T10 – Localization-of-Things for Next-Generation Networks

Co-presenter: Moe Z. Win, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA
Co-presenter: Andrea Conti, University of Ferrara, Italy

Abstract: The availability of real-time and precise location awareness is essential for current and future wireless applications, particularly those involving Internet-of-Things and next-generation networks (beyond 5G toward 6G). The coming years will see the emergence of network localization and navigation in challenging wireless environments with sub-meter accuracy, low latency, and minimal infrastructure requirements. This will call for the Localization-of-Things (LoT), a recent paradigm referring to locating, tracking, and navigating collaborative and non-collaborative nodes (e.g., sensors, vehicles, and objects). LoT will be a critical component for a variety of applications including connected communities, smart environments, vehicle autonomy, asset tracking, medical services, military systems, and crowd sensing. As the ability to localize devices in wireless networks becomes increasingly important, it is necessary to be aware of both the fundamentals and the state of the art in location aware networks.

We will discuss the limitations of traditional positioning and move on to the key enablers for high accuracy location awareness: wideband transmission and cooperative processing. Topics covered will include: theoretical foundations, machine-learning based algorithms, network experimentation, and performance in 3GPP standardized scenarios for 5G and beyond networks. Theoretical foundations provide performance benchmarks and blueprints for network design. Machine-learning based algorithms exploiting soft information (SI), instead of single value estimates of time and angle, are a way to achieve dramatic performance improvements compared to existing techniques. To harness these benefits, system designers must consider realistic operational settings; thus, we present the performance of SI-based localization algorithms in 3GPP scenarios.

Co-presenter’s Bios:

Moe Z. Win:

Moe Z. Win is the Robert R. Taylor Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Prior to joining MIT, he was at AT&T Research Laboratories and at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. His research focuses on decision science and quantum information—encompassing fundamental theory, algorithm design, and network experimentation—for a broad range of real-world problems. His current research topics include AI-native xG networks; space-air-ground networks; network localization and navigation; networked control; ultra-wideband systems; and quantum sensing, communications, and control. Professor Win has served the IEEE Communications Society as an elected Member-at-Large on the Board of Governors, as elected Chair of the Radio Communications Committee, and as an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer. Over the last two decades, he held various Editorial posts for IEEE journals and organized numerous international conferences. He has served on the SIAM Diversity Advisory Committee. He was honored with two IEEE Technical Field Awards: the IEEE Kiyo Tomiyasu Award and the IEEE Eric E. Sumner Award. Other recognitions include the MIT Frank E. Perkins Award, the MIT Everett Moore Baker Award, the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society James Evans Avant Garde Award, the IEEE Communications Society Edwin H. Armstrong Achievement Award, the Cristoforo Colombo International Prize for Communications, the Copernicus Fellowship and the Laurea Honoris Causa from the Università degli Studi di Ferrara, and the U.S. Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. Professor Win is elected Fellow of the AAAS, the EURASIP, the IEEE, and the IET.

Andrea Conti:

Andrea Conti is a Professor at the University of Ferrara and Research Affiliate at the MIT Wireless Information and Network Sciences Laboratory. His research interests involve theory and experimentation of wireless systems and networks including network localization and distributed sensing. He received the HTE Puskás Tivadar Medal, the IEEE Communications Society’s Stephen O. Rice Prize in the field of Communications Theory, and the IEEE Communications Society’s Fred W. Ellersick Prize. Dr. Conti has served as editor for IEEE journals, as well as chaired international conferences. He has been elected Chair of the IEEE Communications Society’s Radio Communications Technical Committee. He is a co-founder and elected Secretary of the IEEE Quantum Communications & Information Technology Emerging Technical Subcommittee. Professor Conti is an elected Fellow of the IEEE and of the IET, and he has been selected as an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer.