Complementary SNS experimental Pan-EU federated Infrastructure -

The main outcome will be the availability of an evolvable large scale experimental infrastructure for the duration of the SNS programme, which complements the infrastructure under development by the Phase 1 project portfolio, with capabilities for federation of existing experimental platforms and that makes it possible to:

• Validate a representative end-to-end 6G architecture including, disaggregated and open architectures, secure end-to-end service provisioning with slicing capabilities and ability to accommodate technological and architectural disruptions of 6G. Validation covers architectures beyond the 5G SBA, notably the AI native architecture with end-to-end AI based management capabilities, as well as cloud continuum including operational multi-access edge computing.
• Work towards the availability of European federated open platforms for advanced 6G wireless systems testing and integration within Europe with capability extension towards other national testbeds (e.g. US). Support where possible the development of synergies with 6G platforms developed in EU Member States (MSs) or Associated countries at national level in the context of 6G national R&I programmes.
• Assess 6G KPIs in the context of interoperability and cross region experiments of 6G networks, services and devices.
• Demonstrate the operational performance of key 6G candidate technologies, components, and architectures operating across various frequency bands. This also includes demo capabilities at basic building block level (e.g. m-MIMO, waveform…) or at system level (e.g. cell free network). To that extent, technologies as identified notably under Stream B Strands may be considered as a baseline. Support to impactful contribution to standards is also in scope.
• Demonstrate technological/operational feasibility of “better than 5G / 5G Advanced” KPIs, related indicatively to capacity, ubiquity, speed, latency, reliability, density of users, location accuracy, energy efficiency, service creation time, network management CAPEX/OPEX. It will include capability to incorporate emerging 6G specific KPIs and the capability to address key KVIs as developed by previous 5G PPP and SNS projects.
• Integrate full value chain experiments covering IoT/devices, connectivity, and service delivery.
• Support innovative use cases and applications for the large-scale trials and pilots with vertical actors to be carried out in Stream D projects, 5G Advanced capabilities and to support showcasing events.
• Support the demonstration of the technological operational feasibility of key societal requirements and objectives such as energy reduction at both platform and use case levels, EMF impact and acceptability, sustainability, security, trust and resilience. Other key societal indicators include coverage, accessibility and affordability of the technology.
• Validate management functions such as zero-touch and fully automated operation with a high level of trust with security measures and processes including and covering the full technological chain, from device to service provision and execution of trustworthy and exchange of actionable information.
• Support integration of key 6G related KDT developments, though integration of wireless/processing advanced components within the platform.

Please refer to the "Specific Challenges and Objectives" section for Stream C in the Work Programme, available under ‘Topic Conditions and Documents - Additional Documents’.

The target 6G experimental infrastructures provides the capability to support the demonstration and operational validation of the most ambitious use-case scenarios as deriving from the European 6G vision. It includes the capability to interconnect the physical world, the digital world and the human world based on a connectivity and service platform with performance capabilities beyond current 5G and 5G Advanced platforms and IoT application scenarios. The target experimental platform hence includes validation capabilities at every relevant layer of the IoT-connectivity-service provision value chain, covering typically innovative components and microelectronic capabilities, fixed/multi radio access (including NTN), backhaul, core network, and service technologies and architectures, covering disaggregated scenarios like Open architectures blurring RAN and core. End-to-end virtualisation and network slicing are key components to support multi-tenant environments, integration of private/non-public and public networks and multiple vertical use cases. Coverage includes the device and IoT integration and the cloud edge capabilities with scale up capabilities for demanding services-based on a clear EU strategy for an edge integration into a complete cloud continuum.

The experimental platforms will offer the capability to support disaggregated architectures enabling software and hardware implementations eventually able to support AI native 6G services including end-to-end service provisioning with advanced slicing capabilities. It is also futureproof by enabling to incorporate novel or disruptive technological approaches, and notably new spectrum and associated technologies, “AI-based service architectures”, communication and computing integration, AI-based zero-touch management and intelligence connectivity, integration of communication and sensing capabilities as typical, though not limitative capabilities. The target experimental environment is also capable for supporting and demonstrating key non-functional properties and in particular end-to-end security, security provision in the context of further integration into a larger environment (hyperscalers), energy efficiency at both platform and use case levels, and EMF-awareness.

The scope includes an open, disaggregated, versatile, and unified end-to-end platform operating over multiple interconnected B5G/6G sites in multiple European countries and following where possible open architectures at cloud implementation level thus, delivering the highest degrees of performance, flexibility and functionality for supporting testing and validation of innovative B5G/6G use cases such as holographic, XR/VR/telepresence, digital twins, cooperative robots, AI-as-a-service and haptic communications.

The demonstration/operational capabilities of the target platform are to be assessed against a set of emerging KPIs and KVIs as typically defined by the 6G international community and on-going initiatives. Proposals should be flexible enough to accommodate new relevant KPIs as they become available from the wider 6G community and from potential use cases.

To provide the required openness to host vertical use case pilots it is desirable that the platforms support open framework principles (e.g., both legal and technical like open APIs) enabling future vertical projects to access and use them. It is also strongly desirable that these facilities are built in a way that allows the evaluation of competing technologies where appropriate. Openness is also a key requirement for “partial implementation” of demonstration capabilities. In that case, well defined infra and service interfaces will have to be defined in view of interoperability with complementary platforms.

It is important to note that the stakeholders will commit that the result will be easily replicated in the same or additional locations/countries if this platform will be selected for large scale trials as part of Stream D.

The target experimental facilities and their modules should be open and accessible for a long enough period to allow for an easy handover from one phase to the other. Conditions should allow experimental facilities to be easily reused under fair and reasonable conditions for subsequent phases of the SNS programme implementation.

One important target is that the experimental platform is expected to manage the development of federation capabilities to enable interoperation with existing platforms (e.g., SNS Phase 1 platforms, or platforms developed in national initiatives) with identification and development of needed tools, technologies and architectures, including Open API’s. The objective is to potentially enable demonstration capabilities by federating multiple platforms, for advanced use cases for future phases of Stream D. Provision of capabilities to extend such a federation to non-EU based technologies and platforms would be an asset, notably in the context of EU-US cooperation under WP 2023, and also to prepare for future calls.

Evaluation of core 6G technologies and architectures in the context of specific 6G use cases may be considered but is not mandatory.

In view of ensuring maximum take up of the validated technologies, proposals should include a significant representation of European players with strong demonstrated impact at standardisation level.

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