Integrated Communication, Sensing, and Computation Framework for 6G Networks

TL;DR

This paper proposes an integrated framework for 6G networks that combines communication, sensing, and computation to improve reliability, latency, accuracy, and security for intelligent machine network applications.

Contribution

It introduces the ICSAC framework that unifies communication, sensing, and computation functions through reciprocity, enabling enhanced performance and security in 6G networks.

Findings

Feasibility of the ICSAC framework demonstrated through evaluation of enabling technologies.

Reciprocity between sensing, communication, and computation improves network performance.

Unified platforms using shared signals enhance sensing and communication capabilities.

Abstract

In the sixth generation (6G) era, intelligent machine network (IMN) applications, such as intelligent transportation, require collaborative machines with communication, sensing, and computation (CSC) capabilities. This article proposes an integrated communication, sensing, and computation (ICSAC) framework for 6G to achieve the reciprocity among CSC functions to enhance the reliability and latency of communication, accuracy and timeliness of sensing information acquisition, and privacy and security of computing to realize the IMN applications. Specifically, the sensing and communication functions can merge into unified platforms using the same transmit signals, and the acquired real-time sensing information can be exploited as prior information for intelligent algorithms to enhance the performance of communication networks. This is called the computing-empowered integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) reciprocity. Such reciprocity can further improve the performance of distributed computation with the assistance of networked sensing capability, which is named the sensing-empowered integrated communications and computation (ICAC) reciprocity. The above ISAC and ICAC reciprocities can enhance each other iteratively and finally lead to the ICSAC reciprocity. To achieve these reciprocities, we explore the potential enabling technologies for the ICSAC framework. Finally, we present the evaluation results of crucial enabling technologies to show the feasibility of the ICSAC framework.