T15 – Towards Integrated Positioning and Communication: From 6G Terrestrial to Non-Terrestrial Networks

Co-organizer: Henk Wymeersch, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden
Co-organizer: Yu Ge, Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden
Co-organizer: Yuchen Zhang, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia
Co-organizer: Tareq Y. Al-Naffouri, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Saudi Arabia

Abstract: Integrated positioning and communication (IPAC) is a key enabler for 6G, where wireless communication systems are jointly optimized for high-precision positioning and data transmission [1]–[3]. Building upon integrated sensing and communication (ISAC), IPAC leverages positioning and sensing to significantly enhance communication performance and reliability [4], [5]. Both terrestrial networks (TNs) and non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) play crucial roles in 6G networks [6]. TNs refer to conventional ground-based communication infrastructures, including base stations, access points, and core networks, offering robust and high-speed connectivity across urban, suburban, and rural areas. NTNs encompass spaceborne, airborne, and maritime communication systems, including satellites (LEO, MEO, GEO), high-altitude platforms (HAPs), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), providing global coverage and connectivity to remote, rural, and underserved regions [7]– [9]. Integrating IPAC within both TNs and NTNs enhances overall network performance, enabling seamless global connectivity and precise positioning critical for future applications. This tutorial aims to provide attendees with a comprehensive understanding of IPAC for 6G, highlighting fundamental principles, key enabling technologies, current challenges, and future research directions. Through theoretical insights and practical examples, attendees will explore the benefits and integration strategies of IPAC across TNs and NTNs. Four sections will be covered in this tutorial: (i) Introduction to ISAC and its evolution into IPAC within the 6G context; (ii) Fundamentals and advancements of IPAC for 6G TN; (iii) Fundamentals and advancements of IPAC for 6G NTN; (iv) Integration strategies, future research directions, and a comprehensive outlook on IPAC-enabled integrated TN and NTN systems.

Co-organizer’s Bios:

Henk Wymeersch

Henk Wymeersch (Fellow, IEEE) obtained the Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering/Applied Sciences in 2005 from Ghent University, Belgium. He is currently a Professor of Communication Systems with the Department of Electrical Engineering at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden. He is also a Distinguished Research Associate with Eindhoven University of Technology. Prior to joining Chalmers, he was a postdoctoral researcher from 2005 until 2009 with the Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prof. Wymeersch served as Associate Editor for IEEE Communication Letters (2009-2013), IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications (since 2013), and IEEE Transactions on Communications (2016-2018) and is currently Senior Member of the IEEE Signal Processing Magazine Editorial Board. During 2019-2021, he was an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer with the Vehicular Technology Society. His current research interests include the convergence of communication and sensing, in a 5G and Beyond 5G context.

Yu Ge

Yu Ge (Member, IEEE) received his Ph.D. Degree in the Department of Electrical Engineering from Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden in 2024, his M.Sc. degree from KTH Royal Institute of Technology in 2019, and his B.E. degree from Zhejiang University in 2017. He is currently a Postdoctoral Researcher at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden. To date, he has published over 30 IEEE journal and conference papers, authored 2 book chapters, and holds 2 US patents. He also received the “FUSION 2021 Best Paper” award. Yu has served as a TPC member for several conferences, and as a Reviewer for several journals and conferences. His research interests focus on integrated sensing and communication, wireless localization systems, and radio simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), with particular emphasis on 5G and beyond 5G scenarios.

Yuchen Zhang

Yuchen Zhang (Member, IEEE) received his B.E. and Ph.D. degrees in communication engineering from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in 2018 and 2024, respectively.
His Ph.D. research was supervised by Prof. Wanbin Tang, Head of the National Key Laboratory of Wireless Communications. From 2022 to 2023, he was a visiting Ph.D. student at the Weizmann
Institute of Science, working on integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) under the guidance of Prof. Yonina C. Eldar. Since October 2024, he has been a postdoctoral researcher at King
Abdullah University of Science and Technology, collaborating with Prof. Tareq Y. Al-Naffouri. He has served as a TPC member for several conferences, and as a Reviewer for multiple journals and
conferences. His current research interests focuse on 6G LEO communication and positioning, radio positioning, ISAC, and reconfigurable antenna-enabled communications, sensing, and positioning.

Tareq Y. Al-Naffouri

Tareq Y. Al-Naffouri (Fellow, IEEE) received the B.S. degree (Hons.) in mathematics and electrical engineering from the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, in
1996, the M.S. degree in electrical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA, in 1998, and the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA, in 2004.,He was a Visiting Scholar with California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA, in 2005 and summer 2006. He was a Fulbright Scholar with the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA, in 2008. He is currently a Professor with the Electrical and Computer Engineering Program, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. He has over 300 publications in journals and conference proceedings and 20 issued/pending patents. His research interests lie in the areas of sparse, adaptive, and statistical signal processing and their applications to wireless communications and localization, machine learning, and network information theory., Dr. Al-Naffouri was a recipient of the IEEE Education Society Chapter Achievement Award in 2008, the Al-Marai Award for Innovative Research in Communication in 2009, and Abdul Hameed Shoman Arab Researchers Award in 2022. He was an Associate Editor of IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing from 2013 to 2018.