SNS JU August 2024 Newsflash

In this last newsflash of August 2024, find back

- a recap of events where SNS JU or the 5G and 6G communities have an impact,
- join the discussion followed by SNS JU projects news
- and do not miss any coming events in the Save-the-Dates !

5G and 6G Events catch-up:

SNS projects and ETSI’s OpenCAPIF

In July 2024, ETSI announced the first release of OpenCAPIF which has now been made available in the ETSI labs. This new version includes a series of features and developments that will allow to deliver a more resilient, efficient and secure API Management Platform.

FIDAL, alongside SNS projects 6G-SANDBOX, ENVELOPE, IMAGINE B5G, ORIGAMI, SAFE-6G and SUNRISE-6G has been working in the SDG to provide feedback to the open source implementation of OpenCAPIF.

In FIDAL, the deployment of OpenCAPIF has been integrated with the UC 1 Network Application from OWO. The UC looks at remote sensing in real time through Beyond 5G haptic senses devices. This integration has provided feedback that has been integrated into the Release 1 of OpenCAPIF.

More information on the Release will be presented in webinar organized by ETSI on 17th September at 3:00 pm CEST. Events registrations are now open at this link.

Access the ETSI Press Release

SNS 6G-PATH, NANCY and 5G PPP Smart5Grid projects @AIAI 2024 International Conference / 5G-PINE 2024 Workshop

6G-PATH participated in the 20th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence Applications and Innovations – AIAI 2024, held from 27-30 June 2024 at the Ionian University, Corfu, Greece.

In particular, 6G-PATH participated in the 9th 5G-PINE (“Putting Intelligence to the Network Edge”) Workshop, held in conjunction with AIAI 2024, where five EU-funded Horizon projects (6G-PATH, NANCY, Smart5Grid, AMBITIOUS and DATAMITE) joined efforts towards creating an interactive context for discussing the evolution towards B5G/6G via dedicated use cases and corresponding infrastructures. Dr. Ioannis Chochliouros – OTE presented the original 6G-PATH framework aiming to identify and analyze synergetic actions with other research projects, especially in verticals.

SUPERIOT @CIMTEC 2024 (Conference on Moder, Materials and Technologies 2024)

Emanuel Carlos from Nova attended CIMTEC 2024 in Montecatini in Italy at the end of June 2024. His presentation “Solution processing of metal oxide memristors: from coating to printing”, covered several topics related to the SUPERIOT project and was well received at the event.

CONFIDENTIAL 6G @ Artificial Intelligence and Cryptography 2024 (AICRYPT 2024)

Antonio Guimaraes from IMDEA SOFTWARE INSTITUTE, a member of the CONFIDENTIAL 6G consortium, attended the 4th workshop in Artificial Intelligence and Cryptography (AICRYPT 2024), which took place alongside EUROCRYPT 2024 on May 26, 2024, in Zurich, Switzerland.
About AICrypt: The workshop underscored the growing synergy between Artificial Intelligence (AI) and security, emphasizing their role in enhancing cryptography’s resilience and efficiency. AICrypt explored leading-edge applications where AI techniques have revolutionized cryptographic practices, from safeguarding against implementation attacks to securing AI systems themselves.

Topics Covered

Deep learning-based cryptanalysis
Explainability of AI models for cryptanalysis
AI-driven attacks on cryptographic protocols
AI-assisted design of cryptographic primitives
Cryptographic countermeasures for AI system security and privacy

Researchers were invited to submit extended abstracts. Accepted submissions were presented as contributed talks.

Participants engaged in insightful discussions, collaborative opportunities, and networked with experts from academia and industry. The event provided a platform to influence the future of AI and cryptography.

ADROIT-6G @ IEEE International Conference on High Performance Switching and Routing 2024 (HPSR 2024)

NEXTWORKS, a member of the ADROIT-6G consortium, attended the IEEE HPSR 2024 in Pisa, Italy.

ADROIT-6G was showcased at a booth, where Nextworks S.r.l. presented the joint demo that collaborated on with Orange Romania. The demo, titled “AI/ML Framework and Closed Loops for Automated Service Operation and Network Slice Performance Prediction,” highlights our ongoing efforts in leveraging AI/ML to enhance network automation and performance prediction.

TARGET-X Open Day

On September 17, 2024 from 9 am to 5 pm CEST, TARGET-X invites the industry to gain insights in Aachen, Germany at the Campus Melaten to the use cases, the project goals for the future and visit demos at different sites of the 5G-Industry-Campus Europe test-bed.

SUNRISE-6G at NCSR Demokritos Summer School 2024

SUNRISE-6G participated at the NCSR Demokritos (NCSRD) Summer School 2024, held for the 59th year, from July 8 to 12, 2024, in Athens, Greece.

The event focused on Information Technology and telecommunications, Nanotechnology and Modern Materials, Energy, and Environment Safety, providing a dynamic platform for researchers and postgraduate students to exchange insights, forge new partnerships, and explore cutting-edge innovations.

The Front Research Group of NCSRD actively engaged researchers and postgraduate students in discussions about SUNRISE-6G objectives and 6G experimentation during the event’s poster session.

SNS JU Project news:

Online SNS Workshop on “THz multi-functional RISs and ISAC”

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On 8 October 2024, several SNS projects participate in the Integrated Sensing and Communication towards 6G” Workshop “Online workshop on integrated sensing and communication towards 6G”. The full-day event will see presenters from Hexa-X II, 6G-DISAC, BeGreen, TERRAMETA, 6G-SENSES, INSTINCT, ISEE 6G and 6G-MUSICAL. with the talk “THz multi-functional RISs and ISAC”, on 8 October 2024.

Registration: https://hexa-x-ii.eu/sns-isac-workshop/

Agenda: SNS-Workhop-Agenda-100624

RIGOUROUS preliminary results

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The RIGOUROUS project continues to evolve and is nearing major deliverable checkpoints. It presented the preliminary results of Tasks 1-4 in its D3.2.

Task 1: Human-Centric Security, Privacy Modeling, and Onboarding
Task 2: AI-Driven Cross-Domain Security and Privacy Orchestration in IoT-Edge-Cloud Continuum
Task 3: Zero Trust and Smart Security Management
Task 4: End-to-End Multidomain Multi-Tenant 6G Slicing

Read more about RIGOUROUS preliminary results here.

SUNRISE-6G latest contributions at the 3GPP SA WG2 meetings

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SUNRISE-6G and Lenovo presented significant contributions at 3GPP SA WG2 meetings.

Vertical Federated Learning Solution

At SA WG2 Meeting #162 in Changsha, China, Lenovo introduced the “Solution for KI#2: Support for Vertical Federated Learning (VFL): Model Training and Inference” as part of the FS_AIML_CN work item for Rel-19.

Key Features:

Sample and Feature Alignment: Ensures all VFL participants are synchronised before the federated learning process begins.
Coordinated Training: Manages active and passive participants for optimal data use and model accuracy.
Distributed Inference: Facilitates efficient, scalable inference leveraging multiple VFL participants.

This contribution aligns with SUNRISE-6 G’s goal of employing state-of-the-art transfer learning, including federated learning and continual learning techniques. It proposes procedures that can enable vertical federated learning across different testbeds.

DualSteer Solution Based on ATSSS

Lenovo also proposed (at SA WG2 Meeting #162) the “DualSteer Solution Based on ATSSS” as part of the FS_MASSS work item for Release 19.

Highlights:

Dual 3GPP Access Paths: Supports MA PDU Sessions with two 3GPP paths, and optionally, one non-3GPP path.
Minimal Network Impact: Seamless integration without extensive 5G registration changes.
Versatile Connectivity: Utilizes MPTCP or MPQUIC for robust data transmission.

This solution supports SUNRISE-6 G’s aim to enable multi-access connectivity using terrestrial (NR) and non-terrestrial (NR-NTN) access paths. The proposed new multi-access solution supports multi-access connectivity using two 3GPP access paths.

Updated DualSteer Solution

At the SA WG2 Meeting #163 in Jeju, South Korea. Lenovo presented updates to the above solution, “DualSteer Solution Based on ATSSS” to:

Addresses several Editor’s Notes
Clarify procedures for dual USIM devices.
Improve ATSSS and N4 rules for better traffic management.

These updates align with the SUNRISE-6G objectives in Task 4.4 to support Multi-RAT Dual connectivity for NTN-terrestrial access.

6G-SANDBOX signs MoU with University of Malaya

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Under the project leadership of Keysight, the Horizon Europe-funded 6G-SANDBOX project signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Universiti Malaya to advance innovation in the field of 6G networks. This is the second major MoU that 6G SANDBOX has signed with an Asian organization to promote global cooperation for 6G research. The collaboration with Universiti Malaya will be focused on integrating technologies, applications and experimental networks from the university onto the 6G-SANDBOX testbeds, enabling joint 6G networks research, trials, and demonstrations.

Press Release

TrialsNet: Field Visit of the Trial facility

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Ericsson, Telefónica, YBVR, Prosegur, and UC3M, visited the WiZink Center as it will be the venue of the field trials for UC1, UC6 and UC10.

Many technical and logistics questions needed a field visit to be answered, physically viewing and measuring the spaces where to execute the trial scenarios and where to locate the different devices. This was made possible thanks to WiZink and Estudiantes.

HORSE – What-if loop in Network Digital Twins by Jose Manuel Manjón Cáliz, Telefónica Innovación Digital

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The HORSE project introduced a new concept that works with the Network Digital Twin (NDT) and the Intent-Based Interface (IBI), this is the what-if loop. This concept is enclosed in a scenario where the goal is to mitigate attacks on the network.

The what-if loop starts on the IBI, which send a request about any countermeasure that wants to apply to a certain attack, in a concrete point of the network and with a specific KPI. Some examples for a DDoS DNS attack about this what-if request can be:

WHAT is the latency in a specific interface of DNS client IF we apply a rate limit of 20 Mbps in the DNS server.
WHAT is the bandwidth in a specific interface of DNS client IF we block port 53 in the DNS server.

With these definitions, the Network Digital Twin can work by testing the concrete scenarios proposed by the IBI. Then, the NDT will answer those questions by sending the KPIs that were specified on the what-if requests.

The Model Translator will be the module inside the NDT that will translate the intents coming from the IBI and apply it in the NDT infrastructure. Also, it translates the responses that will be sent back to the IBI.

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The 6G-TWIN SNS project will contribute to the 2024 ETSI Security Conference in Sophia-Antipolis, France from 14 to 17 October 2024.

Members of the consortium ERICSSON and R2M Solution France have prepared and will present a poster which outlines the security-related aspects of the 6G-TWIN project.

Registration to the event is free at https://portal.etsi.org/Meetings.aspx#/meeting?MtgId=48216.

Poster title: Integrating Network Digital Twinning into Future AI-based 6G Systems

Poster abstract: 6G technology is anticipated to bring transformative benefits, including unprecedented speeds, ultra-low latency, and enhanced connectivity. These advancements will support a multitude of applications, from immersive augmented reality to advanced telemedicine. Integrating 6G with Digital Twin (DT) technology is expected to further revolutionize network management by providing powerful tools for design, development, and optimization. Digital Twins offer real-time simulation, predictive analytics, and seamless integration of physical and digital systems. However, this integration also introduces significant security and privacy challenges. These challenges include ensuring secure interfaces, protecting data during sharing, achieving consistent data harmonization, and safeguarding AI model training processes from malicious attacks. Addressing these concerns is crucial for the successful deployment of DT within 6G frameworks. This work explores the specific requirements and challenges associated with incorporating DT into the 6G architecture, with a dedicated focus on data privacy and security.

6G-MUSICAL @ Sequences and Their Applications 2024 (SETA 2024)

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Prof Christos Masouros (UCL) was invited to present a distinguished talk at the 12^th “Sequences and Their Applications” (SETA) 2024 conference, held from 1 to 5 July 2024 at the Colchester campus of the University of Essex, UK.

SETA is a prestigious international conference promoting interaction among experts in sequences, signals, waveform design, mathematicians, coding theorists, cryptographic researchers, and communication practitioners worldwide.

The presentation, titled “Sustainable and Multifunctional Wireless Networks”, explored advancements in the future global cellular infrastructure, which is crucial for various emerging applications, including smart city solutions, urban security, infrastructure monitoring, and smart mobility.

More information is available here.

EXIGENCE reaffirms the need to urgently act to increase sustainability of ICT.

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It’s evident that the ongoing digitization of society and recent ICT trends are also transforming the telecommunications landscape, which in turn is leading to increased power consumption and CO2 production.

Generations like 4G and 5G have already made strides in reducing radio power consumption, but when looking at future projections of ICT’s carbon footprint, despite 5G’s more efficient radio transmission technology, it could still contribute to a significant increase in energy demand in data centers by up to 3.8 TWh by 2025

This underscores the pressing need for innovative approaches to reduce the carbon footprint of ICT services, particularly in the context of 6G; the next-generation mobile telecommunications.

The urgency to act is further emphasized by initiatives like the European Green Deal [4], which aims to make Europe carbon-neutral and highlights the importance of circular economy principles. The Sustainable Products Initiative (SPI) under the European Green Deal may require reliable carbon footprint measurements for all products and services provided in the EU, including ICT services.

Read more EXIGENCE ambition and approach here.

6G-TWIN three scientific papers published

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The 6G-TWIN project has just published three scientific papers, marking significant progress on integrating network digital twinning into future AI-based 6G systems:

Integrating Network Digital Twinning into Future AI-based 6G Systems: The 6G-TWIN Vision
Digital Twinning for 6G Teleoperated Driving: The 6G-TWIN Vision
Designing, Developing, and Validating Network Intelligence for Scaling in Service-Based Architectures based on Deep Reinforcement Learning

The papers are all available on the project’s resources page. Click to read the three publications.

6G-EWOC at European Conference on Optical Communications (ECOC)

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The 6G-EWOC project will present its first project results at ECOC in Frankfurt, from 22 to 26 September, 2024.

The 6G‐EWOC consortium builds on 11 partners and is led by the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) as the project coordinator and the Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC) as the technical manager. Further partners include the RTO Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT), industrial photonic design and fabrication experts III‐VLaband Ligentec, small and medium enterprises Bifrost Communications and Beamagine specialized in the fields of communication and sensing. The industry end‐user perspective will be provided through the mobility technology company Magna, the telecom and datacom system integrators Nokia Bell Labs and Nvidia,and the telecom operator OTE.

SAFE-6G paper “A Proof-of-Concept Implementation of an AI-assisted User centric 6G network”

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The SAFE-6G paper entitled “A Proof-of-Concept Implementation of an AI-assisted User-Centric 6G Network” accepted at EuCNC & 6G Summit 2024 is now available.

The design of the 6G system will be based on a user-centric paradigm, enabling users to be involved in the creation and the management of network services and also providing them with a highly customized network experience. This paper proposes a realization of this paradigm by proposing a core network redesign from “Network Function-focus” to “User-focus” in conjunction with an AI-assisted approach that self-organises the network according to the user-requirements. A proof of concept implementation is presented based on both simulated and physical deployments, that demonstrate an optimal UPF placement taking into consideration user’s preferences, proving the validity of the proposed approach.

Find it online here: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/10597020

VERGE conference paper presented at ISWCS 2024

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VERGE project was represented at the ISWCS’24 conference, held in Rio de Janeiro from July 14 to 17, with a paper entitled “Low Layer Functional Split Management in 5G and Beyond: Architecture and Self-adaptation”. David Campoy (UPC) presented the paper, discussing an example from VERGE’s AI4Edge solution portfolio.