SBIR Phase I: Wireless-Wireline Convergence

第一阶段项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是通过以显著降低的成本和显著的节能实现广泛的5G手机覆盖来改善每个人的连接。所提出的技术可能会加速5G部署，并在城市和农村地区普及5G。这一覆盖范围将产生积极影响，弥合美国不同地理区域和不同社会经济群体之间的数字鸿沟，为传统上未得到服务和服务不足的社区带来远程工作、远程教育、远程医疗和远程医疗的新机会。该项目的技术创新可以允许中频段和高频段蜂窝信号通过现有的双绞线铜线以及同轴电缆，光纤和以太网电线进行传输，以实现跨越障碍提供基于5G的服务，这些障碍是从塔通过空中传输的信号无法穿透的。该项目开发的技术将重用现有的有线基础设施，减少部署更多蜂窝塔的需要，提供更环保的解决方案。这个小型企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目有可能为将5G蜂窝覆盖扩展到家庭和建筑物内部的问题提供低成本的解决方案。拟议项目旨在解决与蜂窝用户线技术的总体可行性和性能潜力有关的关键技术问题，以及相应的高级别部署指南。这些问题将通过开发详细的仿真平台、使用现有射频集成电路（RFIC）和现场可编程门阵列（FPGA）组件设计和开发网络侧和客户侧原型单元（包括两个单元之间的通信协议）来解决。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过评估来支持使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Phase I project is to improve connectivity for everyone by enabling widespread 5G cellular phone coverage at significantly lower costs and substantial energy savings. The proposed technology may result in accelerated 5G deployment and ubiquitous 5G availability in both urban and rural areas. This coverage will have positive impacts, bridging the digital divide across different geographical areas of the US and across different socioeconomic groups, by bringing new opportunities for telework, tele-education, telehealth, and telemedicine to traditionally un- and under-served communities. The technological innovation of this project may allow mid-band and high-band cellular signals to be carried over existing twisted-pair copper wires, as well as coaxial cables, optical fibers, and Ethernet wires, to enable the delivery of 5G-based services across barriers that signals delivered over the air from a tower cannot penetrate. The technology developed in this project will reuse the existing wireline infrastructure and reduce the need for deployment of more cellular towers, providing a more environmentally-friendly solution.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project has the potential to provide a low-cost solution to the problem of extending 5G cellular coverage to the interior of homes and buildings. The proposed project seeks to address critical technical issues related to the overall feasibility and performance potential of the cellular subscriber line (CSL) technology, as well as the corresponding high-level deployment guidelines. These issues will be resolved through the development of a detailed simulation platform, the design and development of network-side and customer-side prototype units using existing radio-frequency integrated circuits (RFIC) and field-programmable gate array (FPGA) components, including the protocol for communication between the two units, and the validation of the technology though testing of the prototype units in the laboratory of a major wireless carrier.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.