Medium Access for Push-Pull Data Transmission in 6G Wireless Systems

2025-04-03

AI Summary

To address the coexistence challenge of push- and pull-based data transmission and the misalignment between resource scheduling and semantic requirements in 6G AI-native communications, this paper proposes the first communication-objective-driven push–pull taxonomy and a synergistic MAC design paradigm, overcoming limitations of static resource slicing. Methodologically, it integrates goal-oriented protocol design, O-RAN architecture adaptation, communication semantic modeling, and joint optimization of timeliness and semantic relevance. Contributions include: (i) a scalable push–pull cooperative MAC framework; (ii) explicit characterization of key design trade-offs; (iii) a defined system integration pathway; and (iv) deep coupling between AI task objectives and underlying MAC mechanisms. This work establishes foundational theory and architectural support for intelligent wireless access in 6G.

Technology Category

• Planning, Routing, and Scheduling: Optimization of Spatio-temporal Systems
• Multiagent Systems: Agent Communication
• Search and Optimization: Sampling/Simulation-based Search

Application Category

• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Applied ML and AI for Web-based mobile applications
• Semantics and Knowledge: Methods to enhance, augment, integrate or synergize semantic models such as knowledge graphs and LLMs
• Search and Retrieval-Augmented AI: Personalized, context-aware and across-device search

Abstract

Medium access in 5G systems was tailored to accommodate diverse traffic classes through network resource slicing. 6G wireless systems are expected to be significantly reliant on Artificial Intelligence (AI), leading to data-driven and goal-oriented communication. This leads to augmentation of the design space for Medium Access Control (MAC) protocols, which is the focus of this article. We introduce a taxonomy based on push-based and pull-based communication, which is useful to categorize both the legacy and the AI-driven access schemes. We provide MAC protocol design guidelines for pull- and push-based communication in terms of goal-oriented criteria, such as timing and data relevance. We articulate a framework for co-existence between pull and push-based communications in 6G systems, combining their advantages. We highlight the design principles and main tradeoffs, as well as the architectural considerations for integrating these designs in Open-Radio Access Network (O-RAN) and 6G systems.

Problem

• Design MAC protocols for 6G push-pull communication
• Integrate AI-driven and legacy access schemes
• Ensure coexistence of push-pull in O-RAN systems

Innovation

• AI-driven push-pull communication taxonomy
• Goal-oriented MAC protocol design guidelines
• Co-existence framework for 6G O-RAN integration