In this paper, we present a practical solution to support the adaptable and automated deployment of applications of Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (SUAVs). Our solution is based on virtualization technologies, and considers SUAVs as programmable network platforms capable of executing virtual functions and services, which may be dynamically selected according to the requirements specified by the operator of the aerial vehicles. This way, SUAVs can be flexibly and rapidly adapted to different missions with heterogeneous objectives. The design of our solution is based on Network Function Virtualization (NFV) technologies, developed under the umbrella of the fifth generation of mobile networks (5G), as well as on existing Internet protocol standards, including flying ad hoc network routing protocols. We implemented a functional prototype of our solution using well-known open source technologies, and we demonstrated its practical feasibility with the execution of an IP telephony service. This service was implemented as a set of virtualized network functions, which were automatically deployed and interconnected over an infrastructure of SUAVs, being the telephony service tested with real voice-over-IP terminals.
Management and orchestration of virtual resources and functions, commonly referred to as MANO, are key functionalities of Network Function Virtualization (NFV) environments. This paper describes the design and deployment of the NFV MANO platform of 5TONIC, the open research and innovation laboratory on 5G technologies founded by Telefonica and IMDEA Networks. This NFV MANO platform provides 5TONIC trials and experiments with access to a functional production-like NFV environment, enabling experimentation with novel NFV products and services. As a relevant feature, the platform is capable of incorporating external sites to complement the portfolio of software and hardware resources that can be made available for experimentation activities. The 5TONIC MANO platform has been designed and built using open-source technologies. The research carried out during its design and deployment has resulted in a contribution already made to its upstream projects, regarding the automated configuration of virtualized network functions. Finally, we explored the scalability properties of the 5TONIC MANO platform, and we experimentally validated its functional capacity to orchestrate multi-site experiments.
In this paper, we explore the strong potential of Network Function Virtualization (NFV) technologies to enable multi-mission small unmanned aircraft systems. In this context, we analyze the main challenges of using NFV technologies in this emergent field, and we present the design of an NFV system that supports the flexible, automated and cost-effective deployment of network services over small unmanned aerial vehicles. To validate our design, we implemented its most relevant components with open-source technologies, using this first prototype of the system to carry out a set of preliminary experiments that showcase its feasibility and functionality.
The fifth generation of mobile networks (5G) is expected to provide diverse and stringent improvements such as greater connectivity, bandwidth, throughput, availability, improved coverage, and lower latency. Considering this, drones or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Internet of Things (IoT) devices are perfect examples of existing technology that can take advantage of the capabilities provided by 5G technology. In particular, UAVs are expected to be an important component of 5G networks implementations and support different communication requirements and applications. UAVs working together with 5G can potentially facilitate the deployment of standalone or complementary communications infrastructures, and, due to its rapid deployment, these solutions are suitable candidates to provide network services in emergency scenarios, natural disasters, and search and rescue missions. An important consideration in the deployment of a programmable drone fleet is to guarantee the reliability and performance of the services through consistent monitoring, control, and management scheme. In this regard, the Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) paradigm, a key technology within the 5G ecosystem, can be used to perform automation, management, and orchestration tasks. In addition, to ensure the coordination and reliability in the communications systems, considering that the UAVs have a finite lifetime and that eventually they must be replaced, a scheduling scheme is needed to guarantee the availability of services and efficient resource utilization. To this end, in this paper is presented an UAV scheduling scheme which leverages the potential offered by NFV. The proposed strategy, based on a brute-force search combinatorial algorithm, allows obtaining the optimal scheduling of UAVs in time, in order to efficiently deploy network services. Simulation results validate the performance of the proposed strategy, by providing the number of drones needed to meet certain levels of service availability. Furthermore, the strategy allows knowing the sequence of replacement of UAVs to ensure the optimal resource utilization.
Advanced communication networks, such as 5G and beyond, will be a complex ecosystem made of multiple physically interconnected elements, implying that the upcoming network will have to address capabilities such as flexibility, programmability and extensibility. This article, describes an Open and Extensible 5G Network Function Virtualisation (NFV) based Reference ecosystem of experimental facilities, named 5GinFIRE, that integrates existing facilities with new vertical-specific ones but also lays down the foundations for instantiation fully softwarised architectures of vertical industries and experimenting with them. Additionally, we present 5GinFIRE as the forerunner experimental playground, together with three uses cases, wherein new components, architecture designs and APIs may be tried and proposed before they are ported to more industrially mainstream 5G networks that are expected to emerge in large scale.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.