6G-TWIN: A Project for Smarter and More Sustainable Mobile Networks

A Project for Smarter and More Sustainable Mobile Networks.

Author: Proximus NXT

02/01/2024

Telecoms

As part of the Horizon Europe program*, Proximus NXT and LIST (along with a consortium of major industrial entities, universities, and international research centers) will work closely together to design, experiment with, and standardize new network architectures featuring greater intelligence and automation.

Named 6G-TWIN and starting on January 1, 2024, this project aims to experiment over three years with the concept of a digital twin for a wireless communication network and to test its usefulness for the future deployment of 6G networks.

By being the first Luxembourgish operator to work on this topic, Proximus NXT confirms its innovative approach within the telecommunications sector and will contribute to the development of tools that will be essential for the future of wireless communications in Europe.

Leveraging AI for the Next Generation of Networks

The integration of digital technologies into Luxembourg’s economic sectors, such as transportation and manufacturing, has increased the demand for more efficient communication and computing services. To meet this demand, it is essential to adopt innovative approaches to prepare the architecture of the upcoming 6G, expected around 2030, to surpass the current capabilities of 5G.

Proximus NXT will explore how to concretely leverage the digital twin concept as well as AI-based systems to plan, manage, and control the next generation of intelligent networks. Creating a real-time digital replica of the network’s physical infrastructure will allow the training of models and testing of different scenarios before deploying them on the physical network, resulting in significant time and cost savings. This will also make future networks more efficient and intelligent, enabling optimization of technical parameters in advance, anticipating potential failures, and improving energy efficiency.

The project will not remain purely theoretical; it will also focus on building demonstrators around the teleoperation of connected vehicles to validate the studied concepts.

Finally, Proximus NXT and its partners will share the results and best practices in network architecture with the European telecommunications ecosystem.

About the Horizon Europe Project

Horizon Europe is the European Union’s research and innovation framework program, aimed at addressing societal challenges and strengthening the EU’s scientific and innovative excellence. For the 2021–2027 period, its total budget is nearly €100 billion, making it the largest research funding program in the world to support innovation, competitiveness, and practical problem-solving.

The program focuses on transforming the European economy and society toward greater sustainability and digitalization, helping the European Union achieve its climate neutrality goals by 2050.