As a long-term and comprehensive developer of 3GPP technology, InterDigital has made more than 60,000 contributions to global standards. Our skill in developing technologies at the intersection of wireless and video fosters the development of advanced defense communication systems built on 5G standards and uniquely positions InterDigital to support emerging U.S. government initiatives around 5G defense development.

InterDigital’s primary areas of expertise in 5G defense deployments include:

• Physical layer modification to 5G New Radio (NR), deployed as Open RAN technology, for secure communication.
• mmWave Mesh Networking driven by L2 routing to reduce latency, graceful degradation and survivability.
• Edge Compute Emulation Platform for simulating various aspects of 5G defense deployments.
• Potential to provide complete 5G protocol stack, with partners, for deployment of enhanced NodeB and Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) for military nodes.

Developed for customization and experimentation, InterDigital technology platforms are built around flexible architectures like O-RAN, OpenFlow, Kubernetes, and field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based hardware solutions. This flexibility allows InterDigital to provide 5G New Radio platforms that can be modified or tailored to defense applications.

Committed to developing and shaping future standards, InterDigital has also dedicated a team of more than 20 engineers with 3GPP standards expertise to drive changes that enable DoD modifications to the air interface that enhance and future-proof the wireless solution.

InterDigital has a long history of supporting Department of Defense (DoD) projects and government communication needs. Tracing back to the 1980s, InterDigital established bullet-proof secure and mobile communications equipment at the Reagan Ranch and supported rapid communications systems in Kuwait following Operation Desert Storm. Over the years, InterDigital has contributed to multiple government projects as a sub-prime contractor and commercial off the shelf (COTS) supplier.

More recently, InterDigital’s government contracts have supported U.S. Army research around dual-use operations 1390 MHz and commercial bands, the U.S. Navy’s Mobile User Objective System (MUOS), Army tactical communications systems for use in Anti-Access and Area Denial (A2AD) environments and several others.

Today, our focus is centered on open source 5G solutions that align with DoD 5G initiatives. InterDigital has collaborated on multiple 5G research platforms that facilitate a flexible, open-innovation framework for government and defense efforts. InterDigital was an integral participant in several National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded wireless R&D programs like the Platforms for Advanced Wireless Research (PAWR), Cloud Enhance Open Source Defined Mobile Wireless Testbed for City-Scale Deployment (COSMOS) and the Platform for Open Wireless Data-driven Experimental Research (POWDER).

InterDigital’s government research projects have included:

SBIR - N192-128 Clipping Reconstruction (AIRIS)

2019-2020

This project produced a simulation study of the reconstruction of wireless signal (clipped ADC samples) using AI/ML algorithms to reconstruct signals damaged by non-linear distortions. This project initially targeted applications like Pilot contamination in massive MIMO, the act of reconstruction due to short bursts of interference or missing data, and the repair of non-linear distortions in transmitter and receiver.

SBIR mmWave for Army Tactical Comms (Phase I)

2019

InterDigital researched and developed cost effective communication systems for use in Anti-Access and Area Denial (A2AD) environments. The solution utilized novel waveforms and techniques that operate in the mmWave frequency band in both stationary and on-the-move (OTM) conditions.

SBIR - Emulated LTE Analysis Environment (Phase I, Phase I Option)

2018-2019

InterDigital developed an emulation system capable of deploying a full Long-Term Evolution (LTE) 5G architecture that uses open-source software, into a self-contained personal computer for Extendable Mobile Ad-hoc Network Emulator (EMANE). The project experiments with utilizing LTE for tactical communication under varying scenarios and conditions.

US Army Research Project (CERDEC)

2006-2009

InterDigital was the prime contractor responsible for designing and prototyping 3GPP commercial technology for dual use operation in 1350 MHz and 1390 MHz and commercial bands. Due to reduced duplex spacing, the RF front end (transmitter and receiver) was redesigned for low noise and high-power amplification.

US Navy’s Mobile User Objective System (MUOS)

2004-2009

This program deployed a constellation of satellites that provided narrowband ultrahigh frequency (UHF) communications to mobile and fixed-site users worldwide. InterDigital served as the sub-prime contractor, as well as COTS supplier to General Dynamics, the primary contractor for communication technology.  InterDigital contributed modified WCDMA (HSPA) technology for mobile and fixed users.