Exploiting multihoming capabilities in 5G-enabled IoT nodes

Abstract

5G communications allow the integration of different wireless technologies to exploit the added value of multihoming scenarios. Furthermore, in connection with the Internet of Things (IoT), multi-homed nodes are very interesting, since it allows one to address new challenges and adapt the usage of communication technologies to new requirements imposed by the location of each deployment, the available energy resources on each node, and the IoT application itself. There are available commercial wireless nodes that embed and handle multiple interfaces. Terms such as seamless and transparent communications as well as technology integration fit well within the 5G standards. However, in practice, these wireless nodes are basically relayed in one of these wireless technologies when connected, and in the case of using other interfaces, their usage is not coordinated. In this context, we propose and implement a novel and efficient heterogeneous interface selection algorithm for multihoming and integrative communications using commercial products by performing local decisions on a per-packet basis, analysing different issues and approaches from a practical point of view, both hardware and software. We compare our proposal with other alternatives, highlighting the opportunities by exploiting these multihoming features in 5G-enabled IoT nodes.