RIS assisted wireless networks: Collaborative regulation, deployment mode and field testing

Abstract

In recent years, reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) have made significant progress in engineering application research and industrialization, as well as in academic research. However, the engineering application research field of RIS still faces several challenges. This article analyses and discusses the two deployment modes of RIS‐assisted wireless networks, namely network controlled mode and standalone mode. It also presents three typical collaboration scenarios of RIS networks, including multi‐RIS collaboration, multi‐user access, and multi‐cell coordination, which reflect the differences between the two deployment modes of RIS. The article proposes collaborative regulation mechanisms for RIS and analyses their applications in the two network deployment modes in‐depth. Furthermore, the article establishes simulation models of three scenarios and provides rich numerical simulation results. An actual field test environment is also built, where a specially designed and processed RIS prototype was used for preliminary field test and verification. Finally, this article puts forward future trends and challenges.