Toward Integrated Sensing and Communication Network: The Evolutionary Architecture for 5G-Advanced and Beyond

As the new generation of mobile communication that transcends traditional connectivity services, 5G-Advanced (5G-A) is promising to introduce the brand-new integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) capability to fully leverage the existing communication networks for the sensing of real-world environments and targets. To achieve this goal, in addition to the advancement of wireless ISAC technology, the architecture of the 5G-A network is also in urgent need to be enhanced. In this paper, we first investigate the typical ISAC scenarios and the existing research consensus regarding the 5G-A networks. We further propose an evolutionary end-to-end ISAC architecture for 5G-A networks and beyond, and design the functionalities of the new network functions (NFs) as well as refining the entire workflow of ISAC service. The proposed architecture could fully utilize the capabilities of UE, RAN and NFs to provide ISAC service under the existing 5G-A framework. Finally, in light of the ISACrelated tests conducted in the actual networks, we analyze the current outstanding challenges faced by the ISAC architecture and provide feasible solutions.