REMLAB: Full-Stack ns-3 Framework for REM-Based Location-Aided Beam Management in 5G-NR Networks

Abstract

Communication at millimeter-wave (mm-wave) enables unprecedented data rates for 5G-and-beyond cellular networks but relies on precise beam alignment to overcome the challenging propagation characteristics at higher frequencies. Leveraging additional sensor-aided context information for beam management, such as location data, has been proposed to reduce the search space of feasible directional beam-pair-links and reduce signaling overhead. So far, evaluation of such location-aided schemes has largely been based on simplified and limited-scope simulation scenarios, without accounting for the complexity and performance implications in real end-to-end cellular networks. In this work, we present REMLAB, a first-of-its-kind framework for REM-based location-aided beam management in the full-stack 5G-NR-compliant network simulator ns-3 and make our code publicly available. Our framework provides access to network performance metrics and parameters that can only be obtained in realistic end-to-end network simulation, such as the signaling overhead required for beam management. We evaluate REMLAB in an example urban mobility scenario and show an improvement in average IP throughput of at least 24% and up to 46% over default 5G-NR by eliminating the need for periodic control signaling. Furthermore, towards the evaluation of practical REM-based schemes, we implement a realistic location error model and show that localization errors increase the radio link failure duration. This highlights that the real-world feasibility of context-based beam management in 5G-and-beyond networks depends on the development and detailed evaluation of sensor-error-aware schemes.

Authors 3

1. Aron Schott Aachen Institute for Networked Systems (INETS)

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   RWTH Aachen University,Institute for Networked Systems,Aachen,Germany

2. Artiom Palovandov Aachen Institute for Networked Systems (INETS)

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   RWTH Aachen University,Institute for Networked Systems,Aachen,Germany

3. Ljiljana Simić Aachen Institute for Networked Systems (INETS)

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   RWTH Aachen University,Institute for Networked Systems,Aachen,Germany