Design and Simulation of a Hybrid Architecture for Edge Computing in 5G and Beyond

Abstract

Edge Computing in 5G and Beyond is a promising solution for ultra-low latency applications (e.g., Autonomous Vehicle, Augmented Reality, and Remote Surgery), which have an extraordinarily low tolerance for delay and require fast data processing for a very high volume of data. The requirements of delay-sensitive applications (e.g., Low latency, proximity, and Location/Context-awareness) cannot be satisfied by Cloud Computing due to the high latency between User Equipment and Cloud. Nevertheless, Edge Computing in 5G and beyond can promise ultra-high-speed data processing thanks to the placement of computation capabilities closer to endpoint devices, where 5G encourages the speed rate that is 10 times faster than 4G LTE-Advanced. This paper deeply investigates Edge Computing in 5G and characterizes it based on the requirements of ultra-low latency applications. As a contribution, we propose a hybrid architecture that takes advantage of novel and sustainable technologies (e.g., D2D communication, Massive MIMO, SDN, and NFV) and has major features such as scalability, reliability, and ultra-low latency support. The proposed architecture is evaluated based on agent-based simulations demonstrating that our proposal can satisfy requirements and has the ability to respond to high volume demands with low latency.