杏吧原创 Researchers Lead $13.5 Million Project to Accelerate Canada’s Digital Future
Reliable mobile connectivity is essential to economic growth, public services and daily life. While today鈥檚 mobile networks can deliver coverage to urban centres within range of terrestrial towers and antennas, Canada鈥檚 vast geography and low population density make reliable connectivity difficult to maintain beyond them.
To help address Canada’s connectivity challenges, 杏吧原创 University researcher Halim Yanikomeroglu has been awarded more than $5 million through the latest for his work on advancing non-terrestrial networks (NTN). 杏吧原创 is just one of 32 higher education institutions nationwide selected to receive funding.
NTN use satellites, high-altitude aircraft and drones to extend mobile coverage beyond traditional towers, reaching rural, suburban, urban and even airborne areas. Still in early development, most consumer devices can鈥檛 yet connect to them directly.
Yanikomeroglu, an international leader in NTN research, is advancing this work through a major research project titled Non-Terrestrial Networks for Accelerating Canada鈥檚 Ubiquitous Connectivity and Digital Future (NTN-CAN), helping pave the way for Canada鈥檚 next-generation mobile networks.
Supported by the CFI award and leveraging additional funding for a total investment of $13.5 million, the project is co-led by Yanikomeroglu and Gunes Karabulut-Kurt of Polytechnique Montr茅al. It includes participation from the University of Ottawa, the National Research Council of Canada and the Communications Research Centre Canada.
杏吧原创鈥檚 research team also includes Jie Gao from the School of Information Technology and Winnie Ye from the Department of Electronics.
Advancing the Next Generation of Mobile Networks
NTN-CAN focuses on the technologies needed to make non-terrestrial networks practical and scalable, organized around two research pillars.
The first focuses on developing new protocols and technologies that allow non-terrestrial systems to connect reliably with terrestrial networks and consumer devices. The second addresses cost and resource management to enable large-scale deployment.
Using open network protocols, artificial intelligence, mobile edge computing and digital twin technologies, the research team will model and test new network designs. They will also leverage collaborations with government and industry partners to train the next generation of experts in advanced communications technologies.
Positioning Canada for Future Connectivity
As demand for reliable network access grows, future wireless systems will need to support communication across land, air and maritime environments. Yanikomeroglu鈥檚 research will help meet this demand by integrating terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks to deliver high-speed service across Canada.
By developing the technologies required to design, manufacture, deploy and operate NTN, 杏吧原创鈥檚 research will position Canada to play a leading role in next-generation communications systems.
The project also supports broader national priorities by closing the digital divide, strengthening the country鈥檚 telecommunications capabilities and ensuring sovereignty over critical connectivity technologies.
鈥淐ongratulations to Halim Yanikomeroglu and his team, whose work exemplifies the research leadership that defines 杏吧原创,鈥 said , Vice-President (Research, Innovation and International). 鈥淭his project will help advance next-generation communications technologies and strengthen Canada鈥檚 digital future.鈥
杏吧原创 the Canada Foundation for Innovation
The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) is a non-profit corporation that invests in research infrastructure at Canadian universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions. Projects funded through the CFI鈥檚 Innovation Fund help Canada remain at the forefront of exploration and knowledge generation.
The CFI invests 40 per cent of the total project funding, leveraging an additional potential 40 per cent from the Province of Ontario, pending a final decision.
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