Fiber‐Wireless (FiWi)‐Enhanced Mobile Networks in the 6G ERA

Abstract

Although the original premise of 5G networks was to enable the Internet of Everything (IoE) services and applications, the current deployments of such networks prove otherwise. Shortcomings of 5G have recently attracted a great deal of attention from both the research community and the industry to define next‐generation 6G systems, as an enabler of a variety of disruptive applications ranging from extended reality (XR) to haptics. In this article, we review the 6G vision, paying particular attention to its underlying human‐centric premise. We then elaborate on the recently emerging concepts of Tactile Internet and Internet of No Things, which are envisioned to be enabled over FiWi‐enhanced low‐latency LTE‐Advanced (LTE‐A) heterogeneous networks (HetNets) using a TDM/WDM 1/10 Gb/s Ethernet passive optical network (PON) backhaul and a Wi‐Fi offloading front end with artificial intelligence (AI)‐enhanced multiaccess edge computing (MEC) servers placed at the optical‐wireless interfaces.