Interpretation of Global Engineering Frontiers 2022: Integrated Communication Theory and Technology

The integrated network of air, space, and sea is based on ground networks, supplemented and extended by space-based, air-based, and sea-based networks, providing ubiquitous, intelligent, collaborative, and efficient information guarantee infrastructure for various network applications across wide spatial ranges.

In the integrated air-space-sea network, the air-based network consists of high-altitude communication platforms, drone self-organizing networks, etc., which enhance coverage, enable edge services, and allow flexible network reconstruction; the space-based network is composed of various satellite systems forming the space backbone and access networks, achieving global coverage, ubiquitous connectivity, and broadband access; the ground network mainly consists of terrestrial internet and mobile communication networks, responsible for network services in business-intensive areas; the sea-based network mainly meets the communication needs of marine activities through offshore wireless networks and satellite networks.

Through the deep integration of multi-dimensional networks, the integrated air-space-sea network can effectively utilize various resources for intelligent network control and information processing, thereby adeptly responding to the diverse demands of network services, achieving the goal of “network integration, functional service, and application customization,” showcasing vast application prospects in areas such as wide-area mobile coverage, the Internet of Things, intelligent transportation, remote sensing and monitoring, and military applications. The space-based network—especially the technologies related to low Earth orbit satellite constellations—plays a central role as a key enabling technology for constructing an omnipresent, interconnected, and all-knowing integrated network. As of August 2022, the Starlink project by SpaceX, which plans to launch 42,000 satellites to form a global broadband satellite communication network, is a leader in the competition for low Earth orbit satellite constellations. Over 3,000 low Earth orbit satellites are currently in orbit, with more than 500,000 broadband access subscribers worldwide. However, the integrated air-space-sea network also faces challenges such as high dynamics, strong heterogeneity, ultra-complexity, and diverse demands, with major research directions including network architecture design, communication protocol design, network resource management and optimization, efficient transmission technologies, and network security and privacy.

However, due to the lack of uniformity in existing communication system mechanisms, significant differences in resource distribution, the complexity and variability of wireless channels, and challenges in ensuring network security, the integrated air-space-sea network urgently needs breakthroughs in network architecture, communication protocols, resource management, and efficient transmission. Therefore, the interpretation of the technical frontiers in this field unfolds from these four aspects.

First, in terms of network architecture design, there are two major trends. The International Mobile Telecommunications Standardization Organization 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) advocates for the integration of non-terrestrial networks (NTN) (including satellites, drones, and all non-terrestrial networks) with terrestrial cellular networks, making NTN a part of 5G and future 6G networks, thus forming an interconnected integrated air-space-sea network. Another trend is the virtualized network architecture centered on software-defined networking and network function virtualization technologies, forming an efficient, globally controllable, and low-cost management architecture for the integrated air-space-sea network. Major research institutions in this direction include the University of Waterloo, Tsinghua University, and Beijing Jiaotong University.

Second, in terms of communication protocol design, the CCSDS protocol enables near-lossless multimedia stream transmission under payload constraints in the air-space-sea network through iterative processing of adjacent frames, greatly expanding the exchange capabilities of space mission information systems; the DVB series protocols overcome the limitations of traditional uplink power control on the size of RF front ends, effectively improving the spectral efficiency of satellite communication links, optimizing the space segment, and significantly reducing the cost of satellite-based IP services. However, these two protocols were proposed quite some time ago, and many organizations, including 3GPP, are exploring new communication protocols for integrated air-space-sea networks.

Third, in terms of network resource management, there are currently two main research trends: one is AI-driven resource management technology, which can adapt to the characteristics of traditional integrated air-space-sea networks with many network nodes, large decision-making space, and heterogeneous resources, thereby effectively improving the utilization of network resources; the second is resource scheduling technology based on service function chains or network slicing, which slices network resources through software-defined networking and network function virtualization technologies, ensuring business isolation among users while also meeting multi-dimensional demand indicators, thus achieving the key goal of future network service customization. Major research institutions in this direction include Tsinghua University, the University of Waterloo, Xidian University, and the National University of Defense Technology of the People’s Liberation Army of China.

Fourth, in terms of efficient transmission technologies, inter-satellite laser communication is considered a potential technology for achieving high-speed inter-satellite links. Compared to RF-based inter-satellite communication, it can achieve higher data transmission rates with smaller antenna sizes. Additionally, due to the characteristics of laser beams, inter-satellite laser links have narrower beams and higher directivity, providing greater security while eliminating interference. Currently, the main mode of inter-satellite link communication in engineering applications is still microwave communication, with preliminary inter-satellite laser communication tests and deployments expected by the end of 2023. Major research institutions in this direction include Beihang University, Xidian University, Southeast University, Beijing Jiaotong University, and Northeastern University in the United States.

In addition, the construction of low Earth orbit satellite constellation systems is also an important development direction for integrated communication networking. The Iridium mobile communication system is currently the earliest planned and deployed global coverage satellite network, proposed in the 1990s. However, due to financial and technical reasons, Iridium Inc. in the United States went bankrupt and gradually faded from public view. In 2015, SpaceX’s “Starlink” made low Earth orbit satellite networks a hot topic in academia and industry, announcing plans to launch thousands of low Earth orbit satellites to provide high-speed broadband access globally. As of now, “Starlink” has completed its preliminary deployment, with download speeds reaching up to 301 Mbps, providing internet access to dozens of countries in Europe and America. In addition, China has multiple planned low Earth orbit satellite communication systems, including “Tianqi,” “Hongyan,” “Weixing,” and “Xingwang Giant Constellation,” with the earliest expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

The distribution of the main output countries of core papers in the engineering research frontier of “Integrated Communication Theory and Technology” is shown in Table 1.2.1.

Interpretation of Global Engineering Frontiers 2022: Integrated Communication Theory and Technology

China has clear advantages, ranking first in the number of core papers, approximately three times that of Canada, which ranks second. China’s international cooperation partners are mainly Canada, with some degree of collaboration with the UK, the US, and Japan (Figure 1.2.1).

The top ten institutions producing core papers (Table 1.2.2) are led by the University of Waterloo.

Additionally, six institutions are from China, while the rest are distributed in Japan, Norway, and the UK. In terms of institutional cooperation (Figure 1.2.2), five institutions from China have close cooperation with the University of Waterloo, and two institutions have close collaboration with the University of Surrey, while Beijing Institute of Technology has some collaboration with the University of Oslo in Norway.

In terms of the number of citations of core papers (Table 1.2.3), China ranks first (49.62%), followed by the US, with other countries’ shares all below 10%. Among the top ten institutions producing cited core papers (Table 1.2.4), all except the fifth-ranked University of Waterloo are from China, reflecting China’s high attention to this direction. Currently, the theory and technology of integrated air-space-sea communication networking are at different development levels domestically and internationally, but overall, they are in the design and preliminary deployment stages.

Figure 1.2.3 shows the development roadmap of the “Integrated Communication Theory and Technology” engineering research frontier. From a technical indicator perspective, by 2025, the maximum scale of global low Earth orbit satellite constellations is expected to reach thousands, and by 2030, the scale of single constellations will reach tens of thousands; in terms of transmission performance, within the next five years, the test rate of low Earth orbit satellite networks can reach 500 Mbps, with minimum latency achievable at 60 ms. From 2027 to 2032, the test rate of low Earth orbit satellite networks will reach a minimum of 5 Gbps, with minimum latency achievable at 20 ms; in terms of global satellite network throughput, from 2022 to 2024, it will reach 97 Tbps, and from 2025 to 2028, it will reach a total throughput of 218 Tbps, expected to reach 820 Tbps before 2032.

Interpretation of Global Engineering Frontiers 2022: Integrated Communication Theory and Technology

From a development direction perspective, the main development directions of this engineering research frontier currently include the construction of air-space-sea networks, inter-satellite communication technologies, communication protocols for air-space-sea networks, satellite multi-mode fusion terminals, and the development of potential applications.

Among them, in terms of network construction, the global situation is currently in the preliminary stage of building low Earth orbit satellite constellation backbones and system terminal testing, with the backbone expected to be completed by the end of 2025, and low Earth and very low Earth satellites to be supplemented according to application needs before 2032.

In terms of inter-satellite communication technologies, the current inter-satellite communication technology for low Earth orbit satellite constellation networks is relatively weak, primarily using microwave communication, while laser communication is still in the research and development stage, with widespread use of laser transmission technology expected to begin in 2025.

In terms of multi-mode fusion terminals, terminals have high requirements for quality, volume, heterogeneous network compatibility, and application integration, and need to adapt to multiple systems, frequency bands, networks, and applications. Currently, technologies related to satellite multi-mode are only at the preliminary stage, with related products limited to gateways and larger terminals, causing significant inconvenience for fieldwork, border patrol, emergency rescue communication, and individual combat. It is expected that portable terminals will be designed and brought to market between 2025 and 2032.

In terms of potential application development, the current application scenarios for integrated air-space-sea networking and communication mainly focus on wide-area broadband access, military communication, the Internet of Things, and vehicle networking, with a relatively narrow application range. In the future, more potential businesses will be explored to further leverage the potential capabilities of integrated air-space-sea networks. Furthermore, with the strong promotion of international standardization organizations such as 3GPP and IMT2030, the standardization of integrated air-space-sea communication and networking has officially begun, with some agendas gradually being implemented, and it is expected that in the next 5 to 10 years, related technologies, protocols, and indicator requirements will be further refined.

(Content extracted from “Global Engineering Frontiers 2022”)

Cheng Nan, Professor at the School of Communication Engineering, Xidian University, PhD supervisor. Selected as a national high-level young talent, high-level talent plan in Shaanxi Province, IEEE Communication Society Asia-Pacific Outstanding Young Scholar, and Huashan Scholar Program of Xidian University. His main research directions include integrated air-space networks, vehicle communication networks, and intelligent networks. He has presided over one project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, one project of the National Key Research and Development Program, and has participated in 863 projects, National Natural Science Foundation projects, key projects of the National Natural Science Foundation, and key projects of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. He has won best paper awards at IEEE ICC 2019, IEEE GLOBECOM 2014, IEE WCSP 2015, and IEEE ICCC 2015. He has published one English academic monograph and two book chapters; has published/accepted over 80 papers in IEEE journals such as IEEE JSAC, IEEE WCM, IEEE TWC, IEEE TVT, IEEE TITS, IEEE Network, and other mainstream communication academic conferences; has been granted 9 US patents; serves as an editorial board member for IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology, IEEE Open Journal of Vehicular Technology, and Peer-to-Peer Networking and Applications, and has served as program chair for EAI International Conference on Machine Learning and Intelligent Communications’18, session chair for IEEE VTC’17, and program committee member for international conferences such as IEEE ICC and GLOBECOM.

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