Initiatives to Achieve the IOWN (Innovative Optical and Wireless Network) Concept

1.1 Responding to diversity

What makes this new world diverse is the understanding of others. To deepen such understanding, it is very helpful to see information and sensibilities from the perspective of others. To build this world through technology, it is necessary not only to obtain more information by developing high-definition and highly sensitive sensors but also to process information by taking into account the sensibility and subjectivity of others. It is necessary to incorporate not only science and technology but also the humanities and social sciences. We use the term natural for the condition that arises when humans enjoy the results of technology without stress. We also use the term natural harmonic for a world where people and the environment are in harmony. These will be our objectives.

1.2 Transcending the limits of the Internet

In such a world, transmitting and processing a huge amount of information is required, and current information and communication systems cannot handle such information. It is estimated that the amount of Internet traffic in Japan will increase 190 fold from 2006 to 2026 (From 637 Gbit/s to 121 Tbit/s) and global data volume will increase 5.3 fold in just 7 years (33 ZB in 2018 to 175 ZB in 2025) (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1. Global data growth.

If we try to mitigate such a situation using only current information communication systems, we will face serious problems such as further increase in communication volume, further complication of networks, and increase in delay due to congestion.

1.3 Overcoming increases in power consumption

The explosive increase in the number of connected devices due to advances in IoT not only increases network load but also raises serious concerns about energy consumption (Fig. 2). The increase in power consumption of datacenters, which are essential for providing cloud services, has become a global problem.

Fig. 2. Power consumption of IT (information technology) equipment.

We are now facing the density limit of integrated circuits. The degree of integration has been reduced to nanometers, and manufacturing is running up against physical limits. As power consumption increases, the temperature increase in integrated circuits due to an increase in the rate of heat dissipation is becoming evident, and the limit of processor clock frequency is starting to be noticed.

2.1 All-Photonics Network

As the number of people and things connected to a network increase, advanced, complex, and large-scale information processing such as for AI will require a vast amount of power consumption. To reduce such power consumption and meet mission critical service requirements, NTT applies photonics technologies to end-to-end environments for achieving ultra-low-power consumption, large-capacity, and low-delay networks. For example, NTT aims to increase power efficiency 100 fold by developing transmission devices that control optical wavelengths and photonics-electronics convergence devices. NTT also aims to expand transmission capacity 125 fold by increasing multiplexing in optical fibers and expanding multicores in a fiber (Fig. 4).

Fig. 4. Target performance of All-Photonics Network.

2.2 Digital Twin Computing

A digital twin is an image of real-world objects, such as production machines, aircraft engines, and automobiles in factories, by mapping their shapes, conditions, and functions into cyberspace and expressing them accurately. Using digital twins enables us to analyze the current situation, predict the future, and simulate objects in cyberspace.

Digital Twin Computing is a new computing paradigm that makes it possible to reproduce and simulate the interaction between things and people freely in cyberspace by conducting computations such as exchange, fusion, duplication, and synthesis for many digital twins representing the real world [2].

2.3 Cognitive Foundation^®

To achieve low-power-consumption, high-capacity, high-quality communication networks and large-scale interactions between people and objects, it is necessary to select and use various resources appropriately. The Cognitive Foundation is an infrastructure that provides a set of functions necessary to build and operate services by using various methods of collecting, processing, storing, and communicating data scattered throughout various locations.