leveraging the confluence of advanced technologies, an innovative regulatory approach will be essential to address the burgeoning spectrum requirements and smart sharing.
16:45 - 17:00 (Room TBD) Concluding Remarks
The Colloquium will close with a summary of the key takeaways from the four sessions.