F5G Advanced Release 4 Specifications published

The F5G-A technical requirements, gaps, and technology landscape document (“Fifth Generation Fixed Network (F5G); F5G Advanced Technology Requirements and Gap Analyses; Release 4”) specifies the technical requirements for implementing the use cases as described in the F5G-A Use Case, Release 4 document, and lists the technical and standardization gaps for this use cases. Finally, it describes the current standardization situation with regards to the existing technologies available.

The F5G-A architecture release 4, specifies an end-to-end fixed optical network architecture based on the release 3 version. The F5G-A architecture improves the following aspects:

• Quality on Demand Interfaces
• FTTR for large Wi-Fi networks including policy control
• The concept of service packages
• Addition of computing and AI capabilities including the interaction with the F5G network
• All-optical layer extension for wavelength sharing for optimally connecting central office network elements
• Fine granular services over optical networks for easy and optimized cloud access

Specifically, the following technical features have been added to the architecture compared to release 3.

• From computing planes to the use of computing for intelligent behaviour of the network including using optical communication for supporting AI application in the data centres or on the network equipment.
• Evolution of the scope in Release 4 from end-to-end networking (end user device to the core network) to include the intra-datacentre networking and inter-datacentre networking (for local as well as centralized data centres).
• Using optical sensing for improved operational excellence including co-route detection, detecting and monitoring the passive fibre fabric (access, aggregation, and core network).
• Improved Energy efficiency using intelligent mechanisms for powering on and off equipment and ports.
• Point-to-Multipoint OTN (P2MP OTN) improving the usage of (fg)OTN technology on P2MP Optical Distribution Networks (ODN), typically towards the edge of the network.
• Addition of Generative AI capabilities for various intelligent F5G-A tasks.
• Intelligent FTTR services enhancing the FTTR capabilities from networking to many more intelligent services for homes and businesses.
• The improved large-scale sensing and intelligent operation of industrial networks.
• PON based industrial optical networks as technology for the Fibre To The Machine (FTTM) scenario.

It is to note that also two additional test specifications (Industrial PON and 50G-PON) have been published, which will be described in a separate blog post.

The future work will concentrate on F5G Advanced release 5. ETSI ISG F5G welcomes contributions of use cases and features for release 5 of F5G.