V2MEC: Low-Latency MEC for Vehicular Networks in 5G Disaggregated Architectures

5G redefines the network architecture, through the introduction of base station disaggregation, adding up to the overall flexibility for deployments of network elements based on the existing demand. Moreover, through the wide application of Multi-access Edge Computing (MEC), the latency for accessing services offered on top of the infrastructure can be drastically minimized, thus supporting several applications that exchange critical data over the network. Vehicular communications are a type of applications that can highly benefit from the MEC approach, as they need to exchange critical data with roadside infrastructure (V2I). Nevertheless, the technology through which the vehicles exchange data with the infrastructure may cause fluctuations to the network performance observed by the end-users. In this work, we blend the concept of disaggregated 5G base stations with integrated access for non-3GPP technologies, and the MEC concept, by realizing a novel placement for services that is not yet suggested in existing literature. The setup is applied to a vehicular environment, providing the ability to dynamically steer the traffic over multiple technologies serving each user (vehicle) of the network. We implement, deploy and evaluate our solution in a testbed environment, providing proof on reduced latency for accessing the MEC services as well as the role that the technology selection plays for the overall performance observed by the end-users.

Automated summary

5G technology redefines network architecture through base station disaggregation and MEC application, improving flexibility in network element deployment. For vehicular communications, placing services in new locations can optimize data exchange and reduce latency.