Edge-Side Residual Timing and Frequency Control for Software-Defined Ground Stations in 5G NTN Uplinks

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that an edge-side residual timing and frequency control loop in a software-defined ground station can significantly improve uplink stability and performance in 5G non-terrestrial networks, especially under rapid LEO satellite dynamics.

Contribution

It introduces a systems-and-control approach with hardware-in-the-loop validation showing the effectiveness of residual timing/frequency loops at the ground station in 5G NTN uplinks.

Findings

Edge-controlled mode reduces mean RTT from 70.51 ms to 32.84 ms.

Improves artifact-level goodput from 80.14 Mbps to 196.04 Mbps.

Keeps residual timing and frequency errors within stable bounds.

Abstract

This paper studies a ground-segment implementation problem in 5G non-terrestrial networks (NTN): once UE-side geometric pre-compensation has produced a coarse timing/frequency prior, can an edge-side residual loop keep the uplink inside an NR-feasible operating region under rapid LEO dynamics? We examine this question with a software-defined ground station (SDGS) design that keeps the coarse prior at the UE and closes the residual timing-advance (TA) / carrier-frequency-offset (CFO) loop at the ground-station edge. This paper takes a systems-and-control view rather than proposing a full-stack intelligent architecture. Its evidence base consists of a March 2026 hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) campaign and a companion uncertainty analysis. The HIL campaign includes same-window reference runs collected on the same platform with edge residual control disabled, but it does not include a cloud-loop benchmark. The placement claim is therefore architectural and control-oriented rather than a head-to-head cloud-versus-edge proof. In the Shenzhen steady-state tracking interval, the edge-controlled mode lowers mean RTT from 70.51 +/- 2.34 ms to 32.84 +/- 2.56 ms and, within the retained Layer-3 transport mapping, improves artifact-level goodput from 80.14 +/- 0.14 Mbps to 196.04 +/- 1.87 Mbps relative to that reference configuration. Across four ground-station locations, the closed-loop controller keeps residual TA P95 at 0.49 us and residual CFO P95 within 76-77 Hz. Together with the uncertainty analysis, these observations support a bounded claim: an edge-side residual timing/frequency loop can keep the SDGS uplink in a more stable NR-feasible operating regime under the assumptions retained in the current HIL artifact.