Summary
5G networks are good at sending data quickly and reliably, but controlling machines in real time needs more than just speed and accuracy. The authors propose Det-5G, a new way to manage the scheduling of communication between machines and controllers so that messages arrive predictably and on time, even when network conditions change or many devices compete for signals. Their approach treats the entire communication cycle as a single task and adapts how resources are used, improving timing predictability and reliability compared to current methods. This could help industries use 5G for controlling equipment more safely and efficiently as wireless technology progresses.
5Gultra-reliable low-latency communication (uRLLC)closed-loop controlschedulingradio resource allocationdownlink and uplinklatencyreliabilitymulti-device contention5G-Advanced
Abstract
The ultra-reliable low-latency communication (uRLLC) capability of 5G has created significant opportunities for industrial wireless connectivity, yet widespread use of cellular networks for closed-loop control remains challenging. Closed-loop control requires more than low packet latency and high reliability: cyclic command/feedback exchanges must complete within predictable time bounds despite changing channel conditions, recovery transmissions, mobility, and multi-device contention. This paper introduces Deterministic-5G (Det-5G), a unified radio resource allocation framework for industrial closed-loop control. Det-5G treats the complete bidirectional control cycle as the scheduling object and combines coordinated downlink/uplink allocation, adaptive bundled transmissions, group-oriented downlink communication, and optimized multi-user uplink scheduling over 5G air-interface. Its performance is evaluated through a combination of closed-form analysis and Monte Carlo scheduling experiments, with comparisons against conventional dynamic grant-based scheduling, semi-persistent scheduling/configured grant operation, and fixed proactive repetition. The evaluation shows that Det-5G improves predictability of cycle completion, maintains the target reliability under changing link conditions, and scales more effectively to multi-device control than conventional reactive scheduling, while adapting radio resource use instead of continuously provisioning for the worst case as in fixed repetition. These characteristics make cycle-oriented scheduling a pragmatic solution for reducing the determinism gap that limits the use of 5G for closed-loop control in different verticals, especially as it evolves through 5G-Advanced toward 6G.