Background and History of OpenAirInterface (OAI)

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Introduction

OpenAirInterface (OAI) is an open-source project spearheaded by the Mobile Communications Department at EURECOM. It is designed to implement the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards on general-purpose x86 computing hardware and Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) Software Defined Radio (SDR) cards, promoting innovation in mobile and wireless technology domains.

Why OAI was Created

The main motivation behind the creation of OAI was to democratize innovation in the evolving 5G landscape, making it an ideal platform for both industrial and academic research. OAI aims to:

  • Provide a 3GPP-compliant reference implementation of key elements of 4G and 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) and core network systems.

  • Enable users to set up a compliant 4G/5G network that can inter-operate with commercial equipment, thus bridging the gap between theoretical research and practical implementation.

OAI Implementation

  • Hardware Utilization: Implements 3GPP standards on general-purpose x86 hardware and COTS SDR cards.

  • Software Division: The software is divided into two main projects:

    • OAI Radio Access Network (OAI-RAN): Implements 4G LTE and 5G Radio Access Network.

    • OAI Core Network (OAI-CN): Implements 4G LTE Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and 5G Core Network.

Each project resides in separate repositories and is distributed under separate licenses.

Unique Aspects

OAI’s distinctive features include:

  • Open-Source License: The OAI Public License v1.1, created by the OAI Software Alliance in 2017, is a modified version of the Apache V2.0 License. It allows significant patent holders to contribute to the OAI source code while protecting their patent rights.

  • Contributor Agreement: All contributors of ideas, code, or documentation to OAI projects must sign an Individual Contributor License Agreement (ICLA).

  • FRAND Terms: The license allows contributing parties to make patent licenses available to third parties under Fair, Reasonable, and Non-Discriminatory (FRAND) terms.

  • Non-commercial Use: OAI code is free for non-commercial and academic research purposes.

OAI Community and Future

  • Community Growth: OAI has a rapidly growing community that supports massive 5G-enabled government, academic, and research use cases. It fosters a thriving ecosystem for research, prototype system development, and system integration through the OAI Software Alliance, a non-profit consortium.

  • Future Development: Continuous development of new features for future 5G networks is planned. The OAI community roadmap provides a sequence and timeline for the availability of different functions of a 3GPP-compliant 5G core.

Conclusion

OpenAirInterface continues to be a pivotal platform for the exploration and implementation of 5G technologies. By providing tools and resources that lower the barriers to entry for 5G research and development, OAI facilitates innovative advancements in the telecommunications field, promising to shape the future of mobile and wireless communications.