Multifunctional Antenna Systems for 5G Applications

近年来，新的无线应用前所未有地出现，渗透到我们生活的方方面面。据预测，到2020年，连接的无线设备数量将达到340亿台。新兴的5G网络通过连接数十亿台设备将物联网(IOT)带入现实。5G物联网设备有望创造下一波互联网创新浪潮，具有重塑许多工业和消费环境的巨大潜力。它们将实现许多应用，如智能家居；用于健康监测和性能评估的可穿戴设备；环境监测；教育、娱乐和智能家电。 要在单一平台上托管所有这些应用并适应未来的应用，需要可扩展、灵活和多用途的能源智能无线设备。这些设备需要感知环境条件，适应用户要求，并决定如何在它们之间以自组织方式进行通信，以实现超级互联的万物互联。传统上，这些功能是在较高的物理层实现的，这些物理层远离与外部环境直接交互的天线。这种方法导致具有大量组件的庞大、复杂和昂贵的系统，不能适应现代无线应用所需的高水平的小型化和集成化。这些系统还需要大量的数字信号处理能力，并且具有高功耗。这些问题阻碍了它们成为广泛的商业产品。 这些挑战凸显出需要一种新的概念性方法来重新定义这些无线设备与其环境交互的方式。我们建议将传感、智能和自适应等主要特性的实现从更高的物理层转移到天线孔径级别，并研究这些系统成为天线结构不可或缺的新拓扑。这种方法使天线能够作为节能的多功能系统，具有无与伦比的集成度，所需的处理能力要小得多。 提出的概念对5G物联网系统和设备的未来产生了变革性的影响。预计许多加拿大行业，如无线通信、石油和天然气、建筑、智能家居和环境监测等行业，都将从这项提案的结果中受益匪浅。 该计划是这项建议不可或缺的一部分。凭借独特的培训环境，他们将准备好应对这一领域未来的前沿挑战。

The unprecedented emergence of new wireless applications in recent years pervades all aspect of our life. It is predicted that by 2020, the number of connected wireless devices will be 34 billion. The emerging 5G network brings the Internet of Things (IOT) to reality by connecting billions of devices. 5G IoT devices promise to create the next wave of Internet-enabled innovation with significant potential to reshape many industrial and consumer environments. They will enable many applications such smart home; wearable devices for health monitoring and performance assessment; environmental monitoring; education, entertainments, and smart appliances. To host all these applications and accommodate the future ones in a single platform; scalable, flexible and multi-purpose energy smart wireless devices are required. These devices need to sense environmental conditions, adapt to user requirements, and decide how to communicate among themselves in a self-organized manner for hyper-connected Internet of everything. Traditionally, these features are implemented at higher physical layers, which are far away from the antennas which have direct interaction with outside environments. This approach leads to bulky, complex and expensive systems with numerous components, which are not amenable to the high level of miniaturizations and integrations required by modern wireless applications. The systems also require significant digital signal processing capacity and have high power consumptions. These issues prevent them of being widespread commercial products. These challenges highlight the need for a new conceptual approach that will redefine the way that these wireless devices interact with their environments. We propose to transfer the implementation of main features such as sensing, intelligence and adaptability from higher physical layers to the level of antenna apertures and investigate new topologies in which these systems become integral to antenna structures. This approach enables antennas to act as energy efficient multi-functional systems with unparalleled level of integration with much less required processing power. The proposed concept has a transformational effect on the future of 5G IoT systems and devices. It is anticipated that many Canadian industries such those in wireless communications, oil and gas, constructions, smart homes, and environmental monitoring significantly benefit from the outcomes of this proposal. The HQPs are the integral part of this proposal. With the unique training setting, they will be ready to tackle the future cutting edge challenges in this field.